The eighteenth century was a time of turbulent change, mirrored in the lives of the inhabitants of No. 34. When James, the oldest son, is coerced into an unhappy marriage by an unscrupulous and `fashionable` lady, he decides to `make his soul` and takes to the road, encountering many a danger along the way until he is press-ganged into joining the Navy. Meanwhile, at No. 34 the residents are clawing their way out of the destruction that is `fashionable society`, inspired by the preaching of the influential Wesley brothers. Finally they seem at peace, but nothing can fill the void left by their missing son.