Dan Dunker, orphan, is descended from a long line of dunny makers, all with Royal Degrees. Left on the doorstep of Matron Maxine's Home for Wretched Waifs, he spends his days scrubbing and rubbing potties from dawn to dusk, all the while dreaming of becoming a famous dunny builder.
Dan's dreams come true, but when he meets up with Bungeye Ben, his mate from the orphanage, life gets complicated. Bungeye, who has become a bad-to-the-bone bushranger, convinces Dan that dunny-building skills and bushranging ways are all the two mates need to make their fortunes . . .