Arriving at a little mining village to take charge of the school. Violet Horner is insulted by a drunken miner. The mine superintendent comes to her rescue and knocks down the drunkard. A year later, Vi and the superintendent are married and living happily. Calvin (the drunken miner) has never forgotten the punch in the face, and one day while slouching around the mine he sees the paymaster enter the office with the superintendent. Calvin plans to get the money. He makes a few futile attempts to shoot the superintendent, but is always thwarted. The superintendent starts home with the money. Calvin follows him deciding to shoot him and get the money at the first chance. As the superintendent is about to enter his house he is shot in the back. He calls to his wife; she drags him into the house and slams the door in Calvin's face. Furious, Calvin starts to shoot through the door. Unable to get in, he starts to pry open the shutters. Inside the house, Violet, while trying to staunch the blood from her husband's wound, turns and sees Calvin attempting to break in the shutters. She runs to the kitchen and returns with a kettle of boiling water which she pours through the bottom of the shutters and scalds Calvin's hands. Furious, Calvin decides to try another entry and mounting the steps leading to an upper floor, he starts to smash the window. Violet hears the smashing glass, she thinks, and calling their dog (whom they have been sending to the grocery store), she writes a note calling for help, and giving it to the dog she sends him out the back door and to the store. The dog arrives at the store, the miners, who are hanging around, read the note and jumping in an open wagon which comes on at this time, they dash off. Calvin after smashing down a couple of doors, sets into the room where Violet is with her husband. He gets the cash box containing the money and is about to get out of the window when he is struck by a flash of lightning. The house takes fire; Violet drags her husband out of danger. Outside the miners rush on in time to see Vi drag her husband out of the flames. One of the boys goes inside and returns with the cash box, and tells them that Calvin is dead. All bare their heads and offer up a prayer of thanks to God.