Mr. and Mrs. Tightwad have quite a spat over the ancient silk hat that the man refuses to shelve. He shall no longer disgrace her, so the Mrs. sallies forth and, without taking hubby into her confidence, buys him a new silk tile for which she pays ten dollars. At home, she embellishes the hat with hand-worked initials and puts it back into the box. Alas! a tramp has been watching her. He likes the hat and manages to separate it from the box. The hat eventually finds its way to a second-hand store. Here, the proprietor marks it down to two dollars and expectantly rubs his Jewish hands. Mr. Tightwad happens along, sees the hat, the price, and the chance to satisfy the Mrs. He buys the hat and rushes home. The initials puzzle Mrs. Tightwad, who makes a dash for the box. It is empty but for the bill, which Tightwad reads, "Ten dollars." The shock crumples him into a heap. It also crumples the hat. To make matters worse, the Mrs. recites with emphasis the riot act.
—Moving Picture World synopsis