Farmer Silas Hummel and his wife Martha are examples of the hard-fisted, miserly, narrow-minded type of farmers which, fortunately, are quickly disappearing. Martha gets up before the chickens, prepares breakfast by lamplight, and slaves ...See moreFarmer Silas Hummel and his wife Martha are examples of the hard-fisted, miserly, narrow-minded type of farmers which, fortunately, are quickly disappearing. Martha gets up before the chickens, prepares breakfast by lamplight, and slaves all day for her grouchy, never-satisfied husband. He is a sharp dealer in selling stock, and often makes a tidy sum, but every cent of it goes into the bank, until everything is sacrificed to the man's god: gold. They have no luxuries, only bare necessities. Chickens and eggs must be sold, not eaten, and were it not for a kind neighbor's advice to "buck up and ask for new dresses and things you want," she might have gone on and on in the same way until the end. But aroused by the neighbor's words, she takes a basket of eggs and trades them for enough calico for a new dress. She gets a severe lecture from her husband on the subject of spending money recklessly, but she doesn't care. Silas receives an offer to joint partnership with a western prospector in a hunt for a rich vein of gold reported at Death Valley; his greed aroused, he accepts. During his absence, Martha finds the key to his safe-deposit box at the bank, and in her newly-acquired spirit of independence she goes there and finds a comfortable fortune in cash and stocks. Meanwhile, after prospecting in vain for weeks, Silas gets lost in Death Valley and his terrible position brings home to him what a miser he is. Fortunately, after some terrifying experiences, he is found and looked after by a wandering prospector, but his partner comes across a skeleton, believes it is Silas, and sends word home to that effect. Martha hesitates no longer, divides the money in halves, and prepares to give her husband's half to charity and enjoy the rest. Silas, cured of his love for gold, returns unexpectedly, and in an intensely dramatic scene wins back his wife's love and everyone's respect. Written by
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