Relations between Huckebein, a humble tailor, and Greizinger, a wealthy farmer, become strained after Greizinger breaks off the romance between his son, Franzl, and Huckenbein's daughter, Evi. However, after a situation with a 100 mark note taken from a pair of trousers pressed by Huckebein belonging to Greisinger is resolved, a valuable mineral spring is found on the tailor's property,and the warring fathers become friends and Evi and Franzl are married.
In Annemarie Brinkmann's small German village all the young men are recruited to the front in WWI. When her boyfriend Klaus Renken gets the call they spend their last romantic night together. Time goes by but one day when the pastor announces the names of the fallen villagers: Klaus is among them. Annemarie collapses while the congregation sings a funeral song.