Calino's uncle leaves him an inheritance, but only if he can uncover it hidden in his uncle's house. Detective Onésime is called in to help, and is soon tangling with some criminals after the treasure too.
While accompanying his lady to a fashionable casino, Onésime hears someone playing an overpowering waltz on a mandolin, and he starts dancing with his lady. Everyone, from the kitchen hands to the chef, dance until their out of breath.
A mine owner discovers a vein of gold but unfortunately dies. His wife doesn't want to sell the mine and so the forman decides to lock her up in a cottage with a dangerous and hungry leopard.
In an effort to secure a promised inheritance, Onésime invents a time machine that speeds up activity on earth, hyper-animates men and machines, and telescopes the human life-cycle.
One day, Calino has the bold and imprudent idea to follow a woman down the street. The woman leads him all the way to the traveling lion cage run by her husband. To avoid her husband's jealous anger, the woman introduces Calino as an apprentice lion tamer.
Poor Eugénie! She's humpbacked and everyone wants to straighten her out, but when success finally comes, she's too tall not to cause disasters. To solve the problem, the help of a sword swallower is urgently needed.