A straight-laced German schoolmaster, married with twelve children, finds that his daughter has inherited a house in South America from her aunt, who was banished from the family for her loose morals. Along with the house comes a considerable fortune. However, there is a catch: unless there is an occurrence in the schoolmaster's own family, similar to the circumstances that led the family to disown his sister, the deceased aunt, and before a certain date, his daughter cannot claim her inheritance. The prim and proper schoolmaster is in a quandary: shall he sacrifice the moral integrity of one of his virtuous daughters or let his girl miss out on inheriting her aunt's fortune?