Tommy Hale, in the exuberance of unrestrained youth, makes "rough house" in his own home with such vigor that he smashes a valuable vase. In thus entertaining himself he is frequently admonished by Mrs. Graves to be careful. When she returns to the room after a moment's absence, she finds that the frightened Tommy has vanished and the beautiful vase a mass of wreckage on the hearthstone. Mrs. Hale happens in at this moment, and without giving credence to the old lady, discharges her on the spot. She goes to her poor tenement and finds her feeble husband, who earns a precarious living as a wandering musician. Threatened with eviction, he starts out to try and pay the rent overdue. He is run down by the sled of the reckless Tommy and his violin is shattered. The aged and injured musician is carried into the Graves' home, Tommy, thoroughly repentant, empties his savings bank, buys a new violin and tells his mother how he broke the vase. His father and mother are now so awakened to the forlorn situation of the aged couple that they give them a home for life.