A small, mountain town. The populace here has long lived off the artisanal production of axes. But due to a glut of cheap, factory goods, the business magnate Brugger is no longer able to sell his axes and he dies before a complete economic collapse. His daughter Anna wants to marry Thomas Volderauer, a friend of her father's, who wishes to once more bring work to the town by moving his metal working factory there. Thus Franz, the son of old Atzinger, has no chance with Anna; especially as his father implores Anna to marry Volderauer. Embittered, Franz leaves the town. In order to earn money, Franz ends up as a tourguide for wealthy tourists and notices that their ice picks aren't good for anything, except maybe cutting ice for their fancy cocktails. He realizes that the manufacture of high quality ice picks, for example, could be good business for his town. He therefore returns there and organizes resistance to the demolition of the town forge.