- Tom Walker, a miserly man, is much beaten and bullied by his Amazonian wife, Dame Walker. The action of the piece takes place in New E3ngland, early in the eighteenth century, when the Puritans were still in power. Tom, having been well drubbed, slinks out of his house and goes fishing with Old Briggs. While they are safely anchored in midstream, the latter tells him that Captain Kidd, the pirate, buried his treasure in that neighborhood, which excites the cupidity of Tom. He deserts his companion and takes to the woods, camps near the charming spot, and is almost frightened out of his wits by the appearance of the devil, who warns him to be off.. "Out of the frying-pan into the fire," he goes home and, after telling his wife, receives a good beating, and she takes shovel in hand and proceeds to investigate the treasure herself. He endeavors to persuade her from her rash undertaking, but she hands him one from her "terrible left" and proceeds alone to unearth the treasure trove. The devil orders her away, but she puts up a stubborn fight, which is her last, as she disappears in the trench of her own making in a puff of smoke. His Satanic Majesty, having taken care of the tartar, seeks the cream in Tom's soul, which he bargains for on the ground that he will have the pirate's treasure and a beautiful young wife to boot, if he will give up said soul. Tom having lost his chief exercise in life, beatings from his wife, is willing to risk another consort who is young and beautiful, whose dowry is untold wealth. He consents to the compact, and then the devil makes him do all sorts of mean tricks, until Tom, overcome by remorse, seeks out the minister and begs him to save him from the devil. That worthy gives him a Bible and tells him to always keep it on his person and he will be immune. The devil, however, disguised, bribes his old friend, Briggs, to steal the Bible, so the devil gets his dues and poor Tom presumably goes to more suffering in the after-life.—Moving Picture World synopsis
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