Poor economic conditions cause the Ingalls to move closer to Mary. Mary is now teaching at the blind school. The Ingalls move to be closer to Mary, where she helps teach the younger blind students. Laura catches an orphan, Albert, stealing from their hotel. Charles becomes friends with Albert and invites him to Mary's birthday party.

Charles even sells his fiddle to buy Mary a gift. At the party, Mary gives Pa his fiddle back. Laura gives Mary a card. Mary is so proud of Laura writing the letter in braille. Almost everyone is in tears, including Mrs. Oleson, when Mary announces that she has nothing to wish for, since she has everything that she could possibly want.

A blind student feels he is useless. He is reluctant to do anything at the blind school. The student gains self-confidence when he is talked into being the center for the Winoka football team. He is able to throw Albert across the goal line during the game to score the tying touchdown for the Winoka Warriors, keeping the Warriors from losing.

Toby Noe wins a lottery of $5,000 and becomes a man of means. He buys the children a cartload of fireworks, for an annual celebration. Standish dupes Toby into losing all his money using cards and drink at the saloon. Everything comes to a head as the fireworks go off in the saloon. The Ingalls, Olesons, and Garveys get tired of the bustling city life during all this (Nels getting drunk and wins a whole pile of money), and they decide quickly to return to Walnut Grove. The Ingalls take Albert along with them.

When the blind school closes up, the people of Walnut Grove decide to make the old Reverend's house a blind school. Charles leads the students to their new school. Mrs. Oleson comes along on the trip because she believes that a prominent person will be with them.

+ This story is in part about racism. It begins with Joe Kagan's membership to the church in Walnut Grove, something Mrs. Oleson is very much against as he is black. Elsewhere, the blind school is forced to close. Charles and Joe Kagan lead the group of blind students through the woods to their new school in Walnut Grove, but not before Harriet has joined them, willing and eager because she hears they will be joined by more blind students and their teacher, who isn't blind, Hester-Sue Terhune. Harriet says the name Terhune is very prominent and it must be a sophisticated woman with a great upbringing. She buys a new dress and even wears a fancy wig. Harriet walks as she refuses to sit next to Joe Kagan on one of the wagons.