Reverend Alden gets sick while collecting donations. Caleb Hodgekiss, an ex-convict, helps the Reverend by giving him a place to stay and volunteering to get the donations from Walnut Grove. Caleb poses as a friend of the Reverend so that he might get donations which he initially planned to keep for himself.

Adam wins a prestigious award. Laura and Albert give the Christmas money they had made from collecting honey, to Adam and Mary to go on a trip to receive the award. The stagecoach is involved in a very serious accident.