In a minor town the morose manager is primarily responsible for the bad atmosphere of a restaurant. But central for the plot are three persons: a male waiter who is never named (here called W), the female waiter Anna, and "the count", a self-invented nickname by a man cleaning plates. The count is skilled in making others do what he wants. Half a dozen of the personnel assist in a poorly planned and failed attempt to liberate a man whom the police move from one arrest to another. The event involves stealing a motorcycle and threatening policemen with a gun. Anna strongly tries to make contact with W. Finally it turns out that she need his help to break her sexual relation to the count, a relation that from her part is not motivated by positive feelings. W rejects her attempts. And then Anna has suddenly gone. She has got a pleasant job in another town. And then W's feelings awaken.
Первая часть экранизации тетралогии «Эмигранты» Вильгельма Муберга.
19 век. Семья Нильссонов из южной Швеции, уставшая выживать на клочке принадлежащей им неплодородной земли, продает все свое имущество и вместе с другими фермерами на корабле отправляются к берегам Северной Америки.
