Ésimésac is successful in persuading the people of Saint-Élie-de-Caxton to participate in a community garden despite the fact that they barely have enough food to sustain themselves. By working together to cultivate the land, each person will increase the harvest they receive. At the same time, there has been discussion over the construction of a new railway line, which promises to connect Saint-Élie-de-Caxton to the rest of the world and ushers in the hope of an abundance. Riopel, the huge blacksmith, begins construction on the railway track, and he gets the locals to invest in his project rather than wasting their time playing in the garden. The magnitude of Ésimésac's undertaking is inadequately accounted for by metal. But is it really possible for him to halt progress?