Sylvain is the town clerk of the small Provençal village of Coursoul. He is the darling of all the girls in the country. His brother, Désiré, a disabled carpenter, secretly loves Toinette, the lumber merchant's daughter. She falls in love with Sylvain. This one, convinced by the director of a traveling circus of the excellence of his voice, is about to leave everything to follow his career. But Désiré learns from Toinette that she is expecting a child from Sylvain. He goes to inform his brother, who reconsiders his decision. But Désiré will leave in his place, not to sing, but with his bruised heart to play Paillasse.