Jasper returns from England to find that Olivia has taken in Lottie, a young woman recently fired from the Carmody cannery, and her baby. Meanwhile, Eulalie Bugle and Archie Gillis are campaigning for Avonlea to amalgamate with Carmody, a situation that Alec, Bert Potts, and Stuart fight vigorously with a counter-campaign. An emotional address by Jasper seals a victory for the anti-amalgamation activists, but their luck soon changes when the Dale Cannery is struck by lightning and burns to the ground. Faced with no job, Lottie leaves her baby with the Dales and disappears.