During the aftermath of a nuclear apocalypse, four men sit by a fire inside a cell-like abode made of dirt. This makeshift house sits by a frozen road displaying old marks of great tanks and pits made by bombs. Doctor Jenkins is the owner of the cell, hosting three guests: two middle-aged men and one much younger man who is a musician. Jenkins had just finished reading to the men, revealing that he took four books with him when he knew the world was ending. The books were Shakespeare, the Bible, Moby Dick, and the Divine Comedy. He admits he may have been impractical, but he saved what he loves. The books, he says, contain what was once good in the world.   The men thank Doctor Jenkins for the reading and reveal they want to hear his phonograph. Jenkins says he has been using thorns as needles but will use one of his three steel ones to have good quality music. The musician pleads with him not to waste them, but Jenkins admits they cannot last forever. He reveals that he only plays the worn records once a week.   The musician selects a Debussy nocturne, which the others approve. As Doctor Jenkins prepares to play the record, the three men rise to their knees in worship-like anticipation. As the music plays, the four men are both amazed and pained, experiencing sorrowful recollections of the past. Afterward, Doctor Jenkins invites the three men to come again in a week.   In his cell, Jenkins digs dirt from the wall and places the phonograph and books securely inside the hole, sealing it afterward. He goes to bed, feeling with his hands “the comfortable piece of lead pipe."