Many single men and women ask themselves how to know who will truly be a suitable partner. This amusing yet unsettling story provides a very significant answer: miserliness, or a person who sees giving as something that doesn't flow naturally, is a major red flag for a character that is difficult to live with. At the beginning of the story, the wealthy man is presented only as miserly - but it quickly becomes clear that he is much more than that...
Chasidut explains the famous question that was customarily asked of grooms in the Land of Israel: "Matza or Motzeh?" The intention of the question is to contrast two opposite verses from the sayings of King Solomon: "He who finds (matza) a wife finds good" and "I find (motzeh) more bitter than death the woman." When a person "finds a wife," it is "good" - but if the situation is "I find," meaning he seeks his own benefit - then the woman becomes "more bitter than death" to him. A person who enjoys giving can "find a wife," whereas miserliness is the main point by which one can identify a type of "I find."
Rabbi Shalom of Kaminka himself was very sensitive to this: although he had boxes full of Torah novellae, he did not print his books because he did not want his learning to become a source of financial gain. Similarly, although many benefited from his Torah and advice, he refused to become a "professional Rebbe" and take money from the chasidim who sought his counsel. This distancing from personal interest and the desire to benefit others are the central qualities one should seek and maintain throughout married life. In our story too, the desire to avoid giving was the cause of the wealthy man's domestic problems. Therefore, when Rabbi Shalom wanted to instill the quality of "finds good" in the wealthy man, he chose to tempt him into charity - even if only superficially.
Interestingly, Rabbi Shalom suggested that he should specifically build a mikveh - a form of charity that concerns Jewish domestic harmony.
