Original subtitles

OLD RANGER: And now,Death Valley Days.

♪♪ [ trumpet ]

Ha.

Yah!

Yah!

Howdy, folks. I'm the Old Ranger,

and I have another interesting true story

for you about the historic Death Valley country.

A gold rush is thrilling.

But for sheer, spine-tingling excitement,

I know of nothing in all the history of our West

that can beat the great land rushes.

And it's about one of these

that I'm going to tell you tonight.

The story is called...

OLD RANGER: Every man for himself

and devil take the hindmost.

That's the rule

as strip by strip, the United States government

opened up the Indian territory

for public settlement.

So far, the so-called Kickapoo section

hasn't been added yet.

But already, cattlemen are roaming that range

with an appraising eye.

Now I know this wasn't no mirage.

Couldn't believe it myself the first time.

There's two more pools bigger than this,

just above here.

No more water for miles around.

Kickapoo Springs-- next thing to happen.

[ gasps ] I bet they don't serve nothing

in heaven as good as this.

Yes, sir.

If they ever open up this section,

I'm going to make the run and locate right here.

You?

What do you want out of land?

The same as anybody.

You got the whole plain country to rot over.

Why tie yourself down to a measly little--

how many acres is it they give away?

160.

A postage stamp.

Be mine, though.

Build a house right over there,

in the lay of those rocks.

Fine talk for a cowpuncher. I bet you got a girl.

No such luck.

Somebody else has been camping here.

Not too long ago, either. The fire's hardly cold.

Probably Kickapoos.Indians don't wear spurs.

See here where he set down

and left a print in the wet ground?

Must have been a fancy hombre, too.

Got a Mexican gold coin soldered to the side of it.

[ scoffs ] You should be a sheriff, Curt,

or a U.S. Marshall.

You don't even need the bloodhounds.

Yeah, we must've just missed him.

♪♪ [ piano ]

This time I'm going to pass up the tenant sites.

There's no property.What's going on?

They're opening up the Kickapoo strip.

The Kickapoo?

Josh, did you hear that.I ain't deaf.

"Said lands will, at and after the hour

"12:00 noon on the 15th day of June next,

and not before, be opened to settlement."

It's happened, Josh. What'd I tell you?

It's a good thing we drifted into town.

Supposin' I hadn't seen that notice

and missed out."Warning:

"Any person entering upon and occupying said land

before said hour on the 15th day of June is disbarred."

"No person who's been within set boundaries

"within 90 days of set date

"will be permitted to enter on

or acquire any rights." 90 days?

When was it we camped to Kickapoo Spring?

Back in March sometime.

It was the end of March.

The running schedule through June 15th--

that-that's more than a month off.

End of March to the middle of June.

That's less than 90 days.Only by a little.

Not enough to count.

You wouldn't let that make any difference, would you?

It's the law, Josh.

And a darn fool one, if you ask me.

No, it's fair.

They want to give everybody an equal chance.

If you've been in there like I have

know the ground, you've got an advantage over the rest.

Well?Well, I reckon that's that.

N-Now, listen, Curt.

Nobody but me knows you was in there.

Do you think I'd say a word? Why-why,--

No use, Josh. I can't do it.

You mean you'd give up the only chance

you have to own in Kickapoo Springs

just on a call of a little--Looks that way.

Curt Morrison, you're a plum jackass.

Maybe.And a doggone white son of a gun.

Tell you what, I'll make the run locate for you.

You can't if I can't.Yeah, that's right.

Couple of the best chasers.

MAN: Yes, sir, Clyde.

Finest quota section of the whole strip.

Plenty of water, good range land.

It's gonna bring a sweet price.

[ clears throat ] You making the run?

Nope.Me neither.

I just pick up the scraps. My card.

Oh. "Lawyer."Yes.

I followed the big Cherokee Run in '89.

Plenty of scraps to settle there.

And the Seminole in '91.

So you're making the run

just to cash in on the sale of the land.

Maybe. No law says you can't.

Right, Clyde?Right as rain.

Uncle Sam's purpose in opening up this country

is for homesteadin', not speculation.

Is that so? [ chuckles ]

I guess I don't happen to be the homebody type.

What's more, cowboy, it's none of your business.

Just relax, gents.

This here's a saloon, not a shooting gallery.

I'm getting plum-sick of patching it up

after trigger-happy gunslingers.

I make myself clear?

Clear enough for me. How 'bout you?

[ crowd murmuring ]

[ whistles ] Feisty cuss, wasn't he?

I heard what you said to that man.

I like your slant on things.

My name's Langley. Government Land Officer.

These runs are no picnic.

Anything can happen, usually does.

Lying, cheating, killing.

Takes men with guts to maintain order.

I could use all I could get.

I'm no policeman, mister.

Any good citizen should be willing

to be a policeman when necessary.

More of the same.

With the posting of news about the Kickapoo opening,

folks headed toward the territory

from every state of the Union.

They arrived by the hundreds,

by the thousands--

a crazy procession of eager land-seekers

from every walk of life,

all of them lured by this opportunity

to obtain something or nothing.

Until the day of the run, though,

nobody was allowed up near the boundary line.

You're not allowed up here until time for the run.

You'll have to wait back at the campsite.

You can't stay up here.

Go on back to the other side of the line.

Go on.

Get back, go on. Get back there, come on.

Turn around.

[ grunts ]

Hey, fellow, what do you think you're doing?

Waiting.

A woman.

I'm sorry, ma'am, but you and your husband

will have to stay back with the rest of the crowd

till morning, at the campsite.

I have no husband.

Your father or brother, whoever's making the run,

at daybreak, you can take his place on the line,

but not before.

I'm making the run.

You? You mean, you, yourself?

Why, you're just a girl. Where you from?

Paris, Kentucky.

Who's here with you?

Nobody.

You came out alone?

Fancy and I.

Your old man must be local,

letting you come out here.

If I had an old man as you call him,

I wouldn't be out here.

My father died two years ago.

Oh.

Mother and I thought if only we could get some land and--

It's out of the question for you to make this run.

I'm a good rider,

and Fancy here's fast.

Kentucky Thoroughbred.

From nose to tail.

Only kind of horse can make it is a Mustang.

Look, miss--

Carter, Bonnie Carter.

I don't like to throw cold water on your hopes,

but you haven't got a chance in a stampede like this.

You go back home and--

And what?

Do what any pretty girl should do.

Get married and let a man fight your battles for you.

Thank you for the advice. Come on, Fancy.

What was that all about?Crazy fool.

I'll say you are.

Send a pretty girl like that

into the arms of another man.

At daybreak the next morning,

the crowds moved up to the deadline...

[ crowd cheering ]

waiting for the signal

that would open up the promised land.

Stay back of the line.

Stay back until you hear the sergeant whistle.

MAN: Water now, folks.

Three miles over there

before you can get another drink.

$1.00 a quart here to fill up those canteens.

Pretty. It's a long ways back there.

You better fill that canteen up.

[mutters]

Please, stop shoving.

It's a dollar here, folks. Dollar forward.

CURT: Keep back.

You heard him, keep back.

Not fair. I was here first. I've been here since dawn.

Keep back. Stop shoving.

So you're still here.

Yes.You, get back where you belong, mister.

I thought I told you yesterday.

But I've got to do it.

But you're risking your life.

Listen to that mob. They're half-crazy.

Nothing will stop them once they're loose.

One misstep, your horse stumbles,

and they'll trample right over you.

You see that fellow with the wooden leg?

Water. It's a dollar quart now.

That's what happened to him.

How 'bout you, mister?

You wanna fill your canteen?

I don't need to.

By sundown, I'll be the owner

of the finest spring on the Kickapoo strip.

Water, water.Look, Miss Carter.

If you're determined to make this run--I am.

Do I as tell you and drop back

until the rush has started.And lose out?

You won't if you follow my directions.

Your horse can never make the run all the way through,

and this is a short-cut.

After the stampede is underway,

it will spread out.

And there will be less danger of you

getting into a tangle with somebody.

Ride due south for about ten miles

till you come to an old freight road.

Yes?

Most of the folks would turn to the right or the left

and follow it but you keep straight on.

Straight on?

Don't mind how unpromising the country looks.

Keep going and you'll come to some low rocky hills.

Turn left and right along the base of them

till you come to an old game trail leading up.

It's steep and scary.We can make it.

Kickapoo Springs lie just beyond.

Kickapoo Spring?

That's the sweetest place for a homestead

in the whole territory. All the water you want.

Tree shelter from the wind.

How can I ever thank you?

By beating that man there to it.

[ bugle sounding ]

There's the bugle.

You better drop back while you can.

The starting gun will be fired in one minute. [ bugle continues ]

I'll ride out after the rush is over.

Good luck.

[ crowd cheering ]

[ gun firing ]

[ cheering continues ]

[mutters] Let's go.

We're lost, Fancy.

We missed the game trail somewhere.

[ snorting ]

[ snorting continues ]

We made it, Fancy. We made it.

MAN: No, you didn't, sister.

You're just a little too late.

There's my marker. Right over there.

BONNIE: There's no doubt about it.

He got here first.

It's too bad you got lost and missed the trail.

You got enough money, the place is for sale.

For sale?

Yeah.

Sure, he's only locating for profit.

He didn't want the land for himself.

Still singing that same tune, huh, cowboy?

You just keep it up.

You're gonna find yourself flat on your back with my boot

in your face.

Mister, you shouldn't have said that.

By the authority invested in me,

as a member of the militia patrol,

I challenge your right to this property.

When she got there, he was already there,

ahead of her.

He had the place all picked out.

Boasted openly about it before the run.

Sure, I made a beeline for it.

I admit it.

Just what are you trying to prove, Mr. Morrison?

That he was familiar with Kickapoo Spring.

Hmm. Like lots of others.

Including yourself.

You even knew a shortcut to the place.

But I didn't make the run.

No.

No, you got a-a girl to do it for you.

BONNIE: Oh! CURT: I didn't make the run because I was disqualified.

I've been on the strip within the past 90 days.

And so had you.

What are you talking about?

I wasn't anywhere near the place.

I haven't been on that strip since--

Since when?

In six months, at least.

Would you swear to that?

Sure.

On the night of March 26th,

Josh Kramer and I camped at Kickapoo Springs.

Tell them about it, Josh.Nothing to tell.

He's just wasting our time, Mr. Langley.

CURT: What we'd find there?

Water.

[ laughs ]

That's right. Someone else's campfire.

Ashes still warm. I said it was Kickapoos.

And what I'd say?

You said Kickapoos don't wear spurs.

Brilliant observation.

What else did I say?

You said he must have been a fancy hombre

because he had Mexican gold coins

soldered to the sides of them.

You're wearing them on these boots you were going

to plant on my face.

Just a minute.

Mr. Langley, this is a frame-up.

He just wants me off that land

so he can settle there himself.

With his girl. [ groans ]

I better wake him up so he can hear the verdict.

Best water in the territory.

And the last you'll ever have of it.

Now you got your papers, you're all set.

As soon as your mother arrives,

you can start homesteading.Yes.

There's no other spot like that

in the whole territory.

You have quite a spread there.

Why have you done all this for me?

Why? Because...

Because I'm...

Because I love Kickapoo Springs.

If this was a made-up yarn,

the good-looking cowboy would've married

the gal from Kentucky

and lived happily ever after at Kickapoo Springs.

But things in real life don't happen that way.

Curt Morrison went back to riding the range

and was working for an outfit

in New Mexico when he met with the accident

that put him out of cowpunching for keeps.

After that, he became a saddlemaker.

One of the best in all of the Southwest.

But with the changing times...

I'm sorry, Mr. Morrison,

but the bank can't extend the mortgage any further.

That means you'll foreclose.

I'm afraid we have no alternative.

I guess we should've been making seats

for automobiles instead of horses.

It's too bad.

You make a beautiful saddle.

Sound like a rider yourself.

I spent a good part of my life on a horse.

Around here?Over in the Kickapoo country.

Kickapoo? Yes, my folks

settled there in '95

when the strip was opened up.

You don't say?

My mother came on from Kentucky

to make the run, all by herself.

She was only 18 at the time.

She rode a thoroughbred mare named Fancy.

How do you know?

I was there myself.

Yeah, we were there ourselves.

You made the run, too?

No, just helped patrol the line.

Morrison? Morrison?

No wonder the name sounded familiar.

Why, I've heard of you ever since

I was a little bit of a button.

The times my mother has told us that story.

I often wondered about her.

Is...Is she still living?

Very much so.

And she still owns Kickapoo Springs.

Remember me to her, will you?

She was the prettiest girl I ever saw.

I certainly will.

I'd better be getting back to the bank.

Sorry about the foreclosure.

I'll make out an inventory.

And I'll get myself a drink.

Mr. Bogart.

You brought the foreclosure papers?

I've been tidying up. I'm all ready to vacate.

Here's an inventory of--

Curt Morrison.

Bonnie Carter.

MR. BOGART: Mother happened to be visiting me.

When I told her about you, nothing would do

but she must come right over.

I-I ran most the way.

Sorry you couldn't have seen the place

when it was a going concern.

That reminds me.

The bank no longer holds this mortgage, Mr. Morrison.

No?No.

I took it over.

And I don't like the paper it's written on.

Bonnie, you shouldn't have--

Don't tell me what I shouldn't do.

You tried that once before, remember?

I guess that takes care of my business.

So I'll leave you two to talk about Kickapoo Springs.

So you still have the place?

Yes.

The children wanted me to sell

after their father died.

They thought it was too remote for me alone.

But I just couldn't bear to do it.

I'm glad you didn't.

As a matter of fact,

I didn't really feel I had the right to.

Part of Kickapoo Springs has always

seem to belong to you.

Why did you run out on me that day, Curt?

You must have known how I felt.

I was afraid if I asked you to marry me,

you'd think I was doing it just to get the land.

You don't have to worry about that now.

Bonnie.

[ dog barking ]

You don't have to be very smart

to guess the outcome of this story.

As the old proverb has it, "Better late than never."

♪♪ [ trumpet ]