All language subtitles for S15E01.The Day All Marriages Were Cancelled.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.H264.AAC-jenkins_track3_[eng]

♪ [ trumpet ]

Charles Debrille Poston,

often called
the "Father of Arizona,"

once operated a silver mine

about two-days ride
out of Tuscan.

He employed many people,

so a town grew up
around his vine,

and Poston just naturally
became the alcalde, or mayor.

He ran things
pretty much his own way,

and everyone was happy,

until, one day,
in 1859, came...

"I, James, take thee, Maria,
to my wedded wife."

I, James, take thee, Maria,
to my wedded wife.

"I pledge thee my troth
till death do us part."

I pledge thee my troth
till death do us part.

"I, Maria, take thee, James,
as my wedded husband."

I, Maria, take thee, James,
as my wedded husband.

"And pledge thee my troth
till death do us part."

And pledge thee my troth
till death do us part.

The ring, please.

[ inaudible speaking ]

Put it on her finger.

Now say...

"With this ring,
I thee wed. "

With this ring,
I thee wed.

For as much
as James and Maria

have consent together
in holy wedlock,

they've declared the same
before God

and in the presence
of this company.

I pronounce them
man and wife.

Well, Jimmy,
you may kiss her.

As the alcalde,
I have the honor

of being next.

Maria, may you have
as fine a family

as your pretty sister.

[ giggles ]

Congratulations, Jimmy.Thank you.

And don't forget
that, as my marshal,

I shall expect you to work
in the morning at 7:00.

Right. Yes.

Uh, tomorrow?

Next week.

[ all laugh ]

Oh.

Thank you.

Mr. Poston!Yes, Charlie?

All right,
what's the trouble?

"Trouble," he says.

"Trouble"!

Mr. Poston, if you ever
had trouble in your life,

you've never had trouble like
the trouble you're having now!

Charlie, keep your voice down.
You want to spoil the wedding?

Now, what is it?

Coming down the street
is a priest.

Father McCabe sent
by Bishop Lamy of Sante Fe,

and you know why?

No, I don't know why,
so tell me.

"Trouble," he says.

Mr. Poston,

every marriage
you perform

is illegal.

Every marriage is canceled.

Everybody's living in sin.

That's ridiculous.
I'm the alcalde.

And he's a priest,
direct from Bishop Lamy.

On the way down here,
stopped at every house.

He breaks up every couple
you've married.

They can't live together.

They're going out
of their mind!

Wait till the town hears.
There won't be any town.

You won't have any mine left,
and look what you just did.

Well, you did it again.

Now, wait a minute.
Wait a minute.

Let me think.Think?

[ donkey braying ]

Priest is coming
down the street now!

Charlie, you stay
out in the street.

Don't let that priest
come in here.

I have to get something.But how can I--

You got to get what?

You'll see.
Just let me handle this.

Don't worry.
I want no part of this.

You stay out here,
but calm down.

Don't let on we know
anything is wrong.

But--

Uh, hello, Father.

You are the alcalde,
Mr. Poston?

Who, me?

Oh, no, no, no.

I'm Charles Meyer,
the druggist.

This is Mr. Poston's house?

This?

Uh, yes, I believe it is.

Welcome, Father.
I'm Charles Poston.

We're honored
to have you in our town.

One of our greatest regrets
is, we have no church here,

so we're delighted
to have you pay us a visit.

Thank you, Mr. Poston.

Well, if you will
excuse me, Father,

I will have
to go back to work.

Of course. Nice to have
the Father with us, isn't it?

Yes, it's nice.

Nice. Very nice.

Nice, nice, nice,
nice, nice.

Mr. Meyer is a fine druggist.

He serves our town well.

I understand that you, too, have
rendered a service to the town,

a service for which
you have no authority.

Yes, sir,
I must confess that I have,

but when the need is great,

someone has to step in
to do the job.

I assume you're referring
to the money I issued.

Money?

Yes, sir. You see,
there was no money in this town,

and it became so hard
to do business

that I created
these paper dollars.

We call them "boletas."

I, uh...
I realize I should've

gotten permission
from the government,

but it was so far away,
and the need was so urgent--

Mr. Poston...

Don't worry about
their being good.

They can be redeemed
at any time,

at my mine, in silver,
full-face value.

Let me show you.

Most of the people
in this town, can't read,

so I used pictures
on these bills.

The lion is $10,

The bull is $5,

The horse is $1,

and so forth,
down to the pig,

which is two bits.

Mr. Poston...

It wasn't money that
I came here to discuss.

Well, no,
of course not, but...

Uh, now that the subject
has come up,

you know, it's so seldom
that we have an opportunity

to express our gratitude
for the good things

that have happened
to our town.

This is my chance.

Father, I'd like to make
a contribution to your work.

I will accept the money,
Mr. Poston,

in behalf of the church,

and I thank you,

but this was not the wrong
I was referring to.

Mr. Poston, by what authority
do you perform marriages?

Authority?

Well, there are no priests
for many miles.

There is a need,
and I am the alcalde.

Did you ever seek help
from the Bishop?

And did he ever give you
special permission

to join couples
in holy wedlock?

Special permission?

But I didn't know that--

Oh, now, I find it impossible
to believe that you didn't know

there were very strict rules
regarding marriage--

♪ [ festive music ]

[ people cheering ]

What's going on in there?

It's just a little party.

Mr. Meyer wouldn't
let me go in.

Would it be a wedding party?

[ clears throat ]
A wedding party?

Uh, yes, sir, it is.

And you performed
the marriage?

Yes, sir.

Uh...

Stop it.

Stop the music. Stop!♪♪

Father, how wonderful.

You've...just been married
by Mr. Poston?

Sí, Padre--
Yes, Father, we have.

It's my painful duty
to inform you...

that you're not
legally married.

In the eyes
of the church,

you're not man and wife.

Why not?

Because Mr. Poston
has not now,

nor has he ever had
the authority

to perform a marriage.

Are any of you married
here by Mr. Poston?

Sí, Padre.

Teresa and I, we were.

Then you, too, are not
legally married, my son.

[ people murmuring ]

Anyone else married
by Mr. Poston,

I warn you now
to separate

and to stay apart

until this problem
is cleared up.

This is our
wedding day, Father.

Couldn't you just
remarry us?

I'm sorry.

It'll have to wait until
this matter is cleared up.

Actually, your problem
is not quite as serious

as that of the others.

Are you an officer
of the law?

Yes, sir.

Good.

I want this man arrested
and held for a civil trial,

and mark you,

you tell your
Justice of the Peace

exactly what has
happened here,

and ask him to convene
the court for Monday.

I must go now

and warn everybody
in the area,

but I'll be back
for the trial on Monday.

Aw, Jimmy, be reasonable.
I have to see Charlie Meyer.

I've got to make plans.

You're under arrest.
Now get back in there.

Jimmy, who pays your salary?

That don't make
any difference.

You'd like to keep on
earning that salary,
wouldn't you?

You'd like to have Maria
as your wife?

You'd like to see
all of these marriages

make good by the court,
wouldn't you?

Well, I can fix it.How?

Keep me under arrest
if you want to,
but come along with me.

When we get to the store,
I'll explain what we have to do.

I don't know--By Monday night,

you and Maria will
be man and wife.

What do you say?

All right,
I'll listen.

Good.

No tricks now,
Mr. Poston,

'cause right now,
I wouldn't mind at all

pulling this trigger.

All right.
So talk a little.

My friend, do you know what's
going to happen to me Monday,

when Father McCabe
gets back here?

Now, don't look at me.
I warned you.

Now, listen to me.

He wants to take me
to court.

What's going to happen
when he finds out

we don't have a court?

See?

See, I-I told you
it would happen.

It's not going to happen.
We will have a court.

We'll have that trial
right here,

and we'll settle things
our own way.

We'll have all
those marriages made legal,

and that'll be the end
of our troubles.

Well, good...

but, um, what has that
got to do with me?

You're going
to be Judge Meyer.

Oh.

Oh, yeah.

And just where
do I preside?

I was thinking
right here.

Oh, no, you don't.

Now, wait a minute, Charlie--

No, no.No, wait a minute.

Maybe it is too small.

How about your, uh--
How about your warehouse?

Your warehouse--Oh, no, no, no.

That's out
of the question.

Charlie--I won't move
the merchandise.

Charlie, think a minute.

Just think how much
this town needs a court.

Do you realize
that there are 45 people

lying up there
in the graveyard,

and only three of them
died of natural causes?

Well, just shows what
a good druggist I am.

Yeah, and what
a poor citizen.

Charlie, we need
a court now!

And you're just the man
to be our Justice of the Peace.

After all, who's
the smartest man in town?

I am.

And you're the only
with books.

Law books.

Uh, law books?

[ laughs ]

This one is Materia Medica,

and this one is
"How to Set Broken Bones,"

and they're both in German.

That's right, they're in German,
so you're the only man in town

who knows what they say.

Let me show you
how easy it is.

Now, you sit here
at your judge's bench.

Ah, it will never work.

This is a historic moment
in the history of our town.

Our first court
is about to open.

It will never work.Sure, it will.

He even looks like a judge,
doesn't he, Jimmy?

Well, the only one
I ever saw

was that little
cross-eyed circuit fella

that come through.

Mr. Meyer sure
looks better than him.

We won't need him anymore.

Charles H. Meyer,
as alcalde of this town,

I hereby appoint you
justice of the peace.

It will never work.

At a salary
of $50 a month.

Well, maybe it will work.

So now that I'm in office,

what do I do?

Yes. Well, the secret
of being a judge is,

you must have authority.

You look up the precedent
in the book.

For instance, a fella goes out,
gets drunk, paints the town red.

Uh, what's the fine?

For painting
the town red.

Well, let's just
look it up in the book.

We'll just look up the law.

Uh-huh.

Ah, yes.
Here it is.

In the case
of the state vs. McDonald,

the fine for
painting the town

was $30.

Is that in the book?

Uh, sure.
Uh, try another case.

What's the fine for...

well, for hitting a man?

Hitting a man.

All right.

Well, we'll just look it up.
Hitting a man. Hitting a--

Ooh, well, that's
in the other book.

Hitting a man. Hmm.

Yeah, well--
Well, there it is.

Yes. The fine
for hitting a man

is $20.

Charlie, you're going
to make a great judge.

Jimmy, here's what
I want you to do.

On Sunday night,
you arrest a couple of guys
for fighting, any two.

Lock them up
in the livery stable.

We still have
those chains there,

so chain them together

and bring them into court
on Monday morning.

After Father McCabe arrives,
Charlie, you try them.

Just don't let on
that we don't have a jail.

You know, fine them,
look it up in the book.

That'll prove that
this is a legitimate,

A-number-1 court.

And then what?

Well, then when you get
to my trial,

you, again, look up
in the book,

and find that the alcalde
has full authority

to perform marriages.

That's all there is to it.

Mr. Poston...

are you trying to influence
the judge in this case?

What?

Mr. Poston, if I'm going
to be judge in this town,

and I am, because you've
just appointed me,

at $50 a month,

well, then I'm going
to see to it

that this town gets justice.

I mean, real justice.

Monday morning,
I'm going to hear your trial.

I'm going to listen
to both sides,

and then I'm going
to render justice,

no matter who gets hurt.

What's that for?

$20.

The fine for hitting a man.

Now, now, now, now--Whoa! Hold it!

Do you want me
to arrest him, Judge?

No.

He paid the fine
in advance for...

for contempt of court,

but remember, Mr. Poston,

Monday morning,
when you come for trial,

you've already got
a criminal record!

The court finds you
guilty as charged.

I don't know how often
you have been guilty

of fighting
and disturbing the peace,

but the law quite
clearly states

that those arrested many times
for the same offense,

the judge has the authority
to sentence them

to a chain gang.

You two,
just as you are now,

you will go out and you will
clean up the main street,

and I want every
bit of rubbish

off the street.

And when the street is clean,

to the Marshal's satisfaction,

then you will be released.

Marshal, take them away.

Oh, and Jimmy?

Assign someone to,
uh, keep an eye on them,

and you come back.

Now...

the next case
is the town vs. Alcalde Poston.

Mr. Poston,

will it be necessary
to have a jury trial?

No, sir. I will abide
by the Judge's decision.

Father McCabe?

I see no necessity
for a jury trial.

Good.

Is the defense ready?

I'll handle my own defense.
Yes, sir, I'm ready.

Is the...

The prosecution is ready.

Do you have any witnesses,
Father McCabe?

What is your name, my son?

Ernesto.

Ernesto Hernandez.

Aye, and your
so-called marriage

was performed
by Mr. Poston?

Yes, Father.

And this is Teresa, my wife.

I'm sorry, Ernesto.
She's not your wife.

Would you go sit
in the witness chair?

Sí, Padre.

Your Honor,
will you swear him in

on the Bible?

Um...

Ernesto is an honest man.

He doesn't have
to be sworn in.

Ernesto,

tell the truth.

But of course.

Very well then, Ernesto.

Why did you and Teresa
go to Mr. Poston to be married?

What else
could we do, Father?

If we don't go to Mr. Poston,

we have to travel 30 miles,

and we have to pay $25.

Oh? And how much
does Mr. Poston charge?

Charge?

Nothing.

He never charges
anybody anything.

Why, when the wagon trains
come through,

he says...

"Use my garden.

"Wash yourselves
in my pond.

"Eat my vegetables."

Nothing. No money.

Why, Mr. Poston,
he's a fine man.

Did he tell you that he had
the right to marry you?

He marries everybody.

He's the alcalde.

Merely being the alcalde
does not give him the right

to perform marriages.

Your Honor, I object.

No offense, Father,
but the law does

give an alcalde the right
to perform marriages.

It says so in the law book,
doesn't it, Your Honor?

Is that the law, Judge?

I'm sure it's in the book.

I can't imagine
a law so unjust

as to deprive
the people of our town

of their right
to happiness.

As a matter of fact, Father,

I did look that up,

and, uh, I find
that there's a ruling

from out in California,

a little remote town

where there were
no churches available.

Yes, the ruling says
quite clearly,

the alcalde has the authority
to perform marriages.

Will you quote
that exactly?

Not word-for-word, but...

May I see it, please?

Of course.

I hope you will understand
that this book is in German

since that is
my native language.

Your Honor, may I call
another witness?

Of course.

Uh, who?

Mr. Poston.

Uh, thank you, Ernesto.
You can go back to your seat.

I'm willing to forgo
the swearing in ceremony,

Your Honor.

Now, Mr. Poston, assuming,
just for the moment,

that the alcalde
has certain rights

so far as civil marriage
is concerned,

are you, in fact,
the alcalde?

Just where did you
come by the job?

Well, there was a need
for someone in the job,

so a group of us
got together, and...

Were you elected
to the job?

Well, there was
no formal election actually.

No.

So you just took the job?

And how much are you paid,

Mr. Poston?

Nothing.

And who bears the cost
of running the town?

Of paying
the Marshal's salary?

I do.

And who appointed the Judge?

And who pays
the Judge's salary?

Father McCabe,
I can assure you,

no matter how
I got this job,

you will get justice.

Oh, I intend to,
Your Honor.

Now, Mr. Poston,

in the law books,

according to the Judge,

they refer to the alcalde's
legal authority to run a town.

Now, in actual truth,
Mr. Poston,

do you have
that authority?

Well, Father, that brings up
a very interesting question.

If I didn't have
the legal right to be alcalde,

then perhaps nothing I've done
as head of this town, was legal.

Aye, that's just
the point, Mr. Poston.

Yes, it is.

That could mean that
I had no legal right

to issue money.

Could also mean
that all those boletas

that I issued...

are legally worthless.

Well, now, that is a--

an interesting
point to consider.

Is there something
in the law books

that covers that?

Well, I-- It must be.

Let's just look it up.

Let's see, money.

Oh, yes.
That's in the other book.

The title of this is
"How to Settle Money Questions."

Oh, yes. Here it is.

It says, in effect,

when the acting head
of the community--

Now, "acting head" could
certainly be interpreted

as acting alcalde.

When the acting head
of the community

issues paper money
for the convenience of business,

that money shall be accepted
as legal tender

and must be redeemed
in silver on demand.

Good. Good.

I was hoping
that would be in the book.

Well, now, Father,
wouldn't you say

that if,
as acting alcalde,

I have the right
to issue money,

I would also have
the right to perform marriages

when the lack
of an available priest

makes that necessary?

Your Honor...

I don't think Bishop Lamy
fully understood the situation

when he sent me here,

and certainly,
I didn't either.

When there's a need,

and men of good intentions
step in to fill that need,

I expect that we have
to make some concessions,

and I think
that the Bishop

is going to agree
with me on this.

Now, I ask that this
legal action be set aside,

for I now feel that
these marriages were made

under thoroughly acceptable
civic authority,

and are, therefore,
quite legal.

[ all cheer ]

I'm happy to tell you

I have a generous gift
of $700 from Mr. Poston

and will use it to start
a church here in your town

so that there need be
no problems in the future

about marriages.

And now, I'd like to go
to Mr. Poston's garden

and offer a prayer of thanks

for a happy solution
to all of our mutual problems,

and I invite all of you
to join me.

Oh, uh, Your Honor?

Don't you agree...

Gott hilft denen, die sich
selbst helfen und freunde?

What did he say?

Uh, he said...

"God helps those
who help themselves

"and their friends."

But he said it
in very good German.

When Arizona became a territory
of the United States,

Charles Meyer was,
at long last,

officially made
justice of the peace.

Charles Poston went on
to become Arizona's

first representative
in Congress,

and his great efforts
earned him recognition

as Father of Arizona.

On April 26th, 1925,

his remains were reinterred
in a memorial dedicated

at Poston's Butte
near Florence, Arizona.

Next week, another true story
from Western history.

See you then.