Original subtitles

♪♪ [trumpet]

One of the most controversial figures in early Los Angeles

was Major Horace Bell--

newspaper editor, attorney,

and leader of the Los Angeles rangers,

a law enforcement group of volunteers

with military experience.

Although his newspaper, The Porcupine,

stuck into the hides of many citizens,

when there was justice to be done, the call went out for...

Morning Asa. Lovely morning.

Long as Lem went to bed early.

I take it you looked upon the grape when it was reddest?

You take her correct, Major.

What'd you do, lose your teeth?

Tacks.

Ah.

Anything worthy of editorial comment

happen while I was away?

Well, the stage from San Peter was three hours late

due to a gallon of brandy and a broken axel.

The fiesta at the ballet union was broken up by a skunk.

Oh, and an unidentified man about 50

drowned himself in a brewery vat.

Make a note of this for the next edition,

"No beer for three weeks."

And also this, a few blunt facts

about municipal corruption.

There goes some more advertising for The Porcupine.

A price I pay to see a few

prominent red faces around town.Major Bell?

Major Bell?

There's terrible trouble.

What have you done, Rose?

It's not me.

It's Gid King. They're after him.

Who is?

Old Buzzer Crandall and his bunch.

They say that he killed Buzzer's brother Lem.

He didn't do it.Where'd Gid now?

He's hiding at the brickyard, and he sent me for you.

Anyone tell the Marshal's office?

They're either out of town or on vacation as usual.

Wait a minute.

You better wait here.

Oh, Major, you're wonderful.

Hurt, kid? It won't long.

We just don't want you busting an arm

while you're flapping around up there.

I told you, Buzzer, I didn't kill your brother.

He tried to kill me.

Shut up, you lying Yankee.

Slack off on her.

We don't want to choke our friend here.

All right, drop that rope.

Well, lookie here. Major Bell.

Do what I said.

I warned you.

It's none of your business. This man killed my brother.

Then the law will judge him, not you.

Now untie him. He's my client.

Major Bell!

I should have done humanity a kindness

and shot you in the heart.

Next time, I may.

Step out of that noose, kid, and come on over here.

Anybody accusing this man of murder

will have a chance to prove it in the court of law.

I have never seen the laws of chance

defied in such spectacular manner.

I'm lucky to draw a card with printing on it.

Um, Judge Wattles, may I speak with you?

I'm unavailable.

It's Major Bell again. He insists.

Gentlemen, a poet said that,

"Into each life, some rain must fall."

Well, since Major Horace Bell hung out his shingle here,

my life has become a flood.

What is it this time, Billings?

Murder,

and Bell is representing the accused.

As usual. How's it look?

Open and shut.

The accused has waved his right to a jury trial.

We could clean it up in a half an hour.

That Bell does things like this just to annoy me,

and if the decision is wrong, then it's my fault.

Well it can't slop over till tomorrow.

I am going fishing for two weeks.

Don't leave, gentlemen. This may change my luck.

Your copy of the charges.Thank you.

Your copy of the charges.

Now kid, before we start, there's one important thing

I want from you, no matter what it costs.

I want the absolute truth.

I didn't kill him, Major Bell. That's the truth.

He pulled his knife on me, said he'd kill us both.

Had he threatened you before?

Lots of times. I didn't worry about myself,

but when he threatened Rose, that was different.

It still doesn't make sense,

but it was just like I told you.

We were fighting for the knife,

and then he was on the floor, dead.

Hear ye--

Hear ye, hear ye, this court is now in session.

The people of California against Gideon King.

Bell, you appear here again in your favorite role.

Your Honor, I should say it's a role

which is constantly thrust upon me.

I'd much prefer the cooling breezes of San Pedro today.

Well, if we don't overdo it here, you might make it.

Your Honor, I've advised my client to place his life

in the hands of a man who

is the soul of justice and brevity.

Yeah. Of course, of course.

Bailiff, read the charges.

"That this morning, July 15th, 1871,

"Gideon King did enter the Dos Amigoscantina

"where he engaged in a dispute

"over a woman with the bartender.

"The bartender, Lem..."

Crandall.

"...Crandall, struggled with King,

"and as they fell to the floor,

"King fatally stabbed the diseased Crandall."

"Deceased."

"Uh, deceased Crandall."

In other words, it was murder.

[ crowd murmuring ]

Will the defendant rise?

How say you, son?

Innocent or guilty?

Not guilty, sir. Your Honor.

I see.

Sit down, son, and we'll find out all about it.

Major Bell, anything that you'd like

to add to that plea?

Nothing at the moment, Your Honor.

Prosecution will proceed.

Will you call my first witness, please?

Buzzer Crandall.

Take your hat off.

Raise your right hand.

Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth, so help you God?

I do.

Judge, I wouldn't like about a thing like this, even if I--

Will the witness please shut up and stick to the questions?

I understand there was bad blood

between the deceased and the defendant.

There sure was.

Lem threw him out of the Dos Amigosmore than once.

And then they was always fighting

about the war between the states.

See, we're from Alabama,

and Gid's a Yankee.

[ crowd muttering ]

I believe you mentioned there was a

more personal reason for the antagonism.

Personal, heh. Personal as you can get.

It was that girl over there.

You mean Miss Rose Tosca?

I sure do. She was--

From now on, we'll refer to her as Miss Tosca.

I understand there was a rivalry

between your brother and Gid King for the...

hand of of Miss Tosca.

Yeah, well she...

she was crazy about Lem,

but Gid was always hanging around pestering her,

and scaring her--

That's a dirty lie, Judge! It was the other way around.

[ banging gavel ]Shut up, girl.

Go once more, and you'll be in contempt.

You'll get your say.

Now, what happened this morning, Buzzer?

I saw my brother this morning

before he left to open up the saloon,

and he told me Gid was in drunk last night

and warned him to keep away from that, that...

I mean, Miss Tosca.

And then, a couple of hours later,

somebody come in and said there'd been a fight

and Lem was hurt, so I rushed out

and I see Rose and Gid and the cook

was trying to help Lem, but he was nearby dead.

And then I went for Sam and some others

to do a little justice to Gid.

What's the name of that cook?

Juan Peralta, I think.

Send over to Dos Amigos and get the cook, Juan Peralta.

I want him here fast.Yes, sir.

Your witness, Major.

Did you talk to your brother before he died?

He couldn't talk. He was dying.

Didn't you and your brother once try

to lynch a man out in El Monte?

That was during the war and he was running down Jeff Davis.

Objection.WATTLES: Sustained.

Isn't that why you tried to lynch Gid King?

Objection!

And isn't that why you're defending him?

Because you and him are both Yankees?

[ crowd muttering, gavel pounding ]

WATTLES: Order. Order.

And isn't it true that while your beloved state of Alabama

was fighting for what it considered right,

you and your brother were in Arizona

selling beef to the Federal cavalry?

You got a big mouth, little girl.

If that dirty little...

I mean, Miss Tosca, tolds you that--

Well, that's enough of that. Stick to the case.

That's all, Your Honor.

Would you call my next witness, please?

Next witness, Miss Rose Tosca.

Raise your right hand, please.

Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth, the whole truth,

and nothing but the truth, so help you God?

I do.

Be seated.

Miss Tosca, why did you visit the Dos Amigosthis morning?

You knew how it was between Gid and Lem and me,

and I didn't want trouble.

I was afraid of Lem.

So you risked what you considered danger?

But it wasn't for me, it was for Gid.

I didn't want anything to happen to him,

and that's why I thought talking to Lem might help.

What happened then?

The place was empty.

I was in the back room arguing with Lem.

Then Gid came in,

and they fought,

and Lem, he fell on the floor,

and the knife was stuck in him.

And we tried to help him, he was dying.

Was there anyone else around the place?

There was the cook back in the kitchen,

and he did try to come in and help us.

Did anyone send for a doctor?

Oh, I don't know.

I told Gid that Buzzer would be after him.

That's when he went and hid in the brickyard,

and then I came and got you, Major.

Describe the stabbing, Rose.

Lem was trying to stick Gid with a knife.

It was terrible.

They fell down fighting and then they rolled over,

and I saw the knife

and the blood.

[ door opening ]

[ crowd muttering ]

That'll be all, thank you.

Your honor, may I question another witness at this point?

Mr. Peralta?

Juan Peralta?

[ speaking Spanish ]

Raise your right hand.

Do you solemnly swear...

Hurry up, Bailiff. It's hot.

So help you God?

Yes, I do.

[ speaking Spanish ]

Juan, you're chef at the Dos Amigoscafe.

Oh, no, señor.I am the cook

in la cocinain the back.

What happened there this morning?

[ whispering Spanish ] Oh, sí, I went to the market

to bring frijoles, huevos, cebollas--

Later, Juan. The fight.

Oh, that's right, the fight. They were fighting all over.

[ speaking Spanish ] You should have been there, señor Judge.

They were fighting all over. I come in,

señorCrandall is lying on the floor with some blood.

Could you see where the knife stuck him?

Oh, sí. Right in the back.

Right here.

I helped put him in the bed.

What happened then?

The señorita,she's crying,

and señorhurries away to hide.

The señorita,she goes.

I give some whiskey to señorCrandall,

and I go back to my cooking.

You gave the dead man a drink of whiskey?

He was breathing. I only wanted him to feel better.

You mean you left a dying man alone in the back room?

Señor,I have my work to do.

I cannot spend my time with everybody

that gets stabbed and shot in Dos Amigos.When could I cook?

Your honor, I'd like to see the coroner's report

on the death of the deceased and the death weapon.

Show them to him, Bailiff.

There is none, your honor.

Nobody called the coroner or anybody else.

Nobody gave me any knife.

Then what in the Devil are we all doing here?

The prosecutor said we were all ready.

Your honor, in view of the fact

that there's been no official report of a murder,

no death weapon, and nobody's seen a dead body,

I suggest that the court stand adjourned

until this death can be verified.

As far as I'm concerned, there's been no murder.

Court adjourned until two o'clock.

How is he now, doc?

Well, it's a bad wound, but he'll live.

Fortunately, nobody moved him.

Can he talk?

Yes, but he's extremely weak.

Just barely conscious.

I want to see my brother now.

After the deposition.

We need this testimony, doctor.

Well, just one at a time, then, and very briefly.

I trust you, Billings.

May I suggest, doc, that you accompany the prosecutor

just in case the injured man becomes excited

and needs medical attention?

Certainly, Major. Good suggestion.

Oh, and doctor?

Would you witness the testimony

and sign the prosecutor's notes?

Well, now, Miss Tosca, shall we join the other members

of the social set for lunch?

Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye, hear ye.

This court is now in session.

[ gavel pounding ]

Where's the deposition?

Where's Billings?

He should be back by now, Your Honor.

If I can leave important matters to be here on time--

Sorry for the delay, Your Honor.

I have Lem Crandall's deposition.

I think it will interest Major Bell.

Yes, it certainly does.

Your Honor, may I read this to the court?

If it's not asking too much.

"I, Lem Crandall, do hereby swear the following to be true,

"that Gid King came into the Dos Amigosthis morning

"and picked a fight. I pulled a knife in order to defend myself.

"He held my wrist with both hands

"to keep me from using the knife.

"I felt a stab in the back and I fell,

"and don't remember anything after that,

"but I don't see how Gid King could have done it."

Your Honor, I ask that the case against my client be dismissed.

Case dismissed.[ crowd murmuring ]

However, there is still a fellow over at the Dos Amigos

with a hole in his back.

Miss Tosca, this court charges you

with assault with a deadly weapon.

Bailiff, get a date set for trial.

Why not now? We all know she's guilty.

That's not a bad idea.

I've got to leave town tomorrow for a...

for some important business.

Uh, Bell, are you representing Miss Tosca?

Well, the law says that you get a

proper amount of time to prepare your case.

How's about it?

We're ready, Your Honor.

Take the stand, please.

Raise your right hand.

Do you solemnly swear--She already did.

Sit down, Miss Tosca. Now, how do you plead? Yes or no?

Not guilty, sir.

It's a trick.

Another low-down Yankee trick.

Throw him out.

Mr. Buzzer.

You take your hands off me.

Getting so there's no justice around here.

Well we're going to get some!

Come on, Sam.

Order.

You may examine, Mr. Billings.

Miss Tosca, you said there were only three of you

at the Dos Amigosthis morning.

That's right, sir.

And that those three were Len Crandall,

Gid King, and yourself?

That's right.

Now, you realize that Lem Crandall has sworn

that it was impossible for Gid King to have stabbed him.

Nothing could be more apparent, Your Honor.

Well Major, anything you'd care to say?

Yes, I'd like to ask my client a couple of questions.

Rose,

did you stab Lem Crandall?

Yes.

Yes, I did.Why?

Because I was afraid he'd kill Gid and me, too.

Did he threaten to kill you?

Yes.

He used to brag about what he'd done to people who crossed him.

Is that why you carried a knife?

Yes.

He said he'd kill Gid and me both

if I didn't run away with him.

Used to talk about it all the time.

I had the knife.

I couldn't help it.

I couldn't help it.

Your Honor, I submit that Rose Tosca

has proven herself innocent on the ground of--

Self defense. Not guilty. Case dismissed.

Major Bell?

I got something for you.

Crandall, you've caused enough trouble.

You think you're pretty dang smart, don't you?

Smart enough to know when justice

has been done in a court of law.

You lied about me and my brother in a court of law.

Now nobody,

not enough the great Major Horace Bell,

does that to us Crandall's.

Why don't you go have a drink and forget it?

Come on, let him have it, Bell.

It's legal. He started it.

Bell,

since I've served on the bench here in Los Angeles,

I've said a great many things about you,

but I have never stated

that you were lacking in brains or courage.

Right now, I'd like to drink a toast to that.

Come on.

Well, Your Honor, modesty's never been one of my virtues.

I'd be happy to have a drink with you.

That does include my friends, doesn't it?

Well, why not?

A high-rise building now stands

on the old Bell ranch in Los Angeles,

but Bell street still remains.

This copy of his newspaper,

loaned to us by the Los Angeles County Museum,

still reflects the wit, daring,

and courage of Major Horace Bell,

one of the most colorful characters

of the Old Southwest.

♪♪