Original subtitles

♪ [ trumpet ]

In April 1943, The Sierra County Advocate

published in Hot Springs, New Mexico,

since then renamed Truth or Consequences,

reported that Mrs. Sadie Orchard,

said to be between 80 and 90 years old,

died at her hotel in Hillsborough.

That was all.

But back in 1886, the woman nobody remembered

was a living legend, and for good reason.

We call her story...

Whoa.

Drop that gun, mister. Drop it!

Now get out.

Get out!

You stay right where you were.

How much silver?

Couple of dozen bars.

Looks like we might have to borrow this wagon.

I always wanted to be a stage driving man.

You crazy fool.

You get people mad.

Well, that's why you gonna get hurt real bad.

MAN: Morning, Mrs. Orchard.

Don't believe I've met you.

No, ma'am. Not till now.

My name is Edwards.

The Mr. Edwards?

As far as I know,

I'm the only one of the tribe in this part of the territory.

I'm very pleased to meet you.

Especially so I can thank you

for what you did for my husband and me.

All I did was hire him

to haul my silver shipment to Mogollon.

You were the only one who would take a chance on us.

I make it a rule to bet my hunches.

Silver isn't worth a quarter till you get it to market.

If you folks can make a go of it with your stage line,

that's good business for me.

And if you can't--

Please.

Don't even say that.

Well, you've bitten off a pretty tough chunk to chew,

especially for a couple of strangers

in this part of the country.

Did I say something?

I'm sorry.

I did my best.John.

I tried.

John, what happened?

Two men...

Oh, help me.

Where's the stagecoach?

What happened to the silver shipment?

We'll get to that.

Come on, grab hold here.

Handle him easy.

Please, someone, get a doctor.

We don't have a doctor in Kingston.

Any of you men thinking what I'm thinking?

Mr. Orchard's been in town a week.

Nobody knows anything about him but what he's told us.

Nobody else can get through those mountains

with a silver shipment, but he claimed he could.

First time out, he comes back, no stage coach, no silver.

Pretty careless speech you're making.

I simply said what could have happened.

Without waiting to find out what did.

Somebody gave Mr. Orchard a bad beating.

You touch him any place, he yells.

Now I don't know about you,

but I wouldn't take that kind of a beating

for a piece of $10,000 worth of silver, or all of it.

Well, you can afford the loss.

Doesn't mean I like it.

But fair is fair.

Now Orchard says two men held him up on the Black Range Grade.

And of you men feel like going out there with me?

I'll pay 10% reward cash if I get my silver back.

Anybody that's ready, let's go.

How about you, Mr. Percha?

I didn't think so.

JOHN: Sadie?

Sadie!

Sadie.

Don't try and talk anymore, John.

I gotta tell you something.It can wait.

No, it can't.

John, please?

Southwest New Mexico Stage Lines,

John Orchard, proprietor.

Was going to get rich quick hauling silver.

Proved it was safe to ship with me.

Safe for people to ride with me.

First trip, I put us out of business.

But we still have the other stagecoach

and four good horses.

Nobody's gonna take another chance on me.

I've done it again.

One more town, one more try, one more failure.

You're hurt

and you are half out of your mind.

You don't know what you're saying.

Now I'm a forget you said it and you forget it, too.

No. No, Sadie.

I'm going to get up from here,

I'm going to sell off everything that we have left

for whatever it'll bring.

I'm going to find a job digging in a mine

where even a fool and a failure can't harm anybody but himself.

Now I want you to take the money that I can raise...

and go back east to your folks.

John Orchard, you shut up.

You hear me?

You shut up.

Morning, Mrs. Orchard.

We found what was left of your husband's outfit.

Just this harness and some gear.

I'm sorry that's it.

Won't you come in, please?

Thank you.

I'll stable your horse first.

Coffee's hot, would you like some Mr. Edwards?

No, thanks.

We picked up the tracks of two riders

from where they unharnessed the team

and shoved the stagecoach over a drop.

A long drop.

It was smashed to kindling wood.

Apparently three pack horses is all they had use for

so they turned one loose.

Well the most important thing is

John got back safe.

Yes. How is he today?

Oh, he's feeling much better, thank you.

I'd like to talk to him when he feels up to it.

It's like I told you yesterday, Mrs. Orchard.

You think we bit off more than we can chew.

We don't think so, Mr. Edwards.

We'll get along.

We don't believe in taking charity.

I wasn't planning to offer any,

but I can use another hand at my mine.

Mr. Orchard is in the stage line business to stay.

Thank you anyway, Mr. Edwards.

Your husband's a very lucky man.

He's right. I'm lucky.

John.

I got a wife to lie for me,

to strangers and to herself.

Only you didn't fool him, Sadie.

I wasn't trying to.

Sure you were, just like you keep trying to fool yourself,

and each time it gets just a little bit harder.

You still aren't thinking straight.

Oh, yes I am.

As soon as I can pull myself together,

I'm going to find him and tell him I'll take his charity

and I'll thank him for it.

Just so I can get enough to get you out of this place

and back to where you never should have left.

I can at least walk

without you having to keep me on my feet.

I'll fix you breakfast.

We need more than $100.

We have to pay the stack mail for handling our ore.

And a man's gotta eat and maybe buy himself a drink of whiskey.

Statmill says that our silver's worth a $1,000 easy.

Well I don't buy silver.

I'm a banker.

Wait a minute,

this says we gotta pay you back $150.

That's interest on the loan and storage charges on the silver.

Sign at the bottom.

You drive a real hard bargain, Mr. Percha.

Any law against that?

Nope.

What's on your mind?

Well, for one thing, I didn't see you shedding any tears

about Mr. Orchard getting held up.

Nothing for me to cry about.

There could be as time goes by.

What do you mean by that?

As long as silver shipments can't go through to market,

people don't dare ship or travel over the mountains.

You've got this town by the tail of a downhill pole.

Yeah? So?

So, I'm going to make you a proposition.

That is, if you're interested in having Kingston

grow into a place where people could settle down and live.

We need what Mr. Orchard started,

a stage line hauling silver and passengers,

their lives and property safe.

Orchard cost you $10,000.

Which I mean to earn back, and with a profit.

You can come into the deal or not, that's up to you,

but I'm going to back Mr. Orchard's stage line.

I'm going to put up the money for wagons,

horses, drivers, shotgun guards--

And put me out of business.

That could happen.

You're a rich man, Edwards.

You came in rich and you're getting richer.

You think that entitles you to run things your way or none.

Well you can't run me.

I'm not trying to.

I'm just telling you there's going to be a change.

And I'm telling you,

walk out of here and take your proposition with you.

You're not interested in Orchard and his stagecoach.

He just happens to have a pretty wife.

Mrs. Orchard,

this is no time of night for a lady to be out alone.

Well I was looking for you, Mr. Edwards.

I went to your office, they said you were over here.

I'll walk you home.

I'd rather talk here.

My husband is coming to see you in the morning

to ask you to buy him out.

I want you to tell him you are not interested.

Well, as a matter of fact I--

Please.

But why, Mrs. Orchard?

You wouldn't be able to understand

what it does to a man to have one failure

pile on top of another until he loses

his self respect and pride, but it's not his fault.

Things just haven't gone right,

and as long as there's another chance--

What kind of a chance?

You gambled on his taking your silver to Mogollon and lost.

I can hardly hold that against him

considering the circumstances.

Would you gamble on him again?

As long as your silver sits here piling up uns--

Yes I...I've just been discussing that with Mr. Percha.

Will you let us haul another shipment for you?

Us?

I mean, my husband.

All right, Mrs. Orchard.

Tell your husband I'll deliver

a load of silver to your place first thing in the morning.

Now, if he can get through with this--

He will.

He will, Mr. Edwards.

Thank you. Thank you very much.

I'll walk along with you.

Now that's what I'd call a kind-hearted man.

Sure is.

John?

John, I just talked with Mr.--

Sadie?

Sadie?

Sadie?

Sadie? Where are you?

Have you men seen my wife?

I ain't seen nobody's wife, and I ain't looking.

Get, mule.

Mr. Percha.

Nice to see you up and around again, Mr. Orchard.

I'm looking for my wife.

Well if I had a wife to lose, I'd ask him about it.

I thought you were on the road an hour ago.

Why should I be on the road?

I delivered a silver shipment at your place.

Mrs. Orchard said you'd leave for Mogollon

as soon as you'd had your breakfast.

I saw the stage pull out.

I just got up.

Just pulled myself together.

I was drunk last night.

Feeling sorry for myself, so I got drunk.

So she's doing the job you should be doing.

She can't.

She can't do it.

She never drove four horses.

A one-horse buggy's the most she ever drove.

I need a horse to ride.

Somebody? Somebody loan me a horse.

You're in no shape to go chasing after her,

and she's had an hour's head start.

I don't know who this belongs to, and I don't care.

Don't anybody try to stop me.

Let him have it.

Charge the bill to me.

Hire or buy, I don't care which.

Men, there's a lady out there that shouldn't be out there.

No telling what may have happened to her by now,

but you all know what happened to him.

Any of you want to come along, let's go.

[ gunshots ]

[ gunshots ]

Well, what'd you know?

If it ain't Mrs. Orchard.

I wouldn't believe it if I didn't see it.

You know me, then?

That means you're from town.

No wonder the silver shipments never got through.

And they never will either,

not as long as we're around.

See what the nice lady brung us.Uh-huh.

You're wasting your time.

Hey, look at this stuff.

Where's that silver?

What silver?

The shipment you're hauling for Edwards.

Oh, I'm hauling harnesses and horse collars.

I'm going to see what I can get for 'em in town

delivered in to Mogollon.

You're the two men who robbed my husband, aren't you?

You must have heard me talking to Mr. Edwards.

You know maybe

we just might have planned on you hearing us talk.

I could be a decoy

set out ahead to get you out in the open.

Maybe.

Listen, lady--Come on.

Where?

I think he means,

you might as well just let me go and deliver my horse collars.

Giddy up.

Maybe she did dump that stuff.

I'm looking for Mr. Armstrong.

I'm Armstrong, ma'am.

Oh, I'm Sadie Orchard.

My husband runs the Southwest Stage Lines in Kingston.

How come you're driving a stage?

That's no job for a lady.

Well, my husband has a lot more business than he can handle,

and besides, I like driving a stage.

I've got a shipment of silver here consigned by Mr. Edwards.

I believe you know Mr. Edwards?

Why, sure.

Edwards let you haul his silver?

It's all in there.

There's nothing in there but harness and horse collars.

Lift one of the horse collars.

Oh, they're all like that.

I didn't have time to stitch them up again.

Sadie, you're crazy.

You're a crazy woman.

Don't you ever do that again.

Never again.

Well, I see Mrs. Orchard delivered my silver.

We'll go inside and get it weighed and paid for.

JOHN: Oh, those two.

We caught up with them on the road.

They were after you, Sadie.

They're the ones who held me up.

I don't know what might have happened

if they'd caught up with you.

I'm not ever going to let you go

near that driver's seat again.

You hear me, Sadie Orchard?

Never again.

The Black Range Museum now occupies

Sadie Orchard's former hotel in Hillsborough.

For 30 years, she was New Mexico's

only woman stage driver.

She called her stagecoach "The Mountain Pride,"

and the West can be proud of her.

See you again next week

with another true story from Western history.