All language subtitles for The Virginian S08E08 - The Substitute

♪ Oh, give me a home
where the buffalo roam ♪

♪ And the deer
and the antelope play ♪♪

Ooh. Trampas wouldn't be
going someplace, would he?

No, he's just taking
his laundry into town.

Now that I think
about it, I do believe he

does have a couple of
days off coming to him.

Is that two or three days,
Trampas? It's worse than that.

It's more like
a couple of weeks.

I'm sure gonna envy
you fellas here at Shiloh,

eating Harper's vittles and
sleeping on these fine feather beds.

Yeah, you got it soft.

And all those cows
to keep you company.

Me, I'm gonna be out there all
alone, all by myself thinkin' about you.

That's sad.

Oh, that just about
breaks my heart.

I'll tell you what I'll
do, though. I'll do

you a big favor. I'll
trade places with you.

Oh. Oh, I wish I could, Jim,

but, uh, no, I don't want to
take advantage of our friendship.

I'll just have to face things out
there alone in the wilderness.

I probably won't get to eat anything except
fish, antelope steak, pheasant, venison.

Why, I may have to fish
all day for my supper.

It's enough to wear a man out
just thinking about it. Excuse me.

What's that? What?

Let me see that. No.
It's just a little ol' shirt.

- Old shirt?
- That looks more like a railroad flag.

Fish see this, they won't
even come out of the water.

I think he's goin' huntin'.

I don't have to hunt.
I know where to find her.

Find who?

The little gal who's gonna
see me in this red shirt.

Prettiest saloon gal in Big
Moose Creek. Boy, is she pretty.

So that's where you're goin'!

Well, that's one of the places.
Then, uh...

Mmm. I'm in no hurry
to get back here.

After eatin' dust and brandin' calves
and breakin' my horses and ropin' steers...

and stringin' fence wire
long enough to make

a banjo out of the
territory of Wyoming...

No, sir. I'm in no hurry
to get back here.

Hey, you be careful now. Don't let Mary Lou
Watkins talk you into anything permanent.

That's what I like about
Mary Lou. She don't talk much.

I'll keep a plate of beans
on for you.

- Your beans?
- Yeah.

Remember, now.
You only got two weeks.

Well, a man can do a lot
in two weeks. Don't get lost.

Yep. And I'm gonna do
it all. So long, Harp, Jim.

Take care. ♪ Where
the buffalo roam ♪

Don't he like my beans? Uh...

Howdy. Howdy. What'll it be?

Uh, beers. Beer?

Uh, no. Beers. You can line
'em up all the way to here.

Well, place hasn't changed much.

Oh, I see you
fixed the bar. Yup.

Yeah. Got some new
pictures up too, haven't you?

Well, that was quite a night.

I still haven't found what I'm
lookin' for. What are you lookin' for?

Oh...

Never mind. I found it.

- Hello, Mary Lou.
- Trampas!

I told you I'd be back. Come
here. Let me take a look at you.

Nope. You haven't changed any.

Maybe filled out a little more
here and there. But, the same.

What's the matter?
Aren't you glad to see me?

Oh, sure. But, um...

You know, there hasn't been a night gone
by that I haven't been thinkin' about you.

Really! And all the good
times we had together.

Yes, sir. Oh! You still
got that room upstairs...

where a man can have a
shave and a bath for two bits?

Um, yes. Good. 'Cause
that's the first thing I want.

Then I'm gonna put
on a new shirt, the same

color as the one that
got tore off that night.

That was some night,
wasn't it? Your beer's ready.

Oh, a man can
have a beer any time.

You're sure a sight
for weary eyes.

Hey. Wh...

Where's that dress you
used to wear with the

sparklets and the feathers?
Your working clothes?

I've been trying to tell you.
I don't work here no more.

You don't work in the saloon?
Well, since when?

Since I married the
boss. Oh, since you...

The boss.

Well, uh... I, uh...

Well, uh, I'm sorry. I don't think I'll
be able to stay around much longer.

Um, I got a sudden urge
to move on.

Congratulations.

Sure a fine lady you got here.
Been like a sister to me.

- So long, sis.
- What about these beers?

Oh, yeah.

Uh, they're on me.

Wedding present.

So long.

Luke, honey,
he don't mean nothing to me.

Why, I ain't even seen him
since last spring.

Oh? We got engaged last winter.

Oh, I hardly even
remembered him. Don't, Luke.

I got eyes. He'll be back.
Them saddle tramps are all alike.

Think they can drift from town to town,
pick up with any woman that suits 'em.

I'll show him different. Luke!

Well, Buck, you win a few,
and you lose a few.

Now that is one drifter
that won't be coming back here.

Oh, Luke, what did you
do? Never mind what I done.

Get upstairs and stay there.

Hey, what's goin' on?

Untie me. Where
are you takin' me?

You just take it real easy,
cowboy. You'll know soon enough.

Here he is, Deputy. You mind
tellin' me what this is all about?

Look, you're making a mistake!

The only mistake I think I'm making,
cowboy, is not shooting you dead right now.

Sheriff, I don't know what this is all
about, but you got the wrong man.

My name is Trampas. I work at
Shiloh Ranch in Medicine Bow.

Take him inside. Now, Sher...

Go get the Clayton girl.

Are you gonna tell me
why I'm here?

Where'd you find him?
Over at Big Moose Creek.

He was actin' kinda smart
with the saloon owner's wife.

The saloon owner
taught him a lesson.

How'd you know he was
the one you were looking for?

Sheriff, when you've been a bounty hunter
for 20 years, you can almost smell 'em out.

Like one of them
bloodhound dogs.

Besides, I, uh,
found this on him.

This ought to be enough proof to get
me that reward from Ezra Gates, huh?

You never found that watch
on me! I never saw it before!

She's comin', Sheriff.

Abby, I want you to
take a look at that man

over there, and tell me
if he's the one you saw.

Just be sure
and don't make a mistake.

Ma'am.

Uh, sheriff here wants to know
the truth, so why don't you tell him?

Well, we don't know each other.

I've never been near here.
Well, go on. Tell him.

He's the one, Sheriff.

I'm sure of it.

What's he like?

A drifter.

Won't nobody miss him
if he don't show up for supper.

You're sure about that?

He's a loner if I ever seen one.

Mr. Gates, it was a bit more
work than I figured it'd be.

Had to ride clear over
to Big Moose Creek.

How much more work?

Well, $50 more than the reward.

Worth every penny of it.

The sheriff didn't
believe at first.

But that gold watch and that Clayton girl
sure convinced him I had the right man.

Well, it better be
the right man.

Oh, he is. I knowed it as
soon as I laid eyes on him.

And he had Doc's watch,
didn't he?

All right.

Now I want you to forget that
there's such a place as Calumet.

Just a divide in the road.

You can go your whole life
without ever stopping here again.

I don't see anything here
worth coming back for anyway.

Good doin' business with you.

Using a bounty hunter to find him...
That was a real good notion, Pa.

Just about takes care
of everything, doesn't it?

Nothing's gonna be taken care of
till that drifter's convicted in court.

The town won't settle down till
this is all over. I'll be glad when it is.

You? Why?
So you can start in again?

Wasting your time
and my money on that

saloon girl? You can
just forget about that.

Sure, Pa. Sure.
Whatever you say.

I-I reckon I have been
too free of my time.

If you've got some to spare, the ranch can
use it. I see you're gettin' soft-bellied.

A little hard work
will fix that up.

Pa, whatever you want me to do,
you just tell me, and I'll do it. I swear.

You know what I want from you.

This is gonna be
your ranch some day.

Start shouldering the responsibility.
You're no boy anymore.

Stop all this playing around and start
givin' some thought to running this place.

Settle down, Josh.
Here, right here.

And give up all thought
of ever leaving my side.

Oh, I will, Pa. I will for sure.

You'd better be
telling the truth, boy,

'cause I'm gonna hold you to it.

Sheriff, that girl's lying.

She never saw me before
in her life.

Hey. Would you tell me
what this is all about?

I think you know. I
don't know anything!

I don't even know why I'm here.

And I don't know how that watch
got on me, if it did.

All I do know
is that girl is lyin'.

- They're all lying, huh, cowboy?
- Yes!

All except you.

Look, uh...

I'll tell you what. You send a wire to Clay
Grainger, Shiloh Ranch, Medicine Bow.

Now he'll tell you
that I work for him.

Calumet's a long ways
from Medicine Bow.

I had a couple weeks coming,
so I decided to drift.

I suppose you just drifted through
Calumet one night last week.

I've never been anywhere
near here before!

Just like that girl never
laid eyes on you before.

Just like you never laid
eyes on this watch before.

That's right. And I suppose you
never saw what was written inside of it.

How could I? By reading it.

"To Doc Evans,
from the people of Calumet."

Let me tell you
something, cowboy.

When poor folks pitch in
with what little they have...

Women, their table money...
Kids, their pennies...

Cowhands, the nickels
they buy beer with...

When they put that all together
and buy someone a solid gold watch,

and have it inscribed,

you better believe that someone
holds a real good place in their hearts.

What's that got to do with me?

Doc could've practiced
medicine anywhere in this country.

Cities like Laramie, Cheyenne,

where they'd pay him
real money for his work,

instead of chickens and
vegetables, if he got paid at all.

But he chose to settle here.

And he stuck it out. And
the people loved him for that.

That's the kind of man Doc was.

Was?

Before you killed him, cowboy.

And that's why
you're gonna hang.

Get yourself a glass, Gus.
Buy you a drink.

Thank you.
What are we celebrating?

They caught Doc's killer,
didn't they?

That's something to drink to.

Yes, sir. He was the salt
of the earth, Gus. Doc was.

Time that bronc throwed me,
busted my leg, I didn't have nickel one.

Didn't he fix my leg for nothing?
Didn't he do that for me, Gus?

He sure did. Now every time I see
some poor cowpoke that don't track right,

with a leg
that didn't set straight,

I know how lucky I was
that Doc was around.

Yes, sir. He was the salt of the
earth, Doc was. Here's to him.

Rest his soul.

Hi, Josh. Buy you a drink.

No. No, thanks, Jake. Good
news about catching Doc's killer.

Yeah. Sure is.

Bless Doc.

I haven't seen you
for a couple of days.

You haven't been around.

Well, I've been kind of
busy out at the ranch.

That never stopped you before.

Guess I forgot how pretty
you looked in the daylight.

Oh, Josh.

I promise I'll come around
to see you more often.

When?

Soon as things. Are settled.

I hear you identified
Doc's killer.

Yes. That must've
been hard for you, Abby,

having to look that killer
in the face again.

I'm proud of you.

Folks in town are glad to see
Doc's killer behind bars.

Some of them hang around the
jailhouse, hoping to get a look at him.

I had a real good look.

I'll tell you what. I'll fix
it up with Gus tonight.

We'll take a ride over to
King City, to that new hotel.

They say the dining room
does itself proud.

Well, you always
liked the food here.

I thought maybe you'd like
to get out of town for a while.

You're afraid your pa will
see you with a saloon girl.

You think I care what he sees?

I got my own life to live,
and I mean to live it my way.

Soon as I can, I'm gonna take
you out of this town for good.

You mean that, Josh.
You're not just saying it now?

I swear it. My pa
won't stop me this time.

He won't stop me ever again.
We'll be together, Josh? You and me?

You and me.

That's what the sheriff told me.

He said, "Lucius, I
don't care what you

think about the prisoner,
he's gotta be fed."

"Now that's the law." So
he sent you over here?

You been feeding our prisoners
long as I can remember. I know.

Well, then, fetch him a plate of
something he can eat with a spoon.

No knives or forks allowed
in the jail. I know that too.

Gus! You're not really fixin'
to feed that killer, are you?

Well, the sheriff... I don't
care what the sheriff said!

Doc's in his grave. The man who
killed him is working up an appetite.

I say let him starve.

You go back and tell the sheriff that I'm
not sending out any meals for that killer.

He's gonna be awful
mad. I can't help that.

You go tell him, Lucius. If he don't
like it, you tell him to come see me.

Well, I'll tell him.
See what he says.

That sheriff... He's a
hard man for me to take to.

Can't figure him
out. Oh, he's all right.

Better than some. Maybe.

Come on. Let's go.

- Where?
- Sheriff, you sure this is a good idea?

Prisoner's got to be fed. Out.

Where are you taking me?
On a picnic?

I'm taking you is right, but it won't
be any picnic. Hands on your head.

You as much as take 'em
down to scratch your nose,

Lucius will put a hole
right through you.

On your head!

Now what? Now we go out.

Me in front, you in the middle.

Straight across the street to the
saloon. There's people in the street.

Friends of Doc's.
We won't stop to talk.

I'm not so sure
I'm all that hungry.

I'm not doing it for you,
cowboy. This is for the town.

Once folks start telling the
law what's to be and what's not,

that's the end of the law
and the beginning of trouble.

Law says prisoners
gotta be fed. Come on.

- Hello, Sheriff.
- Josh, Abby.

That table here... That should
be out of everybody's way.

Sit down. Move.

You... You bringin' him in here?

That's right, Gus. Bring him a
plate of whatever's on the stove.

- Stew.
- Stew'll be fine.

What kind of a man
are you, Sheriff?

- Lawman, Jake.
- For how long?

For as long as I
can do what I think is

right, and outdraw the
man who says I'm wrong.

Sheriff's right, Jake.

No call to deprive this man of
his food, no matter what he's done.

I'll tell you what.
I'll buy you a drink.

No, thanks. Doc Evans
was a friend of mine.

I won't drink in the
same room with his killer.

You shouldn't have done
this, Sheriff. It was a mistake.

People won't forget.

I'll see they don't.

Hey, Jake. You're drivin'
my customers away!

Looks to me like
I brought a few in.

I might turn out to be quite an attraction,
almost as good as a two-headed calf.

All right, you folks. Nothing to see
here but a man eating his supper.

Likely you've got your
own suppers to go home to.

What about that order, Gus?

Bring him a plate of stew.

And a piece of bread, Abby,
to sop it up with.

Well, I'm gonna have a
drink. How about you, Sheriff?

I'll have a beer for
the prisoner. Gus?

A beer and a whiskey.

Gonna be pretty hard to eat this way,
unless you're plannin' on spoon-feedin' me.

Take your hands down now.
Put them flat on the table.

Thanks.

I've seen Doc sittin'
right here at this table.

What's your point, Gus?

Why can't you look at me, Abby?

Who said I can't?
I just don't want to.

Because you lied.

You know I was nowhere near here when Doc
Evans was killed. You were. And I saw you!

You might have seen somebody
looked like me. That's possible.

No. How are you
so sure? It was night.

Because I remember!

What is it you remember?
Tell me what you saw.

Might as well tell him, Abby.

Keep it fresh in your mind
for when the judge gets here.

Well, I-I just got home from work
and was getting ready for bed,

when I... when I heard this noise
coming from the street below my window.

Like someone trying to
break into something.

When I went to look, I-I saw
this man at the side of the bank.

He was tryin' to pry
the bars off the windows.

I-I couldn't see what he looked like then,
because most of him was in the shadows.

But Doc Evans must've heard him
too. His room's right next to mine.

And the next thing I know, he was...
he was crossing the street to investigate.

Doc never had a gun. He wouldn't
have had a chance to use it if he did.

Because the man fired right out
of the shadows and-and killed him.

You were that man.

How could you be sure? You
said he fired out of the shadows.

Because after you killed him, you
came out and went through his pockets.

I could see you almost
as good as I can see you now.

You took his gold watch and
ran for your horse. That's a lie!

All right, Abby. You just
remember that for the judge.

She's lyin', Sheriff.
She's lyin'.

I don't know why,
but she's lyin'!

I was just thinking about
Abby, what she said.

It was dark.
The man fired from the shadows.

She was a good floor
above the street.

Scared.

You say she's lying.

Still, there's Doc's watch.

Now suppose...

Just suppose you were riding
along, going nowhere in particular.

You met a man
the opposite direction.

He had a watch he wanted to sell
real cheap, considering.

Maybe with a made-up story
about how he got it.

You gave him a few dollars.

Then you found out the truth, you
got scared, and you lied about it.

Could've been that
way, couldn't it, cowboy?

No.

- You sure?
- I hate to disappoint you, Sheriff.

- Well, all right.
- If I said yes and grabbed at that straw,

you'd know I was lying
about what I said before.

Could be.

Trouble is, you don't
know what to think, do you?

Well, I never saw that watch
before, and that's the truth.

What was that man's name
at Shiloh?

Grainger, Clay Grainger.

Lucius,

want you to send a telegram
to Clay Grainger,

care of Shiloh Ranch,
Medicine Bow.

Tell him we're holding
his top hand for murder.

He says he didn't do it,
I think he did.

Still, I'm willing to be proven
wrong, up till the time of the hanging.

You remember something
like that? Near enough.

Go on, send it.

Sheriff, I thank you.

You might not, cowboy,
after the answer comes.

Quarter. Call.

Sure is quiet
around here tonight.

Think folks feel kinda funny,
having Doc's killer right here in town.

You know, like you feel jumpy
when a storm's blowin' up.

You just... don't want
to make any noise.

Maybe you're right, Gus.

What the devil's
taking Abby so long?

I'm starving to death. You're taking
her to a new place tonight, Josh.

May she wants to look
especially pretty.

Come on, Lucius.
I'll buy you a drink.

Wouldn't mind that at all. Gus.

We were just talkin' about
how quiet it is in town.

You noticed it too? Mm-hmm.

I guess it'll liven up
after the trial.

There might not be one.
Thanks, Josh.

What do you mean? The
prisoner says he didn't do it.

What do you expect him to say?

He claims he's the top hand
at Shiloh Ranch,

and that he was workin'
when Doc was killed.

Course I don't believe him.

What about the sheriff?

He wants me to send a
telegram to Shiloh, check it out.

Figured I'd stop here
for a drink first.

Way this town's actin'
makes me kind of nervy.

We both know we got the right man
in there. The whole town knows it.

What we don't know is what
that man's got up his sleeve.

He might have a friend at Shiloh who's
willing to lie for him, a brother, or...

Maybe he's even related to
the owner of the ranch.

Don't you think my pa would
lie for me, if it meant my life?

Sure, he would, Josh.

Don't send that telegram,
Lucius.

I'll find out
who's top hand at Shiloh.

What about the sheriff?

When he doesn't get any reply,
he'll know that cowboy's lying.

Oh, he made a mistake to ask
you to send that telegram, Lucius.

Now, you know that.

Sheriff's been making
a lot of mistakes lately.

I'm takin' a big chance,
Josh. I could lose my job.

You could be in line
for a better one.

My pa built this town,
Lucius. And he's proud of it.

He wouldn't want to see it get a
reputation for being easy on murderers.

A reputation like that is hard to lose.
It brings a lot of bad people into town.

Don't send that telegram,
Lucius. You won't be sorry.

I'll see to it.

I don't know nothing
about no telegram, Josh.

Wh... What telegram?

Hey, Gus, two more!

Morning, Gus. How are you
fixed for bacon and eggs, Gus?

Sheriff, you have to bring
him in here for every meal?

I'd just as leave take
his grub over to the jail.

Should've thought of that
before, Gus. Too late now.

- What do you mean it's too late?
- He means he can't back down.

It'd look like he'd given in.

If it's all the same to you,
I'll do my own explaining.

You have to bring him in
here? You heard what he said.

Tell Abby I'd like some
coffee with his bacon and eggs.

Our usual table? Mmm.

What makes you think I won't
try to make a run for the door?

What makes you think I
wouldn't be glad if you did try?

You wouldn't get
as far as the door.

You look tired
this morning, Abby.

Josh... Josh took me to
that new hotel in King City.

I guess we danced too much.

I hear that's a pretty fancy
place. I guess Josh can afford it.

This Josh...
Is, uh, he her fella?

I wouldn't know about that.

You said he's got a lot of
money. What's he do to earn it?

Oh, he's got just about the hardest
job in town. He's Ezra Gates's boy.

That's full-time, no days off.

Ezra Gates? Is he mean?

He's hard and tough.

Got plenty of money.
Made it all himself in cattle.

Ezra Gates.
I've heard that name before.

Sure! That bounty hunter. He said he
was getting his reward from Ezra Gates.

That's right.
Ezra put up the money.

He and Doc were old friends.

Nobody wanted to find Doc's
killer more than Ezra Gates.

Are you tellin' me
he's not a drifter?

All I know is what he says.

And he says he's the top hand at
Shiloh Ranch outside Medicine Bow.

Sheriff sent Lucius to telegraph
Medicine Bow to confirm it.

Don't worry. I told
Lucius not to bother.

What if he's telling the truth?

Pa, it's too late. He had Doc's
watch on him. Abby identified him.

He's got to be the one.

As long as the sheriff doesn't get
any answer, it doesn't change anything.

Doesn't change anything?

I told that bounty hunter to bring
me a saddle tramp with no roots!

I had it all planned out.

Judge Castle owes me
a favor. I'd talk to him.

He'd find some legal technicality
to save the drifter's neck.

A year or two in prison, maybe.

But what's that to a drifter compared
to the life of my one and only son?

Now, look, Pa.
Don't you... Shut up!

I'm not asking your advice.

I done
everything I could for you.

And this is what it's come to.

The Gates name in the mud.

Everything that I've tried to
build up is bein' destroyed by you,

by your lust
for this saloon girl.

Pa, it hasn't come to that.
Lucius will keep still about it.

No, what's he gonna
think about it?

Lucius doesn't think.
He just takes orders.

Maybe I'd be better off with
Lucius for a son instead of what I got.

How much did you
tell him? Nothing.

I just made him see that we
had the right man in that jail,

and to look anywhere else
would be a waste of time.

The sheriff's sure to think
that cowboy's guilty as sin.

The judge! What if he sends
a wire to Medicine Bow?

You can handle Judge Castle.

He still owes you that favor.

Just how do I put that to him?

"Close your eyes to this man's
innocence. It suits me to have him guilty."

What if he can prove he was nowhere near
Calumet the night Doc Evans was killed?

What about the watch?

Whose last hours will
that measure, tick for tick?

Well, there's Abby.

Yes, there's Abby.

Now, is that enough?

What have you brought me to,
Josh? What have I got facing me here?

It's him or me, Pa.

- It's always been.
- Yes.

Well? Judge Castle's
arriving tomorrow.

He sent word.

What about the telegram
from Clay Grainger? Any reply?

No, sir. Not a thing.

That telegram could've come
clear across country by now...

if you were telling the truth.

Maybe the real top hand picked it up
and thought someone was playing a joke.

I'm the top hand at that ranch.

Could be
they didn't like your work.

We might be
doing them a favor, Sheriff.

Are you sure you sent it
to the right place?

Clay Grainger, Shiloh Ranch,
Medicine Bow.

Why don't you
tell us the truth, cowboy?

I am telling the truth! Then why is it
you're the only one who believes it?

Look, Sheriff, let me talk to Abby.
Let me find out what she's hiding.

What makes you think
she's hiding something?

The way she told us
about the killing...

It was more like something
she memorized instead of saw.

Like someone told her what
to say. Didn't you see that?

No, I didn't!

Sheriff, doesn't it seem strange that
Josh's father hired the bounty hunter?

No! Ezra Gates and Doc Evans
were real good friends. I told you that.

- And Josh takes out Abby?
- She's a pretty girl!

And the only witness to the
murder. Look, it's like a circle!

Or a noose, cowboy!

Judge Castle's a fair man.
He'll have a fair trial.

I didn't say nothing to him, Josh.
I just served him his breakfast.

- You sure?
- Not a word.

What about the sheriff? Did
you talk to him? Well, did you?

- I told him we went out last night.
- Why'd you do that?

Well, he could've
found out anyway.

A lot of people saw us.
What difference does it make?

Maybe none.

Maybe we shouldn't see each
other anymore until this is over.

Why?

Sheriff Stoddard's not a stupid man.
He might start putting things together.

We went out before. You were even telling
people we were gonna be married, Josh!

And I meant it. I still do.

It's just no use taking chances,

not unless you want to visit
your husband-to-be on Boot Hill.

Oh, don't ever say that, Josh.

Well, then, let's be smart.

It'll only be
for a little while.

It's just I...
I get scared sometimes,

and you're all I have
to make me feel better.

I won't be very far away.

Oh, I can't...
I can't sleep nights,

thinking about having to tell
the judge in court what I saw.

Just keep telling yourself
it's true, Abby.

Unless you want to
tell the real truth.

No. You got me into this.

I wouldn't have killed him
if it wasn't for you...

and all the bad things
he was saying about you.

It wasn't like the doc.

Well, you being so close, living
next door at the boardinghouse,

bringing him meals
sometimes late at night.

He was an old man.
He was a man, Abby.

Didn't you say yourself he slipped
his arm around your waist one night?

It was a joke! I told you it was a
joke, and you laughed about it.

Then. But not when he told me.

And the rest... how he
spied on you sometimes,

how you didn't always dress
proper when you came into his room,

and the thoughts that
went through his mind.

No wonder I saw red.

I-I couldn't let him go on saying
things like that about you, could I, Abby?

No.

Well, that's why, Abby.

That's why you have to
swear in court what happened,

just like you saw it
with your own eyes.

Yeah. Yeah.

Oh.

Go bring him his food, Abby.
You got nothing to be afraid of.

Afternoon, Sheriff.

Josh.

Thank you, Abby.

You know I didn't kill
Doc Evans. Who did?

- Let her go.
- Who killed him, Abby?

Please.

You must be
out of your mind, cowboy.

I could have killed you
then. Why didn't you?

Judge'll be here tomorrow. Be a shame
for him to come all this way for nothing.

How was the dinner, Sheriff?
Did he eat all his potatoes?

You're in the way, folks.

What kind of pie did we
have today? Apple? Cherry?

Did the sheriff wipe off your
chin when you got through?

You're gonna lose your job,
Jake, hanging around town.

Then I'll lose it.

Don't you have anything
better to do with your time?

Not till I see you
hang high, cowboy.

That's what
we're all waiting for.

Tomorrow. That's what
the sheriff said.

The judge is coming tomorrow.

Way the town's worked up, I
don't know if they can wait for a trial.

Folks are getting ugly and mean.

Just be glad it's not me in
that jail, Pa... Ezra Gates's boy.

You're a power in this town, Pa.
Lots of folks are afraid of you.

They hate you for that.

They'd like nothing better than
to get back at you through me.

I wouldn't have a chance
of telling my story in court.

Ezra Gates's boy killed Doc
Evans over a woman? Who'd listen?

They'd drag me out of my cell and
put a rope around my neck so fast,

and it would be all over.

It'd be all over, Pa, before
the judge even got here.

If it was me, I mean.

But like I say, Pa,
you're a power in this town.

If you want to make sure that Jake and
the others wait for that judge to get here,

all you have to do
is, uh, tell them to wait.

They'll listen to you. Whatever
you say, Pa, they'll listen to you.

Haven't they been listening
to you all these years?

Thing about that trial tomorrow,
Pa... Abby's awful nervous.

And there's that business about that
telegram that never got sent to Shiloh.

Maybe he is the top hand.

Judge might even
hold up the trial...

until somebody from Shiloh
gets here to identify him,

maybe even swear that he
couldn't have killed Doc Evans.

It's hard to say what's
gonna happen tomorrow, Pa.

I guess it depends a whole lot
on what happens today.

Saddle up my horse, Josh.

I'm goin' into town.

Josh, you ever see a man hang?

No, Pa.

I'm telling the truth, Sheriff,
and you know it.

All I know is we never got
an answer from Medicine Bow.

- Maybe that telegram wasn't sent.
- For what reason?

Because maybe this town needs
somebody to hang,

a substitute, and I'm it.

Now you listen here. I've
been a sheriff for 20 years!

I've killed more men
than this cell has bars,

but I've never taken a single
life that didn't need taking.

I've never shot anybody in the back,
and I've never hung an innocent man!

Yeah? Well, you're gonna
start with me!

Sheriff, where was
Josh that night?

Out at his pa's place.

Are you sure? Or did you
even bother to find out?

I didn't have to! I had a
description of the killer.

From who? Abby?
Josh's girlfriend?

What did she say?
That he didn't look like Josh?

She said he needed a shave.

His clothes were dirty.
He looked like a drifter.

That could fit anybody
from here to the border...

Anyone the bounty hunter
decided to bring in.

Sheriff, did Josh have
any reason to kill Doc?

Like what? He
wanted his gold watch?

Well, he wanted somethin'!

Somethin'
bad enough to kill for.

I just... I just wonder what.

Gus thought it would be better if he
didn't come to the saloon anymore.

I told Gus... Well,
never mind. Just leave it.

Abby, where was Josh
when Doc was killed?

Well, Josh? Why, I
guess at home. Why?

He didn't come into town
at all that night?

Oh, I... I think he told me he
had dinner earlier at the hotel.

But you didn't see him? No.

Thank you, Abby. Thanks
for bringing the food.

Abby, did you see
Doc Evans that night?

No harm in answering.

Only when he left the boardinghouse to see
what that noise was, and you killed him.

- Didn't he have dinner at the saloon?
- He ate at the hotel that night.

Who told you that, Abby?

Well, I-I don't remember.
Somebody at the saloon, I guess.

Doc was called out about
5:00 to deliver the Melhorn baby.

It was a hard birth.

Bill Melhorn said Doc didn't
leave their ranch until after midnight.

That means he must've got back to
town a short time before he was killed.

Whoever told you Doc had dinner
at the hotel was lying.

Now, who lied, Abby?

I guess I heard wrong.
No, you were told wrong.

You were told to believe a lie
so you could use one against me.

It didn't happen that way, Abby. It
couldn't have happened that way.

Make him stop! Then
how did it happen?

Tell us the truth, Abby. Or don't you
know anymore? Or did you ever know?

Don't you see? He's
using me to die in his place!

But he's using you, too,
with his lies.

He's using you to help hang me!

No! You did it!
You killed Doc! I saw you!

Soon as Lucius comes back,
I'll check that telegram myself.

What's wrong, Abby? Oh!

Is something bothering you?

Why did you lie to me, Josh?

Lie? Well, what are you
talking about?

You told me that you saw Doc
Evans at the hotel that night,

that he said terrible things
about him and me,

and that that's
why you killed him.

That's what happened. I ran into him later
that night in front of the boardinghouse.

I told him to
shut his mouth about you.

He just laughed,
and said a whole lot more.

This town thinking he was
a saint, and all the time...

Oh, no, I'm not
sorry he's dead, Abby.

Doc Evans never went
to the hotel that night.

Course he did.
Where'd you hear that?

From the sheriff.

Mrs. Melhorn
had her baby that night.

Doc couldn't have got back
to town until after midnight.

M-Maybe the sheriff
was testing you.

Maybe you were lying to
me. Why would I do that?

I don't know why!

Oh, now, come on, Abby. That's
your answer for everything, isn't it?

Be sweet to Abby,
and she'll do whatever you want.

Why did you lie to me, Josh?

Because it didn't happen
the way you said?

Because you didn't
kill Doc over me?

Now don't go getting any ideas.

Oh, not me! Not a dumb
little saloon girl like me!

What kind of ideas could I have?

Except that you... you killed Doc
when he caught you at something. I...

The bank.

That story you made me tell
about the cowboy...

It was you trying to
break into the bank.

Doc came along and saw you.

If he hadn't, we'd have
been out of this town by now.

We'd have been far away,
Abby... you and me.

You didn't have to kill him.

He saw me! What else could I do?

It was the only way out. He'd
have told the sheriff and Pa.

I would have gone to jail.
That's why I had to kill him, Abby.

Abby, I was only
thinkin' about you. No.

Yes. Yes! Oh, no.

That night, Pa was tellin'
me to keep away from you.

Tellin' me to knuckle down to
ranchin' till I couldn't stand it anymore.

All these years, Abby, he's
kept me on a short string.

Given me pocket money
to spend around town.

Always promisin' me I'd
have more money than

I'd know what to do
with when he was dead...

if I took over the ranch.

But I hate that ranch, Abby.

I hate the sight of it.

And I hate the sight of
him... that tight-fisted...

I was meant for a big city.
You know that, Abby.

Didn't we talk about it
all the time, you and me?

About goin' away and
havin' a time for ourselves?

Not by robbing a bank.

There was nobody around.

All my pa's money
sitting in there.

After a couple of drinks I
started to think about that money.

And then Doc came along.
He was on his way home.

He saw what I was up to.

I looked at him, and he was Pa.

Same age, same size.

And he was callin' my name
and... shaming me.

Afterwards, you took his watch.

Sure, to make it look like
a robbery. You knew that.

You were already planning
what to do with that watch.

And you-you lied to your pa to get
him to help you, because he loves you.

And you lied to me! And you
helped me because you love me, Abby.

And that's why you're going
to keep on helpin' me, Abby.

They'll hang the cowboy. Yeah.

Yeah. Or they'll hang me. No.

How much do you love
me, Abby? How much?

There's not a man here
that didn't owe Doc somethin'.

Me, I owed him my leg...
Some of us owed him our lives.

He pulled my oldest son
through a bad fever.

I never paid him
a blessed penny.

No, and now you can't. It's too late.
He's dead. Shot down like a... like a dog.

We got his killer. That's
something. He'll hang for what he did.

That's for sure.
You bet he'll hang.

He'll hang real high
where everybody can see him.

Aren't you rushin' things, Jake?
Man hasn't been tried yet.

Tried? What kind of a trial
did he give Doc Evans?

None. But, then, he's a
murderer, Jake, and we're not.

The judge will be here tomorrow. He'll have
his trial. He'll have his say in court,

his word against
the saloon girl.

I, uh, have heard talk that he's got a rich
friend... a rancher over in Medicine Bow.

That could hold
things up a little...

They get a lawyer here
to defend him.

Defend him? How do you
defend an old killer?

Man has a right to a fair trial.

No tellin' how this'll turn out. The
judge might rule out the evidence.

Why? I'm not saying
that he will, Gus.

I'm just saying
what might happen.

This trial might not
end in a hangin'.

He killed Doc, didn't he?
And I'm sayin' he's gotta hang!

Whoa! Whoa! Now wait.

Wait just a minute, please.

Now, I have no way of knowin'
how this trial is gonna come out.

But what I say is, whatever the verdict,
we've gotta be ready to live with it.

I knew Doc better
than any man here.

And I know that he
believed in justice. Justice!

You call letting
his killer go justice?

You're puttin' words
in my mouth.

I don't know that his
killer's gonna go free.

But let's face the
possibility that he's not

gonna hang. Just for
the sake of argument.

Doc used to say that.
Said it all the time.

- Just for the sake of argument.
- Yeah.

Doc was a good man,
a gentle man.

Just the kind of man that
this thing always happens to.

Evil men can take care of themselves. They
can always get other people to help 'em.

Yes, like that sheriff bringing that
mangy cur in here for his meals.

No! Now that sheriff
is doin' his job.

Just like Doc always did his.

Comin' into town today,
lookin' up at Doc's window,

I half expected to see him there
wavin', smilin' as he always did.

No matter how dog-tired he was
from tendin' to his patients.

He's a good man.
Hard to believe that he's gone.

Hangin' his killer
isn't gonna bring him back.

Letting his murderer go free
ain't either.

You know somethin'? Every minute
that that killer sits in that jail cell,

breathing air and tasting life... I
say that's an insult to Doc's memory!

Now hold your horses!
Hold your horses!

Now Doc wouldn't like that
kind of talk, and you know it.

Why, I recall the time that the
town bought him that gold watch.

Tears came to his eyes, and he didn't
want us to know how he was feelin'.

That's the kind of man
that he was.

And he gave us the very dickens
for wastin' money on that timepiece.

But all the same, you could see
how proud he was of that watch.

The same watch that that killer
stole off of him after he murdered him.

Well, now, he claims that
he never saw that gold watch.

And the bounty hunter that
took it off him, long since gone.

Judge'll have to
take that into account.

Yeah, well, I say we don't
wait for the judge.

I say we take care of him
ourselves.

- Hang the dirty killer!
- Hang him!

What we need is a rope!
Gus, you oughta have a rope.

Let's get this thing over with!

Gus, there ought to be
a rope around here someplace.

We're gonna have a hangin'.

What's all this talk
about lynching my prisoner?

Prisoner? I thought
he was your guest.

If the law can't help us,
we'll do without.

Doc's murder's
got to be paid for.

- Who said it wouldn't be?
- He's got to hang, Sheriff.

That's the law.

The law's full of tricks.
We're gonna do this our way.

We owe it to Doc.

We owe Doc exactly
what he gave us. Trust.

An open mind. What's
more, respect for life.

Or have you all
forgotten that already?

He was a doctor! He
brought life into the world.

Put a high value on it.

You think Doc would give
his blessing to a lynch mob?

Why, he'd sooner turn his
back on a case of smallpox.

You know that's true.

Gus, you oughta know it. He
stood right there one night...

and said he was against
hanging... even legal hanging...

Against all capital punishment...
You heard him!

Ah, maybe so. Reckon I did.

But he didn't know he was
gonna get murdered at the time.

You know, Sheriff,
every time I see you,

you're doin' somethin'
else for that killer.

- Now you're tryin' to save his neck.
- Why, Sheriff?

Why is that?

I was just asking myself why some folks
are so anxious to see him quietly dead...

before the trial?

I don't know, Josh.
You think he'll fall for it?

You just tell him that if he wants
to live, this is his only chance.

And then when he takes it...

You can't let
a killer escape, Lucius.

You'll just have to stop him.

All right. But I want to
get somethin' out of this.

This town's ready
for a new sheriff.

I'll see to it that my pa
backs you all the way.

The sheriff told you
to turn me loose?

I'm not sayin' I like it. I'm
against it, but he's the sheriff.

There's a horse waitin' out
there. You better get on it and ride.

Why is he doin' this?

Because he doesn't want
a lynchin' in his town.

And that's just what
they're gettin' ready to do.

Come on out.

I'd just as soon
let 'em hang you.

Wait.

You better go out that door.

Go on. What are you
waitin' for? Make a run for it.

Where's my horse? It's
tied up around the corner.

Where? Up the hill
in back of that house.

He's got a gun!

Next time you want to shoot me
in the back, think of a better story!

Sheriff! Your prisoner's
tryin' to escape!

He... He grabbed the deputy's
gun and tried to kill him.

Where is he now?
Holed up in the jailhouse.

That's what comes from
listening to you, Sheriff.

We should've strung him up
when we had the chance.

Let me handle this. You've
handled it long enough!

- Now the killer's got a gun.
- Then stay out of his way!

All of you get back inside.
Let me do my job! Go on!

Things haven't been going very
well for you today, have they, Lucius?

He tricked me, grabbed my gun.

Uh-huh. I stopped
by the telegraph office.

You never sent
that message to Medicine Bow.

I was going to. I swear it.

What else were you gonna do, Lucius?
Why did you take him out of his cell?

Sheriff, listen now.

Go away, Lucius. Keep going.

And don't ever come back.

Cowboy, this is the sheriff!

That gun won't do you any
good. Might as well hand it out.

Your deputy was gonna shoot me in the back.
Make it look like I was tryin' to escape.

I know.

- And I didn't kill Doc Evans.
- I know that too.

- What did you say?
- I know you didn't kill Doc Evans.

We both know who did.

Well, that sure took you long
enough. Not as fast as I used to be.

Got a real problem on our hands.

I take it you don't wanna hang.

Well, that's never been
one of my lifelong ambitions.

He's still inside. Maybe the
killer's got his gun by now.

It's awfully quiet in there.
Quiet as a graveyard at night.

I was just thinkin'. This might
be a good time to rush the jail.

Josh! You wait for the judge.

No, Pa!
We've waited long enough.

He almost got away. Let's not
give him another chance! He's right!

That's far enough.

We want the prisoner, Sheriff.

You had your chance,
Josh. Send him out, Sheriff.

No, Jake. You'll have
to come and get him.

I'll get him outside!

Get him up on the buckboard!

Hold his hands.

Get the other one. Abby!

- Abby!
- Get the seat, Matt.

Get this over with!

Look. Don't. You'll be sorry.

- You've got the wrong man.
- Stop!

I made a mistake.
He's not the one I saw!

She's just afraid. Go on back
inside, Abby. You don't have to watch.

Don't go. I want you
to see how easy it is

for him to kill me like
he killed Doc Evans.

- Tell 'em, Abby.
- We're just wasting time! Lower that rope!

Don't let him do it!
Stop him, please.

The whole story was a lie...
Everything I said.

I was nowhere near when Doc
was killed. I didn't see a thing!

What's she saying, Josh?

Don't you see?

The sheriff put her
up to this. It's a trick!

She's lying now! She's lying
her fool head off to save this killer!

Tell 'em, Abby! Tell 'em who
he picked to hang instead of him.

Tell them who lied,
even to you! Tell 'em!

Come on, Matt!
Whip those horses!

Hold it, Matt.

You promised to
go away with me, Josh.

How do I know you weren't
lying about that too?

You lied to your pa.
You lied to everybody.

Say it, Abby.

Say who killed Doc Evans.

Josh did it.

Doc caught him trying to
break into the bank.

Josh killed him. Josh did it.

You gonna listen to her?

Who'd believe an alley
cat of a saloon girl?

Oh, no.

I would, Josh.

I believe her.

I'm sorry, Son.

I share the blame.

Pray God that I can
share the punishment.

Well, I don't suppose you'll
be coming up this way again.

Not unless somebody ties me
or drags me back.

Don't keep my room ready,
'cause that's not about to happen.

Town won't forget
this. They'll try.

I won't let 'em forget.

Every chance I get,
I'll rub their noses in it.

Sheriff, you're not
gonna be too popular.

I'm not worried.

Then I'm not gonna
worry about it either.

Abby.

Well, I got my rounds to make.

Uh, Sheriff? So long.

So long, cowboy.

It's, uh... It's not
enough to say I'm sorry.

Could've been worse. You
could've waited a few minutes longer.

That doesn't make it right.

No, but I'm much obliged
to you just the same.

There's nothing I hate worse
than a tight collar.

Going someplace? On the stage.

Far? As far as I can.

They say Colorado's nice.
Denver, maybe.

Nice town.

I'd take Medicine Bow.

Uh, Trampas... I know.

I've been in love myself.

It makes you do funny things
sometimes, doesn't it?

Thank you.