Original subtitles

Major! Major Adams!

Major Adams?

Major! Major!

I gotta find the Major. Why?

I gotta find him, that's all.

Tell me what's the matter with you anyway!

Bill... there's been a murder.

Mason.

Hey, Mason!

Come on, wake up! Mason!

Come on, you're movin'.

Movin'? Where?

You're goin' to the jail wagon.

Jail wagon? Charged with murder.

Come on.

I always said that Mason boy was no good.

I always said that if he never stopped,

he'd kill somebody.

You know I always said that.

Yes, Mildred, you always said it.

What would Brad have against a man like Ivers?

Brad's got something against everybody.

If you ask me,

hanging's too good for him.

Suppose he didn't do it, Mildred.

Of course he did it.

Who else would do a thing like that?

A fair fight between men is one thing.

But a killin' like this...

Mr. Ivers gave me a dollar once...

just to help him reload his wagon

when the load shifted.

He was a good man. He always paid his way.

What are we gonna do about the killin', Pa?

We can't hold up the train for a murder trial.

We're behind time now.

First thing you know, we'll be caught in snow country.

No point in a trial anyway.

Everybody knows who did it.

Maybe there won't be no trial.

I reckon we could talk to a few folks and see if they want one.

Murder?!

Just think... it could've been any one of us.

When Carter got his mind fixed on comin' west,

I said, "Carter! All those rough people? You think it's safe?"

It isn't as though you could choose your company.

Do you know that Eileen danced with that Brad Mason

at the last square dance?

She didn't!

Bessie, what did you do?

Well, I didn't know he was a murderer then.

Well, you don't know that he's a murderer now.

Eileen, he's been arrested.

He's in the prison wagon right now.

But he hasn't been tried yet.

Are you defending that murderer?

Of course she isn't. She doesn't know what she's saying.

She's just a young, silly girl without a brain in her head.

I heard Brad Mason quarreling

with poor Mr. Ivers just the other night.

And come to think of it,

I'm not even sure he didn't threaten him then.

And when you come to think about it a little bit longer,

you'll be positive you heard Brad threaten him, won't you?

Eileen!

And maybe after a little bit more thought,

you'll remember seeing Brad actually attack him.

What's the matter with all of you?

When I was a young woman,

we had respect for our elders!

What's going to happen to the little Ivers boy?

How are they ever gonna tell him about his pa?

MAJOR: David, you're gonna move over to my wagon for a while.

Your daddy's asked me to take you on to San Francisco.

We'll meet your mother there.

Where's my daddy?

Well...

let me tell you, sonny.

Sometimes...

Sometimes our fathers get called away.

Was my daddy called away?

Yeah, he was called away.

He didn't tell me.

You see, he didn't know, Davey.

It happened kind of sudden like.

Let's you and me go over and get a hold of old Wooster, huh?

See if he's got some cookies.

With raisins?

He'll have raisins in 'em and every other thing.

Come on.

All right, cut it out, Mason.

You've got the gun. You can give the orders.

And don't you forget it.

You'd like to plug me right now, wouldn't you?

Might save a lot of trouble for later on.

Well, go ahead. Help yourself.

Poor little fella. He's all tuckered out.

Fell asleep the minute I put him down.

This has always been one of my favorite campsites, too.

Desert sure is pretty this time of year, ain't it?

It's never gonna be the same after this mess.

Let's see. I think we got there men here

registered as lawyers.

Alexander Drew...

English barrister, retired.

I thought you was lookin' for lawyers.

Charlie, a lawyer in England

is called a barrister.

What's the matter with them people? Can't they speak English?

Aw, stop tryin' to be funny.

I wasn't tryin' to be funny.

Then we've got Archibald McAdoo.

And we've got Harley Green.

And here's a professor of law...

Mark Applewhite.

Charlie, round up those four fellas,

and get 'em back here as soon as you can.

Here, keep pluckin'. I'll hurry.

I thought you were guardin' that Mason.

I just got relieved.

Pretty tough customer, isn't he?

He won't win any popularity contests, that's for sure.

Charlie! Yeah, I'm goin'.

You still figurin' on a trial?

I am.

I passed the Millers back there.

They were talkin' about riggin' a gallows.

You can always count on the Millers

if there's any trouble to be gotten into.

And the help they were gettin' from a lot of the people

would really surprise you.

The mood these folks are in,

I don't think they'll hold still for a trial.

There's gonna be a trial.

Not gonna be any lynching on this train.

Yeah, and yesterday you would've said

that there wouldn't have been a murder.

Bill...

Brad Mason's gonna get a fair trial by a jury.

Anybody that tries to lynch him

is gonna have to step over my dead body.

But we've got only three guns you can count on...

Charlie's, yours, and mine.

It's over 200 miles to the nearest law.

You actually think you can give Mason a fair trial?

The day I can't...

that's gonna be the day somebody else takes over as wagon master.

Well, we can string him up with this.

Come on, let's go.

But, my dear Major Adams,

do you have the right, the authority,

to conduct a trial out here?

Sir Alexander...

maybe you should've read those articles you signed

when you came on this train.

Apparently you didn't read 'em,

so I'll recite part of 'em for you.

I know 'em pretty good. I wrote 'em.

Under the Articles of Transportation,

the wagon master has the same rights

and the same responsibilities

as the captain of a ship.

Whenever the train finds itself outside the jurisdiction

of duly constituted authority,

it is the law that the wagon master

shall set up rules governing that train. Is that clear?

Perfectly.

All right, then. Bradley Mason has a right

to trial by a jury of his peers,

the same as any other man in any other community.

Can't we wait until Sacramento for that?

Sacramento's a long way's off.

Too long to keep a man under guard and try to protect him.

I'll undertake the prosecution for you, if you like.

Fine.

I'm afraid I couldn't undertake to defend Mason.

Can't get along with him for five minutes.

We've almost come to blows a half dozen times already.

I wouldn't take his case for $1,000.

Last week, he got drunk and stampeded my horses.

Took the best part of the night to round them up.

Bradley Mason's nothing but trouble.

I wouldn't want to be the one to stand up for Mason,

with feeling running the way it is against him.

That's right. We might get strung up with him.

Just a goldarn minute.

I thought you were men of law.

I can hardly believe my ears.

Don't you lawyers stand for anything?

It's pretty hard to stand for a man like Bradley Mason.

To kill someone like Ivers in cold blood.

That's my feelings exactly.

Now, just hold on. Maybe I missed something.

Is this trial over? Is the verdict in?

No, of course not.

Then how in the name of...

Gentlemen, gentlemen...

I must agree with Major Adams.

You are speaking of a guilty man.

You men of law... pledged and dedicated to justice...

Have already judged Bradley Mason guilty.

Professor Applewhite,

are you acquainted with Bradley Mason?

Yes, slightly.

Do you like him? Not particularly.

He's young and brash

and full of self-importance.

But good heavens, you can't hang a man for that.

I've been listening to you gentlemen,

and I give you my word, I wonder if I'm still in America.

Ah, but this is not America, Professor.

This is wilderness.

There, sir... is where you are wrong.

As Major Adams has been telling us,

wherever this caravan passes,

wherever it rests,

however deep in the wilderness we go,

there is America.

We take our country with us wherever we go.

We also take our obligations

and our consciences.

We, sir, are a civilized people.

Academically speaking,

is murder civilized?

Ah, nonsense. You know better than that.

Murder is a relic of the barbarous sages.

But we must deal with it in a civilized manner.

Where did you gentlemen study law?

Who were your teachers?

Don't you know that a lawyer's first duty

is to uphold the cause of justice?

Justice for the guilty...

justice for the innocent...

and above all, justice for the accused.

For he is accused.

And he stands alone.

And his lawyer... is his life.

I feel as if I have been caught cheating in the finals.

So do I.

I guess Harley and I had it coming to us.

What's the matter with people, Abby?

Why are we so bloodthirsty?

Why are we so prone to condemn?

Look out there.

They're building a gallows already,

hoping for a Roman holiday.

You're a dedicated man.

You think of law in the finest sense.

You can't expect everyone to feel the way you feel.

I do expect a lawyer to know his obligations.

If he doesn't, he has no business practicing law.

That poor boy has no one to defend him.

Will there be a trial?

Oh, Adams says there will, yes.

All the attorneys around here want to be prosecutors.

They're all forgetting the very basic foundation

of justice and law and order,

that a man, innocent or guilty,

is entitled to a defense.

Mark, why can't you defend him?

My dear, I'm a teacher,

not a lawyer.

Besides, it would be sheer presumption on my part

to attempt to take the life of a man into my hands.

You've been saying someone must.

Besides, haven't you been telling others how to do it

all your life?

Yeah. Telling is one thing.

Doing is another.

You said you wanted to practice when you retired.

Yes, but not criminal law.

Now you're making excuses, Mark.

Haven't you any obligation in this matter?

Are you coming to Mr. Ivers' burying, Mrs. Applewhite?

Oh, I hadn't thought of it.

It's been weeks since we've had one.

Most everyone's going.

I think I ought to warn you, boy...

I've never appeared in court before.

Well, what's the good in my appearing? What chance have I got?

Did you kill Ivers? Does it matter?

I'm gonna hang for it, whether I killed him or not.

I can tell you one thing.

You're not going to get very far with that attitude.

If you came here to preach to me, you can forget it.

I came here to help you, to offer you my services.

Well, I don't want your services.

Very well.

Very well.

Oh, if you should change your mind,

I'll be glad to do what I can.

Fight for your life, boy.

Fight for it.

Don't let anybody take it away from you

without fighting for it.

Murderer! Murderer!

I say we string him up right now!

Let's move on!

Are you standin' up for the murderer?

No, but I'll shoot the first man

that tries to get inside that wagon.

Mason's gonna get a trial.

Did he give Ivers a trial before he killed him?

No, he just bashed his head in!

MAJOR: Hold on there! Hold on!

There's no use in you people gathering around this wagon.

Go on about your business.

Why are you protecting that animal?

You caught him dead to rights, didn't you?

No, I didn't catch him dead to rights.

I didn't see him kill Ivers.

And that animal you're talkin' about

happens to be a human being.

And he's entitled to the benefit of any doubt.

I put him under arrest because of certain evidence,

and he's gonna be tried on that basis of that evidence.

I didn't ever figure you'd side with murderers.

I figured you for law and decency.

I am for law and decency, Mr. Miller.

But I don't hold with answering murder with lynching.

We're a long ways from any law.

We people are not gonna stand

for a common murderer getting away.

Don't be surprised if you see him hangin' out there

with his next stretched in the morning!

Major Adams?

Major Adams!

I want to talk to Mark Applewhite.

I'll tell him.

And now, my boy,

I'm going to put it to you again.

Did you kill Ivers?

I don't know.

You don't know? You mean to tell me

you don't know whether or not you killed a man?

It's God's truth. I don't know. I'd been drinkin'.

Oh. Well, did you see Ivers at all on Saturday?

Yes.

Uh, what time?

10:00.

10:00? You seem mighty positive about the time.

I told him I was gonna meet him at 10:00.

Uh-huh. Where?

I met him at his wagon.

Then we went down to the water hole to talk.

Why did you go down there?

We had some business to discuss.

It seemed like a good place to talk.

What sort of business?

Something about a job.

I'm afraid I shall have to ask you

to be a little more explicit, my boy.

I'd heard that Ivers was gonna buy a paper in San Francisco,

and I thought I might fit in.

Have you ever worked on a newspaper before?

What's that got to do with anything?

My dear boy, would you please let me be the best judge

of what's got to do with what?

All right, I did work on a newspaper.

In Buffalo? Yes.

Ivers owned a newspaper in Buffalo, didn't he?

Did you work for him? No.

Now, look here. Your life depends on em.

And I don't want any unpleasant surprises,

so whatever the worst is, tell it to me now,

so I can be prepared for it.

I did work on Ivers' newspaper there.

Then you knew him before you came on the train.

Yes, I knew him. I hadn't seen him in a long time.

Were you friendly?

I hated his guts.

His... And yet you made an appointment with him

to ask him for a job.

Why not? I need a job.

How did he take your asking him?

He turned me down.

And you... you quarreled?

It wasn't very friendly.

Did you come to blows?

No.

No, I don't think so.

You don't think so? Don't you know?

I don't think there was any fighting.

Most of last night is a complete blank.

I remember talking to Ivers,

and I seem to remember him looking at me,

smiling that blasted superior smile of his.

Then I remember coming back to my wagon,

looking for the rest of my bottle,

and I remember Major Adams shaking me,

but in between, there's just a lot of dark spaces.

Hmm. Dark spaces.

Did you take your rifle with you

when you went to meet Ivers?

No. What would I want with my rifle?

Well, you know that Ivers was killed, don't you,

by blows from the butt of your rifle?

No, no, I didn't.

Didn't anybody tell you?

Oh, yes. Major Adams found your rifle

in your wagon

with Ivers blood still on the butt of it.

But that doesn't make any sense.

Why not?

What would I want with my rifle?

I was wearing my gun.

Possibly a rifle makes a better club.

No, no.

You say you don't know

whether or not you killed Ivers, huh?

That's because I passed out.

Don't you see? It isn't logical.

We'll have to get a better defense than that.

Do you remember seeing anyone else last night?

No, no one else.

Hmm. If we only had one...

Just one witness... who could account for some of the time

you say you can't remember.

I didn't see anyone.

All right, my boy.

All right.

Mr. Hawks, would you please let me out?

Where you goin'?

Back to my books.

Well, books aren't gonna help me!

Laws were instituted and books written

just to help you.

Oh, sure.

If you're to be set free,

the law... and only the law... can free you.

Oh, thank you.

And that's the way we'll proceed with the trial.

Mr. Drew will undertake the prosecution...

Professor Applewhite will handle the defense.

What about a judge?

We've got an elected judge.

Just a minute, gentlemen.

Frank Hoag was elected judge

simply because he won a popularity contest.

Now, this is no popularity contest.

And the man isn't well.

And my client's life is at stake.

What we must have is someone with the authority

to keep things in order

and see that this trial is conducted without bias.

Personally, I'd be very happy

to have Major Adams preside as trial judge.

So would I.

Well, I suppose I could do it,

if you're all agreed.

I presided at quite a few court-martials while I was in the Army,

so I know something about trial procedure.

All right, how soon can we get started with it?

Well, this case should take weeks to prepare.

Professor, the folks in the mood that they're in...

The sooner we get started with this trial, the better off we'll be.

Good luck, Mr. Advocate.

Thank you, sir. I can hardly wish you the same.

Mildred, what you bakin' all them pies for?

We're havin' a party after the hangin'.

Maybelle's stuffin' wild turkeys,

and Mrs. McGivney's making her sweet and sour potato salad.

Isn't it fun?

Haven't had anything like this to look forward to

since the Fourth of July.

Henry, you come right back here.

You've got to help me trim the table.

I borrowed every cup on the train.

Hope it's enough this time.

There always seems to be more people than there are cups.

Bess, do you think you could let this out for me

before tonight?

It fit perfectly in St. Joe,

but all these damp nights seem to have shrunk it.

You'll never get any four inches

out of these seams.

I've lost so much weight on the trail.

Clara, are you gonna be that fancy?

We ought to dress up when we get the chance.

This is my first hanging.

Oh, goodness, Eileen, you gave me a start.

You're enjoying this.

Why not? There's so little to enjoy anymore.

You're not human... any of you.

You're not people, you're a mob.

You're on a witch hunt.

You're just a little girl.

You don't know what you're talking about.

You mean I'll know when I'm older?

You mean I'll be like you,

crying out for flesh and blood?

You'd better take that girl in hand, Bessie.

I'd better hurry along.

They're starting the trial,

and I'm volunteering for jury duty.

Oh, let's all go! Just give me a minute to change!

Give me a minute, and I'll be right with you.

This court will now be in session.

The first thing we've got to do

is pick ourselves a jury.

Mr. Applewhite and Mr. Drew there

are gonna ask you people some questions.

They have a right to excuse any one of you

or all of you, as they see fit.

When and if you're excused, you'll step down,

and somebody from the alternate jury will take your place.

Mr. Drew here has the first questions, I believe.

Do you believe in capital punishment?

I most certainly do!

Do you?

Oh, yes, sir.

Do any of you not believe in capital punishment?

I'm satisfied.

Sir.

Now, Mrs., uh...

What is your name?

Anderson.

Mrs. Anderson, yes.

Have you any preconceived ideas about this trial?

I have an open mind, if that's what you mean.

You're acquainted with the prisoner, are you not?

I should say I am.

Do you like him?

Major Adams, is that a fair question?

Well, Mrs. Anderson,

if you don't like the prisoner,

it's be pretty hard for you to judge him fairly.

But I want to be on the jury!

Mr. Applewhite, would you like this juror excused?

No, thank you.

I'll get back to her again later.

Now, uh, Mr. Bevins,

have you formed any ideas about this trial?

I don't think so.

Are you a drinking man, Mr. Bevins?

Yes, I take a few now and then.

Have you ever been known to take

just a few too many?

I don't know any man who hasn't.

Are there any complete,

out-and-out teetotalers on this jury?

Put up your hand, Clara.

I don't want to be put off the jury.

They can't put you off the jury for being sober.

Mr. Russell...

have you formed any ideas

about the guilt of Bradley Mason?

Everybody says he did it.

Mm-hmm.

Now, you agree with them, don't you?

Well, if you can prove to us he didn't do it,

I'm willing to listen.

It is not the function of the defense, sir,

to prove a man's innocence!

It is the function of the prosecution to prove his guilt.

Well, I guess that's one way of lookin' at it.

Can we find 12 people, sir,

in this entire wagon train

who will listen to this case impartially

and judge without prejudice?

Mr. Applewhite, would you like this whole jury excused?

No, thank you, Your Honor.

I'll accept seven and twelve.

You may excuse the rest.

MAJOR: Everybody except Charlie and Bevins

can step down.

I'll never forgive you, Maybelle!

It's not my fault you're a teetotaler.

Good evening, my dear. Good evening.

Well, we finally got a jury together.

We had to go through half the camp to get one,

but we did it.

I kept your supper hot.

Thank you, my dear. Thank you.

You know, I've had the strangest feeling

that I should be seeing something...

that the face of a murderer is right here in camp,

perfectly plain for everybody to see.

But I don't know where to look.

I wonder why Ivers was killed.

He seemed to get along with everyone.

Oh, he did. He did.

And yet he was killed with anger

and violence and premeditation.

Premeditation? Yes.

Whoever killed him went to an awful lot of trouble

to make it look as though Brad had killed him.

You really think Brad's innocent, don't you?

I do, I do.

I only pray that I may prove it.

The men will be gathering soon.

Oh, Clara, I'm frightened.

Why? They aren't gonna hang you.

What's happening to us?

We were all nice, decent people

when we started out.

Now I'm afraid to get out of the wagon.

Murder. Hangings.

Oh, I wish I'd never left home.

Good evening, Mrs. Traymore.

Is Eileen around?

No, she went off with some of the young folks.

Will you please ask her to see me at my wagon

as soon as possible?

Thank you.

Well, I never!

You don't suppose Eileen's gonna be in the trial, do you?

Oh, Clara, don't say such things!

You don't suppose Eileen is mixed up in the murder?

Eileen.

You don't want your mother to find you out here, do you?

They're gonna kill him, Major Adams.

They're not gonna kill anybody.

Nobody understands him.

Nobody but a 16-year-old girl?

Maybe I am only 16,

but I can listen, and I can see.

And I can love.

Child...

If he dies, I want to die, too.

If he's innocent, he's not gonna die.

Nothing's been decided yet.

Oh, but it is.

The trial hasn't even begun.

It never will begin.

It's already over.

Quiet night, eh?

Yeah, it's quiet, all right.

About the noisiest quiet I ever heard.

It almost screams at you.

I hope Mason eats some of his supper.

None of the rest of you touched yours.

Charlie, I don't like the looks of those gallows out there.

I don't, either. Let's knock 'em down.

Major, let's go knock them gallows down.

No. I've been tryin' my very best

to keep from doin' just that all day.

The worst thing we could possibly do.

Probably end up in a fight, and then we'd have bloodshed.

Best thing to do about that gallows

is just pretend it's not there.

How will you pretend it's not there when Mason's swingin' on it?

Mason's not gonna be swingin' on it.

Before they get him, they've gotta get to me.

That's what I'm worried about.

I'm scared, Major.

Maybe I'm scared, too.

But I know what I've got to do.

Charlie, it's about time for Mason's supper.

Maybe he's hungry.

If we can't eat, I don't know how he can.

I don't know, but let's go see. Come on.

All right.

Is it right...

What they mean to do?

He's a murderer, isn't he?

Even if he is, it don't seem right somehow

to hang a man without a trial.

But you said hanging was too good for him. I heard you myself.

Saying's one thing. Doing's something else again.

I never saw a man hanged.

Suppose it was my Henry.

Or me.

There's nothin' we can do to stop them.

Nothin' at all.

I say we take him right now and be done with it.

Come on, let's get him.

Come on, men. Let's go get Mason.

You men go back to your wagons.

We've come to get Brad Mason.

You're gonna have to kill seven of us

before you can get to Mason.

How many of you do you think will die?

You're bluffin'. I don't believe

you'd shoot these men to save a murderer.

There's one way you can find out.

Now, boys, there's only one wagon master on this train,

and that's me.

Not you or anybody else. Just me.

Miller, you put that gun down, or get ready to use it.

My quarrel isn't with you.

We've come to get Mason, and we're gonna get him.

MAJOR: Now, pick him up and get him out of here!

The rest of you get, too!

You men knew how I run a wagon train

before you ever signed on.

Any of you don't like it,

get out of here and get out now!

Well, that's the end of round two.

Yeah, I know, Bill.

But it's not the end of the fight.

They'll keep comin' back again and again.

Every time they come back, they'll get a little bit closer.

I hope they do leave the train.

Men like the Millers never leave, Mr. Drew.

They're born troublemakers.

They'll do everything in their power to break up this trial.

Gentlemen, tonight you've made me very proud

that we are all members of the same profession.

You risked your lives to save Bradley Mason.

Well, you did, too.

Yes, but there's a difference.

I risked my life to save a man

that I believe to be innocent,

while you risked yours to save a man

that you believe to be guilty.

Professor, you have made students of us all again.

If men of law won't fight

for a man's right to a fair and honest trial,

who will?

Aw, shucks.

I've got to go talk to my client.

I, uh...

Here, sir.

Professor?

I don't think I've ever seen a bunch of men

in as dangerous a frame of mind as these are.

We'll be very lucky if we can control them through the trial.

Tonight, sir, has proven to me

that you can.

Charlie, do you think Mason's guilty?

You're not supposed to talk to me about this case.

I'm on the jury.

Yeah, I keep forgettin' about that.

You know, I wonder how it would feel

sittin' up here runnin' this whole shootin' match.

I don't know about that.

I'd rather be one of them barrister people.

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury... loan me your ears.

Lend me your ears. That's what I said.

Oh, you did not. Who told you to say that anyway?

One of Mrs. Elliott's little boys.

Charlie, that isn't law. That's Shakespeare.

It is not.

It is, too, and the next line in that speech is,

"I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him."

If that's the next line, I don't think much of Caesar's lawyer.

Caesar's lawyer didn't say it.

Nobody said it. You're just makin' it up.

I am not! Shakespeare made it up.

What do you know about Shakespeare?

I had to learn that speech when I was in school.

Yeah, I keep forgettin' you went to school.

Educated, huh? Heh heh.

How'd you get them big feet under the desk?

Charlie, I need big feet.

You sure do, to carry that big fat head of yours around.

$25 for contempt of... Aaah!

Get your feet off of my desk, goldarnit!

Ain't you two got any respect for a court of law?

Ain't no court of law yet, is it?

It'll do till one comes along.

Major, do you think Mason's guilty?

You are not supposed to ask me

that kind of a question. I'm the judge.

I guess I'm not supposed to ask anybody anything around here.

Then why do you do it?

Because I like to be yelled at.

Get out of here, the two of you!

Charlie, go fix my supper.

Court's gonna convene within an hour.

Convene?

Hey, Bill. What's he mean, convene?

Remember, Charlie? I can't talk to you about the trial.

You're on the jury.

Oh, yeah.

Charlie!

I'm goin', I'm goin'!

The prosecution intends to prove

that the accused, Bradley Mason,

made an appointment with Charles Ivers

at 10:00 on the night of the murder,

that he'd been drinking when he kept that appointment,

that he quarreled violently with the dead man,

and that, before that quarrel was ended,

clubbed Ivers to death

with the butt of his rifle...

The rifle that was found in Mason's own wagon

with the blood of Ivers still on it.

Those were the events

which led to the charge of murder against Bradley Mason,

and those are the events upon which, I solemnly charge you,

it will be your duty

to find a verdict of guilty.

Mr. Blake, you are acquainted

with the accused, Bradley Mason?

I am.

Did the accused make certain statements to you

on Tuesday night about the deceased?

Well, let's see, now...

Uh, the deceased would be...

No, that's the accu...

Major...

I keep gettin' mixed up about who is what.

Eddie, the deceased is Mr. Ivers.

He's dead.

The accused is Bradley Mason there.

Oh. The deceased is Mr. Ivers.

Just tell the court, in your own words,

what Mason said about Ivers on Tuesday night.

Oh, now I get you.

Well, Mason said that Mr. Ivers... rest his soul...

Was a low, miserable scum,

and somebody ought to put him out of his misery.

Objection!

On what grounds, Mr. Applewhite?

The witness is repeating a conversation

that took place several days prior to the event.

It can have no possible bearing.

This conversation shows malice

on the part of the accused towards the dead man,

and is admissible testimony.

Pshaw!

Your Honor, may I remind you, sir,

that is a remark that men make to each other

day in and day out. It means nothing.

Four days after the accused made that remark,

Ivers was brutally murdered.

Mr. Applewhite, I think this is perfectly valid point.

We'll have to allow it.

Objection overruled.

Go ahead with your questioning, Mr. Drew.

Will you repeat to the court

the conversation you overhead between Mason and Ivers

on the day of the murder?

Well, I was comin' up from the creek,

and there was Mr. Ivers...

Rest his soul... and Mr. Mason.

And Mr. Ivers was sayin'... Rest his soul...

He was sayin',

"You're beginnin' to annoy me, Brad."

And Brad said, "I'll do more than annoy you

if you don't do what's right."

And then Mr. Ivers, he kind of laughed.

And he says, "Don't you threaten me, Brad."

And then Brad said, "If you push me any further,

I swear I'll kill you."

Quiet, everybody. Quiet.

No further questions.

Your witness.

And what did Mr. Ivers say

in reply to Mr. Mason?

What was that, Mr. Applewhite?

I say, what did Mr. Ivers say

in reply to the statement you have just credited to Mr. Mason?

Uh... sorry, I just don't quite get you.

Oh? I'll try and be a little louder for you.

What was the reply that Mr. Ivers made

to the remark made by Mr. Mason?

Oh. Well, he didn't say anything.

I guess they saw me comin'.

They just walked away.

Were the men shouting at each other?

No. No, they...

They was just talkin' quietly like.

And how close were you before they discovered you?

Maybe 20 feet.

20 feet. Oh, 20 feet.

Let me see here.

Now, this is approximately 20 feet.

Were the men facing each other,

or was there some distance between them?

I don't understand you.

What do you mean, you don't understand me?!

Or you don't hear me? Which is it?

I didn't hear your question.

And yet you testified that you heard perfectly

a conversation that went on between two men

20 feet away from you.

Maybe they were speaking louder than you.

But you just testified...

they were talking quietly.

Well, they were talkin' loud enough for me to hear.

If they were talking loud enough for you to hear,

the entire camp would've been out there

to see what was the matter.

I tell you, I did hear 'em!

Your Honor, I object to this line of questioning.

Counsel is badgering the witness.

May I remind the prosecutor...

And the Honorable Court...

That my client's life is at stake?

Surely, Your Honor, you are not going to admit

such damaging testimony from a witness

who has already proven his own inability to hear at such a distance.

Eddie...

I must remind you that you're under oath.

You don't want to put yourself in a position

where you could be on trial for perjury.

Are you sure that you heard what you said you heard?

Well...

I was sure.

Are you sure now?

Well, they...

They said somethin' like that.

I'm afraid we'll have to excuse this witness.

As the Court pleases.

Step down, Eddie.

He's giving up too easily on this witness.

I don't think he cares about his testimony.

You folks on the jury...

Don't pay any attention to what Eddie has just said.

Bill, the testimony of this last witness

will be stricken from the record.

You folks will not consider his testimony

in reaching your decision.

Call your next witness.

I call Libbie Carter to the stand.

I danced with him at the square dance.

He didn't stay too long.

He said he had to leave to meet Mr. Ivers.

Did he say why he was meeting Mr. Ivers?

He said it was business,

but he said it real sly like.

Objection!

The witness is expressing an opinion.

Objection sustained.

But he did say he was meeting Mr. Ivers?

Yes, sir, he certainly did.

Is this the murder weapon?

That's what I've been told.

Did Major Adams tell you he found this rifle

in Mason's wagon?

Answer the question, Bill.

Yes, sir. He said that's where he found it.

The butt of this weapon is stained

with Ivers' blood, is it not?

That's what I heard, but I have no way of knowing.

I must ask the witness to confine his answers

to the questions asked.

Is this gun the property of the accused?

I'm told that it is.

Don't you know for a fact that it is?

I have no way of knowing this.

No further questions.

How many guns are there like this in the camp?

There's hundreds, I guess.

That rifle is standard hunting equipment.

I see. Isn't it possible that someone else

might have used this gun to commit the murder,

and then placed it in Mr. Mason's wagon?

Yes, sir, it sure is.

Objection.

Objection overruled.

Mr. Drew, I don't know we can say

that that is not possible.

Did you go to the square dance with Bradley Mason?

Yes.

What time did he leave you?

He didn't leave me.

Did he leave before the dance was over? No.

Come, now, we know that he did.

He didn't leave me!

Did he tell you to say that?

No, he didn't tell me.

You've heard witnesses say that he did.

It isn't true!

Had Bradley Mason been drinking that night?

Yes.

Did he tell you where he was going when he left you?

He didn't leave me!

I went back to his wagon with him

after the dance.

Be careful of your answers, young lady.

You are under oath.

He didn't do it!

He didn't do it!

Are you in love with the accused?

He didn't leave me!

No further questions.

Witness excused.

David, you know the difference between telling a lie

and telling the truth, don't you?

You promise me you'll tell the truth right now?

That's a good boy.

Now, Davey...

you and I are just going to talk,

as if there was no one else here.

Look at me.

Don't worry about anyone else.

Right?

The night your father went away,

did he go away with anyone?

Can you show us who he went away with?

With him.

Do you know that man's name, David?

Brad.

Could you say that a little louder?

Brad.

Was it late at night

when you saw your father?

How do you know?

I woke up. I was in bed.

You told me that you heard him

saying something to your father.

Can you remember what it was?

He said, "Not here. The boy's asleep."

And my daddy said, "Down by the creek."

And Brad said, "Let's go." So, they went.

And you never saw your father again?

He's dead. My daddy's dead!

That man killed my daddy!

Leave him alone.

Leave him alone!

I did it! I did it!

Leave him alone.

Stand back! Stand back, all of you!

He's still protecting Mason! Come on!

This court will have a recess of one hour.

When we get back, we'll see about passing sentence.

Get out of here, all of you! Court's adjourned!

Get the boy back to the wagon, Bill.

Too bad, sir.

You were waging a magnificent fight.

Yes, just splendid.

It's somewhat like the old joke

about the surgeon that performed a magnificent operation,

but the patient died.

I never could quite see the humor in that old joke myself, but...

What are you talkin' about, Mark?

You didn't lose your case. You won it.

You were fightin' for justice,

and justice you got.

The fact that Brad confessed

doesn't alter the fact that he was given a trial.

It certainly doesn't.

You were defending a man who had no defense.

Didn't he? The poor boy...

What he needed was a lawyer.

What we gave him was a teacher.

Excuse me, sir.

My dear fellow, you mustn't reproach yourself.

He confessed.

True. A teacher, in 40 years of work

sees many faces,

hears many voices,

studies many kinds of eyes...

Soon learns to differentiate

between a cry of desperation

and a cry of truth.

And a lawyer picks up a certain amount

of cynicism over the years...

Cynicism mostly about himself.

He knows he believes his client to be innocent

simply because that's what he wants to believe.

Well, you see, I'm not a lawyer, sir.

I'm a teacher.

I'm sorry, my boy. Awfully sorry.

See, I never believed you did it.

I never believed you did it.

Pity he chose teaching.

He's have been a great advocate.

Yeah, maybe so.

But then he'd have been just one attorney.

As a teacher, he's give the world

thousands of young lawyers...

Thousands of young men who believe just as he does...

That this is a country of law,

and the law must be honored,

just as the rights of each man must be honored...

And defended...

If we're gonna have any justice out here.

Well, come on, boy.

Let's go.