Original subtitles

Ira?

Ira?

Honey?

Ira?

Oh.

You got to fix that pen this mornin'.

Quit grinding at me, can't ya?

Ah!

- Ha. - Morning.

Why don't you put your boots and pants on, boy?

Wh, what for?

Well now, wouldn't it look funny for me

to kill a man in his underwear?

What did you say?

I said I don't fancy making myself look foolish.

About killing?

A man in his underwear.

Don't look decent.

- Mister, who are you? - He knows.

What all you gonna do to him?

I'm gonna hold judgment over him.

In broad, public daylight.

Judgment?

It's a sacred, American principle, ma'am.

Not only that justice be done,

but that it be seen to be done.

What about after you done held judgment?

Well, old Judas, he had the good grace

to go hang himself, but I reckon your old man,

he's just gonna need a little encouragement.

Ira?

You must be thinkin' you married a man.

Ain't you even gonna try and pick it up?

So's you can shoot me in self-defense?

Spratt, you are a mistake.

One of nature's mistakes.

Probably have to cremate ya.

Good earth'd more than likely vomit you right back out!

Please, mister.

I don't know what he done to you,

but I could raise cash money on this farm.

We'll give you anything.

All right, you can start

by giving me five years of living.

And while you're at it a new patch of skin!

Spratt, you and me is going to town.

Well, it's a boy!

You know, for a while there, I didn't think

you's ever gonna quit having shemale girls.

- Sure! - Oh, beautiful.

Come on Gideon and sit down.

- What'll you have to drink? - None for me.

Sam, give them all what they want.

Where's Matt?

Oh, he's gone to Lawrence for two days.

You know if that baby'd took any more

time agettin' born, I might had to ask

old Sam for some of his coffee.

Well now, if he's gonna celebrate this early,

watch out for him along by sundown, I wanna tell you.

Miss Kitty, that there is American.

You can just 'bout near smell the feet

of the boys that planted that corn.

How 'bout it, boy,

aren't you even gonna try and give me a show?

Here.

There's your chance to go out in style.

You are bound and determined

to embarrass me ain't ya?

Well, I'd just hoped you'd have the gumption

for your kid's sake to die with iron in your hand,

not groveling like some fishbait worm

with his tail cut off.

All right, Crawley, call me anything you want.

What I want is for all these people

to know what you really are.

Go on.

Get away from that!

You, old man!

I'm a doctor!

Get him upstairs.

- Newly. - I warned you, old man!

I'm gonna be all right, Doc.

Bring him up.

All right, now where'd he go?

Someone seen him, where is he?

Where is he?

Is he gonna be all right, Doc?

Yes, he will, but he's not gonna be

up and around for a few days, I'll tell ya that.

Could I sit with him till he comes around?

Oh, that'd be good, thanks, Kitty.

Thank you.

Is he gonna be all right, Doc?

Yeah, I think so, Newly.

Good.

Let's have a look at this here.

It went clean through.

What are we gonna do?

What do you suggest, Burke?

Well, I don't know.

Festus shot, Newly.

You want to put on a badge?

You saying it's up to me alone?

I didn't say anything, Burke.

You're doin' the talking.

Well, we gotta do somethin'.

That fellow went in the telegraph office,

dumped all the batteries so we couldn't get help.

At least he ain't after none of us.

It's Ira Spratt he's gunnin' for.

Since when isn't Ira one of us?

Burke, get outta here!

All of ya, get out!

By golly, Newly, you've lost a lot of blood here.

I'm gonna be all right, Doc,

just patch me up.

I'll show you how to stop that fella.

You can't even hold a gun steady.

- Well, somebody's got to! - Not you.

You're not in any shape for that.

Maybe I can catch up with Marshal Dillon

and get him back here.

Well, I'll tell you something.

You're in no condition to make a ride like that.

What makes you think you can?

Just patch me up, Doc, we'll find out.

Ab, would you like some coffee?

Oh, no, no.

I've had coffee all night.

How's my son, huh?

I think he likes it here.

What are you girls doing here, huh?

School's waiting. Come on, scoot, scoot.

Scoot.

Yeow.

- Come on, feller. - Father, yeah.

Here we go. Hey there.

This, uh, fella, what did he want, Gideon?

A man named Spratt.

Who's he?

A hog farmer, drinks like goat,

beats his wife, don't pay his bills.

What'd he do this time?

I have no idea, but this fella seems

to carry and awful powerful grudge,

big enough to want to make him eat dirt before he killed him.

Did he?

Well, funny thing is, in all the shootin',

Spratt got away.

I must say, I'm kinda glad about that.

I guess I'll go down and see what's doin'.

Abner, be careful!

Don't poke your nose where it doesn't belong.

Who, me?

You get some rest.

That's a nice-looking' son you've got there, Gideon.

Thanks, Ab.

Oh, that one doesn't ever seem to mind his own business.

Well, at times like this,

we could use a few more like him, I'll tell you that.

Gideon.

This, um, stranger, is he gone?

Well, he was wounded.

I think he'd be fool to hang around till Matt come back.

Come on here, drink your coffee

before it freezes over.

I want Spratt, bad!

So if this man is a friend of yours.

I seen him headed out the south road.

He was headin' for Gideon's place.

I'm gonna go down and see what that's all about.

Anybody here?

Whoever's in there, come on out.

It's, it's just me, Mr. Gideon, Ira Spratt.

What are you doin' here?

Well, you seen him.

He's fixin' to shoot me down in cold blood

and bare handed, too.

Why, he hit Newly and Festus like they was tin cans.

Ain't nobody but you can save me, Mr. Gideon.

What can I do?

Hide me till he's gone or Marshal comes back, one.

Oh, you ain't gonna send me out there

to get gunned down like a mad dog now, are ya?

All right, go on, climb up there in the hay loft.

Oh, I swear, I'll never forget you for this.

I'll let you know when it's safe to come down.

What was it?

Somebody in the barn.

- Who? - Some fella.

Oh, you didn't eat your eggs, hon.

Who, Gideon?

Well, it's nobody you know.

You don't mean Spratt?

What if it is?

What does he want here?

Well, he was half dead with terror.

He didn't know where else to turn.

So he elected you?

Kind of a tribute to something or other.

But you can't let him stay.

What else can I do?

This man'll kill him on sight.

But that means he'll kill anyone

who gets in his way.

Fiona, all I've done

Well, have you thought about us?

Have you?

I've got children in this house!

Not to mention a husband who's blinded

by his own charity!

It's little enough to do for a fellow human being.

To gamble the lives of our children?

Oh, for pity's sake, this stranger

doesn't even know about us.

But I want him out of here!

Do you understand me?

Now!

You ought to have someone

look at that wound of yours.

It'll keep.

- Let's have him. - Who?

Spratt.

Understand he was headin' in this direction, and I want him.

Look, if he's done you some kind of injury,

we have a traveling judge.

I'd be very much obliged if you'd hand him over.

Now.

No!

He's in the barn!

Why don't you show me?

Now you go on up, and you fetch him down.

He's not there.

That's where I told him to hide,

but he must've seen you comin'.

That's too bad, for you.

What do you mean?

I'm tired of chasin' him.

I want Spratt delivered to me by your friends.

What makes you think they'll do that?

They'll do it all right,

for you, for your life.

Let's go.

Everybody, outside!

You stay!

Doc, Spratt got away.

Oh, well, that's good.

That fella Musgrove, he took Gideon for a hostage.

Well, Newly's goin' after Matt now.

He'll never make it back before the deadline.

The deadline? What do you mean?

Well, it's eight o'clock tonight.

Eight o'clock tonight?

If he doesn't get Spratt, he'll kill Gideon.

Well, he certainly can't make it

unless he catch up to him.

I don't have to tell you,

that man ain't given to empty threats.

Well, what do you want me to do?

Well, we thought maybe you could go over there to the Long Branch,

where he's holed himself up and kinda humbug him,

you know, into thinkin' he's got a pretty bad injury

and better let you put a patch on it.

Then you could slip him somethin',

a potion or somethin' to put him to sleep.

Don't take but a split second to pull the trigger.

Well, there ain't nothin' else we can do!

Except give him Ira Spratt.

You don't know where he is.

No, but we could hunt him down with dogs

if we all put our minds to it.

Are you talkin' about a lynch mob?

Wouldn't be no resemblance to a lynch mob.

No comparison at all.

Gideon's my sister's husband.

A fat lotta fools we'd look like

lettin' a capital fella like him

get gunned down in place of that no-account scum.

You know what you're sayin'?

I'm sayin' Ira Spratt's life ain't worth

one of Gideon's little fingers.

By whose scale?

Any decent citizen's.

Well, I'd do anything I could to save Gideon,

but at the expense of another man's life?

I'd have to be awful sure that Musgrove isn't bluffin'.

I believe he means it,

and so does my sister.

We're goin' after Spratt.

Burke?

What are you gonna do?

I don't know.

Sit down over there.

Yeah, she's bleedin' some.

Don't get your hopes up.

If I felt like I was passin' out,

I'd take you with me.

Why?

Sorta makes us partners in my survival.

Look, there ain't no chance in the world

to take him unawares.

Even if we did take a shot from out here,

we're liable to shoot Gideon as well as him.

Whatever he is, he ain't no fool.

I don't even see how Matt could take him this way.

Let's get goin' with the dogs and find Spratt.

Look, I don't know. It don't seem right.

To who?

Well, Matt ain't gonna like it much.

Matt Dillon ain't here.

Well, he will be tomorrow.

Tomorrow wouldn't nothin' help Gideon but resurrection.

What are you gonna say to Matt?

Well, what's he gonna ask me?

How come I didn't hook my thumbs in my back pocket

and let my sister's husband get gunned down?

Are you comin' or ain't ya?

No.

You, go on over to Doc's and fetch me

some bandages and some alcohol to clean this wound.

You want Doc to take a look at that leg?

Ain't nothin' he can see that I can't feel for myself.

Now move!

You want somethin' for the pain?

Somethin' to put me to sleep?

You wouldn't live to gloat on it.

Is there anything I can get for you, Gideon?

Yes, you might ask someone to stop by the house

and see that my wife's staying in bed,

and tell her...

Tell her what?

Tell I don't want to be ransomed.

Not for a man's life.

You do that.

But first you check with the carpenter

and make sure he's got a box big enough to fit him.

Ma'am.

What is it?

We're lookin' for your husband.

Why?

You know why.

Mr. Gideon's being held hostage for him.

My sister's husband.

Musgrove's gonna kill him if we don't fetch Ira Spratt.

You tellin' me you're going to hunt him down

and hand him over to be killed?

What happens to him is out of our hands.

Our only concern is to save Gideon's life.

Mr. Spratt ain't here.

If you could just let us look around.

This one his?

Well, we'll just borrow it.

Sure enough, honey, these good folks

is friends of your daddy's.

How's Festus doing?

He's holding his own, Gideon.

What's in this bottle?

Alcohol, like you wanted.

Nothin' else?

You know, I don't believe you.

Then don't use it.

What'd he do to you?

Like the good book says, old sins leave long shadows.

Good book don't say no such thing.

I want to know what he done to you.

What did Judas do to our Lord?

Your man and me, we bled together.

We were comrades in arms.

Do you know what that means?

Soldiering?

I don't see nothin' sacred about that.

It ain't like a man and a woman.

No, it surely ain't.

Nothin' like four bare feet in a bed.

That don't tell me nothin'.

I wouldn't expect a woman to understand.

You're bound and determined to kill my man.

I understand that much.

That's all you need to know.

I've got to know why!

Unless you're some kind of an animal

with a lust for killin'.

Ain't no man got more

tender feelings than I got!

For yourself maybe.

Myself is all I got.

Want to know why?

I'd been passed over for promotion.

Spratt, he had some gripe of his own.

One night, we got us good and drunk,

and we set out to go over the hill.

Mr. Spratt never deserted the U.S. Army.

No, he surely did not.

He crawfished out of it!

And that's your grievance?

Truth be known, I was glad

to be shut of his company.

He done went and turned me in, for the bounty.

Twenty-five pieces of silver.

For that, I got me this brand

and five years on a rock pile!

Mr. Spratt never give that to you.

Some judge give it to you.

Yes, ma'am.

They buried him a week ago,

the prosecutor four days ago.

That just leaves one man to settle accounts with.

Your friends and neighbors,

they're gonna bring him right here to me.

You know why?

Because they agree with me.

Your man ain't fit to live!

No they won't.

Because it's wrong, and they know it.

Folks won't stand for that.

They out huntin' him now?

See?

They admire ya too much to let ya die.

What if they don't find him by the time you say?

It's too bad for him.

Then you go away from here?

Maybe.

But you ain't sure?

Ain't nothin' sure as long as Spratt's alive.

I may go hunt for him myself,

or maybe I might take myself another hostage.

Best go on home.

There ain't nothin' on earth or in heaven

gonna save your man.

Thank you, Martha.

You're Mrs. Spratt.

Please, sit down.

Is there...

There anything I can do for you?

I know folks believe I ought to be

thankful that I'm shut of him.

Maybe they're right.

All I know is, I feel like to shrivel up

and die inside of me if they kill my man.

They?

Your brother, your friends.

If they catch my man and bring him in,

won't be that just like they helped to kill him?

Sure, he don't support me,

drinks up what money does come in

and beats me when he's drunk.

Still, I'd do anything to keep him.

Can you understand that?

I know he ain't worth much as men go.

I got eyes in my head, I got ears.

But once upon a time,

when no other man would look at me twice,

he's all the love I ever had or ever wanted.

And you think I'm in any position to help?

Ma'am, I don't know.

Mrs. Spratt...

I don't know what your husband did,

and I don't wanna know,

but if he doesn't come and face up to it,

my husband's going to die.

Ma'am, I don't ask you to do nothin',

just understand.

What's there to understand?

Even Ira Spratt, even he's a man with feelings

and rights to have his day in court like other men,

not somethin' to be shot down like a mad dog.

I surely do thank you for listenin' to me.

What about Festus?

Well, Doc patched him up, but he's in pretty bad shape.

This stranger, he come to town

lookin' for Ira Spratt.

Said he wants to kill him.

Newly, you stay here. I'll send a doctor up.

Don't head back to Dodge till you're rested.

Over there.

Spratt?

Spratt?

Come on out, or we'll set the dogs on ya.

Ira?

You know me, Halligan.

I ain't never had nothin' against ya.

We want ya to live.

Stands to reason, though not if Gideon's

gotta croak for it.

Understand?

Ira, come out, and I swear to you,

we'll wait until the last minute.

Then if Marshal Dillon gets back in time,

we'll let ya go.

You comin' out, or are we comin' in to get ya?

Your clock is five minutes slow.

What's five minutes?

Could be a world of difference to him.

They're gonna bring you Ira Spratt.

I don't know exactly when.

Deadline is eight o'clock without no plus or minus.

What if they're an extra two minutes?

That's fine, but he's gonna be two minutes dead.

For a man that's been dreaming

on revenge of five whole years,

what kind of satisfaction can it

give you to kill me instead?

None.

Then why do you do it?

Because I said I would.

Because I said it, and a man has got

to be as good as his word or pretty soon

don't nobody pay him no mind.

But I have a newborn son, three daughters.

I have a wife that's just out of child bed.

No use you tellin' me all that truck.

No way you're gonna make me feel

what it's like to be in your shoes.

You ain't never been in my shoes.

Never knowed what it felt like to me

to be marched in front of that whole regiment

and branded like a steer!

Well, that wound healed up years ago.

It never healed!

I loved my regiment.

The army was all the mother and father

and wife and child I ever had!

Fed me, taught me, punished me and sheltered me!

Why did you desert then?

One disappointment?

What kind of a man are you?

They did a grievous wrong to pass me by for promotion.

It was Spratt and me decided to abscond.

That was just impulse.

I was brass eyed drunk!

I'd a come back, but I didn't get a chance.

He stayed back there.

Turned me in for a runaway.

Suddenly, I was lower than dirt,

fit for nothin' but a stockade,

a rock pile and a brand on my chest!

Would you let a man live that tore up your reason for livin'?

What do you want?

Ab, you can't do it.

Who says?

Look, it's wrong, and you know it's wrong.

You get outta my way.

Now look, I'm tellin' you to let him go!

On your say so?

A man too yella to even put on a deputy's badge?

Well, I've never seen a more distinguished looking lynch mob.

I guess you must be proud of yourselves.

Don't you start preachin' at us!

We ain't got time to listen!

Well, don't you know that if you go through with this

Matt Dillon'll find you no matter where you are!

Now what are we gonna tell him?

Well, what are you gonna tell him if Gideon's killed?

Well, I'd be grieved about that,

but Gideon doesn't want that man killed.

He said so.

We ain't doin' it for him, then.

We're doin' it for my sister.

Now, what do you think she'd say?

Why don't you ask her?

She's in Matt Dillon's office right now.

Go in and ask her if she wants

this man's blood on her hands.

Well, go on.

Are you afraid to ask her?

All right, all right.

We've got a couple of minutes to spare

if that'll satisfy you and the marshal.

Come on, Spratt.

What's the good of sending them to ask Gideon's wife, Doc?

You know what she's gonna say.

It might gain us some time,

even a few minutes.

For Matt?

It might.

I told you, we are goin' by my watch.

They're bound to be here anytime.

Anytime ain't good enough.

I told you that too.

If you kill Gideon, you'll never get Spratt.

Not even if I take me another hostage?

You, for instance?

You're just feisty enough to make good company.

Got ten minutes to spare here.

You'll have Gideon home in time for supper tonight.

We sure had us a job findin' him.

We wasn't gonna let your husband

bite the dirt for this here puny, no-account weasel.

It was, it was real good of you.

Um.

I don't think you understand, Fiona.

It's all over now.

We got Gideon back for you.

What do you expect me to say?

Well, just uh, you want us to hand him over or don't ya?

I can't be your conscience.

We're doin' this for you.

You have no right to lay it on me!

Do you want your husband back alive or don't ya?

Of course I do!

But not this way!

How could I ever face him after,

after tellin' you to go ahead?

You ain't exactly Pontius Pilate

standin' there, you know.

You can't just wash your hands

and there'll be no blood on 'em!

You're in this with us!

It's wrong.

Let him go.

What?

I want my husband...

but not enough to kill another man for him.

This ain't no man!

Leastwise not like Gideon.

This one here ain't even fit for soap grease.

Who appointed you or me his judge and jury?

We're savin' your husband's life.

But not that way!

'Cause he wouldn't want it that way.

I might, 'cause I'm weak and I'm selfish,

and I'm most willing to do anything to keep what I have,

but not him, not my husband.

If I don't know anything else, I know that.

Why, even his wife would be tickled.

Mrs. Spratt was at my house.

I talked to her.

She loves her man just the same as I do mine.

I wish it weren't so, but it is.

Well.

That's too deep for me.

Leave it to a female to start spoutin'

foolishness at a time like this.

Let's go. We ain't got too much time to talk.

Musgrove!

I'm callin' you out!

All you, move over there in the corner.

You said you'd give me a show.

All right, I'm takin' ya up on that right now.

Show me that there piece.

You couldn't stand up to me in a gunfight

if I was crippled in both eyes.

You just toss it over here, nice and easy.

You really gonna give me a chance

to kill you in a fair fight?

Now, let's see if you got the gumption to pick it up.