Original subtitles

DRIVER: Hyah! Come on!

JIM: The long arm of Wells Fargo

stretched from Saint Joe, Missouri,

to San Francisco,

its Pony Express, overland stage, and big freight wagons

creaking and groaning under the weight

of the necessities for building the frontier.

The land was here,

and there was opportunity aplenty.

But without supply lines,

would life follow?

Wherever a need presented itself,

Wells Fargo answered the demand.

It breathed a breath of life into the new land.

You can't freight lines without a change of horses,

so Wells Fargo established stock stations

along the overland route.

And renegade raiders poured out of the Cheyenne country.

They were hitting the outlying stations hard.

They had guns and ammunition.

As a Wells Fargo investigator,

it was my job to find out how they were getting them.

Aaron?

Aaron!

Aaron!

Aaron!

I'm glad you're still in one piece.

Just barely, boy,

just barely.

Who is that?

That's Lee Travers.

He drops by once in a while on his way up to Laramie.

He won't anymore, poor devil.

Them raiders got him early in the fight.

I ran out of shells and hid here in the cellar.

Not a very pretty sight,

or a new one.

They got two stations last week

the other side of Laramie.

They ain't just after horses, Jim.

They grabbed everything in there there that wasn't nailed down.

I know.

What does it mean, Aaron,

when an Indian starts stealing money?

He's got no use for it, no place to spend it.

He sure ain't.

I've been chasing Indians half my life.

They'll steal a horse and maybe a woman,

but they sure ain't got no use for money.

That's the way I figured it.

I think somebody else

is doing their thinking for 'em.

Yeah.

Let's get him buried.

We'll take a look around.

Looks like you got to one of them.

Mmm.

Could be a wounded horse.

Nope. No, it ain't.

It was a man.

This is where he fell.

Look at them heel marks where he was dragged.

Then someone picked him up

and threw him over a horse's back.

It was Cheyenne.

They don't leave their dead behind.

Look at this.

Don't know as I ever seen a gun like that before.

It's a Shawk-McLanahan,

made back in St. Louis.

Hits like a carbine

and just about as accurate.

Small and easy to smuggle.

Somebody's running these guns through, Jim.

Probably from St. Joe.

It's close to St. Louis,

and it's a jumping off place

for every wagon heading west.

Ah! Isn't a rottener man in the world

than one who'd put a gun in an Indian's hand.

Yes, there is.

The kind of a man who would live off

of the money an operation like this makes.

I'm going back to St. Joe.

Start my career with Wells Fargo all over again.

Wait a minute, Jim.

You don't think these guns

are coming through on our wagons, do you?

There's that chance.

It seems to me that whoever's behind this operation

knows an awful lot about Wells Fargo procedure.

They check every wagon that leaves St. Joe.

Well, what if something's happening after they leave?

I don't know.

Sure one way to find out.

Let's head for St. Joe.

I need you here, Aaron.

Just a minute, Jim.

JIM: That's an order.

I wanna know every move the Cheyenne makes.

Unless, of course, you figure you're too old for the job.

Old? Why, I could still go bear hunting

with a hickory stick

and come back with his ears in my fist!

That's the way I figured it.

Hang onto your hat. You'll need it.

Hold it now, don't you get too cocky young 'un.

I'm getting kind of used to knowing

you're around somewhere.

And, remember, when you see me again,

you don't know me.

JIM: St. Joe, Missouri, was as far

as the railroad went.

From there on, Wells Fargo handled the freight

by horse and wagon.

Their banking interests, consignment,

and warehouses took up a block on the main street.

To most people, a six-horse stagecoach

meant Wells Fargo.

But there's more to the company than that.

It carries treasure out of every bonanza

from Hudson Bay to Rio.

There isn't a place on either continent

where you can't cash a Wells Fargo check.

It's a big outfit.

Make no mistake about that.

No one knew my face in St. Joe,

and that was the way I wanted to keep it.

All right.

Now, the most important thing

to remember from this exercise is this.

You noticed that I turned,

drew, and then fired.

That way, I had the whole sweep

of the man's height for my target.

Now, then, if I'd-a drew, turned, and then fired,

I'd have swept across, and that narrows down my target.

Now, I want you all to remember that,

because it might save your lives someday.

All right, Shorty. Try it.

Remember, you got to spin on your heel, draw, fire.

Don't be embarrassed.

Not many men can do this.

That's why we teach it to you here.

Are you Powers?

That's right.

So you wanna go to work for Wells Fargo?

That's right.

Came all the way from Abilene.

Cowpuncher?

JIM: Mostly.

I can ride a little, shoot some.

Like to travel?

Long as I get paid for it.

Well, we got two ways of doing things around here.

The wrong way and the Wells Fargo way.

What's your name? Jim, Jim Harris.

Lesson number one...

I call you Jim,

you call me Mr. Powers.

I never was much of a school boy.

Well, the course we give here

separates the men from the boys.

There's board and room,

half pay while you're learning.

I'll take it, Mr. Powers.

We'll get along. Stable your horse,

make yourself at home.

Class starts tomorrow morning.

I had to play it that way...

Green, smart,

as though the only thing I knew about Wells Fargo

was the company name.

It went against my grain,

but I had to play it that way.

Took you five tries, but you finally made it

in just under eight minutes.

Did all right, huh?

Could have been better.

Those two heavy barrels

should be back here over the axle.

Beats me, what difference it makes

how fast a man can load a wagon.

Make all the difference if you break an axle out on the trail.

With maybe a few of them

Cheyenne breathing down your neck.

Powers knows what he's doing.

You fellas think a good deal of him, don't you?

Jack Powers was the best man

Pacific Express had.

When they sold out to Wells Fargo,

he went with the deal.

But he can still lean on a man pretty good

when he wants too.

I bet if you broke his head open,

all you'd find in there

is a bunch of little old Wells Fargo signs.

JIM: I'd forgotten how tough that course could be.

Up at the crack of dawn,

then falling into bed at night,

so tired, you don't even hear the snores of the other men

in the bunkhouse.

Then beat the birds up in the morning

and start all over again.

Wells Fargo's not training you to kill men.

But you have to learn this in order

to protect your passengers,

your cargo, and yourself.

Now, then,

the two reasons why the shotgun

has proven to be the best weapon

for a Wells Fargo man.

Name one of them, Shorty.

Oh,

most men, including the old hoot owl,

have got an idea what they're gonna look like

when they're dead.

Kind of peaceful, nice.

But there ain't nothing nice about being torn

in half by a shotgun.

That's right.

Works on the mind.

What's the other one, Jim?

Shotgun covers a wide range,

therefore speed and dexterity

are more important than careful aim.

You've been paying more attention

than I thought.

Well, suppose you show us.

Just lope your horse by here.

That bale of hay there is a man

with a bead on you.

When I say "now," turn and fire.

JACK: Now!

Is that what you meant?

Couldn't have done it better myself.

That's all for today, men.

I want to talk to you, Jim.

How am I doing, teacher?

For a while there, I didn't think you were gonna work out.

Now there's no doubt in my mind

you're head and shoulders above anyone in this group.

You'll do.

Thanks,

Mr. Powers.

JIM: I spent the next couple of days

and nights keeping my ears open,

hoping for a lead.

Then it happened.

No drinking tonight, men.

We're taking wagons west tomorrow morning.

We are?

That's right. I'm tired of training men

and losing them on their first assignment.

I'm taking this run through myself.

No more half pay!

California, here I come!

What's the matter with you, Jim?

This is what you were training for.

Yeah.

Yeah, that's right.

What are you doing back here?

We all know somebody's been running guns.

It could be right here on this wagon train.

I went through these wagons myself

before we left St. Joe.

You saw me do it. You could have missed something.

The only thing I've missed is a little sleep.

Now, you better get back in that bedroll

before I miss any more.

All right,

Mr. Powers,

but I was just doing what you told us to do,

to keep our eyes open,

pay attention, remember?

That'll be two of us with our eyes open.

You remember that.

Ho!

Harris, you ride up ahead and check that canyon.

Looks like a good spot for an ambush.

That's right. I don't like the looks of it.

Where have you been?

Up checking the ridge.

How does it look up there?

Clear to me. Why?

That's the way we're gonna have to go.

What's the matter with the canyon?

There's a rock laying across it

big enough to bury that wagon.

Guess it's a good thing I sent you through there.

Well, that's one way of looking at it.

Let it roll!

Hey!

Whoa!

We'll pick up fresh horses here

and then push on to Laramie.

Don't you think you ought to give these men a rest?

You've been pushing them pretty hard.

You just take orders, Harris.

Yes, sir.

He must be new, eh?

Yeah, he's fresh as paint, but he'll learn.

He sure will.

All right, let's get these teams unhitched!

Look alive! Got to move in fresh horses here!

What about the Cheyenne?

Mmm, small band, 10, 15 maybe.

That's enough.

You find out anything?

I don't know.

I've got an idea.

What's holding you up down here?

We're all set.

Indian signs between here and Laramie.

Indians don't worry me.

Let's get some of these horses up there

to those wagons.

All right!

Let 'em roll!

Whoa!

We'll ride on into Laramie.

They can't miss it from here.

Go back and tell Shorty

just to follow the natural lines of the draw.

We're gonna ride onto Laramie.

Wait here.

Mr. Powers say that?

That's the order.

Where's Powers? He and Jim rode on ahead.

This was something I hadn't figured on.

That because you weren't paying attention.

I'll do better next time.

Ain't gonna be no next time.

Come on.

Who is he?

JACK: Haven't learned his real name,

but it doesn't matter.

My guess is he's a Wells Fargo detective.

The Cheyenne have ways of loosening a tongue.

Not now, Broken Wrist.

Put him in there.

That man in there means

that Wells Fargo is after us,

and if Wells Fargo is after you,

that means there isn't a rock

in this whole country that you can hide under.

But they don't know who we are with him dead.

You listened to me once, and I made you rich.

Listen to me again, and I'll keep you free.

What about the warriors?

We'll have our last raid tomorrow,

then we'll split up.

We'll hit the wagons at dawn.

Jim?

Aaron?

I'll you cut you loose.

No.

What do you mean, no?

If I'm not here in the morning,

we'll never catch up to Powers.

He's planning on raiding the wagon train,

and I'm planning on waiting right here.

You wanna get killed?

You listen to me.

Get back down there and warn Shorty and the others.

Be ready when that attack comes.

That's an order.

Well, I ain't taking it.

Cut these halfway through.

Cut 'em, man. Cut 'em.

He's kind of a light skinned,

but I don't think those wagon drivers will notice.

You're gonna make a real sure enough Cheyenne.

Beginning to get the idea?

If you're waiting for me to break Powers,

you're gonna be here a long time.

You'll break...

when those greenhorn drivers

start pumping lead into you.

You see,

you're gonna be leading the war party,

but way out in front.

There they are.

Yup. There they are.

They haven't moved.

Hold your fire. Wait till they're breathing on you.

Pick a man and get him.

There many of them?

Enough.

Hyah!

This one's mine.

Whoo-ha!

That's enough, son.

You don't wanna bust up those hands.

That's about all there is to it.

He had the guns dismantled

and put in the kegs.

Well, I'll be hanged.

I don't know about you, but he will.

JIM: Wells Fargo was big, all right.

Big enough to keep its own skirts clean,

but no bigger than men like Aaron Ross,

Shorty Tannin,

Joe Purdy,

and Phil Slavin.