Original subtitles

♪

-"Gunsmoke," starring James Arness as Matt Dillon.

-Whoa!

-We sure could use some of that, Tilden.

-Told you boys you'll get a drink when we got to Dodge,

not before.

-Well, then, you better get this wagon moving,

'cause the sun's starting to get to Shuffles.

-You givin' me orders, boy?

-Look, I'm just tellin' you that unless you give him some water,

he's gonna be in bad shape before we get to Dodge.

-Well, he should have thought of that before he got caught

with his fingers in the till.

Same goes for you.

-Save your breath, Eric.

He's like every lawman I ever seen -- a big mouth

and a gut full of fear.

-Well, just for that now, boy,

I'm gonna be takin' the long way around.

-[ Grunts ]

[ Grunts ] -[ Gasps ]

You ever do anything like that again, boy, I'll take that gun

and shove it halfway down your throat.

Yah, yah!

-I'm sorry, Eric. I'm real sorry.

I-I don't need a drink of water, honest.

-If we hadn't met up in Hays, we wouldn't be here now.

First chance we get, we grab ourselves some horses

and guns and we head south.

First chance, okay?

-One thing I do know,

nobody's gonna treat me like that again.

Nobody.

♪

♪

[ Spurs clank ]

-Well? -Well, I see we're gonna

have to put up with you as a deputy again for a while.

Where's Matt?

-He's in the office.

What I'm fixin' to do,

smart aleck, I'm fixin' to be deliverin' and a servin'

some papers and stuff.

-Oh, what kind of papers?

-Well, how do I know what kind of papers they are?

-Well, you mean to tell me

that you're gonna ride out to somebody's place,

like maybe Jim Anderson's,

and you're gonna hand him a paper,

and you don't even know what you're handin' him?

-Well.

-Suppose you pick up the wrong paper by accident.

Suppose you went out and handed Jim Anderson the paper

that said John Doe was supposed

to be up in Hays City at a court hearing,

and he went all the way up there for nothin'.

How would you feel about that?

-Well, if John Doe's supposed to go to Hays City,

what did Anderson want to go for?

-Well, because Anderson would think

he was John Doe, that's why.

-You mean one feller thinks he's another feller?

-Oh, no. Of course not.

But you see, Anderson knows he's Anderson,

but he wouldn't know that -- that he was the John Doe

referred to in the legal document.

And if...

I don't know why I oughta explain it to you.

-Well, if a feller don't even know his own name,

he -- he don't wanna go a galavantin' off

on some wild goose chase, you old...

[ Smacks lips ]

Matthew, that feller from the county jail

is here with them boys.

-Yah.

Howdy, marshal.

Brought you your present from Judge Brooker.

-How come they're chained?

-Probation or no probation,

I don't take any chances with the likes of these.

Seen what this kind of animal

can do if you give 'em half a chance.

-Hold it. Hold it.

-We ain't had any water since we left that jail, marshal.

-Is that true, Tilden? -Well, now.

I'm just givin' 'em a chance to boil some of the meanness

out of 'em.

-Get the chains off 'em.

-All right, Marshal.

You do just what the judge says,

and you just let 'em run loose, tuck 'em in at night,

I'll bet ya a month's pay

that within a week, you're gonna have a throat cut in this town.

-Festus, get 'em over and get 'em somethin' to drink, will ya?

-You betcha, Matthew.

Come on. Follow me, fellers.

-Tilden, you pull a stunt like that again,

I'm gonna lock you up and throw away the key.

Now, where's the papers?

-Soda pop?

-The sarsaparilla's good and cool.

You're gonna have to make it do.

-They're gonna wean us backwards.

Soon as we get used to this, they'll switch us to milk.

What do you think, should we try runnin' for it?

-Don't be a fool, we wouldn't get 100 yards

in a town full of people.

Just have to wait for the right time and sweat it out.

-That's all we been doin' for 3 months.

-Eric's right, Billy. We got to wait for the right time.

-[ Whispers ] Shut up.

-All right. Let's see.

Which one of you boys is William Clarke?

-That's me.

-And, uh, Claude Jones?

-Here.

-Eric Tabray? -Yes, sir.

-Now, you boys know the terms of this probation, don't you?

The Hales' farm's a couple of miles outside of town.

You'll get your keep and your regular wages.

Now, you treat him right, you'll be treated right.

But if you step out of line,

you'll have to go back and serve out the rest of your term.

That clear?

-Sure. Farmer gets cheap help.

-You don't want the job, say so right now.

-Never worked on a farm before, couldn't be no worse than jail.

-Matthew, the Hales is comin' in.

-All right, boys. Let's go.

-Mrs. Hale, Mr. Hale, right nice day, ain't it?

-Good afternoon to thee, Festus.

-Howdy, folks.

-And good day to thee, marshal.

-What is he, a preacher or somethin'?

-Marshal, Mr. Haggen, thee are well, I trust?

-Very well. Thank you, ma'am.

-They sure talk funny.

-[ Lowered voice ] Mind your manners.

-Well, I've, uh, checked over all the papers.

Everything seems to be in order.

I guess these are your three boys here.

-There's some mistake, marshal.

-Mistake?

-There are three boys here.

There's only supposed to be two.

-See, this letter from Judge Brooker states

the entire agreement and the names of the two boys --

William Clarke and Claude Jones.

-No mention of Eric Tabray?

-Thee knows I would do anything I could to help,

but thee also knows that my farm could not support another hand.

-Well, Eric, looks like there's been some kind of mistake.

-Does that mean I go back?

-I guess so.

-Claude, William, we shall get acquainted on our way home.

-Go on. Get in the wagon.

-Eric?

-It's all right, Shuffles. I'll see you soon.

-God be with thee, marshal. Hup.

-Festus, why don't you take Eric back to the office?

He can stay there till we get things straightened around.

I'm gonna wire the county clerk in the morning.

-Yes, sir.

Come on, son.

[ Spurs clanking ]

[ Indistinct conversations ]

-Oh.

Thank you, Sam.

-Um, marshal, what's gonna happen to that boy,

the one Mr. Hale didn't take?

-[ Sighs ] Well...

Guess he'll probably have to go back to jail.

-Well, suppose he had a job.

-Yeah, but he doesn't have.

-With Louie workin' at the stable,

we've been talkin' about hirin' a new swamper.

-Hmm.

-If I hire that boy, will the court approve?

-Well, I don't think the judge'd object, Kitty,

but I'm not so sure it's a good idea.

-Why? -Well, I'll agree that

those boys should have a second chance and all,

but, uh, the only thing we know about 'em

is that they tried to rob a store in Hays City.

-Was it their first offense?

-Well, it was for this boy we're talkin' about.

-I'll keep a close eye on him, Miss Kitty.

-If Gideon Hale could handle two of 'em,

I don't see any reason why we can't handle one.

-All right. I'll go over and have a talk with him,

see if he's interested.

-I'll go with you, marshal,

if it's all right with you, Miss Kitty.

-Sure. Fine. Sam, go ahead.

-See you later. -Right.

-Well, that's about it, son.

If you want the job, I'll see what I can do.

-It's better than goin' back to jail, I guess.

-Well, you could be sayin' "thank you" to Sam.

Manners don't cost you nothin'.

-Thank you.

-Come on, Eric. We'll go see Louie.

-It appears to me like that young'un

's got an awful deep chip on his shoulder, Matthew.

-Mm, well, sometimes they're put there early enough,

they're hard to shake loose.

-Louie.

-Sam?

-Well, hi, Louie.

-Hello, Sam.

-Brought you a new roommate.

This is Eric Tabray, and this here is Louie Pheeters.

-Pleased to me you, Eric.

-Eric's takin' over your old job at the Long Branch.

-Oh?

-Uh, Louie, I wonder if you'd show him where he could bunk.

-Sure, Sam.

-I'll see you about 6.

-Why'd you quit workin' at the Long Branch, Louie?

-Well, when I decided to give up drinkin',

I thought it might be easier workin' someplace

where it wasn't so handy.

-How long has it been?

-4 days, 3 hours, and...27 minutes.

-Some kind of a record, huh?

-The only one I ever set.

-Well, where do you want me?

-Right over here.

That one's mine.

This here's yours.

The walls aren't too thick,

so you just bang on the boards if my snorin' bothers you.

Gets a little lonesome around here at times.

It's gonna be nice havin' company.

[ Chatter, piano playing ]

-There you go, Sam. [ Laughter ]

-Crazy night, huh, Eric? -Yeah.

-Would you bring in another case, would you, please?

-Sure. -Pass that on down, will ya?

-Hey, now! [ Chatter, laughter continue ]

-Whoops.

You're doin' just fine, Eric.

-Doesn't exactly take a lot of brains, does it?

-It's better than what you were doin' up in Hays.

-That's a good point.

-Comin' right up. Be right up there.

[ Cash register bell dings ]

Oh, just put 'em under the bar here if we need 'em, Eric.

-All right.

♪

♪

[ Birds chirping ]

[ Chickens cluck ]

-I sure hope Mr. Hale will give 'em a good report.

I kinda like it here.

-Keep talkin', kid. Maybe they'll give you a medal.

-Howdy, fellers. How's everything goin'?

-Fine, Mr. Festus.

-I guess thought you'd fellers'd want to know

Eric's got hisself a job a-workin' at the Long Branch.

-He didn't go back to jail? -Oh, of course not.

You fellers ain't neither from what I hear,

the way you've been workin'.

Mr. Hale says you're doin' real good.

-That oughta make you real happy, Tilden.

-The only thing that's gonna make me happy

is to see the three of you back in jail where you belong.

You just step out of line once,

and I'll see to it personally that's where you'll be.

-Just like my pa -- real lovable.

You a friend of his?

-Nah, I just run on to him on the road out here.

Well, see you later.

-So Eric got hisself a job at the saloon.

Bet there's only one thing on his mind --

the money comin' across that bar every night.

[ Thudding ]

-Whoa.

-Doc. -Hello, Festus.

-You've checked on Louie yet?

-Louie doesn't need checkin' on.

-Well, I told you, Doc,

he told me he's been ailin' ever since he quit drinkin'.

You keep sayin', "Well, he's all right."

Well, how do you know he's all right

when you ain't even examined him?

-I've seen him from a distance.

-You tellin' me that if my innards was a-achin' me

somethin' awful and I had chilblains down to my boots,

that you could eyeball me from clean down yonder

and tell what was wrong with me?

-Are your innards achin' you somethin' awful now?

-Well, no, but --

-You got chilblains in your boots?

-Of course I ain't.

-Well, you see?

Wasn't any use examinin' you.

[ Spurs clanking ]

-Howdy, Sam.

-Hi, Festus. I heard your spurs jinglin'.

-Well, much obliged to you. [ Chuckles ]

How's your job goin', Eric?

-All right. -Better than all right, Festus.

-Is that right?

Well, that there is real good, Eric.

You know, them friends of yours is doin' plum fine

out at the Hale farm.

I've just went out yonder and saw both of 'em.

-You, uh, think I could get some time off to visit 'em?

-Why, sure, Eric.

Tell Louie I said you could ride my horse.

And here, take this as an advance on your salary.

-$5?

-Thought you may wanna buy a new shirt,

pair of britches, whatever.

You can pay it back a little at a time.

-Money and a horse, I could just keep goin', couldn't I?

-Except I think you're smarter than that.

Once you start running, you can't stop.

Now if you wanna buy somethin', you better get over there

before them stores are closin'.

-He just don't trust

what a feller says worth a hoot, does he?

-Well, I think he'll come around all right.

-Hi, Louie.

Uh, Sam said I could borrow his horse.

-All right, Eric. That's his saddle.

-Bought myself some new clothes.

-Eric.

I'm sick, Eric.

I haven't had these spells before.

If I could just have a swallow of whiskey.

Please, Eric.

You could do it.

Sam wouldn't notice if you took a bottle

and paid for it, I mean.

-You've got it real bad, huh?

I can't, Louie. I'm sorry.

The way I see it, those people out there are friends of yours.

If they don't want you to have a drink,

I sure can't give you one.

[ Birds chirping ]

-Thee are both good workers.

-Look at them blisters.

-Thy hands will heal, and then they'll callus,

and God will recognize thee as a man who earns his own bread.

Do not all the Lord's works

start with a pain and tenderness?

A child? A new colt?

And think, then, of the plants --

a new white shoot

pushing through rock seeking a light until one day,

standing proud and sure,

a great tree, tested by God's wind.

The Lord be with thee.

-If I have to listen to any more of that gospel of his,

I'm gonna be sick.

-Oh, don't be mad, Billy. He don't mean nothin' by it.

Besides, it's kinda pretty the way he says things.

Maybe I shoulda gone to church with 'em.

Bet he woulda liked that.

-Looks like you boys been laborin'.

-Hey, Eric! You sure look fine.

-Shuffles. -How'd you get all this?

-Oh, got a little advance on my wages.

Horse here belongs to Sam, the bartender.

-You sure do look good, Eric. I never seen you look so good.

-Well, you don't look so bad yourself, Shuffles,

all brown and healthy-lookin'.

-When you two get finished admirin' each other,

maybe you could tell me when we're gonna get outta here.

-Don't worry about it. There ain't no hurry.

-There ain't no hurry?

Look.

You're in town where there's people and booze and girls.

I'm stuck out here

in this lousy piece of dirt workin' up blisters

18 hours a day with only limp-brain for company.

-Don't call him that.

-Eric, you owe me.

I was for breakin' from that jail 3 months ago,

but you said wait.

You said we'd angle for probation first.

For 3 months, you had me smilin' and bowin'

and lickin' everybody's boots.

You said we'd do it the smart way.

-Look. If we just run outta here,

they'll have us back in 48 hours and you know it.

We have to get guns. We have to get horses.

Most of all, we need money.

-That's right, Eric.

We need money,

and there ain't no money here, 'cause I looked.

I've been through every room in that house

with a fine-toothed comb.

But there's plenty of money in that saloon

where you're workin'.

-I know. I've seen it.

-That's better.

I kinda figured that was why you wrangled yourself a job there.

-I didn't wrangle that job. They gave it to me.

-Why?

-I don't know. Just to give me a chance, I guess.

-You goin' soft on me? -I'm not goin' soft.

-You'd better start thinkin', and fast,

'cause one thing I ain't doin',

and that's puttin' in much more time in this place.

-All right. All right. We'll talk about it.

-Hey, Eric. Do you wanna see where I been workin'?

Mr. Hale gave me a whole piece of land just to myself.

-Sure, Shuffles. Come on. -'Kay, it's right over here.

♪

-You may not realize it, Eric,

but you're learning a trade workin' here.

-I don't intend to be a barkeep.

-It goes further than that --

start tending bars, and with bit of luck,

you could wind up owning a place like this.

-I sure don't understand you.

What makes you care what happens to me?

[ Door closes ]

-Out nearly a week,

and I'd've guessed that you would have

a rope picked out for yourself by this time,

just like your daddy.

-We're closed, Tilden. -Well, I need a drink.

You know, somethin' to, uh, kill the stink of convicts.

You know, I kinda missed you, boy.

How long do you figure it'll be before you're back?

-What's the matter with you, Tilden, huh?

What have you got against me? I never did anything to you.

-Well, not to me.

But I was a guard up there

before they made me a county officer,

and I watched you three the night

before they found the old warden with his head bashed in.

-Tilden, none of us know who did that.

Do you think Judge Brooker'd let us out

if he thought we'd killed somebody?

-Hmph. I just wish he'd given me 5 minutes alone with you.

I guarantee I could have told him who did it.

-No, you couldn't, because there's nothin' to tell.

Look, Tilden, you've been after me

ever since you found out I was Tabray's son.

All right. My father killed somebody.

Now, will you leave it at that, please?

-You know, you're gonna end up swingin' your legs

just like your father one of these days.

Neither of you worth the price of the rope.

-Don't talk about him. He's dead and gone.

-Fryin' now, right where he belongs.

-I said I didn't want him talked about!

-I hear he didn't die easy, real goobered.

You know, boy, if I had to deal

with garbage like your father -- Oh!

[ Horse whinnies ]

Oh!

-Oh! -That's enough!

Get off of him, Eric.

-[ Grunting ]

Who started this?

-Boy, if you just spit the wrong way,

you look over your shoulder, 'cause I'm gonna be there.

-Who started this, Eric? -Why do you bother askin'?

-I'm seein' the judge, boy.

You're goin' back right where you belong.

-Was that you that started this, Tilden?

-Look. I don't have to answer you, Marshal.

He hit me first!

-Now, Eric, that never settles anything.

-You takin' me off probation?

-I don't know. That'll be up to the judge.

Did you jump Tilden?

-[ Scoffs ]

Yeah, I jumped him.

-Well, I'm sure he probably gave you a good reason to,

but let me give you a piece of advice.

Next time somethin' like that happens, come to me with it.

-[ Breathing heavily ]

-Eric?

Look, Eric. -Will you leave me alone?

I'm up to here with your good deeds.

-I'm just trying to help you.

-Why?

Nobody offers help without wantin' somethin'.

-That's not true.

-What do you get out of this, huh?

-I guess someday, Eric, you're gonna have to make a choice --

to believe in people or end up the way your father did.

♪

-Mr. Hale, Mrs. Hale, come look!

-What is it, my son?

-Well, here the corn is comin' up!

-Well, so it is.

Thee have tended it well.

-Well, it's -- it's just like you said.

See how that little sprout there

pushed that big plod outta the way?

-May I see thy hands? -What? Oh.

-Do they hurt thee?

-Well, no.

No, they don't hurt at all.

-They have grown strong and callused.

The Lord has looked upon thee

and seen how thy loved to work in his good earth.

-It's just like you said it would be.

I mean, the corn comin' up, my hands gettin' hard.

-Thee are a good lad, Claude.

Thee will be a fine farmer someday.

-I hope so, Mrs. Hale. I really do.

-Is that thy friend coming there?

-Ah, he's lucky. He gets to ride that horse

anytime he wants.

-Well, it may be that he earned the right.

-What about us? I think we earned the right

to maybe ride into town now and then.

-Well, I guess thee has.

Thee may feel free to use my horses whenever thee wishes.

-Thank you.

-Hey, my corn come up, Eric.

-Hey, can you get away tonight?

-Sure, but why?

-We're robbin' the Long Branch.

-Now you're talkin'.

-Sam closes up.

He puts the day's business in the safe.

We're movin' in before he gets to that safe.

-We'll be there. Just name the time.

-1:00. But not him, just you.

-Eric, that ain't fair. You said we'd stay together.

-I don't care what I said.

Shuffles, you like this farm. You like these people.

You belong here, and you're gonna stay.

-Eric. -After we get money,

you bring it back here and hide it.

When it's all forgotten, we'll move south.

-Sounds all right.

What about you?

That marshal's gonna put the blame on you right off.

-No, I -- I'm sleepin' in the livery

with an old drunk in the next room. I --

I'll fix it so he has to say I was in my bunk all night.

-I wish you'd let me come, Eric.

-Shuffles, you belong here. I told you that.

And I don't want you to get in any more trouble.

Now, 1:00, behind the Long Branch,

and don't be late.

[ Chickens clucking ]

[ Piano playing, chatter ]

[ Glasses shatter, patrons murmuring ]

-Eric?

-I'm sorry, Sam, I just felt a little funny there.

I guess I got too much sun today.

-Well, you better take the rest of the night off.

-Oh, no. No, it's too busy.

-I'll manage.

-All right. I-I'm sorry, Sam.

-Don't worry about it. Just take that apron off

and get outta here. Go on now.

[ Chatter and laughter ]

[ Piano resumes playing ]

-That's a good boy.

You drink lots of that, and when you get bigger,

you can keep the mice out of this place.

All right?

-Louie?

-Hello, Eric.

Eric, look what I found.

-Yeah, I see.

-How come you're home so early?

-Oh, I wasn't feelin' too well.

Sam let me off.

-Better get to bed then.

-Yeah, I will.

Sure is a cute little thing, isn't he?

-I'm gonna keep him, Eric.

Figure him and me are a little bit alike,

both a little bit lost.

-Still havin' trouble, huh?

-Guess I will for a long time.

But do you know somethin', Eric?

Today is the first day

I really got a feelin' I might be able to lick it.

-I'm glad to hear that, Louie. [ Sighs ]

The way you were hurtin' was beginnin' to get to me.

-I'm sorry, Eric.

Didn't mean to get you involved.

-No, no. It's not that.

It's just that, well, I...

-You got a bottle. -Louie.

-I kind of proved I can do without it.

I mean, well, I've been off it over a week now.

Maybe -- maybe if I just took a sip,

that'd prove I really don't need it.

Just one sip.

Just one sip, then I'll leave it alone for good.

-Forget it, Louie. It was a lousy idea.

-Eric!

Eric.

It isn't fair, Eric.

You've got it right there in your pocket.

Just one sip. Please.

Please, Eric.

♪

[ Cap pops ]

[ Snoring ]

[ Object slides ]

[ Rustling ]

[ Rumbling ]

♪

-[ Snoring ]

[ Snoring ]

-[ Lowered voice ] What's he doing here?

-[ Whispers ] He raised such a stink,

I had to bring him. -Eric, you promised

we'd stay together. -All right. All right.

There's no time for that now.

Sam just closed up. He should be bringin' that money

back to the office any minute now.

[ Thud ]

[ Coins clink ]

[ Thud ]

I told you I didn't want him hurt.

-I didn't hit that hard. Get him tied.

Any more around loose?

-There might be some in the other room.

-I hope he ain't hurt bad, Eric.

-No, he -- he's gonna be all right.

-Let's get.

♪

-[ Snoring ]

-[ Whispers ] Louie.

Louie.

-[ Continues snoring ]

Oh, Louie.

You was doin' so good, too.

Louie.

Louie.

-Huh? Huh?

-Where'd you get the bottle at, Louie?

-Bottle?

-Never mind.

Now, you gotta gather yourself up

'cause I gotta ask you somethin' important.

-What?

-Louie, there's been a robbery at the Long Branch.

-A robbery?

-Louie, did you see Eric come in tonight?

-Eric?

Yeah, went to bed before I did.

Wasn't feelin' well.

-Louie? -Mm?

-Did Eric bring you this here bottle?

-No, he's a good boy, wouldn't do anything bad.

Wasn't feelin' well, went to bed.

Went to bed.

[ Snoring ]

[ Bottle clatters ]

[ Spurs jangling ]

[ Door closes ]

-Here, Sam. Drink some of this.

-Thanks, Miss Kitty. -How is it, Doc?

-Well, he got a pretty good thump here on the head,

but old Sam is pretty tough.

I don't think it's gonna slow him down that much.

-We lost almost $400, Miss Kitty.

-Well, we're not gonna worry about that.

You're all right, and that's what counts.

-It appears like Louie kinda backslid on us, Miss Kitty.

-Oh, no. -Oh, yeah, I --

I could just barely get him to talk to me at all.

I kinda figured maybe Eric

might've took him a bottle, you know?

But Louie said that Eric come back a-feelin' bad

and went to bed early.

-That's true, Festus.

He nearly fainted in the bar earlier tonight,

and I sent him home.

-Well, he was a-sleepin' when I looked in on him,

so I didn't bother him none.

Are you sure you can't recollect nothin' else at all, Sam?

-Well, I'm sorry, Festus.

-Sam, I want you to take two of those every 3 hours.

They'll relieve your headache

and help you get a little sleep, too.

I'm gonna run out to Frank Wright's place now.

I'll drop by in the morning and see you.

-Thanks for coming over, Doc.

-Don't mention it. -Thank you, Doc.

-Uh, Sam, if you was to recollect anything else,

I'd sure appreciate if you'd let me know.

-Sure, Festus.

-I think I'll get a telegraph off to Matthew.

He just might wanna get back here by mornin'

and check into this thing his own self.

-Thanks, Festus.

-You betcha, Miss Kitty.

-Morning, bartender.

Heard you had a bit of trouble last night.

-A little.

-How much you lose?

-Mister, I can't see where that's any of your business.

-Well, maybe you're right.

But that kid who was workin' here is my business.

I'll bet you 10 to 1 it was him who took the money,

him and those other two smart mouths out at the Hale farm.

-If you'll take a little advice from me,

you will stay out of it

'cause you start pushin' those kids around,

and Marshal Dillon's gonna have your hide.

-As long as those kids are on probation,

they're my responsibility.

They took the money,

and they'll show their hands sooner or later.

-Morning, Sam.

-Eric, how you feeling this morning?

-Oh, a lot better. Thank you.

Whatever it was, a night's sleep seemed to take care of it.

-Except you didn't sleep much, did you, Eric?

-What do you mean? -You know what I mean.

You were back here last night, you and your two friends.

-Sam, I-I don't know what you're talkin' about.

-I want that money back, Eric.

-What money?

-No one else knows you took it.

Now, I figured if I talked to you first,

it could be called a mistake all around,

and no one the worse off except for my headache.

-Now, wait a minute.

You're just guessin' that I took that.

You've got no proof we had anything to do with it.

-It's no good, Eric.

I saw you.

I came to as the three of you were going through that window.

-What are you gonna do?

-I already told you.

You return the money, nothing.

We'll just find it in a storeroom where

it was dropped by the thieves when they were scared off.

-I don't understand.

Why would you wanna cover up for me?

-Well, maybe I just see a little of you in myself

a long time ago.

Kid standing in the street,

looking a little lost the way you looked.

Now, I did some things I wasn't too proud of

when I was your age, Eric.

In fact, I was faced with some jail time.

Then a small-town marshal took a long, hard look at me,

unlocked my handcuffs, sent me on my way.

And you know, for a long time,

I tried to figure why he did that

instead of putting me in jail.

-Why?

-Well, when you get a little older,

you come to find out that people look at people.

And sometimes a man holds out a helping hand,

and it works.

In your case, I figured it's worth a try.

-Is that all you're gonna say to me?

-Except I'm leaving the choice up to you.

-Eric, you won't believe it. We got close to $400!

-Keep your voice down, will ya?

-It's all right. They're at church.

There ain't nobody here but us.

Come and see.

-Where'd you get that gun? -Took it from under the bar.

Figured it might come in handy.

Look.

-The barkeep knows it was us.

-You mean the law is comin'?

-No, no. Sam just wants the money back.

-He ain't tellin' on us? -Well, he hasn't so far.

He said he wouldn't.

-You believe that?

-I don't know what to believe.

-The barkeep got proof? -He says he saw us leavin'.

-He couldn't. He was out cold.

-He's just trickin' you into givin' it up

and lockin' a cell door behind you,

minute you show up with the money.

-No, I don't think so. I don't think Sam's that kind of man.

-You don't see what they're doin'?

They can't prove nothin',

so they want us to convict ourselves.

We gotta get outta here right now.

-Could be a mistake runnin', Billy, a big mistake.

-Could be 5 years in jail if we don't.

Eric, we can't take a chance on that barkeep.

-All right. Saddle up.

♪

-Mr. Gideon.

-Marshal, Festus.

-Boys around? -No, they're not, Marshal.

But there's no reason for concern.

I gave them permission to ride into town anytime they wished.

-Well, uh, how long they been gone?

-They were gone when we came back from church.

-Thank you.

-Evenin'.

-We're just out for a ride, Tilden.

-Sure. Told we could use these horses anytime.

-Yeah. Well, now, you boys must've made a mistake.

You see, the county line's behind ya.

-So? -So that means the moment

you crossed over it, you lost your probation.

And that, uh, Long Branch money you got in your saddlebag,

that says that you got

another 5-year jail term added on there, huh?

-Well, I knew all I had to do was just give you a little rope.

Now, get off those horses.

[ Gunshot ]

-Is he dead, Eric? -If he ain't, he's gonna be.

-Are you crazy? -Look. We shot a lawman.

They find us now, it ain't 5 years.

It's a rope!

-He's alive. Now, put that gun away.

-It's him or us!

-We're not killin' anybody! -We got no choice!

-We only got one choice,

and that's to get this man to a doctor.

-We've got horses and a clear trail south.

-No. No.

[ Grunting ]

-Let go of me!

-I told you there ain't gonna be no killin'.

-All right. That's enough. Hold it right there.

Now get up. Drop the gun.

-You stuck a rope around our necks if he dies.

-We gotta get him to Doc quick, Matthew.

-All right. Now, you boys are goin' back

to Dodge City with no nonsense.

Give him a hand, Eric.

Get movin'.

-Another bullet in me was an answer for him.

What was it for you? -I'm not sure.

Maybe you just needed a helpin' hand.

[ Doors creak ]

-Well, there, Eric.

-Marshal said I could come over.

I guess with a year in prison facing me,

it's a little late to say "thank you," but I do say it,

Sam, Miss Russell.

-It's never too late to say "thank you."

-She's right, Eric. And a year is not forever.

-No, sir. I figure I got off pretty easy considerin'

what a fool I've been.

Well, goodbye, Sam. Ma'am.

-Eric.

-Louie.

-Sarsaparilla.

I got a new record -- 9 days, and in here.

-[ Chuckles ]

-Goodbye, Louie.

Marshal.

-Good luck, Eric. -Thank you.

-Ready to go, Eric? -All set.

-What happened to the other two boys, Matt?

-Well, the one they call Shuffles is gonna be allowed

to go back to the farm.

The judge seemed to feel that he did what he did out of a kind

of sense of loyalty for the other two.

-And Billy?

-Well, he's back in jail, Sam.

You know, I don't think there's much that anybody's ever

gonna be able to do for Billy Clarke or his kind.

-It's a darn shame. You know,

there's still somethin' puzzlin' me about all this.

Um, Sam,

how come you stuck your neck out so far for that boy?

-Well, I guess because somebody once stuck their neck

out for me, Miss Kitty.

I'm just tryin' to pass it off.

[ Door closes ]

♪

-Stay tuned for scenes from next week's "Gunsmoke."

♪