Gunsmoke (1955) s01e07 Episode Script

Announcer: Starring james arness as matt dillon.
These are the ones the law came hard to.
Killers, spoilers.
I help put 'em here, and I have no feeling for 'em.
I'm matt dillon, u.
S.
Marshal.
It's those other times, When the law comes hard to decent, hardworking people, Friends of mine, that I get a feeling.
Like being kicked in the stomach by a horse.
Don't shoot.
I told you before, we're not gonna shoot.
Then don't any of you move at me with your guns, Or I'll shoot.
Whether we shoot is up to you, josh.
I come out to ask you something.
Ask.
It's about water and the well there.
Can me and my wife have some water? Sure, josh.
Only you can't take it in yourself.
You and mrs.
Nolan gotta come out together and get it.
Then you'll rush us, is that it? I promise you this: We won't hurt either one of you.
It ain't the lack of food, Me and my wife can stand that For quite a spell longer if we got to.
But we been a day and a half without water.
Come on back in, josh, it won't do no good.
I told you, you shouldn't have asked.
We can go as long as we have to.
Don't be a fool any longer, josh.
You and mrs.
Nolan, come on out and get the water.
And I'll buy you a big supper tonight, Myself, in dodge.
You'll buy us nothin'.
We wouldn't touch your water If you was to hand us a bucketful.
Don't fire! I told ya, I didn't want anybody hurt.
We'll wait.
Clay, you've been waiting three days, You can't wait much longer.
Yeah.
I guess I can't.
Mr.
Dillon.
Hmm? We got three stages a week comin' in to dodge.
Third one just pulled out.
What? Two out of the three times, There wasn't no passengers come in.
Are you expecting somebody? No, but that's not the point.
Well, what is? Well, how can they run a stage line without passengers? I don't know, chester.
But the fewer people come into dodge, The less trouble they bring.
People didn't come here, you wouldn't have a job.
Hmm.
I wouldn't? You think only the people that come here bring trouble? Ain't that what you just said? Marshal.
Hello, clay.
This is mr.
Burgess from saint louis.
This is marshal dillon.
How do you do? This is chester goode.
Mr.
Burgess.
Glad to meet you.
Sit down.
Marshal I got bad news for ya.
Well, nobody ever comes in here with good news, clay.
But what I got, it might get you killed.
That so? That's a very blunt way of putting it, marshal, But it's the truth.
Well, certainly not by you, clay.
You got one of the biggest spreads outside of dodge.
And one of the best.
You're a happy and prosperous man.
You, mr.
Burgess? Not by me, of course.
By josh nolan, that's who.
Read this.
Court order, signed by judge miller.
That's right.
So josh nolan's squatting on your land Up at stone point, is that it? Him and his wife, marshal.
They moved into a sod house I built, And they won't leave.
How is it they moved in? Well, to tell the truth, I let 'em.
I didn't need it, and they were homeless.
But I told 'em it wasn't forever.
Now mr.
Burgess has offered me a real good price for my acres.
But he don't want no squatters.
I can't get the nolans off.
Anybody want coffee? No, I don't Uh, you want coffee, mr.
Burgess? No, I don't want any coffee, thank you.
I do, chester.
Marshal, I don't mean to be hard-nosed about this, But I like clay's land, and I want to buy it.
But I want to buy it clean.
I don't want any strangers on my property.
Especially those kind of people.
And? Clay's got till day after tomorrow To get the nolans off or I withdraw my offer.
Now, what's this about me getting killed? Like the court order says, They got no right being there.
You're gonna have to evict 'em.
I tried There's no food or water in the shack, I've been at it four days.
They won't come out.
You mean, you've kept these people from food and water? Well, I had to get 'em out some way.
I never intended to hurt 'em.
They've become mean and real stubborn.
They're gonna shoot whoever comes up to their door.
Let's get out there right away.
I knew you'd help once I had to ask for the law, Which I didn't wanna do.
Well, let's get the nolans some water and food, Then we'll see.
They don't wanna be helped, marshal.
They'll try to shoot you down if you go near them.
It can be rough There's no reason for mr.
Burgess to go out there.
That's right.
Well, let's get out there And see just how rough it is, clay.
They try to come out? They haven't stirred.
Stay here.
Come on, chester.
Nolan? You hear me? It's dillon, I wanna talk to you.
Wanna talk, that's all.
I'm gonna bring some water for you and your wife to drink While we talk.
Draw some water, put it in that bucket.
I'll take it over to the door.
Marshal, watch out, he's aiming at you! What do you want, marshal? Well, first I'd like to see that you and your wife Get some water to drink.
Then there's a matter of food.
We don't want nothin' from you if you come with clay young.
Now, nolan, I've got a court order here That says you gotta move outta this house And off this land.
Now clay got the order, and it's legal.
It's my job to carry it out.
I don't know nothin' about no order, But we ain't movin' off.
Well, you got till tomorrow night.
I have? This is our land.
All around stone point here is ours, Bought and paid for.
What do you mean, "bought and paid for"? Who from? Clay young, that's who.
Now he's trying to starve us out.
Not givin' us any water.
Well, clay told me he was lettin' you folks live here To help you out.
Now he's got till day after tomorrow to sell this property, But he can't with you on it.
Help me out? We paid him $170, that's how he's helping me out.
Well, if you paid him $170, where's your deed? Deed? That's that paper clay give us when we paid him the money.
Oh, that.
Where is it? He took it, clay did.
What do you mean? It was before he got mean about moving us off.
He come by and said he'd be neighborly And take the paper into dodge And have it fixed up at the land office for us.
Or somethin' like that.
Anyway, he took it.
Good, then your deed's registered.
Marshal, I can't even read.
I don't know about registered.
Well I'll go see what I can find at the land office.
If your deed's registered, you stay.
But if it isn't, well, you- You've gotta be off here by tomorrow night.
Don't make us no mind about registered or not registered.
And we'll kill anybody comes tryin' To root us off this place.
That goes for you and clay young.
You tell him that.
Make any headway? They said they paid you $170 for their land, That you took their deed and maybe registered it for 'em.
Marshal, no such thing.
Believe me.
I can't believe you or the nolans, either.
One of the other of you is lyin', But I can't tell which.
Look at the records at the land office tomorrow.
You won't find a deed.
Well, what'll that prove? That nolan's never had a deed or that you never took it there? You gonna bring 'em some water? Marshal, I'm not stopping them.
It's just that if they come out, I'll take 'em into dodge, and my place'll be mine again.
I'm not breaking any law.
And I don't mean to.
Yeah.
But if anything happens to them, you're responsible.
Don't let it happen.
Come on, chester.
blow wind ice and snow dirt and dust and on you go and now the weeds they grow around Well, there's nothing at the land office.
Of course there ain't.
Well, I had a bet on it, myself, I lost.
I thought the deed would be there.
Want some coffee, mr.
Dillon? No, thanks, chester.
Well, I just been over to judge miller's.
He says the way things stand, the nolans have to move.
Well, I can't feel sorry for 'em, The way they've acted.
I'll have 'em out for ya by tomorrow morning.
You Called me happy and prosperous, marshal.
I'm neither.
I spent all I had buying the land.
I never could stock it.
Selling it means a little success For a lifetime of trying to get ahead.
Otherwise, the nolans could stay As long as they liked.
I'll have 'em out for you by tomorrow morning.
Thank you, marshal.
Marshal I don't know how you're gonna get 'em out, But I don't envy you.
All I know is mr.
Burgess is leaving tomorrow night.
Makes sense, mr.
Dillon.
How we gonna get the nolans out by tomorrow? Oldest method in the world, chester.
The only thing is I won't like using force Any more than the nolans will.
That's all, marshal.
Me and pete are hurt.
We weren't supposed to hurt anybody or get hurt.
That's the way we played it too.
The next time he opens the door, we can blast him Right out of his cabin.
You're right, mr.
Dillon, They didn't like force, they showed us.
We gotta get 'em out but some way safe.
Safe? After what he done to us? He only grazed you, he coulda killed you.
Don't shoot, either of you.
That's been our orders all along, marshal.
Come on.
What are you doing there? What do you want now? More talk.
There'll be no more talk.
Don't worry in case he hears ya.
I'll have the front door covered in case he tries to come out.
Yes, sir.
I can't breathe.
It's the stove! The stovepipe's stopped up.
I- I can't stand it! We've got to have air.
Air! Open the door! Where's the door?! Well, you got us out, marshal.
You had to use my sulfur to do it.
I had to.
You two use our horses and take the nolans into town.
Take 'em to the dodge house and put the bill in my name.
Chester and I will take your things And load 'em onto a wagon.
You folks can pick 'em up in town whenever you want to.
I don't think we'll be picking up our things, marshal.
It's up to you.
Mrs.
Nolan know how to ride horseback, josh? I can ride as good as you.
Come on, then.
Yeah, we'll go along with you For now.
You lettin' 'em go free? Well, I wasn't tryin' to arrest 'em, chester.
All I wanted to do was get 'em outside without hurtin' 'em.
Well, they're sure outside, them sulfur fumes would Drive a mother bear away from her cubs.
Come on, we gotta get this stuff loaded on the wagon.
I don't know about them nolans, They went away too nice, they ain't gonna quit that easy.
Maybe not, but at least we got 'em out in the open.
I'm thinking it's more comfortable When they wasn't out in the open, mr.
Dillon.
Oh, matt.
Mr.
Marshal, come on up here and join us.
Evening, kitty, doc.
Evenin', matt.
Help us watch front street go by.
You're lookin' pretty tonight, kitty.
How is it you never tell me that in the daytime? I'm dressed to go to work, But I don't have to be there for about half an hour.
Doc, don't you have anything better to do Than sit out here and watch your fellow man go by? Not my fellow man.
Your fellow man? Not my fellow man.
Your fellow man? Sometimes, I think not.
About the only thing I've got in common With most of my fellow man Is fingers and toes, and bones and skin, things like that.
I thought doctors were supposed to like people.
Did, huh? Who told you that? Some hard rock-miner? What does a miner know about doctors? That's right, what does a miner know? Yeah.
You make it tough, doc.
I make what tough? He makes what tough? Talk.
I do, huh? Matt Yeah? You're worried about the nolans, aren't you? What about 'em? Forget 'em.
We heard how you smoked 'em off Of clay young's property last night.
Yeah, they picked up their belongings this morning.
I know, I saw 'em.
They're poor.
What're they gonna do now? They'll get along, get some land of their own.
Matt only did what he had to do.
You didn't believe their story, did you? He didn't believe clay's story either.
I'm an agent of the law, doc.
Doesn't matter whether I believe the nolans or not.
Law demands proof, and they didn't have any.
I understand, matt.
Yeah? But do the nolans? Mr.
Dillon? what is it, chester? It's josh nolan, I've been following him, like you said.
Well, what about him? Well, he's outside the lady gay saloon.
Clay young is inside the saloon, celebrating with mr.
Burgess.
They're about ready to come out.
All right.
You stay here.
Where's josh? Well, he was here.
Must be down the alley, where clay and mr.
Burgess Have to go for their horses.
Let's go.
I don't see him.
He's over there.
I picked this up with my possessions, marshal.
Come on down from there, josh.
No, marshal.
Clay's about ready to come out, I wanna greet him.
If you don't come down from there, I'm gonna come up and bring you down.
Too late, marshal.
Watch out, clay! Move out of the way, marshal.
I'm not gonna move, josh.
Then you're gonna die along with clay.
Now you don't mean that.
You know I mean it.
You think clay and me both are liars.
Well, you're wrong.
One of us ain't.
But it won't make no difference in a second what you think.
You're actin' foolish, josh.
I sure am.
Now, step aside, marshal! All right, josh, go ahead, shoot.
Well, you going to? I'm going to, and you know it.
You gotta shoot me through the back To hit a man who's unarmed.
Get out of the way or don't, marshal.
I'm gonna shoot.
Don't do it.
I Tore up your deed, josh.
He's Right, marshal.
He paid me.
Come on down, josh.
I Told mr.
Burgess I could sell my land clean.
No strings.
He said he didn't want any squatters, so I told him the nolans had no rights.
I threw 'em off.
I'm gonna buy the land, marshal.
The nolans'll be on it.
Land means a lot to me, I've seen how much it means to them.
I want them on it.
I'll be glad to have them as neighbors.
Clay? I'll Have the money from the sale, marshal.
I was gonna leave dodge, anyway.
It's good you're leaving.
I guess you know what it means to be thirsty, marshal.
Yeah.
I'll buy you a drink.
No, you won't.
Gonna take you a while to establish credit here.
So I'll buy.