Gunsmoke (1955) s01e13 Episode Script

ANNOUNCER: Starring James Arness as Matt Dillon.
There's a trail that leads from Dodge up here to Boot Hill.
Not many people travel it by choice, because it stops right here.
Most of the men lying here thought they were heading somewhere else.
But this is where they ended for all their trouble.
I know.
I'm Matt Dillon, U.
S.
marshal.
Part of my job is to steer 'em away from here.
To keep 'em from a useless, violent end.
But now and then, there's one who won't listen.
And more often than not, he's buried out here, alone and forgotten.
You got them big eyes You got y Huh.
I'll bet you don't know who I saw drive into town this evening? Hm.
Eh.
It was Miss Lucy.
You know, that- That girl that old Ephraim Hunt married last winter? Used to work over at the Long Branch.
Mrs.
Lucy Hunt, her name is now.
Heh.
You remember.
Yeah, yeah, I- I remember, Chester.
I haven't seen her in a coon's age.
I- I guess old Ephraim rides pretty close herd on her.
I never could figure out why she married him.
I Talk about June and December.
Heh.
You reckon it was, uh, because of his money? I don't know, Chester.
Mrs.
Lucy.
Heh.
Well, I'll get the water.
How are you, Matt? Mrs.
Hunt.
Mrs.
Hunt? Used to be Lucy.
You didn't used to be married.
Does it make that much difference? Well, it does to some women.
Sit down Lucy, I'll get you a cup of coffee.
I don't have much time.
I don't want Ephraim to know I'm here.
What's on your mind? Matt, he's gonna kill me.
Ephraim? It's true.
He told me.
Everybody thinks he's so good, studied to be a preacher and all.
But he's not.
He's mean and cruel.
Now he's planning to kill me.
Well, why? Does he have any reason? Of course not.
What do you think I am? What I think doesn't matter.
What does he think? He knew where I worked when he married me.
Now he keeps telling me I'm evil.
That by marrying him, I led him into sin.
And that now I have to pay for it.
He accuses me of things.
Terrible, crazy things.
An- And they're not true, Matt.
They're all in his mind.
If he's got any mind left.
Well, do you want to file charges against him? Have him put under a peace bond, locked up? It's my word against his.
He'd be out in 12 hours.
He'd look sanctimonious and quote some scripture, and he'd be out.
People just can't forget that I used to work in a dance hall.
All right, Lucy.
I'll see what I can do.
If there's anything I can do.
Goodnight, Matt, and thanks.
Thanks a lot.
Marshal.
Good to have you drop by.
How are you, Mr.
Hunt? Hot.
Come inside.
The sun's a real killer today.
That it is.
Seed for my next year's crop.
Hand picked.
Only way to better the yield.
Sit down.
Here, have some applejack.
Take your mind off the heat.
Thank you.
Devil's brew it may be, but it's a vast help in banishing the cares of the day.
Hell, a man like you shouldn't have any cares, Mr.
Hunt.
Rich farm, good health and a good wife.
Care looks everywhere, marshal.
Man's brief joy is dearly bought.
To your good fortune, sir.
Out this way on business? No, just passing by.
Notice the length of the head, and the fullness of the kernel.
Remarkable strain.
Yes, you should have a good crop.
How's Mrs.
Hunt? Her health is excellent.
Her state of grace is more uncertain.
Well, I hope it's nothing serious.
A man has a duty in this world, marshal: to lend his strength to the frail reeds of his household.
To support them against the storms and strifes of living.
To see that they do not break.
Well, just so long as they don't break.
That's not my intention, marshal.
That a promise, Mr.
Hunt? You weren't just passing by, were you? She been to see you? She was a little worried about you.
She needs my protection, marshal.
She needs a strong hand, but a gentle one.
You mean that, don't you?.
Of course.
I love her very much.
Goodbye, Mr.
Hunt.
Marshal.
Oh, and uh, thanks for that devil's brew.
No, sir, Ed, no, sir.
You're all wrong about it.
I tell you, it wasn't the Arkansas at all.
It happened way up north on the Solomon.
Oh, Matt! He'll tell you.
Matt, I want you to settle a little argument here.
Old Ed, here, is- I'll, uh- I'll see you in a minute, Doc.
Oh, all right.
And you're gonna be surprised when you- Well, I can tell you right now, you wrong.
Hello, Kitty.
Hello, Matt.
How is it you're so late? Well, I've been out to old Ephraim Hunt's place.
Hm.
What's he been doing? Giving you a sermon? Tryin' to save you from yourself, huh? No, as a matter of fact, he's trying to tell me how to take care of a wife.
Oh, well, um would, uh, you like me to take over where he left off? I think we better sit down.
Anything on your mind, Matt? Look, Kitty, you used to know Lucy when she worked here, didn't you? Well? Well, tell me about her.
What was she really like? Oh, I don't know, Matt.
I didn't get to know her very well.
None of us did.
She was kind of a strange kid.
Kept to herself most of the time.
Why, what the matter? Well, I don't know exactly, but there's something wrong out there someplace.
Hm.
Matt, have you talked to Booth Rider? Him? Well, I've said hello to him a couple of times in here.
Talk to him.
Well, that young kid, what would he know about it? He's been working out at the Hunt place for about a month now.
Why don't you talk to him? All right, I will.
How are you, Booth? Marshal.
Join me.
Thank you.
I understand you're working for Mr.
Hunt? Mm-hmm.
How things going? All right.
I got a good job.
I like it fine here.
Understand old Ephraim's a good man to work for.
He's all right.
I got no complaints.
Tell me, Booth: How do you get along with Mrs.
Hunt? Fine.
Why? Just wonderin'.
Something on your mind, marshal? Maybe.
I reckon you better say it out.
It's a big world, Booth.
There's a lot of it you haven't seen yet.
Why don't you go out and look some of it over? Some of those big spreads up north, or out west in the territories.
I kinda like it here.
Well, you've been here a month now.
You've seen everything there is to see.
There's no future for you here.
I reckon the future can keep.
I like things fine just the way they are now.
Marshal, with a job like I got here, a man would be crazy to pull out.
You might be crazier not to.
Think it over, Booth.
Booth.
Are you outta your mind? It's all right.
He's out in the barn.
He bought a gun this afternoon.
He has it out there with him now.
He's drinking.
He's going to kill us.
Both of us.
He told me so.
And what have you told him? Nothing.
He doesn't know a thing.
But he's crazy and jealous, and he'll do what he says.
You have to get that gun.
You've got to out there and take it away from him.
That might take some doing.
You can do it, because you've got a gun too.
If you don't face him and get it over with, he'll lay for you, and shoot you in the back and then me.
He won't give us a chance.
You want us both dead? Hm? What are we gonna do, Mr.
Dillon? We goin' on? I guess so, Chester.
I don't know, I could be dead wrong about this.
Well, just because a man buys a gun, don't prove that he's planning a murder.
Well, that's right, Chester.
Let's go.
Over in the barn.
Easy, now.
Here, Chester.
Mr.
Hunt.
Is that you, marshal? Yeah, it's me.
Who did this to you? Was it Booth Rider? I admire you, marshal.
You have such implicit faith in the law.
Good thing, I suppose.
But there's no law to cover an old man being a fool.
I've- Ahhh.
Go back to town and get Doc for me, Chester.
Yes, sir.
What are you gonna do? I'm gonna carry the sad news to the widow.
What were you doing out there so long? I thought you were- I mean, I- Who were you expecting? I thought you were my husband.
I What are you doing here? What is it, Matt? What's wrong? You heard the shots, didn't you? Ephraim, isn't it? Who else would it be? I don't know.
I- It's all right, it's Ephraim.
Right on schedule.
Congratulations, Mrs.
Hunt.
What do you mean? You thought it up, planned it and carried it out.
You'll get away with it, clean as a whistle.
I can't touch you.
What are you talking about? Your husband's murder.
Heh.
You're out of your mind.
I figured it out too late.
You were too smart for me.
You killed him without touching a trigger.
You worked young Booth Rider up to that with promises.
You're crazy.
You got old Ephraim to buy a gun.
Probably dropped hints that Booth wouldn't leave you alone.
That he was dangerous, maybe.
Anyhow, you got him to buy a gun.
You had to.
You knew Booth wouldn't shoot an unarmed man.
You don't have any proof.
You're just guessing.
But I'm guessing right.
Well, not a word of it is true.
And if Booth Rider did shoot my husband, as you claim, then I think you'd better be out looking for him.
He won't get far.
Matt.
I guess I'll be leaving Dodge soon.
Good.
Matt, wait.
I don't care for Booth.
You should know that.
So he's next in line, huh? He's a killer.
You'd only be doing your job if- That's enough.
Matt, please.
Just don't say any more.
What are you grinnin' about? Well, wouldn't you like to know.
There are chairs all over here.
Do you have to sit right there, Doc.
with your nose down in-? Let's play.
I haven't got time to argue.
Time? You haven't even got time to play checkers.
There's killer out on the loose.
You- You ought to be out after him.
I'm workin' on it.
Yeah, well, if you're workin' on it, why haven't you got him? Well I'll get him.
Your move.
I know it's my move.
You don't have to rush me.
He'll probably get away scot-free.
Well, all I can do is bring him in for questioning, you know.
Ephraim was wearin' a gun.
That's my man.
Well, I know it's your- I can reach across him if I want to.
Don't get so excited.
There.
Sure that's the move you wanna make, huh? I moved him, didn't I? All right.
No, you don't.
No, you took your hand off.
That's a move.
All right, go ahead and jump.
You bet I'll jump.
Hey, what-? No.
Oh, go on and laugh.
How can anybody concentrate on a checker game with you sittin' there grinning like a crazy hyena? Well, let's go take him.
Take who? Booth Rider.
Where is he? He just came back to Ephraim's place.
Tuso's been watchin' for me.
Well, he's liable to put up a fight, ain't he, Matt? Eh.
He might.
Matt, it'll be, uh- It'll be dark out there.
You won't be able to see him, but he can see you.
Maybe.
Why didn't you shoot him? Watch yourself, Chester.
Don't be a fool, Booth.
Come on outta there.
Booth? Make it easy on yourself.
Throw down your gun.
Come on out.
I'm comin' up after you, boy.
That's a terrible place to shoot people, Matt, barns and stables.
Worst place in the world for lockjaw.
How do you feel, Booth? I'll make out.
How did you find me? Well, I figured you come back to Lucy when things quieted down.
I had the place watched.
Oh.
She was just using me, marshal.
That's all it was.
She told me so when I came back today.
Gave me two weeks wages and told me to drift.
Well, now you know.
She laughed at me.
Called me a green kid.
I reckon she must have laughed at him too.
Maybe called him an old man.
She hadn't ought to laughed.
She done that, it seemed that my hands just moved all by themselves.
What? Yeah.
She's in there in the house.
I choked her to death.
Well, you'd have probably got away with it clean too.
He did have a gun in his hand, even if he didn't know how to use it.
But not now.
They'll never let you outta this.
You know that, don't you? Yeah.
I reckon.
Funny thing, when you think about it.
I was headin' up north and I hit Dodge along about sundown, and I figured I'd lay in just for the night.
I wasn't aimin' to stay here.
You weren't? Not till I met Mr.
Hunt in the saloon and he offered me this job.
I was just ridin' through.
Booth.
Yes, sir.
You should have kept on ridin'.