Gunsmoke (1955) s01e36 Episode Script

ANNOUNCER: Starring James Arness as Matt Dillon.
A man comes west dreaming of a new beginning, a chance to start over, and gets lost and goes down in violence.
Then we burn his name on a marker and soon forget.
But when it's a woman, a woman whose life was once part of yours, then you can't forget.
That's a thing that concerns Matt Dillon and not a U.
S.
marshal.
Of course there was that fellow who blew his brains out last year in Room 5.
After he lost half his herd coming up the trail.
But this is the first time a woman's ever tried a thing like this here.
She's new here.
Only checked in last night.
Oh, will you stop that yammering? There.
You're a poor excuse for a hotel manager, surprised at anything any human being might do, male or female.
Is she going to be all right? She'll live.
I'm gonna have to report this to the marshal.
Matt.
What's that, miss? What'd you say? Matt Dillon.
What about him? I have to talk to him, real bad.
Tell him Cara wants to see him.
I'll tell him.
Something in that telegram bothering you, Mr.
Dillon? No, Chester, I was just curious as to why Sheriff Benson's coming all the way down from Wichita to pay me a visit.
Did he said when he was coming? Yeah, he's coming today, on the 9:00 stage.
Good morning, Matt.
Well, hello, Doc.
Well, you're up awful early, Doc.
Somebody got an ailing cow? Matt, there's a woman over at the Dodge House who wants to see you.
A woman? Well, she, uh, said she wanted to talk to you.
Real bad, she said.
What about? Well, I don't know about that, but she said her name was Cara.
She tried to kill herself.
Something about it you ought to know though, I don't think she tried very hard.
She put a gash in her forearm and- When she was supposed to be slicing her wrist.
Left the door to her room unlocked and screamed for help.
I don't think you do things like that when you're really bent on bleeding to death.
Yeah, well, maybe I better go see her.
Come in.
Good to see you again.
Hello, Cara.
Been a long time since Arizona.
Twelve years almost.
I won't ask you if you think I changed, I guess you can see for yourself.
Why'd you do that, Cara? Oh, I botched it.
Just like I botched the whole rest of my life since.
You know, I've often wondered about you, Cara.
Somehow I never could picture you any place but Yuma.
My flea-bit town.
It's all right for a while.
I left it the year after you did.
I just couldn't stand it any longer.
Where'd you go from there? San Francisco.
But that didn't help.
Since then I guess I made the whole circuit.
Virginia City, Cheyenne, Denver, Amarillo And finally, Dodge.
No.
That was sort of an impulse.
I heard on the train from Saint Louis that you were marshal here.
Oh, all of a sudden, I had to see you again.
I got all dressed up this morning.
I just couldn't face you.
I kept remembering how you used to think of me.
And I want you to go on thinking of me that way.
So I- What can I do for you, Cara? I want to stay here for a while.
A place where I know there's at least one person who thinks good of me.
Unless you got any objections.
Well, you'll be needing a job, then.
I did notice the shortage of saloons.
Is that what you want? Want? There's no such thing as a gray cat.
You either belong on one side of the line or the other.
Well, I'll see what I can do for you, Cara.
Matt- You ashamed of me? Why should I be? I've lived through You don't know very much about women, do you? Well, I haven't made 'em my life's work, if that's what you mean.
Well, maybe I never made a point of this, but I got some pride.
Ah, Kitty, look, I mean- What makes you think you can wake me up in the middle of the night to listen to some long, sad story about one of your old flames.
"Middle of the night.
" It's almost 9:00 in the morning.
That's the middle of the night.
Look, all I meant was if I could just get her a job here at the Long Branch- And what makes you think I'd welcome her moving in with me? Well, that's only till she gets to know her way around.
I bet she can teach me a few tricks.
Yeah, maybe so.
Somehow or other I keep seeing her different.
I keep remembering a clean, sweet-faced young kid, who thought she could make a respectable rancher out of me.
Maybe she would have too, if I'd stuck around.
Well, why didn't you? Well, I thought I had to prove myself, I guess.
Oh.
By the time I did, it was too late for both of us.
Oh, well I didn't know it was like that.
I'll do it.
Good girl, Kitty.
You know how much obliged I am to you.
Yeah, sure.
Well, I gotta go meet that 9:00 stage.
See you later.
Sure.
Yeah, they're holding a murder for me in Denver, marshal.
I just thought I'd take the chance, stop up, look in on you.
It's always good to see you, sheriff.
You remember Chester Goode, don't you? Just in time for a little breakfast.
Oh, just what I need.
Sit down.
How about some coffee? Oh, fine.
By the way, you ever hear of a fellow named Tolliver? A Jack Tolliver? No, guess I haven't.
Well, he's a bank robber.
He opened up the state bank in Wichita about a year ago, and he's been working through the Dakotas ever since.
Dakotas? Well, that puts him a comfortable peace away from here, don't it? Well, he's back in Kansas now.
He hit the bank over in Salina for about $5,000, just a few weeks ago.
Are you saying he's gonna try Dodge next? Well, he's headed south.
Dodge would be a natural for 'em.
For them? Yeah, he works with a couple of partners.
I don't know their names.
How's the egg? All right? Oh, ha, ha, just what I wanted.
This, uh, Tolliver, what's he look like? Now that's where you got me.
Far as I know, nobody's had a real good look at him.
Oh, is he that smart or is he just lucky? Both.
He always sends one of his bunch on ahead to look things over for a week or so, and after they get things carefully planned, they- Well, they pull it off like clockwork.
What about this man who scouts ahead for him? Is he, uh-? Do you know anything about him? It isn't a man, marshal.
It's a woman.
A woman.
Yeah, but I have a pretty fair description brown eyes, yellow hair.
Heh, she's right pretty.
She's smart too.
A darn good actress.
Too darn good.
Well, thanks for the information, sheriff.
You could be sparing me a lot of embarrassment.
Well, it's more than embarrassment I aim to spare you, marshal.
This Jack Tolliver has already killed three men.
And he ain't got one little thing to lose by running the score up.
Well, I think I'll look over the town before the stage pulls out.
Well, thanks very much for your trouble, sheriff.
Well, it was no trouble.
See you on the way back through, marshal.
Thanks for the breakfast, Chester.
Marshal, it's none of my business, Mr.
Dillon, but- He sure sounded like he was talking about Miss Cara, didn't he? Back later, Chester.
How come you never got married, Cara? You must had a lot of chances.
May sound strange, but I guess I'm pretty choosy.
Nobody in a town even like Saint Louis? They tell me that town's pretty near busting at the seams.
Oh, I hear it's booming all right.
You hear? I thought you said you just came from there.
Oh, I guess I didn't make myself clear.
I said I was just passing through Saint Louis.
I hardly saw more than the depot.
I see.
Why the questions? Why have you changed so since a few hours ago? You sorry you got me the job at the Long Branch? Is that it? No, Cara.
I wanted to help you, as much as I could.
Well, then try and understand.
I don't like talking about the past.
There's no sense in living it twice, is there? Well, at least you'll be in good hands with Kitty while I'm away.
While you're away? Yeah, I have to go up to, uh, Ellsworth on government business.
Shouldn't be gone more than a couple of days.
What's the matter, Cara? Couldn't you postpone it for a few days? Say for a week? Maybe.
Why? Oh, I don't know.
I guess it's I feel such a stranger here.
Just knowing you're around will make all the difference.
Please.
Well, I guess we can manage it.
Well, let's get you moved down to the Long Branch.
Well, Cara, you still want the job? I'm not a country girl.
I know what to expect.
I'm sure you do.
Come on, I'll show you your room.
Thanks, Matt.
Did you find out anything, Mr.
Dillon? Yeah.
She wants a week to line things up for Tolliver.
Oh? How'd you figure that? Told her I was going out of town on business.
She asked me to put it off.
Be real convenient if I was gone when, uh, Tolliver moved in.
It's kind of bad for you, ain't it? Knowing what she used to be like and what she's doing now.
I got a way to ease that, Chester.
Oh? How? I just keep thinking of all the men Tolliver shot down.
Mr.
Botkin and champagne.
I gotta hand it to her, Matt.
Well, can't blame her for passing up $30-a-month cowhands for the town banker.
I still say you don't know very much about women.
I'm learning.
I wonder.
You keep looking at her, trying to find something that just isn't there anymore.
You've hardly let her out of your sight since she turned up.
Every man she talks to, you watch him like a hawk.
She can't deal you anything but misery, Matt.
Doc told me about that fake suicide.
It's just a way of getting back in your life.
I know.
Well, why don't you do something about it? I am, Kitty.
I am.
Well, I've been expecting something to happen for almost a week now.
It will, Chester.
Just what depends on how smart Cara thinks she is.
Well, she's smart enough to know you got your suspicions.
The way you've been keeping tabs on her.
I wouldn't be surprised.
You've seen the way the boys have been stomping all over each other after her? Anyone one of 'em could've been that Jack Tolliver.
She could've told him anything she got out of Mr.
Botkin in two minutes.
You got $20, Matt? Well, I might have.
Why? Aw, let me have it.
Now, wait a minute.
Most people put a little honey in their voice when they're asking for a loan.
It's not for me.
It's for Cara.
Well, you told me to look after her.
Well, uh, did she say what she wanted it for? I didn't ask.
When I said I didn't have it, she practically said out right I could get it from you.
I see.
Well, she couldn't be broke.
Not the way she's been working.
Well, I'll say one thing, I've known some pretty tricky women in my time, but your friend Cara has 'em all beat.
Well, what do you think that's all about? Now, Chester, it looks like Cara has decided to make her move.
Well, yeah, but what does she want the money for? Now you go follow Cara and don't let her out of your sight till you find out.
I'm going over to the bank, see Mr.
Botkin.
A ticket to Saint Louis, please.
How much is it? Thank you.
Hello, Cara.
Why, Matt, what are you doing here? Well gonna leave without even saying goodbye? What makes you think I'm leaving? You bought a ticket to Saint Louis? All right, let's stop sparring.
You've been on to me all along.
I didn't even fool you that morning back at the Dodge House.
I gotta hold you, Cara.
You're wanted in too many places.
I know it.
But you can't hold Jack Tolliver.
Ah.
So he's the one who's leaving, huh? I talked him out of risking a holdup with you as marshal.
You must think a lot of him.
I love him.
I wasn't good enough for you when I had everything decent to offer.
Him? He's my kind.
What kind is that, Cara? To run off and leave you to face this whole thing alone? There's no reason for him to get caught and strung up.
You can't do much to me.
I'm a woman.
There's not a thing you can do.
A lot of men got on that train, but there's no way of you finding out which one is Jack Tolliver.
Get on board, Chester.
I'm gonna have that whole train put under guard when it gets in to Topeka.
Every man on board's gonna have to clear himself.
You sure caught her flat-footed when you mentioned that about Topeka.
Nah, Chester.
She wanted me on this train.
She did? That $20, she'd knew I'd found out about the ticket.
Oh? There's no reason for her to show up at the station just to tell me Tolliver was aboard.
Well, come to think of it, I guess you're right.
He's back there in Dodge right now.
Figured he can hold up that bank any time he wants to, now we're out of town.
Well, what in the world are we doing here, then? Well, there's a little ranch about ten miles down the line.
I'll have the conductor let us off, and we'll borrow a couple of horses.
Well nobody can say that they're in any hurry to get that money.
Well, it's only a couple hundred dollars anyway.
Couple hundred dollars? Yeah, I had Mr.
Botkin take the bank's real money home, put it in the safe.
Well, I don't feel much like a hero protecting sowbelly and bean's money like that, heh.
You're thinking about her, ain't you? Oh, in a general sort of way, I guess.
How's that? Oh, just how some people can pick one wrong move, and they're done for.
Trouble just keeps hanging onto 'em, like a bird on a horse's mane.
Yeah, I know just what you mean.
Hey, listen.
Gonna be the biggest haul you planned out for us yet, Cara.
A last one.
Mexico's still a go, hm? Sure.
Any way you want it.
Come on.
Hold it! Get away from him, Cara.
No, Jack! He won't kill ya.
If you don't stand still, I will.
Get around behind him, Chester.
Tell him to stay where he is or I'll shoot her in the back.
You wouldn't shoot me.
You couldn't.
Shut up! Throw those guns down.
Both of ya! Cara.
Is he dead? Yeah.
Strange my winding up with a man like that.
Just couldn't help myself.
Strange.
I still love him.
Looks almost like a little kid back in Yuma.
Take care of things, will you, Chester? I guess that's the end of the Tolliver gang, Mr.
Dillon.
It's the end of a lot of things, Chester.
A lot of things.