Around Dodge City and in the territory on west, there is just one way to handle the killers and the spoilers,
and that's with a U.S. Marshal and the smell of gun smoke.
Music
Gun Smoke starring William Conrad, the story of the violence that moved west with young America,
and the story of a man who moved with it.
I'm that man, Matt Dillon, United States Marshal.
The first man they look for and the last they want to meet.
It's a chancey job, and it makes a man watchful and a little lonely.
Music
The horses is all saddled up and out front, Mr. Dillon.
All right, Chester, I should be back late Wednesday or early Thursday.
Well, don't you worry about nothing.
I think I should be pretty quiet with the prisoner gone.
Might even have time to do a little housekeeping around here for a change.
Well, now I swept this place out from front to back just yesterday.
I know. Now maybe you ought to use that mop and bucket standing out back before Washington declares them surplus equipment.
No, Mr. Dillon.
Never mind.
All right, come on, Skaglow, we got to get started.
All right, no hurry.
Maybe you're not, but I am.
I promised the sheriff in Haves City I'd have you there by noon tomorrow.
All right, let's go.
Mount up.
Aren't you going to take the cuffs off?
Uh-huh, at noon tomorrow, and I get up not subtle.
And Chester, don't take things too easy.
Oh, yes, sir. No, sir, I won't.
Bye, Mr. Dillon.
Oh, was that the marshal just wrote off?
Yes, it was.
Oh, what time will he be back?
What time? Well, if you'd ask me what day, it'd be a better question.
This is serious, young man.
How long will the marshal be out of town?
Well, I expect him back of a Wednesday or Thursday.
Oh, I'll probably be dead by then.
Dead? Look, Mr. Dillon's assistant, and if you're in trouble anytime...
Are you good with a gun?
Well, sure. Oh, I may not be as good as Mr. Dillon, but I do all right.
You'll feel better telling all this to the marshal.
Oh, what? You ain't told me nothing yet.
I have to trust you. Can we talk inside?
Of course.
Come on in.
Oh, what's this about?
Here's my card.
Professor Albert Cramson, doctor of METAL...
Metallurgical research.
Oh. Well, that sounds pretty important, but it don't sound very dangerous.
Well, believe me, son, it is dangerous if the syndicate has put a price on your head.
Syndicate?
The Silver Syndicate in San Francisco. You know, all those millionaire fellows who own the mines.
Oh, them fellows? Well, why should they want you dead?
I don't want to tell you too much because it'd be dangerous information for you to have, but...
Well, I will tell you this. They've hired eight killers to track me down,
and the one who catches up with me gets $10,000 for the job.
Well, is any of them eight men in Dodge now?
I don't know. I don't know who they are or what they look like.
I just know they mean to get me.
Well, there ain't anything I can do, Professor.
Thank you, son. And I just want to say, keep your gun close by,
because the welfare of your country and mine may be resting in your hands.
Well, Delmar, Wilbert. Somehow I never thought I'd see you two drinking at the same table.
Sit down, Miss Kitty. Sure. Join us for a farewell drink.
I'd love to, but only if you'll let the Long Branch stand this round.
Sam, two whiskeys, one beer.
Right away, Miss Kitty.
I understand Mr. Durgan bought out your shop, Wilbert.
That's right, for $1,500.
And you're leaving Dodge in the moment?
You're right again, for San Francisco.
And to be perfectly honest, about the only thing I'll miss is dropping in here to the Long Branch.
Here's your drinks, Miss Kitty. Thanks, sir.
Miss Kitty, see that little old fella by the bar there in the stovepipe hat?
The kind of fussy-looking little man?
Yeah, yeah.
What about him?
He keeps borrowing dimes from the customers.
Sam, you know we don't allow panhandling in here.
But he pays them back.
What?
Three times now I've seen him. He borrows a dime, he leaves, comes back, buys a drink with a silver dollar,
takes his change and pays back the dime.
Well, you worry about it, Sam. I'm going upstairs for a while. I've got some bills to go over.
Excuse me, boy.
Sure, Miss Kitty, sure.
And if I don't see you before you leave, Wilbert, good luck.
Well, thank you, Miss Kitty.
Did you hear what Sam said about that little fella?
Yeah.
Sure sounds crazy. Why would anybody do that?
I think we're going to find out.
Excuse me, gentlemen. I wonder if either of you would be so kind as to lend me a ten-cent piece.
Why, I think that could be a range, don't you, Wilbert?
Yeah, I think so. Here you are.
Oh, thank you. I'll return it shortly.
I wonder where that little geezer's going. I don't know.
Well, Sam said he keeps coming back with a silver dollar. Maybe we ought to follow him. Maybe we ought to.
John, I'm worried about the church supper, Mother.
I promised I'd make the chicken pies, but the way I felt lately with headache and muscular aches and pains, I don't feel up to it.
I don't wonder with that discomfort. Better do something about it.
But what?
Try Doan's Pills.
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Is that him?
Yeah.
Now, Wes, don't follow too close.
Wait. Where's he going?
He's going in my shop.
Your shop? You need it locked?
What for? There's nothing in there. I hauled every last speck over to your place. My own stuff's already in my wagon.
What do you suppose he's doing in there?
Well, I'll go in and ask him.
No, no, wait. Let's sneak up on him. He might find out something.
I didn't board up the side window between the buildings. Maybe we can see him through there.
That lantern. Do you suppose he's planning to sleep in there?
I don't know. What's that thing on the back counter? I didn't leave nothing like that.
Taking the cover off. Looks like some kind of machine.
There's something crooked here, and we're going to get us a reward.
Let's get the front door dragged in when he comes out.
You get on that side, and I'll stay here and wait for him to come out.
That's Chester. We've got to get rid of him.
Why?
If he's in on it, there won't be no reward.
Oh, you know what? Dirkham and Gatley.
Chester?
Yep, Chester. Just taking a last look at the old shop.
Oh, yeah, that's right. You're leaving town tomorrow. Well, I sure do wish you luck, Wilbert.
Thanks, Chester.
Well, Chester, I suppose you'd have to get on with your rounds, being a peace officer and all.
No, things are kindly quiet tonight, so mostly what I'm doing is getting me a little exercise before I go to bed.
Well, good night, Chester.
Good night.
Good night, Chester.
When we grab this fellow, try to cover his mouth so he can't yell. He's coming. Get ready.
Hold him, Chester. Hold him.
I got him.
I'm back into the shop.
All right.
Wilbert? Wilbert? You found him sitting there? Are you all right?
We got him, Chester. Come on in.
You got who?
Can we get the reward?
Here, that's Professor Crimeson. Let him go, Wilbert.
Don't you do it, Wilbert, till he agrees about the reward.
There's a reward you can have. Let him go. His face is turning blue.
You said you'd protect me. Now you shoot him. You shoot him.
Whose side are you on, Chester?
Now look, Professor, these two fellows ain't killers. And they ain't from that cynical thing.
They're just Mr. Durgum and Mr. Gatsby.
Oh, well, that's certainly a relief.
Well, what about him? Who's he?
Professor Albert Crimeson, gentlemen, late of San Francisco.
Oh.
Pleased to make your acquaintance.
Howdy.
Howdy. We were watching through the window there. You sure looked suspicious to us.
Oh, well, I can certainly understand that. And since you've stumbled on a part of my secret,
I guess you're entitled to know the rest, if you want to.
I sure do.
Me too.
I'm kind of curious about this myself.
But first, I have to ask you. Are all of you natural-born citizens of the USA?
Well, of course.
And none of you are in the employ of a foreign government?
You mean like Europe or France or one of them towns?
That's what I mean.
Well, now, that's silly.
Well, I won't even have nothing to do with foreigners.
Me neither.
Well, I've got to ask those questions. And one more.
If the good of our duly constituted government depended on your keeping a secret,
would you die instead of revealing it?
Sure.
Yeah, of course.
All right. Now, I want you to watch this carefully, gentlemen,
so you'll be convinced in your own minds of the importance of this little device.
I'll explain it to you step by step as I go along,
and if you have any questions, don't hesitate. You just speak right up.
My man, this is all so mysterious. Like, what does that thing do?
You won't believe your eyes, Mr. Proudfoot.
Would one of you contribute a dime to this demonstration?
I got one. I got one.
I got a dime here, sir.
I'll take all three of them.
And then you'll each have a permanent memento,
a reminder that you were among the first to witness the results of my discovery.
I'll use your dime first, Mr. Proudfoot.
Chester.
Oh, all right, Chester.
Now, put the dime in this funnel here at the top.
Now, you count to three slowly.
Uh, one, two, three.
Fine, fine. Now, I give the crank four complete turns.
I turn this little spigot to admit three drops of mercury.
That's quicksilver.
And turn the crank one more time.
And there we are.
Now, you see that lever there, Chester, on the bottom toward the front?
Uh, yes, sir.
What am I?
Well, reach over and pull it.
Well, now, I ain't sure if there's something wrong with it.
You just pull it.
Well, I know, but...
No.
Well, I don't think that's a silver dollar.
I told you, you wouldn't believe it.
You can take that cartwheel to the bank tomorrow, and they'll tell you it's real.
Oh, it's real enough, but I...
But how is it done?
It's really very simple once you understand the physical principle.
It has to do with what I call induced porosity.
Once you make that dime porous, like a sponge,
all you have to do is introduce a little quicksilver to fill in the holes,
and the chemical process of expansion is automatic.
Well, that's clear enough.
Oh, yeah.
Sure. But why do you have to use dimes?
I'm glad you asked that question.
You see, the ratio of the weight of one dime to three drops of mercury
produces an expansion of exactly ten.
Well, you follow me?
That means this particular formula in this machine
extends silver in size and weight in multiples of ten.
Oh.
So the logical raw material is the little thin dime.
Why, if you used half dollars or even quarters,
the end product would be clumsy, large, and bulky.
Of course.
Besides, you ever heard of a five dollar silver piece?
Why, a couple of those would weigh you down like a pack of you.
Oh, you're right there.
No, you couldn't have them any bigger than a dime.
Why, anybody can see that.
Anything else you don't understand?
Oh, no.
How about you, fellow?
No, it's real clear to me.
Me too, but...
But what?
I would like to see that thing work again.
So would I.
All right.
But this time you turn the crank, Mr. Gatsby.
Four times?
Yes, but not till I tell you to.
You ready?
Yep.
All right, I'll put in the dime.
One, two, three.
Now.
What?
Now, turn it, turn it.
That's right.
Now three drops of quick silver.
There.
And I turn the crank once more.
Right.
You boys catch on fast.
Is it ready now?
It should be.
Pull the lever.
I'll be darned, I did it.
Well, that sure is surprising.
It sure is, it sure is.
Can I try it now?
I haven't had a turn.
Can I try the whole thing?
I'd like to accommodate you, but I think I'd better cover it up and put it away before some
untrustworthy person finds out what we're doing in here.
Why don't you come have a drink with us, Mr. Pressard?
Yeah, we'd be proud to have you at our table.
Well, that's very kind of you gentlemen, but I do have a few little things I must do.
If I finish in time, I may join you at the Long Branch.
Well, whatever you say.
Anyway, a pleasure meeting you.
Yes, it was.
Good night, sir.
Good night, gentlemen.
Good night.
Good night.
This here was all mine.
Hi, this is Dennis James.
Today, remember way back when this melody was popular?
There's something very special about a longtime favorite, isn't there?
Well, folks feel the same way about one of Kellogg's favorites, Kellogg's All Brand.
Going on 41 years now, it's been America's most popular good food way to fight irregularity
from lack of bulk.
Because it's whole brand, Kellogg's All Brand gentles away irregularity safely and reliably.
And because it's deep toasted for extra crispness, it never gets mushy in milk.
There's only one All Brand, Kellogg's All Brand.
That's A-L-L-B-R-A-N. Kellogg's All Brand.
I just can't get over it, either can I?
You know, if a fella could just own one of them machines, or maybe even rent it for just a month,
what think all the good you could do?
Yeah, well, you could build churches and help the poor people.
It sure would be wonderful.
And after you did all those things, you could even take a little for yourself.
Well, there's no reason not to, if a fella didn't get greedy.
That's right.
You suppose he would sell it?
Oh, I doubt that. I couldn't do nothing about it even if he would.
You don't suppose he'd consider $1,500?
$1,500? $1,500 be more like him. Anyway, I don't think so.
Oh, gentlemen, I can't tell you how glad I am that you're still here.
What's the matter?
Something's come up. May I sit down, please?
Oh, of course. Go right ahead.
What's come up?
I just got word that they know where I am.
The Silver Syndicate?
The Silver Syndicate. And their killers are closing in.
How many are they?
I don't know. Could be just one, could be all of them.
Oh, I sure do wish Mr. Dillon was here.
But he isn't. So I've had to come to a decision.
I'm taking the train east early tomorrow, eight o'clock.
But I need your help all of you.
What do you want us to do?
I want you gentlemen to destroy the Silver Extender.
Destroy it?
You mean bust it?
I mean blow it to bits.
So there isn't the slightest chance of anyone piecing it together and figuring out how it was made.
That would be a terrible thing.
It sure would.
Just a minute, gentlemen. I understand your concern, but it's not quite as bad as it sounds.
How's that?
Well, if I get to Washington alive, I can build another.
If I don't, not only will I be dead, but my discovery will be lost to the government.
I can't begin to see what you mean.
Oh, yeah. If you can make up another and when you get there, you'll be an awful lot safer traveling without this one.
Then I can count on your help.
Oh, sure.
In what way?
Well, I've told you I want to destroy the machine.
But when you're dealing with Washington, you can't do things just like that. No, sir.
Now see if you can understand my problem.
Now let's say you're the government.
You know I have this machine.
I've told you I'm bringing it to you. Then I show up without it.
You ask me where it is and I say I blew it up.
And you say to me, prove it. Prove you didn't sell it to somebody.
But I can't prove it.
So you convict me of treason, put me up against a wall, facing a fire in a spot.
That's terrible.
That's the end of Professor Cranston.
That'd be awful. It sure would. But what can we do?
You can be witnesses.
Witnesses?
If three honest citizens signed an affidavit that they saw the machine blown up, they'd have to believe me.
Would you be willing to do that?
Certainly not asking very much.
I don't know, especially since you were so nice about sharing your secret.
Well, I was planning to pull out early tomorrow, but there ain't no reason I can't wait till we're finished with it.
Oh, you can wait that.
Now there's one other thing.
What's that?
Well, I've got it all created.
And only the four of us know where it is, so I'm sure it'll be safe there till morning.
Can I count on you?
Of course you can.
We'll do it just like you said.
I don't know how to thank you, gentlemen.
But when I tell the government what you've done for your country, you can be sure the U.S. Treasury will find some way of rewarding you for your services.
I'll be at the Dodge house if any of you need me.
This ought to be far enough from town. Just pull off the trail there and we'll unload it.
All right, Chester.
Yep.
Now that's good.
You get that tailgate open a little bit and I'll slide the crate back to you.
Just a minute. Let me help you, fellas.
That's far enough. You and me can lift it down, Chester.
I got dynamite all bundled in under the seat here.
Now look, we can just pop up one end of this rock and slide the bundles right underneath.
Here.
Oh, that should work just fine.
Yeah.
It's real nice and snug.
If you want to uncoil or roll a fuse, Wilbert, I'll turn the wagon around and drive back down the trail.
All right.
I figured 20 feet of this would give us plenty of time to get out of the way.
Oh, sure.
String it out. We'll light it and keep right on moving.
Think this is far enough for a wagon?
Yeah, that's good.
That's all of it, Chester.
You ready to move?
Anytime.
Here goes, then.
Come on.
I'm coming.
You got plenty of time.
You keep a good hold on them horses.
There's good five feet left before she blows.
Smithereens.
Yep, that did it.
That jing ain't nobody going to get the professor's machine now.
Oh, he sure won't.
Well, all I have to do is get back on the dodge and sign that paper.
Get on up on the wagon, Wilbert. We'll get going.
Coming.
Let's go.
I'll ride alongside you fellas. We can stop by the office.
Professor Shur will be happy at all whence a good.
Yeah.
I sure hated to do it, though.
That machine...
Somebody's shooting it up.
You see where that come from?
Up there on that rise.
I'm hit.
You fool!
Sir, if you get Wilbert into docks, I'll ride after him.
He'll never catch you.
I can try. You get going. I'll meet you in town.
Well, I'm not blaming you, Chester.
The professor has taken in people a lot brighter than you are.
Well, if he'd have tried to sell that machine, I would have got suspicious, but he didn't.
Well, in a thing like this, people sell themselves.
Then you can be sure he got through to somebody.
Or Gatsby and Durgam wouldn't be laying up in docks' office with each other's bullets in them.
Well, it all sure went over my head.
Machines like that have been fooling people since the first day men stopped trading buckskins for flour and started using money.
As long as there's a man alive looking for something for nothing, it'll go right on working.
I suppose.
Matt.
Yeah, Doc.
If you want to talk to Durgam, you better do it now.
All right. Come on, Chester.
What about Gatsby?
He never came out of it.
Died a half an hour ago.
No, my.
Yeah, sure doesn't make much sense, does it?
Few killings do.
Oh, that's you, Marshal?
Yeah, that's right.
You're not laughing at me, are you?
No, I'm not laughing.
Something you wanted to tell me?
Not much to tell.
The stakes were big, but I lost.
Says what were the stakes?
Didn't Chester tell you?
He told me about the silver extender.
He said you blew that up.
That's what Chester was supposed to think.
That's what I was supposed to think.
But I knew better.
That it wasn't in that crate.
No, it's just scrap iron.
Gatsby had the machine.
What? Sure?
After we left the Long Branch last night, Gatsby snuck back and made a deal with the professor.
He bought that machine with my money.
It wouldn't go partners.
The money I gave him, it wouldn't go partners.
Why, Marshal, a hundred men could have got rich with that thing just using it an hour a day.
He had to have it all.
Couldn't share.
Where is it now?
If I tell you, will you promise to blow it up?
Is that what you want?
That's what I want.
It's under the work counter in the back of my store.
Something like that may be all right for the government, but it ain't for the people.
The professor should have known that.
Well, I think maybe he didn't.
What do you mean?
Nothing. Anything else you want me to know?
That's about all, except about the gunman on the hill that hit Gatsby.
What about him?
I didn't hire him. Gatsby did. To shoot me.
He just picked a man with a bad aim.
So Gatsby got it in the shoulder.
I think that's kind of funny.
Gatsby tell you this?
He did.
When?
Soon as Chester rode off after the gunman, pulled his own gun to do the job himself.
Then you shot him self-defense.
You might say that, yeah, but I'll be honest with you though, Marshal.
Yeah?
I was planning to kill Gatsby anyway.
You won't forget your promise.
No, I'll blow up the machine.
You want me to send Doc back in?
No reason to.
Yeah.
So long, Marshal.
So long, Dirk.
Keep telling me what you're doing.
About the silver extender?
You know, Chester, I didn't have the heart.
I don't think I would either.
No. Even when he's wrong, if a man has to die, he likes to feel he's died for something.
And if he dies for nothing, I don't want to be the one to let him know.
Get the really light refreshment.
This is where I talk, Kay.
Get the really light refreshment.
That's Pepsi-Cola, of course.
I just wanted to say be sociable, Charlie.
Of course, Kay. Be sociable.
Have a Pepsi on the road or at home.
It always refreshes without filling.
Charlie.
Pick up extra cartons now.
Pepsi is so delicious it goes fast.
That's why you should keep plenty of Pepsi on hand.
Oops. Maybe I better sing.
Be sure to say keep Pepsi handy.
Yes, Charlie. But the song says it sociably.
Be sociable. Look smart.
Keep up to date with Pepsi.
Drink light repressing Pepsi.
Stay young and fair and never near.
Be sociable. Have a Pepsi.
What Kay means is get plenty of Pepsi next time you shop.
Yes.
Gunsmoke, produced and directed in Hollywood by Norman McDonald,
stars William Conrad as Matt Dillon, U.S. Marshal.
The story was specially written for Gunsmoke by Vic Perrin,
with editorial supervision by John Mespin.
Featured in the cast were Joseph Kearns, Vic Perrin, Harry Bartel, and Jack Moyles.
Harley Bear is Chester, Howard McNear is Doc, and Georgia Ellis is Kitty.
This is George Walsh inviting you to join us again next week
when CBS Radio presents another story on Gunsmoke.
This is WBT Radio in Charlotte, North Carolina.