Around Dodge City and in the territory on west, there's just one way to handle the killers
and the spoilers and that's where the US Marshal and the smell of gun smoke.
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.
Good evening, Mr. Cybert.
Oh, boy, Henry.
Can I buy you a drink?
No, thank you, sir.
What you come into a saloon for if you ain't gonna drink?
No offense, Mr. Cybert.
I just don't feel like a drink.
Well, a man's free to do what he feels like, Henry.
Up to a point he is, sir.
You're all alike, you southerners.
We keep our word to men and to women.
Now, is that what you're here for, to see that I don't run off?
No man's gonna shame my sister, sir.
What are you talking about?
I'm gonna marry her in two days.
Yes, sir, you are.
Look, Henry, we postponed the wedding last month because I had to go to Abilene on business.
I run a big ranch and it takes a lot of hard work and time.
And the ranch comes first.
Now, can you get that through your head?
I understand.
I just hope for your sake you don't have to go anywhere this time.
Polly wasn't proud having to call off the wedding last month.
Now, suppose you leave that to me and Polly and keep your puppy nose out of this.
I don't care for that remark, Mr. Syvets.
No?
Then let's see what a young Confederate gentleman does about something he don't care for.
Well, go ahead, you're wearing a gun.
You can't bluff me, sir.
All right, hold it, you two.
Oh, get this little whippersnapper off my back, Marshal, before I shoot it.
That's enough, Syvets.
All right, Henry, get out of here.
Go drink someplace else tonight.
I'm not drinking, Marshal.
You're still ahead, now get out anyway.
All right, sir.
But don't you forget what I said, Mr. Syvets.
I don't know if I ought to marry into a family like that or not.
Marrying's your problem, Syvets.
Just don't kill any of them, that's all.
Well, have a drink, Marshal?
I've got one at the table over there, thanks.
Later, maybe, huh?
Yeah, maybe.
Well, we sure as stopped that just in time, that.
Yeah.
That kid wouldn't have had a chance against Nate Syvets.
No, but he'd have tried it anyway.
They're going to make a real happy family.
Oh, they'll get along, Kitty.
Syvets and Polly, anyway.
They will if Henry and his father give them a chance.
Too bad Mrs. Torman isn't still alive, she'd handle it better.
They're nervous about the wedding, that's all.
Yeah, and about Syvets' money.
They need it bad.
Yeah, they used to be rich, Kitty, back in Virginia.
Well, sure, before the war.
Why do you think they're so happy to be able to marry Polly off to a big rancher like Syvets?
You know what it's like, don't you?
Yeah, except for Polly.
I think she's real fond of Syvets.
Oh, sure, he's fond of her, too.
After all, she's a woman, isn't she?
Yeah, I know.
But maybe he'll settle down now, quit running around so much.
Yeah, I hope so, for her sake.
When's the wedding, Matt? The day after tomorrow?
That's what they say.
You're going, aren't you?
Yeah, supposed to go.
I love weddings.
Oh, Kitty, that reminds me.
I saw Polly on the street the other day, and she asked me to tell you that you'd be welcome at the wedding if you want to come.
She did?
Uh-huh.
I've only met her at the store and around.
Well, it seems like she likes you.
Anyway, that's what she said.
Gee, Matt, do you think they should?
Well, you were invited by the bride. I don't know why not.
Well, maybe I'd better think it over.
She's got enough trouble as it is.
Anyway, I feel kind of good, her asking me.
They're just people, Kitty, like anybody else.
They're just people.
Yeah, I tell you, if there's anything I hate, it's they liar, Matt.
What's the trouble now, Doc?
Ah, these eggs.
The crooks swore they were fresh.
And I know darn well they've been put down in water glass.
Well, why don't you raise some chickens then?
I would, but they just create a whole new class of thieves, chicken thieves.
Seems to me you're in for a bad day, Doc.
You started feeling this way.
I'd sooner trust Crazy Bula over there than most people I know around here.
Crazy Bula?
Oh, yeah.
I haven't seen her in a long time.
Funny thing about her, Matt.
She's still sort of pretty.
Yeah.
Don't you look in her eyes, she is.
You know something, Doc, I can't help feeling sorry for her.
I know.
There's nothing anyone can do to help her.
No, I guess not.
She came to see me a couple of weeks ago.
She had the egg here.
Oh?
And she paid my fee, too.
And if Crazy Bula can pay up, you'd think the more prosperous citizens around here could.
You know, I tell you, I sometimes wonder about these people, Matt.
Maybe you charge too much.
If I charge nothing, they'd still cheat me somehow.
Oh, more, Mr. John.
That's better.
Here, just look at this.
Read it.
If Nate Cybertz marries that Treyman girl, there'll be a killing.
I'm warning the law to stop it before it's too late.
There's no signature.
Where'd you get this, Chester?
It was under the office door when I opened up this morning.
What do you make of it?
Well, here, let me see it, man.
It's printed.
I thought I might recognize the hand writing.
That's why he printed it, I guess.
Well, I wouldn't want to be in Nate Cybertz's boots.
Young Henry's going to shoot him if he doesn't marry Polly, and here's somebody who's going
to shoot him if he does.
All in all, it'll make for a lively tomorrow.
Well, I think we better talk to Cybertz about this, Chester.
Well, he's been over at the Dodge house till after the wedding.
Yeah, I know.
So long, Doc.
Have a pleasant day.
Yeah, sure, Matt.
Well, Marshall, Chester.
Oh, Nate.
Like to talk to you, Cybertz.
Sure, Marshall.
Come on in, come in.
Chester found this note at the jail this morning.
Here.
Now, who wrote this?
Well, I thought maybe you could tell me.
No, I got no idea, Marshall.
Can you think of anybody who doesn't want you to get married, Cybertz?
I got enemies, sure.
What man hasn't, but they don't have nothing to do with me and Polly.
What do they care if I get married?
Well, maybe it's just a joke somebody's kindly playing on you.
Well, it's a mighty poor joke under the circumstances.
Yeah, I suppose it would be.
My old man told me to stay away from women a long time ago.
I should have listened to him.
It's a little late now.
Yeah.
If you get any idea, let me know, will you?
Anyway, we'll be at the wedding.
We'll do what we can.
I'll be wearing a gun too, Marshall.
You can count on that.
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because many people have given generously their money and volunteer services.
It's not too late to join and serve at your local Red Cross chapter.
I didn't like the idea of a groom having to wear a six-gun at his wedding, and even less
the fact that a shooting might take place in church.
So I went out to see the Troymans.
Polly came to the door and ushered me into the front room where Father and Henry were
sitting.
Can we fetch you something, Marshall?
Glass of bourbon?
No, thank you, Mr. Troyman.
It wouldn't be very good bourbon, I'm afraid.
Prices are up, money's down.
Things haven't been easy lately.
We were not with his family anyway.
Please, Father.
Polly, I hate to bother you this way, but it's important.
Nothing happened to Nate.
If he's run off, I'll find him and...
Quiet, quiet, Henry.
Now let the Marshall speak.
He's all right, Polly.
I just want to know if you can think of anybody who would try to put a stop to the wedding
tomorrow.
Try to stop it?
Marshall, I don't understand what you...
Somebody's threatened to, Polly.
I don't know who it could be, and neither does Nate Cybert.
I talked to him about it.
This is mighty strange, sir.
It sure is.
Is it true, Marshall?
Yes, it looks that way.
Well, who'd not want us to get married?
Polly, when you took up with Nate Cybert, was there anyone else who might have been jealous
about it?
Uncommonly jealous, I mean, enough to start trouble tomorrow.
No, Marshall, there wasn't.
What about Red Withers?
Red Withers and I broke off two months before that, Henry.
Besides, he's gone to Los Animas.
There wasn't anybody else, huh?
No.
Marshall, have you felt that maybe Nate Cybert himself might have started this?
He didn't.
How do you know he didn't do it?
He ran out once before and he's like this.
Oh, Henry.
He's not that kind of a man, Henry.
That's why.
Now, let's not get all upset about this.
I promise you, Polly, that Chester and I'll be there tomorrow and we'll see that nothing
goes wrong.
Thank you, Marshall.
I'll be there, too.
Don't forget that.
Sure, Henry.
But don't come wearing a gun.
Why not?
Because I'll take it off you if you do.
You're too ready to use it.
Is there anything I can do, Marshall?
I'll let you know if there is, Mr. Treumann.
I'm sorry I had to trouble you with this, Polly.
I understand, Marshall, and I thank you kindly.
I'll see you to the door.
Thanks.
For as much as Nate and Polly have consented together in holy wedlock and have witnessed
the same here before God and his company, and there too have given...
Come on, Chester.
...either two others and have declared the same thing, and receiving gold and so forth
and both loaning wine, I can enter with you men like the others.
Well, what?
You've a lot of real faces in there, Mr. John.
Yeah.
There's nobody outside here.
That's Harbert's buggy right there, ain't it?
Yeah, he's driving Polly out to the ranch right after the ceremony.
He didn't want a celebration of any kind.
Well, looks like there won't be no trouble after all.
I sure hope not on their wedding day and all.
It sounds like it's over.
They'll be coming out now.
Yes, sir.
We'll stay close to them till they drive off.
It could happen right out here.
Well, I'll watch whichever way you ain't watching.
How would you know which way I'm watching unless you spend your time watching me, Chester?
Well, I'm sorry I didn't mean exactly the best.
Oh, here they come.
Oh, my, don't they look pretty?
Congratulations, Harbert.
Thanks, Marshal.
Let's go over here a minute, huh?
Sure.
I guess that warning wasn't much to worry about after all.
Yeah, it looks that way.
You got nothing but friends here as far as I can see.
Sure unsettles a man, though, a note like that.
And I think you can forget about it now, Cybert.
I'll forget it when I find out who wrote it, Marshal.
That's what I wanted to ask you.
What?
If you learn anything about it, let me know.
Will you promise me that?
What would you do if I did find out?
I'd kill him.
That's what I thought.
Look, Cybert, you're married now and you've got more than yourself to think about.
I'm a peace officer.
I've paid for it.
It's my job.
And if I find out who wrote that note, I'll run him out of the country.
And I'll try to keep you from finding out who it was.
I'm not a boy, Marshal.
I'm not sure.
I appreciate you're trying to protect me.
What about Polly?
Polly?
Yeah.
I think I see what you mean, Marshal.
You're just not used to being married, Cybert.
You better go on and start getting used to it.
Polly's looking for you over there.
Thanks, Marshal.
Are there anything wrong with Dylan?
Nothing, Chester.
Come on, let's see him off.
Goodbye.
Oh, my goodness, Mr. Dylan.
What's the matter, Chester?
I'm just like an old woman at a wedding.
You know, there ought to have more weddings around here.
But if you like them that much, why don't you do something about it?
Oh, my land, what could I do?
Get married.
Me? Get married?
Oh, why not?
Now, Mr. Dylan, you know I wouldn't be able to do that.
I don't make enough money to keep body and soul together just for me,
let alone a wife and a lot of kids and in-laws and such as that.
You could start with just a wife.
What?
It's down that road, Cybert.
Come on, grab a horse, anybody's horse.
No one we know of approves of wasting money.
In spite of that, however, we Americans are often guilty of wasting our money
by the uses we make of our government facilities.
Take the operation of the post office, for example.
Mostly out of habit, many offices and individuals post outgoing mail
at the end of the day.
In addition, many people fail to include zone numbers as part of the address.
In both ways, we're slowing down the entire system for delivering mail
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The problem is simple enough to solve.
Start solving it tomorrow.
If you will arrange to post letters and packages earlier in the day
and include zone numbers on the return address as well as the outgoing address,
you will help our post office operate more efficiently for you and at less cost, too.
Remember, for faster, more economical service,
mail early in the day and include zone numbers.
There's a buggy just past the bridge there, and that mate all hunkered over.
He must have been hit.
Pull up so we don't scare the horse, just yet.
You take a look under the bridge.
Yes, sir, I will.
Marshall, Marshall, they shot him.
He's dead, Polly.
He's breathing, but I couldn't drive the horse back in olden, too.
Marshall, what? Why did they do it?
Who did it, Polly? How many were there?
I don't know. I didn't see anybody.
We were just driving across the bridge and they shot him.
Please, Marshall.
How are you, Mr. M?
Marshall, do something. You die.
Chester, get in the buggy and drive back to Doc's, quick.
Yes, sir.
Give me that line.
Tell everybody to stay in town.
I don't want them messing up the tracks out here. Now, hurry.
We'll be there for you, Polly.
Get a good tight hold on Nate.
As soon as the buggy had gone and the dust had settled, I looked around everywhere.
I couldn't see no one.
When I walked back, I followed Chester's horse tracks down off the wagon road.
His were the only marks on that side of the bridge.
So I crossed over to the other side.
There I found the footprints of what must have been either a child or a woman.
They led off in the direction of a small cabin about 300 yards away.
I followed them, gun in hand.
Oh, it's you, Marshall.
Bula, who's in there? Tell me.
Nobody, Marshall. Nobody now that I'm not here.
Get out of the way, Bula.
That's what Nate said.
Get out of the way, crazy Bula.
Nate?
He won't say it no more. I fixed him.
Bula, what are you talking about?
He wouldn't even look at me on the street after.
Then he up and married that Troyman girl.
You mean you shot him?
I warned you, Marshall. I told you to stop the wedding.
I told you what would happen.
I told you.
Why didn't you stop it?
Why didn't you stop it?
Bula.
Bula, take it easy now.
You believe me, Marshall?
What?
Take a look in the cabin.
All right, what's this all about, Bula? There's nobody in there.
Smell my rifle.
Where is it?
Right there by the door.
Yeah, it's been fired all right.
Did you really shoot Nate Syvers, Bula? I want the truth now.
I said I would, didn't I? I hate him.
Why, Bula? Why did you do it? Tell me.
No, I won't tell you. I don't have to.
All right, Bula, get your things. Let's go into town.
I don't need nothing, Marshall. I got all dressed up and everything, see? See?
Yeah, yeah, you look fine.
I feel better now, Marshall. Nat's all over. He's dead and I feel a lot better.
Give her anything she wants, Chester. See that she's comfortable.
Yes, sir, I sure will.
It's your beat's all low, don't it?
Yeah, and I'm going up to Doc's. Maybe Syvers can talk now.
You better hurry up. I'll be back there any minute.
All right.
Hello, Matt.
How is he, Doc?
I can't tell you yet, but don't tire him out.
Hello, Syvers.
Marshall.
I guess we should have stayed with you a little longer, huh?
I don't even know where it came from, Marshall.
He was under the bridge there, I guess. Got me right in the back.
It wasn't a he, Syvers. It was a she.
A woman?
Crazy Bula. I just locked her up.
Bula?
How do you know it was her, Marshall?
I trailed her to her cabin. She admitted it.
She say why she did it?
She said you wouldn't look at her on the street.
Told her to get out of the way or something. Doesn't matter much.
Unless you want to tell me.
Hmm.
Well, I got drunk one night, Marshall.
She kind of chased after me ever since.
I tried to keep out of her way.
I see.
What are you going to tell Paula?
If I live?
Yes, if you live.
I don't know, Marshall.
I might even tell her the truth.
All right, Matt. That's enough.
Sure, Doc.
So long, Syvers.
Goodbye, Marshall.
Two days later, Doc announced that Nate Syvers would live.
The next day they moved him up to the Troyman house where Polly could nurse him.
I never did know if he told Polly what it was all about.
He didn't have to.
Crazy Bula never asked about him, never mentioned his name again.
For her, it was all over and done with.
And finally somebody remembered she had people in St. Louis.
And once I located them, I put her on the train and sent her off.
She seemed quite happy about the trip.
And more normal than I'd ever seen her.
Music
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Music
Gunsmoke. Produced and directed in Hollywood by Norman McDonald,
stars William Conrad as Matt Dillon, U.S. Marshal.
Specialty written for Gunsmoke by John Messon.
Featured in the cast were Vic Perrin, Gene Bates, Virginia Gregg, and Sam Edwards.
Harley Bair as Chester, Howard McNear as Doc, and Georgia Ellis as Kitty.
This is George Walsh inviting you to join us again next week
when CBS Radio presents another story on Gunsmoke.
Music