The Macahans (1976) - full transcript

Ripped By mstoll

It's been said that the West
was won with guns and gold.

It was not.

It was won by the courage
of simple people...

...who had pushed their ponderous
wagons forever West...

...through 200,000 square miles
of awesome wilderness.

Some were drawn by the lure of gold.

But for the most part, they were families
moved by the dream of a new beginning.

This story is about such a family.

Their name, Macahan.

The sons and daughters
of Katherine Macahan...



...were destined to write their own brilliant
pages into the history of the West.

But in the beginning the only member
of the family whose name...

...had already been touched
by the stuff of legend...

...was a man cut in the image of Bridger
and Bowie and Jeremiah Johnson.

Zebulon Macahan.

I ain't never seen a Sioux yet
didn't jump when he heard the devil.

Go ahead and carve, feather brain.

All you're gonna get out of me is this.

Macahan, how about telling these
ring-tailed Sioux to turn me loose?

Who's buying scalps, Dutton?

What would I know about scalping?

You peddled whiskey to a Sioux
hunting party about three days ago.

I counted six bodies.
They were still warm.

It was you.
Your sign was all over the place.



Yeah, one of them got away upriver
and took his scalp with him.

Turned out he was carrying a grudge.
Sicced the others on us.

Yates is dead. So is Bullion and Juno.

Yeah.

Seems like they're kind of saving
you special, don't it?

You just here for supper
or are you gonna help me out of this?

Tell him they can still have
the pleasure of seeing him die.

- They're invited to the hanging.
- Hanging?

And tell them if they come to the hanging,
there'll be a dozen steers for them.

Hanging?

We trailed together, Macahan.
You're just running a bluff.

No bluff.

Get his horse.

You turned injun-Iover on me.

Now, Dutton, one more word out of you...

...we're just liable to leave you here.

Is that what you want?

Being locked up...

...I don't like it.

I need the sky over my head,
just like you.

Hunting and trapping,
that's the only life for a man.

I heard there was beaver up at Bear Paw.
A harvest of them.

We could leave right now
and head north.

They was just Indians, Zeb.

You been in their lodges.
You seen their scalp poles.

Yeah. And one of them was Lame Deer.

We used to winter with him.
He trusted you, Dutton.

The Army don't kill you, I will.

Let's go.

Riders coming in.

Take him to the guardhouse.

- Colonel.
- Macahan...

...that guardhouse will not hold me.
I'll get out.

When I do, it's your scalp I'll be taking.

And I'll carve you slow
just like them Sioux aim to do to me.

I ain't never carved no white man,
Macahan. You'll be my first.

You promised him what?

Take it easy, colonel,
before you bust something.

You just can't go around promising
every savage in this country beef.

There was only a dozen of them,
colonel. A war party after Dutton.

Why didn't you just let them kill Dutton?

As a matter of fact
I thought of that before I went in there.

But there was three reasons
why I didn't wanna.

Three reasons?

Well, in the first place
you told me to bring him in.

I like to finish what I start.

And two?

Well, Dutton's not only got
the Sioux stirred up...

...but the Crow and the Blackfeet too.

Looks like the whole territory
is about to break out into an Indian war.

Third.

Well, I've seen the Indians peel a man,
colonel, inch at a time.

Sioux are expert at it.

They can keep a strong man alive
for two days that way.

Not even Dutton deserves to die like that.

You risked your life
to save a man like Dutton...

...yet my sergeant tells me he's seen you
carve men up pretty good...

...with that Bowie knife,
not even turn a hair.

Heh, well, those men were trying
pretty hard to carve on me too, colonel.

Tends to put a different light on it.

Now, uh, I promised Bear Dance a dozen
head of steer. Is he gonna get them?

He gets them and an invitation
to the hanging.

Come in.

Message for you, sir.

This is from Colonel Collins.

What's the matter, colonel?

My father, he's dead.

That's 10 years' worth of letters.

Every one of them asking me
when I was coming home.

I meant to get back.

God help me, I did.

I was all the family he had...

...I let him die alone.

Bringing Dutton in, ahem,
may ease things for a while...

...but I'm still concerned
about those settlers...

...between here and the Sioux villages.
I want them evacuated.

Colonel, maybe you better get
somebody else this time.

- Been 10 years since I've seen my folks.
- All the way back to Virginia?

They're getting old too.

You could be riding into a war.

Dispatches say it's just a matter of time.

Yeah, I know.

Colonel, look, about those settlers...

...give a few men to Billy Joe.

- He'll get the job done for you.
- He ready for that?

I broke him in.

When are we leaving?

I'm not going, you are.

And you?

Well, uh, Billy Joe, I'm going back home.

Back to Virginia.

Look, I told the colonel you're the man
for the job while I'm gone.

You let me down you're gonna be looking
for your praying bones.

Meantime,
don't you forget what I taught you.

You shoot them
where they look the biggest.

And don't go far as hell for no woman.

- So long, Billy Joe.
- So long.

- I will not see him again.
- You'll see him again.

He'll be back.

- Mattie.
- Hmm?

Come here.

Look who's coming.

- Oh, Pa. Pa, heh.
- Heh.

Zebulon.

Zebulon.

Oh, Zeb. Oh, Zeb.

- Pa.
- Hello, Zeb.

About time you was paying us a visit.

Jed, where's Laura?

- She's supposed to be helping.
- I don't know.

Bet she's up in her room again,
primping in front of that looking glass.

- You tell her to get her bustle down here.
- You tell her.

I'm tired of telling her.

Besides, I'm not just a messenger boy
around here, you know.

I got more important things to do
than to look after Laura.

Oh, God.

Jed, you all right?

Fixed it good for you, Ma.

Won't leak again for 100 years.

Thank you.

Ah, do you mind taking it in the house
and boiling some water and filling the tub?

Yes, ma'am.

- Have you seen your brother?
- Ah.

Now, Jessie just asked me
if I'd seen Laura.

She's supposed to be working
in the corn crib.

You haven't answered me about Seth.

- Well, have you seen him?
- I've seen him.

Less than an hour ago with his rifle.

Oh, Laura.

Laura.

Laura, are you in there?

Yes, Mother.

- What are you doing in that dress?
- The church meeting.

Oh, my, I didn't realize
it was getting that late.

- Near 5:00, Ma.
- I better get your father.

Timothy.

- Supper's ready.
- Ah.

I'll be along by the time the table's set.

Oh, you've done enough work
for one day.

Besides, it's time to get ready for church.

- That time again already, is it?
- Yes, it's that time again already.

- One evening out of a whole week...
- I know. I know.

Have you seen Seth?

Yeah, I seen him around,
been a couple of hours.

You know you've seen that boy
going off with his rifle...

...when he should be patching the roof.

Now, Kate, don't be too hard on him.

He's young and a mite restless.

When you were his age,
you were working.

When I was his age, I had you wedded
and bedded and got you a child.

- In double quick time too.
- Heh.

Brazen man you are, Timothy Macahan.

Never heard any complaints
from you before.

And I'll not discuss
that matter with you now.

And I'll not have you changing the subject
so sneakily, either.

I don't like you protecting Seth.

- There's work to be done.
- Ugh.

Oh, Seth just needs to spread
his shoulders some.

Just needs to see
what it's like on the other side.

He's like your brother. They're alike.

Zeb's a good man, Kate. He's just not meant
to settle down in one spot that's all.

- He's a drifter and a gambler.
- Oh, Kate.

- And a pagan.
- Kate.

He is a godless man. And the Lord knows
what else these last 10 years.

I don't like the idea of Seth
taking on like him.

Well, guess you can expect Seth home
any minute now.

Hey, Seth, hold up.

- Well, what are you wearing?
- Confederate gray. 29th Virginia Volunteers.

Seth, where've you been?

- Henry?
- Mrs. Macahan.

Just come on my way over
to say my goodbyes.

Where you going?

They're putting us on a train to Richmond
tonight. I don't know from there.

- Why, Henry?
- To kill Yankees, ma'am.

But there's no war, not yet.
At least, not fighting.

But there's gonna be. It's been over
two weeks since we fired on Sumter.

Yankees already calling up troops.

But my sergeant says the war's
gonna be over before we know it.

Says any Yankees cross into Missouri
is gonna be dead.

- You and Jed volunteer before it's all over.
- Oh, they'll do no such thing.

- We have no stake in this war.
- You're not gonnajoin up, Seth?

Well, they must figure the fighting
gonna start pretty soon.

You betcha. You best join up, Seth.
The captain says them as volunteers now...

...will have it a lot better than them
that has to be conscripted.

Seth, you better go wash up.

We'll be late for church.

So long, Henry. Good luck to you.

Be back as soon as we finish off
them Yankees. So long, Mrs. Macahan.

Henry, God bless you.

The way things look
I'm not gonna have much choice.

Jed neither.

Well, I'm glad we're not eating in there.
It's like an oven.

Heh, really. Jessie, where's Laura?

- Still fretting and primping.
- Well, tell her to get a hurry on. Jed too.

Get some, uh, forks and knives.
Don't touch that.

Tim Macahan.
You got two minutes to break out ajug.

- It's Uncle Zeb.
- Is it, Pa?

By heaven, it is. Zeb!

Well, you're the last man
I ever expected to see.

What are you doing around here?

I figured it was time I got back
and checked up on you.

God. Kate, look who's here.

- Hello, Kate.
- Oh, Zeb, what a surprise.

- You're looking fine.
- Thank you.

Seth.

Golly, you have growed to a man.

I was 12 years old last time
you saw me, Uncle Zeb.

He's more like you
than we care to think about.

Heh, yeah.

- This must be Jed.
- Yes, sir.

Jed, last time I saw you, you had to
climb up on that well to get a drink, heh.

- You growed some too.
- Still am, Uncle Zeb.

- Growing, I mean, heh.
- Uncle Zeb.

Since I was high as a grasshopper,
been hearing about you.

You're a mighty legend around here.

This must be Laura?

- No.
- That's Jessie.

Jessie. By golly, last time I saw you,
you was in diapers.

- Well, I was near 5.
- Yeah. And look at you now.

Uncle Zeb. Uncle Zeb.

Wait a minute. This can't be Laura.
She was just a gangly little filly.

You tough old gal, heh.

- Any prettier, she'd be dangerous.
- Oh, Uncle Zeb.

Go fetch your grandparents.
Tell them Zeb is here.

I stopped by. They're on their way.

Boys, take care of your uncle's horses.

You're in time for supper.
Come on in here and wash up...

...and I want to hear all about
Oregon and all them places.

- I'd love to tell you.
- Uncle Zeb...

...is it true it's always
hot in California?

Well, now, it sure is.

You know one time out there, remember a fella
came down with a case of the chills...

...well, people come from miles
around just to watch him shake.

Come on in here.
I wanna hear all about it.

Zeb, all this talk of gold in California,
anything to that?

Yeah. Oh, sure is.
Folks been heading out there since '49.

- Some of them strike it rich.
- I heard you struck it rich, Uncle Zeb.

Well, I did all right for a while
and then it kind of all sifted away.

A lot of temptations out there.

What sort of temptation
you talking about, Zeb?

Shh! Never mind about that.
There's children listening.

Uncle Zeb, we've been hearing
about some Indian trouble out there.

Yeah. They've been some
and there gonna be more.

Why do you say that?

Well, because the Army's moving troops
back east here because of the war.

- Then what we been hearing is true.
- Yes.

There's gonna be a fight, all right.

Comes down to it, Zeb,
would you, uh, fight?

Well, I don't know.

I would have fought there at the Alamo
with Crockett and Bowie...

...if I'd heard about it in time.
But that was different.

That was Texans fighting Mexicans.

Uh, here where you got Americans
fighting Americans...

...you have to kill one of your own
over that, uh, slavery issue, I don't know.

Ah, Missouri and Kansas feuding.

Freestaters, abolitionists, secession.

Now there's a word I never even heard of
till six months ago.

I don't know.
I just don't understand any of it.

Ones who do the fighting and the dying,
they usually don't.

Well, I don't wanna hear any more about it.
All this talk of war.

How can you talk about young men...

...boys, going off to die
so casually over the dinner table.

- I don't wanna hear any more about it.
- Sit down.

War's not gonna go away
because we don't talk about it.

War happens.

It's gonna affect a lot of people
around here, including us.

So we might as well face it.

It's time for church.

Zeb, I thought you had presents
for these folks.

He gave me a Cheyenne peace pipe
and Grandma a necklace out of bear teeth...

...except, heh, she's kind of scared
to wear it.

- Oh, Grandma.
- Presents?

- Honest, Uncle Zeb?
- Well, uh...

I don't wanna hold you up
from your church meeting.

We could be a little late. This one time.

- Oh, isn't it lovely.
- That's real nice.

You know, the squaw ladies chew on that
to make it soft.

Ew!

- Thanks, Uncle Zeb.
- Sure.

Laura, that's for you.
I'll tell you what that is.

That's a porcupine tail. The Shoshone girls
make those into hairbrushes...

...and they scent them up with some kind
of ointment. Draws the bucks.

- Thank you, Uncle Zeb, it's beautiful.
- Sure.

Jed, that's for you.
That's called a Green River.

Used to belong to a man named
Hard Luck Hays. Killed a cougar with that.

What happened to him?
Hard Luck, I mean?

Yeah, well, unfortunately,
the cougar killed him too.

- That's yours now.
- Thanks.

Now, let's see here.

- Seth, that's yours.
- This has always been your gun.

Well, I know, but, uh, remembered
you always liked it...

...and I been, uh, carrying a new Army Colt
the past few months...

...so I'm gonna give this to you.
- Well, thanks, Uncle Zeb.

We were just talking
about Uncle Zeb, Mama.

Your Uncle Zeb will be here
in the morning, girls. Now go to sleep.

Timothy?

What's Zeb doing out there?
I fixed a place for him downstairs.

I reckon sleeping under a roof
closes him in.

You really envy him.

Free to go wherever
the spirit moves him.

Oh, there's no use denying a part of me
envies him, Kate.

But nothing in this life is free.

You want something bad enough
you gotta give up something to get it.

A man marries and has a family...

...he's gotta pay the price.

Freedom? Like Zeb's got.

I don't think either one of us would change
a thing if we had it to do all over again.

But if it wasn't for us,
you'd do like Zeb, wouldn't you?

- Ah, well...
- Well, wouldn't you?

I got a family, Kate.

But men with families do go West,
don't they?

- Yeah, sure, but...
- Then why can't we?

You saying we should leave here
and head West?

That's what I'm saying.

Kate, you love this place here.

- It'd mean starting all over again.
- Well, your family did it.

So did mine.

Besides, living with a man with your
sort of itch can change a woman's mind.

I knew I'd have to, sooner or later.

Especially today,
watching your face while Zeb was talking.

The way you been reading his letters
over and over.

You've lived up to what any man could.

You've given me over 20 good years.

Now it's my turn to give back.

Kate, there's more to it than that.

Well, this war.

It's gone past rumors now.

Henry Jethro walking by today
wearing a uniform...

...ready to kill or die.

Any man able to hold a rifle
will be forced to fight.

I'm not gonna lose any of you
in a war we have no stake in.

Even if it means pulling up and leaving.
Timothy, it's what you've always wanted.

Now it's what I want too.

It's the middle of the night.

You think I can go to sleep after
what you just said? I gotta talk to Zeb.

You'll find the jug
on the top shelf of the cupboard.

- What's it doing there?
- Boys are growing.

No sense leaving temptation lying about.

Well, don't just stand there with one
foot in the air, brother, come on in, heh.

I was just testing you.

Like being among civilized folks
hasn't cost you your touch.

Well, I guess a man gets used to
sleeping with one ear open.

It's kind of a hard habit to break, heh.

Glad you came out, Tim.

Been a long time
since you and me sat around the fire...

...talking women and horses.

How long you staying?

Well, at least a ways long enough
for you to get off what's on your mind.

Zeb, tell me something.

How much would it cost
to outfit a family traveling West?

- How far West you talking about?
- California, Oregon.

Places you've been writing about
in your letters.

Tim, you ain't thinking
about leaving this place.

Just tell me.

I don't know.
I reckon a family your size be 7-, $800.

Not only that, it's, uh...
Well, it it's too late for westering.

- Why?
- Well, it's end April.

Now, if you was to leave here tomorrow...

...you couldn't get to
Missouri till June...

...and the last wagon train
leaves St. Joe mid May.

May? Why so early?

Well, they leave as soon as the grass
is tall enough to feed the stock...

...and the ground's dry enough
so as to won't bog down the wagons.

Then at the other end, you gotta
get through the mountain passes...

...before mid October
or they close with snow.

If that happens,
you gotta winter where you're at.

Start again next spring.

We could do all that with you.

- You got the fever bad.
- Yeah.

Had it a long time. You ought to know
that better than anybody.

I only stayed on here
because I promised Kate roots.

Women. Oh, they won't open that door an
inch for fear the man is off and running.

Hold on, Zeb.
She didn't force me into anything.

Oh, I ain't singling Kate out, Tim.
It's, well, women general.

She may have felt that at one time,
but she wants to head West too.

- She does?
- Yeah, she just told me so.

When a woman changes her mind that fast,
there gotta be a reason.

Well, you saw how she acted at supper.

It's the war, Zeb.

She's afraid of the boys
getting caught in it.

Tim, lot of men would give everything they
got to have a place like you have here.

Not you.

Tim, listen to me.

There's nobody in his right mind
who would take off...

...across that country in a single wagon.
Not unless he was drove to it.

There's 200,000 square miles
of nothing but wasteland out there.

And every mile there's a grave
of somebody who didn't make it.

You saying you won't take us?

No, I'm not saying that. I'm saying
it's too late now. Too many risks.

Come next year. I'll take you West.

Next year is too late, Zeb.

This war is touching us right now.

You either guide us or we're going alone.

But we're going.

Now wait a minute. Just hold on there.

Kate, we're overloaded as it is.

Zeb Macahan, you've already made us
leave behind everything that it takes...

...to live like a decent civilized
human being. Everything.

You gotta have an organ to live civilized?

My children are not going to grow up
without music.

They're liable not to grow up at all if you
keep putting stuff in this here wagon.

Now, we only got a fifty-fifty chance
of making it as it is.

If you overload the wagon, it's liable
to be too much for those animals.

And if we lose them,
we got no chance at all.

Well, this clock belonged
to my grandmother.

And she brought it from Ireland
and she gave it to me.

I'm not leaving it behind.

Means an aawul lot to her, Zeb.

Won't make that much difference, will it?

Kate, I'm gonna tell you bring so much
as one more feather out of that house...

...I'm getting on my horse
and I'm gonna ride alone.

Your brother is the most arrogant,
stubborn man I've ever met.

Now, Kate, take it easy. Take it easy.

He knows what he's doing, you know.

Well, one thing's for sure.
Going is not gonna be dull.

Now, you be good.

You be a good girl
and help your momma now.

Girls, would you get in the wagon,
please?

Jessie. Laura.

Kate. Kate.

- Grandpa.
- Kate, darling.

- Are you sure?
- Now, dear, we've been through all that.

We're just staying put.

We been here so long,
we got roots down.

Maybe we'll get a little peace
and quiet now, Mother?

- Grandma.
- Kate.

You might as well start heading out.
I'll catch up.

- Get going, Kate.
- Come on, Sam, Duke.

Now, you take care of them, you hear?

They're farm folks
and that's your country out there.

But you're not all so much, you don't need
to be told to look after your own self too.

Heh, and your pa's right.

It's a long trip
so we'll be praying for you.

Take care of yourselves.

- Hmm.
- Don't you worry none about us.

The Yankees got no reason
to mess with old folks.

Pa, don't you try running this farm
like you was no colt now.

Keep a rein on him, Ma.

For the pioneers of the early 1860s...

...before the railroad
stitched a continent together...

...the journey west was not only arduous,
but dismally slow.

Lumbering Conestogas...

...drawn by teams of great, placid oxen
weighing up to 4000 pounds per yoke...

...could rarely move
faster than 15 miles a day.

Thus, even the relatively easy journey
through the Virginias, Ohio, Indiana...

...and Illinois, took upwards of six weeks.

But once beyond
the bustling gateway towns...

...of Independence
and St. Joseph, Missouri...

...travelers found themselves
in the new territory of Kansas...

...facing the first awesome
sweep of the Great Plains.

The edge of a wilderness.
The beginning of the Oregon Trail.

Oh, my God.

They never learn.

- Bringing along all that junk.
- Junk?

Look at that mirror.

- Imagine what that poor woman felt.
- Woman?

You see what's left of that horse?

Died in his traces because
some woman had to drag her past along.

Let's go.

Hyah! Hyah!

It's getting worse. We gotta go in.

Cut them in here.

What do we do with the horses?

Just unsaddle them and turn them
loose. They're not going anywhere.

Then get inside the wagon, all of you.
I'll take care of the team.

Any luck?

Well, I found some sign but too late
to do any tracking today, anyway.

Ugh, I can't stand it anymore!
I've never seen so much dirt!

It's in my eyes, it's in my mouth. It's...

My hair's full of bugs!

All right, just calm down.
We're gonna be out of this country.

That's what everybody keeps saying!
But we keep going on and on.

Nothing changes! We can't bathe
because we gotta save the water.

We keep eating the same thing
day after day.

The game is scarce out here.
You've been told that.

Well, I can't stand it anymore! I can't!

You're gonna have to. Now we're all
going through the same thing.

You don't hear anyone else
complaining about the food.

If you'd short your hair like I told you...

...and if you wore your sunbonnet
like I told you, Laura!

Laura.

Laura?

Well, I thought you would be asleep.

I've never raised my voice to that girl
before in her life.

Well, maybe it's time you did.

We've spoiled her, Kate.

Now, you know that's true yourself.

Of course it was.

It's pretty hard not to.

Minute she was born,
I knew we had a beauty on our hands.

Now, they're trouble.

You see, I've had some experience
when it comes to dealing with beauties.

Sorry you came?

I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

- Where is everybody?
- Your Uncle Zeb and Seth went hunting.

Your father's out looking for some
firewood. He could use some help.

Don't worry. It'll all grow back
when we get to Oregon.

He's all yours, boy. I'll flush him.

Good shot, boy.

Where'd you shoot him from?

Yeah, right in there.
In that opening in the trees.

Fair distance.
Especially for a running buck, heh.

Supper's on.

They look like Ponca.

They must be having trouble
finding game too.

We'll let them take it.

But we need the meat.

If they got it,
maybe they'll leave us alone.

Let's just back off slow.

The wagon.

Oh, they started a fire inside the wagon.

When we went to put it out,
they stole the horses.

Well, what do we do? Go after them?

There's no need.
They'll be coming at us.

All right now, nobody move. Let me talk.
Keep your gun barrels pointed down.

A man has to be buffalo-witted
to walk in this country.

Now he's getting down to business.

Says they got some fine horses
to trade us.

Trade? For our own horses?

Tim, we're gonna have to buy those horses
back. Might as well get used to the idea.

Jed, get some flour,
bacon and hardtack from the wagon.

What will happen
if we don't give it to them?

Then it'll be down to
we kill them or they kill us.

Kate.

He fancies it.

He's not gonna have it. Damn taker.

Easy.

He says that for the food and that clock,
he'll give us the horses.

I'm not gonna give him anything.

- Not for the horses that are already ours.
- Kate.

Will they take my rifle instead?

I don't know. A man's rifle means life
or death. They're not out to see you die.

- Yeah, but will they?
- Seth.

Ma, I can always get another rifle.

Take it. And get away from here. Leave!

All right, get the horses, boys.

Uncle Zeb, how do you know
they won't be back?

- Well, they got too much honor for that.
- Honor?

They're not thieves,
they're just trying to survive.

How's Kate?

Kate, we're getting set to pull out.

I wanna go back.

Your letters painted quite a dream, Zeb.

Gold.

Land free for the taking, heh.

No preacher's been able to
stir this family up more.

Well, it was lies, all of it.

No lies to it, Kate. The land's there.

Good land and plenty of it.

It's 1000 miles west of here.
Takes a little doing to get to it.

And those Indians?
You could've got us all killed.

I told you there was Indians out here.
We take our chances.

I wanna go home.
I'd rather take my chances there.

This is what Tim's wanted all along
and never letting on.

You built him a trap, lady.

Now he's free of it, chasing his dream...

...and you wanna turn him back
just because the goings got a little tough.

Well, I reckon that's his fault
making things too easy for you.

Doesn't work on me, Zeb.

I know where you've been.

It's a woman's duty to be silent.
I'm not that kind of woman.

Never took that you were.

But for once why don't you quit thinking
about yourself and think about him.

And what about your boys?

You forget what you were running from
in the first place?

There's nothing back there anymore,
Kate.

Not for you. Not for Tim.
Not for your sons.

Zeb Macahan...

...if I weren't a religious woman...

...I'd call you a...

Major Anderson, out of Fort Randall.

Zeb Macahan, major. This here's my kin.

Zeb Macahan? Weren't you scouting
for Colonel Hyatt at Fort Laramie?

What are you doing this far east?

Well, I was about to ask you
the same thing.

We were ordered back
to join General McDowell.

War's broke, full force.

- Where you coming from?
- Virginia.

Well, I reckon you left just in time.

Why do you say that, major?

Union forces have crossed
through Maryland into Virginia.

General McDowell's at Manassas
with 30,000 men.

General Beauregard with 20,000
coming up from the south.

Bull Run in the middle.

Bull Run?

It's where we come from,
we got family back there.

I'm sorry to hear that.
Well, good luck to you.

- Macahan.
- So long, major.

You going back.

Laura, fetch me a sack full of hardtack
and dried beef.

- But, Pa...
- Go on now, girl, fetch it.

- Jed.
- Yes, sir.

Fetch me some ammunition.

Tim, I'll be the one going back,
you stay here with the family.

This is hard country, Zeb.
You can buck it.

Comes to that,
they'll be needing you more than me.

Long way to go
if you expect to beat the rebel troops.

I reckon I can make it in three weeks.

Seven hundred miles, Tim, to Bull Run.

I'm going, Zeb.

What about the folks?
What if they still won't leave?

- Figure that when I get to it.
- Pa, good luck.

Zeb said he'd go back.
And you have a family here.

What happens to the children if you don't
ever come back? Please, let Zeb go.

It's you I'm thinking of. You stand a better
chance out here with Zeb than with me.

- Timothy.
- Now, Kate, listen to me.

Kate, out here I'm a tenderfoot.

Zeb can find game and water.

He can read when a storm's brewing.

He knows the Indians.
I don't know any of that.

Out here all alone
I could get all of us killed.

Now Zeb's the one that's got to stay.

You can understand that, can't you?

Here, Pa.

Ah, hold open your apron.

- Pa, that's not near enough.
- It's all right, I'll make out.

Take care of them, Zeb.
I'll find you wherever you are.

Well, we'll be here.

We're not gonna go on another foot
without you.

Next spring we'll go on to
Oregon together.

Kate, you can't stay here.

He's right, Kate.

We can't stay out here for the winter.

Tim, I figure we're about 10 days
from the Platte.

Now we'll go on there and wait for you.
There's a town there.

There's supposed to be a telegraph
coming in. We'll leave word.

They'll be all right.

We'll be waiting for you, Pa.

People, heh.

Well, we'll tend to the supplies, Zeb.
Come on, girls.

- I reckon a beer would go good.
- Yeah.

Jed, uh...

...I'm afraid your ma would have
my scalp, son.

- Ah.
- Maybe next time.

Well, howdy, pilgrims.
What can we do for you?

Couple of beers.

We're used to wagon trains coming
through, but folks traveling alone?

- Where you coming from?
- Virginia.

Well, you must have
the Lord on your side.

- Where you headed?
- Oregon.

Oh, you'll never make it
before the snow flies.

- Ah.
- We figured to winter here.

It's tough country.

Heh, couldn't be much tougher
than we just came through.

Well, the hell is a session.

This here's the Platte,
gateway to the West.

Summers are hotter than Hades,
winters colder than a landlord's heart.

Wolves are hungry
and the Indians are hostile.

The outlaws and renegades
own the deed.

Welcome, gentlemen, welcome.

I'm afraid he's called it.

NARRATOR;
In a single day of fighting, Bull Run...

...the first real conflict of the
Civil War, saw 3000 casualties.

Compared to the horrendous death tolls
of later battles like Gettysburg...

...Bull Run was almost a skirmish.

But in this battle, Rebel and Union forces
alike tested the mettle of their enemy...

...and knew for the first time
that victory would not be cheap.

Help that boy.

Put his head in my lap. Oh, God.

Oh, he's no older than Seth, Pa.

Well, at leastwise it will keep
the wind from the north off of us.

Zeb, what are you talking about?

You mean staying here?

In that shack?

Called a soddie.

Not much, but it'll do.

Uncle Zeb. You mean live in it?

Well, somebody did once.

But it's just dirt.

You'll be surprised how cozy it'll be
once we get it fixed up.

There's water over there
at the base of those buttes.

- Appears there's been critters living inside.
- Yeah, hold on, honey.

No telling what other kind of critters
might be in there, Jessie.

Maybe we'll have him for supper.

The ingenuity of
the American pioneer was legendary.

When nature failed
to provide his customary needs...

...he found a way to change those needs.

Denied the luxury of brick or lumber,
he built his home of logs.

And on the treeless plains
where wood was almost nonexistent...

...he turned to tough buffalo grass and mud,
and raised with these crude materials...

...a structure that was cool in summer,
warm in winter...

...and could be expanded
with minimum effort as his family grew.

All the soddie required
was the one commodity...

...the American pioneer had in abundance,
boundless energy.

And for settlers whose day began
before dawn and ended long after dark...

...the soddie could be raised from
the empty prairie in a matter of days.

- Watch... Zeb, watch that end.
- Jed, would you...?

Jed, use both hands.

Now don't scratch it.
Seth, watch your side.

All right, Ma, all right.

Good. Good. Okay, Zeb, coming in.

Will you give a little room
for the doorway?

Very good.

Wonderful.

Never seen younglings
as tuckered as that.

I think they've growed a few inches
in the last few days.

They're not the only ones.

Yeah.

There was a while there I was wondering
whether you were gonna make it or not...

...but I can see brother Tim knew what
he was doing when he married you.

- It's been almost a month since he left.
- Ah.

Tim will be back, Kate.

You know, God has a way of looking out
after Tim's sort.

Don't tell me you believe in God,
Zeb Macahan.

I reckon I do in my own way.

I told Timothy you were a godless man.

Yeah, heh, well,
that's not hard to understand, Kate.

I mean, you know, I guess I never been
too much for church-going and all...

...but I guess when it comes clearest to me
is when I'm up...

...in what they call the high lonesome...

...watching the deer come down to drink in
the early morning from a mountain lake...

...with the mist just lifting off of it.

Or the trout rising in a river
that's running cold and deep.

And the bear and the martin
feeding along the shore.

And maybe the eagle up there
soaring among the peaks.

A man would have to be a fool to think
there wasn't a hand that made all of that.

Sure hope he's looking out for us
in the morning...

...if we're gonna be doing our planting.

What can we grow out here?

Well, not too much this time a year.
Maybe some carrots and turnips, cabbage.

Maybe a little corn for the stock.

But we'll make out, Kate.

Uncle Zeb! Horses! Hundreds of them.

They're coming towards the house.

Jed, get your rifle, get down here.
You ladies get in the house.

Laura!

Turn them.

Shoot over their heads. Turn them!
Turn them!

Turn them or we'll blow you
out of the saddle.

They're doing it, Uncle Zeb,
they're turning.

Keep turning!

That's it. Move them.

- Now what do you think you're doing?
- Protecting our property.

- Now get those horses out of here.
- Nesters.

Squatting right between us and the river.

Now this here land
belongs to Hale Crowley.

We're running these horses through here
for watering.

Not while we're here, you ain't.

Now, you tell Mr. Crowley we're just
borrowing this land. We'll be moving on.

- When?
- When we're ready.

I know what you're thinking there, sonny.
And I wouldn't try that.

This here Hawken
makes a mighty big hole.

You got 30 minutes to clear out of here
and then we're coming through.

- You go around us.
- Mr. Crowley said to run through you.

They're thirsty and smelling water.

We'll kill a dozen head
before you get to it.

Are you loco, mister?

Now, you can build a sod anywhere.
It's a big country.

We built it here.

Go around us. It's a big river.

Crowley...

Mr. Crowley ain't used
to butting heads with another bull.

It's plain to see you're no farmer, mister.

All right, we'll go around.

But when word of this gets back
to Crowley, you better be gone.

We done it, Uncle Zeb. We run them off.

Best not to count beaver
till they're in your trap, boy.

I got a feeling
they ain't through with us yet.

Ma. Jed's coming back.

Oh.

Well, the telegraph's working now.

But...

...still no word from Pa.

Uncle Zeb, I saw those cowboys again.

They said we better be out of here
inside a week.

I didn't wanna say anything
in front of the women.

Now, boys, I'll tell you how it is.

We can either hold ground here
or we can move on.

I'm gonna leave it up to you.

Well, the way I see it
we're the ones who worked the land.

We'll stay until we hear from Pa.

- Buffalo what?
- Buffalo droppings, honey, ugh.

- Come on, Laura, it won't hurt you.
- But it's... It's...

It's buffalo chips,
if you tend to be finicky.

See, they, they burn real slow
and they give off a lot of heat.

Go ahead jump right in,
it ain't bad once you get started.

Oh, Laura,
you're gonna be a good picker.

Oh, we should've heard
from Pa by now.

It's been more than four months.

- Why? What could have happened?
- Let's go get us a drink, huh?

You know, holding your ground
don't only mean out there, Seth.

Means in here too.

Grab a chair, fellas.

- What can I do for you?
- Bottle, a couple of glasses.

I get it for them.

Nothing worse
than the stink of a dirt-scratcher.

Except it might be the stink
of a sheep-man.

Though the stink is just about the same.

Ew.

These two soddies are in a bad
need of taking a bath.

Why don't we take them on outside
to the horse trough.

What do you think about that,
dung-heap?

- Hey! Hey!
- Wait a minute.

Stop it!

Stop that!

You're busting up my place!

Get out of here!

Take it outside.

Hey, you thought you'd give us
a bath, did you?

Well, get in there!

How'd you like it, mister?
Huh, how do you like it?

That feel real good?

I'm sure glad I never tried
to give you a bath.

- You and your boys owe me for damages.
- Ah, shut up!

Yeah, Seth, I was right proud of you,
the way you handled that old boy's case.

He was rough as a badger
out of his hole.

You remind me of your pa
in the old days.

You know, before he got hitched up...

...him and me used to take them on
like that once in a while.

I remember one time down
in Natchez, why...

- I'm going back.
- Huh?

After Pa.

Boy, you ain't going nowhere.

No, I'm sorry...

...but just sitting here, waiting.

It's getting all of us.

Most of all, Ma.

Now, you been aching to go yourself.

Well, I'm going.

- Now, wait a minute, if anybody goes...
- Uh-huh.

You promised Pa.

You know your ma's gonna have
something to say about this.

Will you tell her?

So you ain't even going back
to the place?

Ah, you know what it'll be like.

Yeah, you're right about that.

I guess if you're going you might as well
get on your horse and ride.

I'll handle your ma.

Here, this will get you
what you need, lad.

Seth, you bring back your pa, you hear?

Yes, sir.

Hyah.

Is that you, Seth?

Henry Jethro?

Yankee cannons...

...house wasn't hurt much.

Stayed put inside they'd be alive.

- Who buried them?
- Me and Pa.

Read over them from the Bible.

It was your pa
that marked the graves.

My pa?

- When?
- Few days after it happened...

...I was home on leave then,
before I got burned.

Do you know where he is now, Henry?

Yankees took him prisoner.

- Pa had no part in this war.
- He told them that.

But they said he was gonna have
to fight anyhow.

It wasn't what I figured
it was gonna be, Seth.

Yankees hit us...

...and I woke up
in a field hospital like this.

You know where they might
have took my pa, Henry?

Folks said they was headed
toward Tennessee.

So long.

Go back home, Seth,
before this war turns on you.

You hear?

Couldn't get deer meat,
but got us some fish, anyway.

Zeb!

Doane.

What are you doing in these parts?

Dutton's loose,
few days after you brought him in.

Broke that guardhouse like an egg crate.

Came looking for you, Zeb, but you were
in Virginia, so he went after Billy Joe.

Did he find him?

Dutton killed him, Zeb.

Scalped.

He's looking for you.

Thought you best know.

How did you know where to find me?

Well, the word's out,
you took your family to the Platte.

If I can find you, so can Dutton.

You got any idea where he is now?

Well, the last I heard he was out
in the White River Crossing...

...coming down through the Dakotas.

Well, if he's coming down
from White River Crossing here...

...he'd have to come through Pine Valley.

It ain't more than half a mile wide
at the lake.

That's how I got it figured.

Well, I appreciate your coming this far.

Well, I liked Billy Joe.

I'd have done for Dutton myself
if I could have found him...

...but it'll be better coming from you.

Good hunting, Zeb.

Sorry, Zeb.

Who was Billy Joe?

Oh, he was an Indian boy, Kate.
He was a reservation runaway.

First time I met him,
he was trying to steal my horse.

He was about 15, I guess, then.

Kind of dirty and scrawny.

We washed him all down, we found
a pure Cheyenne Indian underneath.

Being Cheyenne,
he was worth the trouble salvaging.

I taught him what I know.
Guess he was kind of like a son to me.

Kate, I gotta go get the man
that killed him.

First Timothy, then Seth, now you.

I promised Timothy I'd look after you
and the kids.

That's what I aim to do.
Here I'd bring Dutton down on you.

See, he's kind of like an animal
turned renegade.

He kills just for the taste of blood,
like he did with Billy Joe.

Now, if he could hurt me by getting
to you or the kids, Kate, he'd do it.

Before he finds out where this place is
I gotta get to him.

- I'll be back as soon as I can.
- I'll put some things together for you.

Don't bother.

I'll kill what I need.

Zeb, what about Crowley?

Well, Crowley's not out to hurt anybody,
Kate.

If he was, he'd have done it by now.

Take a good look at Jed lately?

He's closer to a man than you think.

The savage Battle of Shiloh...

...exploded across
the Tennessee countryside...

...on the morning of April 6th.

The initial Confederate attack
overran the Union position...

...throwing battle lines
into total confusion.

Everywhere there were small pockets of
Union troops cut off from their commands...

...in terrain that was, temporarily,
in Rebel hands.

All right! Who are you?

- What difference does it make?
- Afraid we got us a sapping turtle, captain.

- Where you from, son?
- Virginia.

Smell spy to me, sir.

Just because a man's from Virginia
doesn't make him a spy, sergeant.

Besides, he seemed in a hurry
to avoid that Rebel patrol.

- Well, that he did, sir.
- I got no stake in this war.

It's a hell of a place to be a neutral.

I'm looking for my father.

I'm sorry, son, but we just lost
six good men and I'm shorthanded.

- What's your name?
- Macahan. Seth Macahan.

Do you believe in slavery?

- No, sir. But l...
- That no longer makes you a neutral.

- Time being, anyway.
- And I don't believe in war, either.

Neither do I.

About, uh, Billing's size,
wouldn't you say, sergeant?

Yes, sir. All right, move, soldier.

Mama? Mama.

Something's wrong with Jessie.
She's got a fierce pain in her stomach.

Jessie?

My stomach.

Any place else?

Where?

My arms, my legs, everything.

- Laura, get Jed.
- What is it?

Get Jed, Laura.

Doctor! Dr. Dodd!

Have you seen the doctor?

We wouldn't know anything about that.

I gotta find him. It's urgent.

The doctor in there is for the people here
in Sand Town. It's not for you squatters.

- I said, I gotta find the doctor.
- You ain't going nowhere, boy.

Except maybe out of town.

We gonna give you a little lesson...

...about what's gonna happen to you
if you show your face around here again.

That must be the doctor.
You stay here and take care of her, Laura.

Jed! Jed!

Jed! Jed!

Jed, what happened?
What happened, Jed?

- Who's the doctor here?
- I am.

You're coming with me
right away, doctor.

- Are you Crowley?
- I am.

I'm truly tempted to kill you,
Mr. Crowley.

- I don't know what you're talking about.
- My son!

- Your men beat him up today, bad.
- Bad enough to need a doctor?

He came here for a doctor.
His sister is sick.

Maybe cholera.

Woodward, did you have a hand
in beating up this boy?

No, sir, I wasn't there.

- Polk?
- Uh, he was one of them Macahans... -

When you get back to the ranch,
you clear out.

You too, Stenner.

It was one of them sodbusters...

I told you I wanted them out, not dead.
I don't want to see you after sundown.

I'm sorry about your boy.
I didn't want anyone hurt, just out.

When I raise my voice,
folks usually move.

All right, doc, you go on out there.

You too, Mr. Crowley.

- Cholera's contagious!
- Lf you're out there, no one will interfere.

If you think you're gonna
make me go out there...

You're damned right!

Then it is cholera?

I don't know yet.

If it is...

...in a few hours...

On the first day of battle...

...Union forces at Shiloh had suffered
devastating losses.

But during the night, General Grant
rallied his shattered forces...

...and at dawn on April 7th
began a counterattack.

Before the day was over,
the Union had won back what it had lost.

But the cost was appalling.

In the two days of savage fighting...

...casualties had mounted to 25,000 men.

Thought you might need
some fresh water.

Stomach cramps finally let up.

It was dysentery.
She's sleeping peacefully now.

- Thank you, doctor.
- Uh, Mrs. Macahan.

Since I can't run you off, maybe I can make
things a little more tolerable for you.

I've got some lumber out at the ranch,
enough there to build you a decent floor...

...and then you wouldn't have
to walk around in all that dirt.

- We'll make do.
- You can stay as long as you like.

What about your horses?

Well, we'll just, uh,
move them around you.

Thank you.

Yes, ma'am. Goodbye, ma'am.

Lord, I'm thirsty.

- Ain't had a drink since this morning.
- Yeah, well, just be glad you're alive.

I'm the only one left in my platoon...

...when the Rebs pulled out
in front of us...

That's water up ahead. Come on.

- Hold on.
- What are you doing?

Hey, hold your fire.

Hey, now, look, we all need water.
Maybe we can work a truce.

You crazy. You can't trust them.

Hell, they're probably saying
the same thing about us.

We can kill each other out here
or we can die of thirst.

You call a truce and we all live.

How do we know you
ain't got something up your sleeve?

No tricks.

Look, all of us need water.

We agree on a truce, each of us fill up
and go our own ways.

Never met a blue belly yet
that wasn't partial to an ambush.

Only way a Reb knows how to fight
is from a man's back.

I ain't drinking no water
after no Reb does.

We're taking this creek. Try to stop us.

Now, wait a minute.
It makes no sense.

- I'm taking me a bath.
- Yes, sir.

Well, we aim to take a bath
in that creek ourselves. Alone.

Ain't no Yankee gonna be around
to muddy up the water.

Help me.

Who goes there?

Come on.

- Where you coming from, soldier?
- From Shiloh.

Set him over here, son.

We got orders just to sit tight.

You're mighty lucky, soldier.

You lost a lot of blood,
but I think you're gonna be all right.

Pa.

Pa.

Pa.

Pa.

Pa.

Pa.

What you doing here?

I come to find you, Pa.

- Your mother? Your mother?
- She's fine, Pa.

She's fine. Everybody's fine.

Ain't there a doctor?

He's dead, boy.

What was he to you, boy?

He was my father.

- Were you with him?
- Yup.

Wouldn't fight first off.

But pretty soon,
he figured it'd beat rotting in prison.

Damn good soldier too.

Don't know exactly what happened,
but we were holding a ridge...

...and all of sudden shells come in...

...exploding all around us.
Killing men on both sides.

I don't even know if they were Yankee
or Reb cannons doing the killing.

Corporal, water these horses.

They're breaking our lines.

I need every man
who can stand and shoot.

You two, fall in. You.

You. Corporal. You two.

Still got one good leg left.

- I said fall in.
- No, sir. I'm going no place.

- Soldier, on your feet.
- He was my father.

We've all lost a lot in this war, son.
Best thing you can do for him is kill Rebs.

No.

Are you refusing to fight?

Done all the killing I'm gonna do.

Fall in.

Soldier.

Soldier, take one more step and I'll fire.

First thing I seen when I came in the
barn was that bald-faced horse of yours.

The one that was stole from your place.

And then I see this one sleeping here
so I went and got the sheriff.

Well, you did the right thing
in fetching me, Sam.

So you're the horse thief?

I thought you said you hit him.
I don't see any bullet wound.

Well, you hit him, mister. He's dead.

I found him. I found his body yesterday
morning and this horse was loose.

What do you take us for, boy?

My name's Macahan.
Seth Macahan. I'm a soldier.

A Union soldier. And I come here
from Nebraska to find my pa.

I'm no horse thief.

Not only a horse thief, but a Yankee.
Come on, string him up.

No, wait. You just can't hang a man
without a trial or nothing.

Mister, this here's Missouri.
Man steals a horse, he hangs.

That's for sure.

Hyah.

You're a hard man to kill, Zeb.

- You're gonna find out how hard.
- How'd you know I was up here?

I can smell you.

- You fixing to take me back?
- Yeah.

Over my saddle.

I figured that's how it'd be
after I got Billy Joe.

Well, come on up, Zeb.

I'll be waiting on you.

Zeb.

Come on, sit down. Have some rabbit.

- I cook real good rabbit.
- No, thanks.

Sorry about trying to bushwhack you
back there.

- I thought it was my best chance.
- Your only chance.

Wasn't too long ago,
you and I rode a lot of rivers together.

Kind of like to stay up here,
no matter how it comes out.

What happened, Dutton?
When'd you turn wolf?

Oh.

World changed.

No more beaver...

...fur trade played out...

...rendezvous.

Ain't been a real rendezvous
since '45.

Men like you and me
we had the world right by the throat...

...and it'd give us anything we wanted.

Now it says we gotta take on civilized.

I can't do that. Just can't do it.

Now there, there's the one I envy,
the eagle.

Well...

...either way...

...we both seen the best of it.

Well...

So long, Zeb.

Seth.

Seth, heh.

Seth. What happened, Seth?

Where have you been? Your father?

He's dead.

He'll never see it.

What, Ma?

California.

Oregon.

What he waited 25 years to see.

What about Grandma, Grandpa?

- Them too.
- Oh, God.

Ma...

...when Pa died...

...I was with him.

Are you all right?

Where's everybody?

Oh.

Zeb, he's gone north,
but he'll be back any day.

Jed and the girls are in town.
They'll be back soon.

- Come on.
- Ma...

...I can't stay.

What?

- I'm wanted by the law.
- Seth.

I'm a deserter. I shot a lawman.

Try explaining it to you,
but I've got to go.

I left Missouri in a very big hurry.

Where you going to go?

Up north, I guess, till things ease up.

Now, don't fret, I'll be fine.

Ma, they know where I'm from,
so if anybody comes looking for me, I...

We haven't seen you.

Going on to Oregon?

Not until we go together.

I'll be back.

We'll be here.

The Macahan family,
like thousands of others...

...came and saw and endured.

In a sense, they were a typical family.

But they were only typical
of a very special breed of people...

...their likes we will never see again.

But they have given us a heritage
and a courage that was not only unique...

...but has survived to become...

...our great American tradition.

Ripped By mstoll