Bonanza (1959–1973): Season 9, Episode 15 - The Trackers - full transcript

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I wonder where they're
at. I'm getting hungry.

I don't know. They're
usually here by now.

Here comes old Tom.

Sean.

- Hi, Mr. Evans.
- Hi to you, Sean.

Think you can fetch a mug
of coffee to me at the bank?

Sure thing.

Tom, ain't you
just a little bit late?

- Morning, Sheriff. Henry.
- Howdy.

One thing I don't understand
about money, Mr. Evans.



- What’s that, Henry?
- Why are new bills always so heavy?

Henry, old or new,
121,000 is a full sock.

Cully Maco, still hanging
around. Four days now.

That's his right,
he served his time.

But he swore to kill
Mr. Bragan and Ben Cartwright.

He's got Mr. Bragan
so jumpy now he...

I think you ought to run
him out of town, Sheriff.

Oh, come now, Tom, he made
them threats a long time ago.

He's had five years
in jail to simmer down.

How's about getting that
money inside the bank

so I and the boys can
go get some breakfast?

Oh, oh.

- Thank you for your trouble, Sheriff.
- Don't mention it.

All right, boys, let's go and get
them vittles before they get cold.



Is that you, Sean?

Henry from Wells Fargo.

Get up.

- What... What are you doing?
- Shut up.

Open the vault.

No. No!

Mr. Evans?

Help! Help,
somebody! Help! Help!

Inside!

- Help! Help! Help!
- Son, son. Easy, easy.

- Easy, son, what's the matter?
- Mr. Evans is dead.

Well, go find out!

We wanna know what's
going on in there too!

What do you think you're doing?

- Leave him alone.
- What’s going on?

I can't believe it.

Where were you
when this happened?

I was over at the hotel
having my breakfast.

But I was here when the
Wells Fargo shipment arrived.

- And I stayed with Tom until he...
- Wells Fargo?

The pouch is gone.
We already looked for it.

Well, that’s just fine.

My cashier murdered,
$121,000 stolen.

- You know, this is your fault, Roy.
- Mine?

There isn't any doubt
about who did it, is there?

You remember what I said
when Cully Maco rode into town?

- If I told you once, I told you...
- Sam, you told me, that's right,

several times that you wanted Cully
Maco locked up, but he'd broken no law.

What do you call this?!

And he swore to kill me and Ben!

What are you gonna do,
wait until he does that, too,

before you catch
him and hang him?

- Now, listen, Roy...
- Easy.

Sean, think clearly now.

Did you see anybody around the bank
when you came in here with the coffee?

No, sir. Nobody.

And was the door... was it open?

Kind of, it opened
when I tried it.

- Did Mr. Evans say anything?
- No, sir.

He just was all still and scary.

- Then you just ran for help?
- As fast as I could.

Thanks, boy, you done the right
thing. Now, it's time you be getting home,

'cause your ma is gonna
be worried about you.

Wasting time. He should
be out looking for Cully Maco.

Roy's got deputies
out looking for him.

Deputies? What
we need is a posse.

Sam, I'm going to
organize two posses.

I'll lead one, and I'm counting
on Ben here to lead the other.

Oh. Yeah, sure. Well...
Well, Joe's in San Francisco.

- I'll have Hoss and Candy ride with us.
- Good.

Hey, there's the sheriff!
Sheriff, what's going on?

- He won't tell nobody nothing.
- I'll tell you, boys. I'll tell you.

The bank was robbed and a man that we
all respected, Tom Evans, was murdered.

The first time in months I
haven't met the Wells Fargo coach.

It could have been me.

- Murdered?
- You see, I told you

- something was going on.
- Look, that's terrible.

He was a good old boy.

Hey, Sheriff.
Sheriff, who done it?

We don’t know for sure. But I want
Cully Maco brought in for questioning.

Cully Maco? I just seen him! He's been
hanging around town for the last week.

Now, men, I'm going to need 15 to 20
good posse men armed and ready to ride.

You bring bed rolls, my office will
furnish the grub and the cooking gear.

How soon, Roy?

Just as soon as I can
get these men sworn in.

And you do solemnly swear,
as authorized posse men,

to uphold the laws of the State
of Nevada and Story County?

- Yes.
- Pick up your packages, men.

Now, we're going to split up.

I'll ride south to stop Maco in
case he's headed for the state line.

And Ben Cartwright here
will lead the rest of you men

in a sweep over toward
Sierra Pass. Any questions?

- No.
- Now, let's get going.

Get your rifles, men.

- Hi, Pa.
- You got here just in time, boys.

You boys raise your right
hands, I'll swear you in.

You do solemnly swear,
as authorized posse men,

to uphold the laws of the State
of Nevada and Story County?

- I do.
- Let's ride.

Giddap.

Spread out. Search that
whole slope, and the flat beyond.

Anybody sights
Maco, fire three shots.

Hey, look yonder!

Looks like they got lost, huh?

- Nothing?
- Covered the flats

and the tules west of the
river. Not a sign of Maco.

Mr. Cartwright, want to wet your
whistle a bit? It'll warm you up.

Sam, these horses look spent.

We'd better backtrack about
half a mile, camp by a spring there.

- Cully.
- Now, that ain't what I'd call

a real glad welcome.

Kevin.

Ain't you going to ask me in?

Thank you.

Your wife don't seem
none too happy to see me.

She holds with the
law, Cully. We both do.

Even against your own brother?

You know, there was a time
when I used to hold with the law, too.

Well, I’m going to
take care of the horses.

- Some more coffee?
- Yeah.

Mr. Cartwright, do you really
think Cully Maco intends to kill you?

I don't know. He said so.

- Why is he after you?
- Goes back a ways.

Long before you came around.

Cully stood trial
for a bank robbery.

Sam Bragan identified
him as the robber.

I was the foreman of the
jury that convicted him.

- How much time did he get?
- Five years.

That's a big chunk
out of any man's life.

Who is Cully? Does he
come from around here?

Oh, somewhere up
north. He was a trapper.

Well, I guess a trapper can hold
up a bank as soon as anybody else.

Yeah, I guess so.

- Do I have to?
- Go ahead! Test it! Give it a try!

Try it on. Test it for Maco.

Come on, go ahead.
Test it. Test it for Maco!

- Go ahead.
- Buzz.

Here we go now.

Buzz!

Oh, yeah, Mr. Cartwright.

Get that man off that horse.

We’re just practicing
a little, Mr. Cartwright.

We’re getting ready for when we
catch up with old Cully. Right, boys?

Buzz, this is not a lynch party.

Ben...

Cully is wanted for
robbery and murder.

We may have trouble
proving that in a court of law.

And if we can't, he's sure
gonna kill one or both of us.

Easier to hang
him and get it over.

Sam, that's not
what we're here for.

Buzz, you heard
Mr. Cartwright, turn him loose.

Sure.

I'll be out at the pump.

Sure took good care of it.

That's the least I could do.

Well, I’m gonna take
this. You can have these.

I'm gonna need some shells,
and I'm gonna need a carrying sack.

Thank you.

A six-gun and a rifle,
now you got a shotgun.

I'm doing me a little hunting.

If it was just fur
you was after,

Harriet and me wouldn't
mind you staying.

Thanks.

A shotgun ain't much good
except for a rabbit, or men.

Cully...

The past is best forgotten.

That's what you
always said, Kevin.

Something the matter, Pa?

I was just thinking, Cully
Maco's brother testified at his trial,

they worked the
trap lines together.

Now, when a man's on the run, he usually
heads for the country he knows best.

- And the people he knows best.
- Yeah.

His brother's place is just
south of the Double-Notch,

just over the crest.

Come on!

Ma'am.

- Mrs. Maco?
- Yes.

Yes, I'm Ben Cartwright.
Is your husband around?

I'd sure like to talk to
him for a minute or two.

He's inside the house.

You... You can go in.

Thank you, ma'am.

Come in.

Howdy. I'm Ben Cartwright.

I remember.

You were the
foreman on the jury.

Yeah.

There's been some trouble
in Virginia City, Mr. Maco.

In fact, there's been a killing.

The sheriff would like to talk to
your brother, ask him a few questions.

Has he been around here?

Nobody here except
me and my wife.

I haven't seen
Cully since the trial.

You're welcome to
look around if you like.

No thank you, that...
that won't be necessary.

Sorry to trouble you.

Excuse me, ma'am. Thank you.

Two people live here,
three plates on the table.

He's been here and gone but he
hasn't got too much of a head start.

All right, Cartwright.

You make one move and
you're gonna be dead right now.

Now, get up. Slow.

Turn around and face me.

Come on.

Now, take your right hand
and undo your belt buckle.

Drop it.

Now, you owe me,
Cartwright. You know that?

There were 11 other
men on that jury, Cully.

You're the one that
gave the word, though.

You was the one
that they listened to.

You took five years
of my life, mister.

How old are you?

I reckon if I was to shoot you
down right now and take your life,

we'd be just about even,
except maybe me a little bit more.

Drop it, Maco.

Now what?

We've been deputized to
take you back into town, Cully.

- For what?
- Murder and robbery.

I didn't hear you name the person
I was supposed to have killed.

Tom Evans.

The Tom Evans that works in
Bragan's bank? Somebody shot him?

That's right. And
robbed the bank.

- Where's your horse?
- Over there.

Candy.

How much money was it I was
supposed to have stole this time?

$121,000.

Well, that’s an important lot of money.
That should make me an important man.

I tell you what let's do.

Why don't you all go in my
saddle bag here and get it out

and let's divide it up
and make us a deal.

You figuring on waiting around
and meeting that posse tonight?

Uh, I guess we better
ride straight into town.

Be faster that way, anyway.

You fellas trying to
save time or trouble?

Go on, Cully, let's go.

- Candy, you ride point.
- Yeah.

You fellas sure are
being mighty careful.

I keep telling you,
I didn't do anything.

Now, why are you taking me in?

Now, Cully, you were
in town for four days,

and the moment something
happens, the moment there's a murder,

the moment the bank is
robbed, you disappear.

I threatened a man five years
ago, Sam Bragan, five years ago,

and then I spent five
years behind walls,

and I changed my mind
about pulling the trigger.

But he didn't know that,
Sam Bragan didn't know that.

So I come back to town and
figure I'd sweat him a little bit.

Walk down the street, look
in the window of his bank,

make him wonder a
little bit, make him sweat.

Now, that's mighty small revenge
for the five years he stole from my life.

You keep talking about Sam
Bragan stealing five years of your life,

I stole five years of your
life. Let me tell you something.

Sam Bragan testified
under oath, in court,

that you were the
fella in the bank.

Look, any man can put his
hand on a book and still tell a lie!

Not Sam. He built that
bank on a handshake.

He's your friend,
so he can't tell a lie?

Now, come on, he can make
one mistake. One mistake!

Ain't a man alive
hasn't made a mistake.

- Who pays for yours?
- I do!

And me! And me!
Don't you forget that.

I spent five years of my life
paying for his mistake! A lie!

They're up ahead
resting their horses.

- Did they see you?
- Afraid so.

Well, come on.

- Oh, I see you got him.
- Yeah, that's right, Sam.

We'll, uh, we'll just
take him back to town.

Wait a minute. What’s the rush?

We've got a few questions
we want to ask Cully.

Yeah.

We got a few questions
we want to ask him.

Yah!

- Hey!
- Hold your fire, we'll get him!

Yah! Yah!

Yah! Yah!

Cully! Now, settle
down! Settle down!

I'm just trying to help you.
Trying to get you back safe

so you can have a fair trial.

He'll get a trial, but
not the kind you mean.

What’s got into you, Sam?

This is not a court,
we're not a judge, a jury.

- We're Maco's peers, Ben.
- Now, listen.

We were deputized
to do one thing:

to find him, arrest him and
bring him into town. No more.

I'm sorry, Ben, that's the kind of
thinking that got Tom Evans killed.

All right, get him
up on the horse.

Wait a minute! Wait
a minute! Hold it!

What’s the matter
with you, all of you?

Weren't you all deputized, same
as Hoss and Candy and me?

- Weren't you sworn to uphold the law?
- We're hanging a guilty man.

That's upholding the law, right?

Who says he's guilty?

This is cold-blooded murder.
That’s all it is, cold-blooded murder.

You'll all pay for it. Oh, yeah,
much more than Maco ever did.

Ten, 15 years in jail.
You may even hang for it.

Now, don't listen to him. He's
just trying to scare you out of it.

You bet I'm trying to scare you
out of doing something stupid.

I ain't gonna go to jail for nothing
or nobody, I don't care what.

- I'm not going to jail!
- Now, wait a minute!

We took a vote, we said
we were gonna hang Cully,

- and that's what we're gonna do.
- Quit the talk and get it done.

Now, get Cully up
there! Get going!

All right, you want to hang him?

Fine. Go right ahead.

Sam, I think you
ought to hear this.

Before you hang Cully here,

I think you ought to know that there's
gonna be an awful lot of shooting.

You're gonna have to kill all
three of us before you get to him.

So you better get your
guns out, all of you.

Come on, get 'em up.
Go ahead, pull the trigger.

You too, Sam.

All right.

We’ll leave it to the
jury, like last time.

The crowd out there is getting
bigger and uglier by the second.

You just brought in a man
accused of murder and bank robbery.

Now, what do you expect?

I never lost a prisoner
yet, and I ain't about to start.

Seems like most folks out
there feel the same way we do:

- hang Cully quick, get it over.
- Ain't that too bad?

Good night, Ben.

Ben, I'm sending a
telegraph to the circuit judge.

- He'll be here in a day or two.
- I'm in no hurry.

Cully.

I've decided to have
my lawyer defend you.

He's in Carson City right now,
but he'll be back in plenty of time.

And you'll have a fair
trial, I can tell you that.

Will I?

The last time I
stood trial in this town

I got five years for
something I didn't even do.

And that was just robbery.

This time it's murder. You
hear that crowd out there.

And you know what kind
of trial I'm going to get too.

Thanks for saving my life so
that they could hang me legal.

You feeling all right, Pa?

Yeah, I feel fine.

Well, you turned down the
ham, the hotcakes, the biscuits.

That's the second time
you sugared your coffee.

I figured maybe
something was wrong.

Two robberies.

$40,000, $121,000.

And all that money
just disappears.

You know what the folks around
town are saying about Maco,

that he stashed that
money off someplace.

Do you believe them?

- No.
- Why not?

Well, it just don't make sense.

Now, if a man robbed a bank
once, got off with $40,000,

stashed it away, got caught,
went off to jail and did his time,

come back, he'd get that money and
go off someplace where he could enjoy it.

But to come back and
rob the same bank again

and make double trouble for
himself just for some reason or other

- just don't make sense.
- Yeah.

That's the third time you
sugared that coffee, Pa.

It's not only the missing
money that bothers me.

That... That theory about revenge,
that doesn't hold water either.

Cully Maco had me
dead in his sights,

he could have pulled
the trigger any minute.

- And he didn't.
- Yeah.

You know he hung around
Virginia City for four days.

That give him plenty of opportunity to
gun down Sam Bragan if he wanted to,

- didn't it?
- Yeah, there's another thing.

Sam Bragan.

Now, why would a decent,
law-abiding man like Sam Bragan

suddenly turn pure savage?

Well, Pa, he and Tom
Evans were good friends.

I know, I know, but he was so
anxious to see Cully hanged,

lynched, no trial,
nothing, just...

Well...

- You think Cully's right?
- About what?

About it being impossible for him
to get a fair trial here in Virginia City?

Well, I wouldn't bet
on that, would you?

- I sent the wire, Mr. Cartwright.
- Oh, good. Good.

- Uh, have some breakfast, Candy.
- Yeah, there's plenty left.

All Pa had was a little
coffee with his cup of sugar.

Candy, did the
sheriff say anything

about when the circuit
judge might be arriving?

He'll be here tomorrow.

Well, they’re in a
big rush, ain't they?

If you ask me, the
verdict's in already anyway.

The town's in a hanging mood.

Bragan, Buzz, Grifty, the
other men in that posse,

they're gonna do everything
they can to keep it that way.

What are we gonna do, Pa?

Well, right now I'm gonna
do this month's bookkeeping.

This afternoon I think
I'll ride into Virginia City

and see if the answer to that
telegram Candy sent is waiting for me.

I changed my mind, I think
I'll have a cup of that sugar.

I hope there's some left.

All right, all right! We all
know Cully's guilty, right?

There's no question
about that. Is that right?

Only difference between
here and out on the trail,

now we're going
to do it all legal.

I wouldn't mind pulling
on that rope myself.

- One other difference.
- How's that?

- Even Mr. Cartwright can't object.
- Oh, no!

Uh, Mr. Cartwright.

You spoke up a lot
out there on the trail.

How come you ain't
speaking up in here?

Out on the trail, Cully Maco's
safety was my responsibility.

Right now his future is
in the hands of the court.

And the jury. Let's not
forget about the jury.

Our jury, and it's
all nice and legal.

Future, huh? A
real short future.

Oh, Cully's gonna dance
himself a little old jig.

The only trouble is he ain't gonna
have nothing to stand on but air.

Ben.

Roy.

Been waiting for you.

Boys are really talking it up.

These things are
like grass fires.

They get real hot and
then they go right out.

Not always in time.

This crowd's whiskey-fed.

I wonder who's
buying the bottles.

I believe I could
make a good guess.

Believe I could, too.

Carson stage.

Hey, they're more
than an hour late.

Whoa.

- Mr. Snell?
- Oh, yes, James Snell.

Yes, I'm Ben Cartwright.
This is Sheriff Coffee.

- Snell, how do you do?
- Oh, that's my bag.

This way.

Uh, I'm sorry,
sir, we're closed.

Oh, I wanted to
talk to Mr. Bragan.

That’s all right, Phillips. We've
always got time for Ben Cartwright.

- Thank you.
- Ben.

I'm glad you came in.
I owe you an apology.

If you hadn't come in today, I was
gonna ride out to the Ponderosa

and thank you for not letting
me make a fool of myself.

- No thanks necessary.
- On the contrary.

If it hadn't been for you,
Cully Maco would be dead now.

And a large share of
the blame would be mine.

Sit down, Ben, please.

You see, Tom Evans
was my close friend.

Worked for me for many years.

The brutality, the
way he was killed...

It shook me deeply.

But even that's no excuse, Ben.

I'm sincerely glad you
stopped the lynching.

I'm glad that Cully's going
to stand trial in a court of law.

Well, I’m happy to
hear you say that, Sam.

I need your help making
sure that it's really a fair trial.

Excuse me, Mr. Bragan,
will there be anything else?

Uh, no, that'll be all, Wes.
I'll take care of the vault.

Excuse me, Ben.

- See you in the morning.
- Right. Take it easy.

Now, uh, how can I help, Ben?

Well, you can help by trying
to quiet a lot of this wild talk

that's whipped this
town into an uproar.

- Buzz and Grifty.
- Yeah.

Yes, I've heard some of
that. I'll do everything I can.

Thank you.

Well, murder trial or no murder
trial, you know, life still goes on.

I've had a timber deal on the
fire that came to a boil today.

- Buying or selling?
- Buying. $20,000 track.

That's no problem. The
Ponderosa account is certainly...

Oh, no, well, I appreciate that.

But the point is, the
fella I'm buying it from,

well, he's an old gentleman
and he wants to see the cash.

So I... I made out a check.

- If you could just cash that.
- Sure. I'll be glad to.

- I'll just endorse it.
- Yeah.

You know, I never will understand
how some of these old codgers

still don't believe in banks.

Oh, thought I'd lost you.

Here we are.

I'll just look these over first.

- You mean count it?
- I'm sure all the money is here.

I want to check something else.

What’s that list you have there?

These are the serial
numbers of those bills

in that $121,000
Wells Fargo shipment.

That money was stolen.

I know.

Ben, you... you can't think that
that money could be in my vault.

Unless you think that I...

Now, if it didn't hurt so
much to know that you think

I could be a thief and a killer,
this would be very funny indeed.

Those stolen bills
were never found.

So you think
they're in my vault.

You believe Cully and
suspect me. Ben, I'm amazed.

My turn to apologize.

I'll give you back your own
words: no apology necessary.

You only did what
you thought you had to.

Yeah.

No compliment to
me, but I understand.

At least you waited
until after closing hours.

I thank you for that.

- Good afternoon, Mr. Bragan.
- Good afternoon.

I think you know Mr. Snell, the chief
bank examiner for the State of Nevada.

- Yes, of course, but...
- I've asked Mr. Snell

to examine the money in
the vault. And your books.

As one of this bank's chief
depositors, I've asked for a special audit.

Well, I’ll say one
thing for you, Ben...

When you get hold of an
idea, you hang on like a bulldog.

- My pleasure, sir. Step this way.
- Certainly.

Oh, Mr. Snell, I'm
really going to enjoy this,

because when you're through, Ben
Cartwright is going to have to buy me

the finest bottle of
brandy in Virginia City.

I assume you'd like
to check the cash first?

- If you please.
- This way.

After you, sir.

You win, and you lose.

Now, Sam, you know you're
not gonna get away with this.

Never mind that.
Unbuckle your gun belt.

Come on, hurry up.

Give it to me right over here.

Now, take the money,
put it on the counter.

Now, move away.

You need this $20,000.

All right, Ben, you're coming with
me, into the street and out of town.

And if anybody should ask,
we're going to the Ponderosa

for dinner and a little
chess. Now, move.

Come on, move!

Unlock the door.

Now, out. Come on, Ben, move!

Hold it right there.

Close the door.

Turn left, up the
street. Come on, move!

Hold it.

Get rid of him.

Wait for me inside, Hoss.

Inside.

Now, turn around, back
up the street. Come on.

All right, cross the
street. Come on, move!

I had to do it, Ben. I
didn't know where to turn.

I'd... I had shares in
all the wrong mines.

I kept losing, I... I didn't know
how to cover up anymore.

And I had to protect
the depositors.

You too, Ben.

Ben, please, I
don't want to die.

Please, I don't want
to die. Ben, please!

Mr. Maco, I believe the State will be
glad to make restitution of some kind

for them five years, possibly
in the form of a cash award.

Yes. I'm not without
influence in the state capital,

and I shall do
whatever I can to help.

Well, thank you. A man
can always use money.

- Here's your shotgun.
- Thank you.

- And your rifle.
- Very good.

Well, Mr. Cartwright,
I'll be seeing you.

You believed what Bragan said
on the witness stand under oath,

I can't fault you for that.

You were sure there
when I needed you.

Would you do me
one favor, though?

Don't sit on any more juries.

Gentlemen.

This has been a color production

of the NBC television network.