Centennial (1978–1979): Season 1, Episode 4 - For as Long as the Waters Flow - full transcript

In the middle years
of the 19th century

more than 350,000 emigrants
moved along the Platte River

from the Missouri
to the Pacific.

The great majority passed
through Indian lands,

yet fewer than 300 came to harm.

A percentage smaller than those killed
accidentally by their own rifles.

There have been few mass
migrations so peaceful.

And no previous instance in
which people of one race

passed through lands held by
another with so little trouble.

But some confrontations
were inevitable.

And judging the new land to
be potentially valuable,



the United States Government felt
compelled to protect the settlers.

Forts were established,

and the cavalry began
to patrol the plains.

The result was two armies
living side by side,

uneducated in each other's ways,

unsure of each
other's intentions.

Incidents became more common.

And were followed by reprisals.

A deadly escalation began.

It was the destiny
of one young man

to become a healing force
in this time of unrest.

But in the spring of 1846, it was
he himself who needed to be healed.

Blaming himself for the death of the
young bride he had brought west,

Levi Zendt shut himself
off in a crude cabin



on the eastern slope
of the Rockies.

Here for months he lived as a
hermit, tortured with grief.

He cannot kill, eh?

Oh, Elly.

We could hunt for him, eh?

He get hungry enough,
he hunt for himself.

We got other things to do.

Oh, Elly.

Cannon.

They'll strike back
hard for that, Jake.

At all of us. Women
and children, too.

And what do you think will
happen to the women and children

if they keep building
stronger forts, eh?

And more forts means
more soldiers.

But Mercy said... They're
choking us, Mike.

What is ours, they take.
What is whole, they divide.

What is free, they destroy.

We can't destroy the cannon,

but the wagons with the powder
that makes the cannon roar,

and the food for the fort.

Make the fire.

Close ranks. Save the cannon!

Torches! The supplies! Fire!

The Pasquinels.

Lieutenant McIntosh, sir.

Looks like you
lost a lot of men.

Yes, sir. Pasquinels?

I think so, sir.

You'd better see to that wound.

I'm sorry, sir. All I was
thinking about was the cannon.

We'll talk later, Lieutenant.

Yes, sir.

One of these days, your wife is
going to have two dead sons.

Maybe if you spent
less time drillin'

and more time writin'
letters, things would change.

Until the government gets
its head out of the sand

and straightens out who owns
what, it's gonna get worse.

Not if we get hold
of the Pasquinels.

Captain, you'd best be less of a
soldier and more of a statesman.

Jake and Mike are
just the thunder.

The lightning's yet to come.

My job is to keep the peace, McKeag.
Plain and simple.

Unless I'm mistaken,

you have to have the peace
before you can keep it.

It's only a matter of time.

Until what?

Till she goes off
with one of them.

McKEAG: No, she's got
more sense than that.

Now there's just a few.

When you open the new trading
post, there'll be many.

And one will talk better than the
others, have a special smile.

And we'll lose her.

Well, what can we do?
Can't tie her up.

She's hungry for love, McKeag.

She must have a good man,
like you and Pasquinel.

She must go to Levi Zendt. Levi?

And bring him home.

The boy's in a bad way.
No tellin' how bad.

I was thinkin' of ridin'
over to the cabin tomorrow.

He doesn't need you.

Lucinda must go alone.

She said it herself when
the winter came. Remember?

Clay Basket, you know
what you're sayin'?

You're talkin' about...

About sending our daughter to a
man who's crazed with grief.

Who hasn't been with a woman for...
For seven months.

I know.

It is not our custom.

It isn't what I
hoped for Lucinda.

But there are much
more important things.

And I think two
lives may be saved.

Zendt!

Zendt!

You're filthy.

Here.

Please.

You have to eat. You're so weak.

Oh!

No! It's all right.

There used to be a big
blue spruce here.

I wonder what happened.

Lucinda.

Last night, when
we were together,

I wasn't even there.

I was thinking of Elly.

Listen to me.

There was something
called a blue spruce,

and it was beautiful,

and it's gone.

And there was someone called Elly, and
she was beautiful, and she's gone.

Next...

I mean, this year there's
wildflowers on the ridge,

and next year
there'll be mushrooms

or wild sage or heather
or chokecherries,

and the sun doesn't mind which.

Because it has to shine anyway,

and the dirt is just glad
it's not going to be wasted.

It has nothing to do with us.

It's only that something
always has to grow.

Not anything special.

Just something.

Elly knew that because she
was going to have your baby.

Now maybe I'll have it.

We'll ride today.

Well, I kinda like
just sittin' here.

You've been sitting. Now
it's time for riding.

We'll ride to the canyon today,

tomorrow a little farther,
and in a few days

you'll be strong
enough to go home.

McKeag?

Aye?

I wanna marry your daughter.

Well.

And what does she say? Aye.

Aye?

But I can't do it unless
she's a Christian.

Well, I guess she's a Christian
as much as she's anything.

But she has to be confirmed
and learn to read the Bible.

My family's custom.

We cannot read.

Looks like that's your job.

Clay Basket, they
want to get married.

Well, I'm no teacher,
but I was thinking.

When you go to St. Louis
to buy our goods,

you ought to take her with you.
Put her in school.

Well, that's quite an idea.

I want to read and write.

I've always wanted to see St.
Louis.

You see, back home we kept
doin' the same things

over and over. Father to son.

It seems like a new time
deserves new ideas.

Lucinda's so bright she ought
to learn everything she can.

Won't you be lonely
so far from home?

But maybe she
doesn't have to be.

I have a room in St. Louis

in the house of Pasquinel's St.
Louis wife.

McKEAG: Clay Basket, you
could take her there.

Stay with her until she
finishes her education.

Are you sure we'll be welcome?

It's been a long time
since you were there.

Some things time's got
nothin' to do with.

Yes?

Lisette?

Yes.

Alexander McKeag.

Oh, come in. Please.

Is Maxwell here?

No, he's in Mexico. The war, you know.
But Mother's inside.

Mother?

Yes?

Alexander.

Alexander. Oh, Alexander.

Clay Basket.

I wondered if we
would ever meet.

I knew you would be warm.

And I knew you'd be
exactly the way you are.

I never remarried because
I loved Pasquinel.

He was a good man. Oh, no.

He was an untidy,
untrustworthy man.

I trusted him. My
father trusted him.

I didn't mean that in that way.

I meant that he would go away.
Just disappear.

He would not come back,

and I would think he was dead.

Then he would come back again,

and I would fall
in love all over.

Oh, I was so jealous of you.

And I of you.

You were his fiery Indian woman

who shared the life
he loved best.

And you were the great lady of St.
Louis.

A golden-haired woman who live in
a place I couldn't even imagine.

There should be a name
for our relationship.

I mean, Lisette and Lucinda,
they're half-sisters.

Half-wives?

Yeah, why not?

Half-wives.

We each had his children.
We each had his love.

I'm not sure he ever loved me.

Not the way McKeag has.

But he was a good husband.

My father said he would be.

I knew what the people here in St.
Louis thought.

I could hear them whispering,

"Poor Lise. She married a no-good
French trapper who deserted her."

But I looked at those women and I pitied
them for never knowing a man like him.

He gave me a daughter as fine
as any woman could ever have

and a fine son-in-law.

Captain Mercy. Yeah.

I met him at Fort John.

He is a fine man. An honest man.

And your sons...

We hear such bad
reports of them.

It seems that they're trying to
disgrace their father's name,

but I guess there is nothing
that you or I can do about it.

No.

It's not easy being
half-Indian, half-white.

We will try to make it
easier for Lucinda.

Thank you.

I feel I was forced on you.

Not at all.

How'd you hurt your arm?

Fighting.

Who were you fighting?

The Pasquinels.

They attacked our supply train.
Turn around.

Why?

Because there's no point in being with
someone you don't want to be with.

But you had nothing
to do with it.

That's not what your eyes say.

They say, "She has Indian blood.

"Her people have
killed my friends.

"And her brothers have almost
killed me." So just turn around.

Wait a minute! Will you wait a minute?
Whoa, Lackey, whoa!

Okay, maybe you're right.

Maybe I don't much
care for Indians.

Maybe that's due to the fact that the only
ones I've known have been shooting at me.

I'd like to get to know you.

Why?

Because you've heard how
wild a red woman is?

No.

Because when your feet hurt,
you take your shoes off.

Now, look, you don't wanna
walk back like that

in front of all these big
city folks now, do you?

No.

Okay.

Okay. Up, Lackey, up.

What is this?

Sauce. Makes it tender.

What you put in sauce?

Now that's a secret.

You Pawnee! Get off this land.

It's ours. Get out!

Jake, these men were sent by McKeag.
They're friends of his.

Pawnee are friends of no one.

They scalp for the
Pawnee soldiers.

Get out! Get out! Get out!

You all get out.

They are too many. We must go.

I'm sorry. I'll tell
McKeag what happened.

Why? He was Pawnee.

He was a boy. He was
warrior prepared to die.

Are you?

Before I'll watch you
commit another murder.

Don't you let Pawnee on
our land again. Ever.

This land is McKeag's and mine.

Clay Basket's! And when she dies, ours.
His and mine!

You want the exact
figures, Jake?

40% is mine. And when I marry
Lucinda, it'll be half.

Marry Lucinda?

You going to marry Lucinda?

And when we tell you to
get off, you get off.

Otherwise it will all go.
We'll kill you all!

It's easy to kill with a
dozen others behind you.

Your father was a
brave man, they say.

I figure if he'd seen what just
happened, he would've been sick.

You keep the trading post.

No harm.

Men.

Just out of curiosity,

if your brothers are so
bitter against the white man,

how come their sister is here?

I came for an education.

Maybe if they had
the same chance,

they'd live their lives
in a different way.

I know some soldiers who would
chip in for a scholarship.

Lucinda, it's a joke.

It's hard to laugh, that's all.

Look, let's look on
the bright side.

If I hadn't met up
with your brothers,

I wouldn't have gotten shot.

And I wouldn't have
been sent here

and then I wouldn't
have met you.

What? Nothing.

Now, Miss McKeag, ma'am.

Don't try to tell a
veteran of the plains

that he doesn't know when
an Indian is troubled.

I mean, as for the other
half of your heritage,

don't try to tell a St.
Louis boy

that he doesn't know
when a French girl

has something serious
on her mind.

There's an Arapaho song.

I was just thinking of it.

A song?

How does it go?

It says,

"Two warriors have
sent me horses.

"Both are tall and strong.

"Both know the
wisdom of the heart.

"It's a pity I'm only one."

Levi.

We...

Finish... We'll finish

by nightfall.

I...

am Arapaho.

That's good.

You...

Man...

You are man

with

hairy face.

That's good, that's good. Soon you'll
know the signs as well as us, eh?

I'm glad you came back, Mike.
I've learned a lot.

Today, Levi, we
work side by side.

Tomorrow, we may meet in battle.

Maybe even kill each other.

Why do you say that?

It is future.

I'd hate to think we don't
have any say in the matter.

Levi,

a fish can choose which
way to swim, eh?

But he cannot stop the river.

Now you're startin'
to sound like Jake.

Jake.

Jake sees many things, Levi.
Many things.

He's the cause of
most of 'em, too.

Mornin'. Mornin'.

You the fella partnerin' with McKeag?
Name of Zendt?

That's right. I got
somethin' for you.

What you buildin'?

Store.

When you gonna open? Summer.

Levi, what is that, huh?

It's from Lucinda.

Well, I'll be pushin' on.

See you come summer.

Thanks.

What does it say?

It says that this is the
first letter she's written.

And she knows who God
is and the Virgin Mary.

I had forgotten that St. Louis
is pretty much a Catholic city.

This language, all
white men know?

Most.

I could teach you, Mike,

like you been teachin' me signs.

No.

It's part of your world, Levi.
Not mine.

It's all the same world, Mike.

Levi,

how many white men are there?

I don't know. Never
thought about it.

Where you come from,

if you take another man's land,

what do they do?

Probably put me in jail.

See, this land is our land.

Our land.

Why don't they put the
men in jail who take it?

Well, it's different here, Mike.

See, nobody really knows
exactly who owns what.

The white... The white
man doesn't know.

But we know.

We know what belongs to Arapaho.

We know what belongs to Cheyenne.
We know what belongs to Sioux.

It has been hard for
Jake and me, Levi.

Hard. We had to choose
which world to walk in.

I hope Lucinda makes
her choice wisely.

Oh, there's a nice one.

I got a good buy on those.

Should fetch five
buffalo robes apiece,

or a shirt decorated
with human hair.

And I got the spices
you asked for.

I thought maybe you'd make some of them
sausages you're always talkin' about.

With luck, we ought to be tradin'
by the end of the month.

Corral's a good idea.

The way the Indians feel about their
horses, I figured we needed it.

Beautiful job, too.

Mike helped me finish it.

Mike? Where is he?

He left when he saw you comin'.

Oh, well.

The boys never
have cared for me.

I suppose because I've always
cared for their mother.

They just never understood

how it was in the beginning.

McKeag, how's Lucinda?

Oh, grand. She's doin' fine.

The horses want water.

Say, what do you think
of this new slogan

that's on everybody's lips?
Manifest Destiny.

As if we didn't have
enough problems

deciding the ownership
of the Indian lands,

those pigheaded politicians

want to grab Texas
away from Mexico.

And Max Mercy down there?

Very likely to get himself
shot up over it, too.

What's his name?

Who?

The man Lucinda's seein'.

What man?

A soldier, maybe?

How did you know that?

I was just thinkin' about the
first time Elly saw Max Mercy,

how he looked in his uniform.

Now, Levi, it's just
an infatuation.

He's a nice fella, but
it doesn't mean a thing.

She's just kickin' up her
heels a little, that's all.

I should never have let her go.

No, you did the right thing.

A love that risks nothin'

is worth nothin'.

Marry you?

Oh, I know it's all
of a sudden, like.

But that's the times.

I mean, I'd court you to doomsday
if I could. You know that.

We're being sent to
Mexico in three days.

Look, I'm a soldier
and a good one.

I mean, I don't know how that
kind of life strikes you.

It's certainly not an
easy life for a woman.

But there are some
compensations.

I mean, my prospects are good to command.
And if I...

John, I know you'll do well.
It's not that I don't.

Look, I know there's
someone else.

That other warrior.

But I'm also bigheaded enough
to believe that you don't

think much about him
when you're with me.

Don't answer now.

I love you, Lucinda.

I love them both.

Levi is like a rock,

and John's like a river.

I need them both.

It's strange that a half-Indian
girl should have so many chances.

Lise, tell me, do you like John?

Yes, I like him very much.

He reminds me a little
bit of Maxwell Mercy

when he first came
into this room.

I knew immediately he was
intended to marry Lisette.

Na-aa?

I like them both, Levi and John.

You mentioned Levi first.

I met him first.

What do you think, Na-aa?

The city is nice,

but the prairie, it's free.

Could you leave it?

I thought about that.

But there are other freedoms.

It's so hard to laugh with Levi.
He's so serious.

John laughs all the time.

Na-aa, you've loved two men,

a serious one and
a laughing one.

Tell me, which was best?

Lucinda.

What good is an education if it can't
help you with things like this?

Lucinda, I think you must weigh
one thing very carefully.

Sooner or later, our army may
go to war against the Indians.

If you marry John, you will be
right in the middle of things.

It may strain your loyalties
beyond endurance.

I hadn't thought of that.

Well, I think you should.

Somebody's comin'.

The wagons from St. Louis?

Looks like it. Can't
tell for sure.

I, Levi Zendt And I,
Lucinda McKeag...

hereby declare our
intention before God

to live together as
husband and wife.

Let us give each other
health and comfort.

Let us never do anything to injure
the trust we feel for each other.

You know the only
thing that's missin'?

What?

Pasquinel.

I wish he could have
seen her as a woman

and happy like this.

She's the way she is
because of you, McKeag.

I'd like to think so.

Did I ever tell you about
the time Pasquinel and I

met at the rendezvous
after all those years?

And we danced out all the
bitterness of our bad feelings?

Only a hundred times.

I suppose I have at that.

But by thunder, I feel
like dancin' right now.

Fiddler, can you play
a Highland reel?

Jake. Jake, lad, come on.

Me?

Come on. You remember,
your father taught you.

No, I don't.

Oh, Jake.

Jake, let's have that bitterness
between us over with.

For your mother's sake
and your sister's.

And for a man we both loved.

Come on, Jake, come on.

Just kick your feet up.

Just kick 'em up.

Come on.

Aye.

Right, that's the way.

Come on. Grab it.

McKEAG: We can kick.

Good boy. Well done.

Now, try this one. Try this one.

There you go, fantastic.

That's good.

McKeag!

Clay Basket. Clay Basket.

I'm here.

Clay Basket.

I love you.

McKeag?

McKeag?

Great news, Ketchum!

The treaty's gonna
be signed here.

How are you, Major? Max.

What's this about a treaty?

Well, the Supreme Court says that
the Indian tribes are nations.

And with nations
you have treaties.

How many extra soldiers
will they send me?

Well, there's talk of
up to a thousand men,

two commissioners, and the good
Lord knows how many interpreters.

How many Indians? Depends.

Could go as high as 600.

I can't see how
you'll pull it off.

The tribes hate each other
even more than they hate us.

You're dealing with
age-old enemies.

Frankly, it's impossible for me to imagine
Cheyenne sitting down with Pawnee,

Crow with Sioux, and
Shoshone with anybody.

We've gotta make it happen.

We've sent messengers to the
northern tribes. Men they trust.

It's my responsibility to convince
the Arapaho and Cheyenne.

Why not send down
to Zendt's Farm

and ask McKeag to help you?

If anyone can get
them to come, he can.

I guess you've been moving around
so much, you haven't heard.

McKeag is dead.

He was a man, a very good man.

None better.

How about it, Levi,
will you come with me?

Max, I...

I don't like the thought
of leaving Lucinda.

The baby'll be here soon.

Besides,

there's the only man who
really could've helped you.

Like it or not, there's
something you ought to realize.

You're McKeag now.

All day I listen to the
white men complain

about the worthless,
no-good Indian.

"He won't work.

"Isn't fit to own land."

Then I look at the land after
the white men pass through.

What they don't want they
just junk beside the trail.

Dead animals decay till the
stench fills the prairies.

They're going to come, though.
Can't stop them.

The enemy of the tepee isn't the
rifle, Levi. It's the plow.

Max, you think this land
can really be farmed?

Well, some of the river
land for the white farmer.

But this should be reserved for
the Indian and the buffalo.

That's what I think the
treaty can accomplish.

We want no powwow.

No peace. No surrender.

It isn't surrender, Jake.

We help you to find a
place for one fort.

But there can be no more.

More forts mean more soldiers.

And the soldiers need women,

and there will be
bottles of whiskey,

and while we are drunk in our
tepees you will kill the buffalo.

And when the buffalo are gone,

we will starve.

And while we are starving,
you will take our land.

The tepees will be in flames
and the rifles will fire

and we will be no more.

This great land we
have wandered over,

we see no more.

Lost Eagle? You have not spoken.

The words are hard.

There is only one word.

War.

No. There will be no war.

Don't listen to this old woman.

Lost Eagle has never
given us a bad council.

I say,

if the Great White Father sends a
messenger like Mercy to us, we must go.

Do you trust the white man?

I trust Mercy. And
your brother Zendt.

And I know the only hope
for the Indian is peace.

Peace that gives the
white man freedom

to cross our lands
and build his forts

and gives us proof
the land is ours.

The white men never
keep their promises.

My own father never
kept his promises.

Mercy comes begging to us now.

But we will beg later if we go.

They will use this meeting
to steal from us.

More land. More rights.

Mercy comes to us unafraid.

Zendt comes to us unafraid.

I say we should not be afraid to
go with them to this meeting.

Lost Eagle is a fool.

The real Arapaho want war,
like the real Cheyenne.

Lost Eagle speaks
for the Arapaho.

And I speak for the Cheyenne.

And I speak from two worlds.

The white world will
not keep its word.

They will lie to us and we
will be left with nothing.

You speak from pain, Jake.
It's not wrong.

Lost Eagle speaks
from great wisdom.

We will all go to
your meeting, Mercy.

And we will take Jake
Pasquinel with us

to help us make peace.

Jake,

it's the right thing to do.

No, Zendt.

It's the only thing we can do.

The government allocated $50,000 for
this treaty, just for the Indians.

But instead of commissioning
the goods in St. Louis,

some clerk decided to
buy them in New York.

Cheaper.

And in New York some other clerk

decided that getting the goods to St.
Louis on July 18th

would be just as
good as the first

and that he could save a little more
money by using a slower railroad.

So maybe they may not get here till
September. Where are they now?

Kansas City.

I was there six days and
they hadn't moved a foot.

I promised those people.
I know that, sir.

Do you know what
that promise means?

Do you have any idea what
breaking that promise will mean?

Believe me, Major...

Get a man down there now!

Get those wagons moving now!
Yes, sir.

I'm sorry, Levi.

I'm sorry I involved
you in this.

It's not your fault, Max.

But it was my word.
And your reputation.

Now when Jake and Broken
Thumb speak of war,

what do we tell them?

2,000 Cheyenne,

perhaps 1,500
Arapaho, 2,000 Sioux.

That makes more than 10,000.

We haven't heard from the Crow,
the biggest tribe of all.

So we've got 10,000
Indians coming.

More.

How did this
miscalculation occur?

Mike?

White man, he always say,
"Chief do this," right?

"Chief do that."

But with us, chief is nobody.

He is my uncle. He's my cousin.

He has some good ideas,
yes, but some bad.

So if Chief is going to talk about
something important to the whole tribe,

whole tribe come along.

Why didn't you tell
us that before?

You're married to one of them.

I'm just learning a lot of
things myself, Mr. Flagg,

like not to trust our own
leaders to keep their word.

Well, what'll we do?

A handful of men against
10,000 Indians.

No gifts. No food.

You got a wife, Flagg?

Yes.

You might write her a
very tender letter.

The Great White Father in
Washington has directed me

to invite a chief from
each of the Indian nations

to visit with him at his home.

He asks that you ride your horses
down to the Missouri River,

where a boat will
be waiting for you.

From there, you will travel to St.
Louis,

one of our finest
western cities.

Afterwards, you
will board a train,

travel across our great
country to Washington,

where he will talk with you

and give you his
own solemn promise

that this peace is forever.

Tell Max I'm riding out
to look for those wagons.

That the land you receive now will be
yours for as long as the water flows,

and as long as the
grass shall grow.

Okay, here we go. Put
your hands on your hips.

Look up. Look proud.

And now kick 'em up.

Come out to the side here.
Out to the side here.

There you go. Right there.
That's it.

You go dance with your
friends now, okay? Go.

Jake? Hello.

I'm Lisette.

Your sister.

You are as beautiful as the
picture Mercy showed me.

Thank you.

And you have his courage.

My husband's,

or our father's?

Mercy is accepted
because of you.

Pasquinel was welcome
because he came unafraid.

You are welcome in the same way,

for the same reason.

Thank you.

Can we talk?

Because Mercy wants it?

Because we have the same father.

We have the same blood.

My white blood was drawn
from me when I got this.

I was nine.

Our father wanted to take us to St.
Louis

to meet your mother and you.

McKeag said no. So we
got to Fort Osage.

The white man cut me

because I dared to sit at their
table and eat their food.

Now they promise us
food and presents.

Have you seen either?

It's the same as before.

A peace that is broken
before it's begun.

Jake,

my husband is not like the
man that did this to you.

He's good. He's honest.

He's fighting for you, not against you.
Just be patient.

I do not blame Mercy,

but this is not a bargaining.

The white man takes
what he wants,

and gives us back
what is already ours.

If we protest,

he buys off the old chiefs
with baubles and trinkets,

like our father brought with
him when he first came, eh?

Mike doesn't think this.

He tells me it's all going well.

Mike plays the fool,

but at night, when
we talk, he knows.

We all know.

In the end, they'll
have everything.

We'll have nothing.

Hello.

This your son?

There is nothing
more for us to say.

See her back safely.

I am glad you came,

but when this is over
and the war begins,

you tell Mercy to take you home.

This will not be a place
of welcome to you then.

Jake...

And now, for the land to be given
for the Arapaho and Cheyenne.

Commencing at the Red Butte,
where the road leaves

the north fork of
the Platte River,

thence up the north fork of the
Platte River to its source,

thence along the main range
of the Rocky Mountains

to the headwaters of
the Arkansas River,

thence up the Platte River,
to the place of beginning.

And in addition,

the government proposes to pay the Indian
community an annuity of $50,000...

Hungry, old friend?

You think this land they promise

is any more real than the food?

If a man like Mercy
breaks his word,

there is no meaning
in the world.

Now let us begin our final talk.

The food will come.

And let no man leave this place

without having spoken his mind.

Very good! Now you teach me.

Yes, a song.

Whoa.

It's all right.

Oh, goodness.

Good Lord.

Wagons! Half a day to the east!
The wagons!

You see, the Great White Father

wants you all to be
part of his family.

See, you same like me.

Fact is, yours is better.

I am so proud of you.

No one else could have done this

because no one else would
have cared enough.

You... The two of you
made the difference.

Well, I'll be heading home.

I just might be a father by now.

Go to Washington,
little Brother,

and humble yourself before
the Great White Father.

We should all go.

No. I'll tell my braves
to go home in peace,

but to prepare for war.

Jake.

Come with me.

Mike? Your mother is Arapaho.

The Cheyenne are
our brothers now.

Don't take much to
make you happy, huh?

That's because you're a sensible
little beast, and I'm a jackass.

You stick to what you know and
you stick to the place you know.

What do you care
about gold, huh?

And what if I strike
it rich anyhow, huh?

Answer me that.

The Czar himself couldn't even
buy a pair of shoes out here.

Blasted no-man's-land.
There ain't even a store.

And who's a blasted
miner anyhow?

Am I a miner? I'm a
farmer, by heaven.

You bored, huh? I
don't blame you.

I'm bored silly myself.

Howdy, citizen!

Where you headed?

Jefferson territory.

Us, too!

Care to join up?

This here's the Gold Miners'
Horseless Cavalry Brigade.

I don't mind some company.

Name's Larkin. They call me
Spade on account of this.

That two-bit scarecrow
is Stringer.

Howdy.

That river rat there is Keefe.

Howdy.

Brumbaugh. Hans Brumbaugh.

Deutscher.

I have family, but I
was born in Russia.

What was that like?

Good, till the Czarina died

then not so good for foreigners.

Well, we come strolling
down from Missouri.

And if we don't get hit by lighting
or stomped to death by buffalo,

we aim to get wealthy.

How you eating?

Oh, cut some timber
for some folk.

Helped some wagons
across the Big Blue.

You ever strike anything?

If I had,

do you think I would
be beating my dogs off

with these two
miserable specimens?

But I know how to placer.

I know how to dig.

And I know them as got gold
as them as got there first.

And this time, I aim
to get there first.

Ain't nobody gonna
beat me out of it.

Yeah, Larkin here has got a fix on
where the next strike's gonna be.

Something about an old,
lost, Injun gold mine.

Tell him about it, Larkin.

In due time, Stringer.
In due time.

All right, let's hit the road!

Gold Miners' Horseless
Cavalry Brigade, forward!

Forward, march!

Russia, huh?

Nothing but fool's gold.

They sure look like they've
been eating good, don't they?

They sure do.

What do you think?

Let's go.

What was that?

I don't know.

Lookit, jerky!

And pemmican! Eat!

You gunned 'em down!

They was gonna kill us.

You liar! No.

You liar! This
fella waved to me!

No!

Hey, what's the squabble?
It's just Injuns.

Hey, you can't do that! What...

Now, wait a minute.
Now, wait, wait...

Wait a minute. Hold on.
Hold on just a second now.

Come on, now. We're
partners, ain't we, huh?

Wait a minute!

Wait a minute! Wait...

How many?

Little Owl and Two Moons.

Then two whites must die.

Indians, Pa!

Get behind me!

No!

You understand how the
settlers feel, Major?

They're living in
terror from day to day.

I'm aware of that.

The difference being,
they have food to eat

and warm clothing
for their children.

Major, let me make myself plain.

The people have approached me,

asked me to head up a
punitive expedition.

Against who?

The Indians.

What Indians?

It hardly matters, does it, sir?

The idea is to set an example.

I see.

We have no idea who
committed the offense.

We just ride out and shoot down any
Indians we happen to meet. Is that it?

Is that what you would
advocate if they were white?

They're not white.

No, they're not white.

Let me give you a piece of advice, Mr.
Tanner.

You have the settlers
write Congress.

You tell them to demand
that the food and supplies

promised to the tribes
be sent at once,

and I will personally guarantee
their safety from then on.

All due respect, sir, that
is a very slow process.

I'm cognizant of that.

I've been trying for nine years.

Well, sir, I just wanted to
report how things stand.

The people want action.

So do I, Mr. Tanner.

Let's not confuse that with
a license to commit murder.

Is that all?

No, sir.

There's talk of a new
commander in the area.

Perhaps he can put
things straight.

There's no trick to putting
things right, Mr. Tanner.

All we white men have
to do is keep our word.

Very well, sir. Good day.

Good day.

Mama, are we gonna have
the berries plain,

or you gonna make pie?

Well, I don't know,

'cause I think there's been a little
squirrel who's been eating them all,

and I don't know if
there's enough for pie.

Oh, yes, there is.

Help your grandmother in the
cellar, and I'll be right back.

All right.

What we're looking
for is a grubstake.

I mean, something just enough
to get us to Pike's Peak.

We figured, well, a man
with a store like yours,

you need all the help you can get.
Levi.

Oh, I'm sorry.

What is it, Lucinda?

Nothing, it can wait.

Well, there are some wagons

that can't make it to
this side of the river.

You willing to ferry
some goods over to 'em?

Hmm? Yeah, sure,
anything you say.

You can bunk in the
smokehouse right back there.

If it wouldn't be
too much trouble,

I wonder if we could
get some grub.

It has been a long day, and
that sure smells good in there.

We'll pay. I have money.

No, it isn't necessary.

Is that a Deutscher I hear?

It is.

Well then, a most
heartfelt welcome.

Thanks. I've come a
pretty long way.

Where from?

Family's from Hesse
originally, then Russia.

Lucinda, get some
scrapple and souse.

We got a fella here
who'll appreciate it.

Lucinda? That's my wife.

That's not the lady that visited with Ms.
Pasquinel a while back?

That was years ago.
How'd you know?

I can read.

I read it in the paper. I mean,
her being so popular and all.

Sure would like to meet me
an Indian princess someday.

Well, go ahead.

Go on.

Thank you.

Yes?

My name's Larkin, Miss Lucinda.

Mr. Larkin.

Is it true that you're the
granddaughter of Chief Lame Beaver?

No.

It ain't?

My grandfather was
never a chief.

But he was your grandfather?

Yes, why?

Well, where'd you grow up?

Many places. St. Louis, for one.

I mean, when your
grandfather was alive?

He was dead long
before I was born.

Well, where did he live mostly?

Just about everywhere between
Canada and the Arkansas.

Why all this questioning?

Well... Well...

I can read.

And I've been carrying
this a long time.

Just...

"Belle of our season

"is unquestionably
Miss Lucinda McKeag.

"Miss Lucinda is not only
unusually attractive

"with her dark flashing eyes,

"but is famed
throughout the West

"as the granddaughter and
heir of Chief Lame Beaver,

"the Arapaho hero who discovered

"a goldmine in the
Rockies and..."

Well, the newspaper said you was his
granddaughter, and I thought that

maybe you might
know where it was.

Levi?

What is it, honey?

Here's another one who's heard
about Grandfather's gold mine.

Tell him the story,
and I'll get supper.

Come with me, Mr. Larkin.

And, salute!

Hold it!

Major Mercy, I'm Laban Asher.

This is my aide,
Captain McIntosh.

Nice to meet you, General.

Captain. It's about time.

I wasn't sure you'd
remember me, Major.

Well, of course. One of Lisette's favorite
young men. Of course, I remember.

Won't you gentlemen
sit down, please?

Can I get you
something, General?

A little brandy to cut the dust?

Thank you.

John? Thank you, sir.

How is Mrs. Pasquinel?

She passed on.

Oh, I'm sorry.

She had a full life.

Strong. Thank you.

Lisette is here. You'll
join us for dinner?

Yes, I'd like that. And you,
too, of course, General.

Thank you, Major.

But before you
become too cordial,

I should warn you.
I'm a blunt man.

This command is a far cry
from the one I wanted.

I know you were
wounded in Mexico,

and what with the civil
war in the wind,

no able-bodied career
man in his right mind

would want to get stuck in
this godforsaken country

wet-nursing a bunch of savages.

It isn't the wound that
kept me here, sir,

nor, I hope, an unsound mind.

Perhaps after you've
been here for a while...

Point is, Major,

I go where I'm posted and I
do what needs to be done.

Now, the people around here
are scared out of their wits,

and that can only occur when
there's a vacuum in leadership.

And it seems Ketchum never took
any action when it was needed.

I take it you've spoken
with Lieutenant Tanner.

Yes. He's something
of a hotspur,

but then again, maybe he's right.
What do you think?

Well, I'll be blunt,
too, General.

I think you should send Lieutenant
Tanner back east tonight.

They want fighting men there.

Let him go and fight where it
might be the right thing to do.

Might be?

The point is, General,

I've spent a considerable amount of my
life in this "godforsaken country,"

not because I was stuck here,

but because I thought
I could help here.

In my opinion, men like Lieutenant
Tanner are of no help at all.

I know about your relationship
to the Pasquinels.

Fact is, sir, we're dealing with
a betrayed and starved people,

ravaged with diseases
we brought to them.

They're frightened, angry,
and damn near out of hope.

Well, why aren't they
farming their lands?

Well, they've been
hunters for centuries.

You can't expect them to
become farmers overnight.

My ancestors were hunters once, too.
So were yours.

The fact is, they have
to start somewhere.

Right, right.

How about with title
to their land,

which they've never been given,

or the means to do the work
we're asking them to do?

Means? We've been sending
them farm tools.

I have an invoice here.
Where is that invoice?

Sir, those tools are
supposed to be free.

By the time they clear
the hands of the agent,

they cost more than any
Indian can afford.

Here it is, right here.

We sent out a shipment
of 150 plows, July 16th.

Anyway, that's all water
under the bridge.

Secure title to the land, you say.
All right.

I've got the instrument that
does exactly that right here.

Brand new treaty.
Covers everything.

I want you to look it
over, and then tomorrow,

you and I will ride down and
speak to the Indian leaders.

Thank you for the
dinner invitation,

but I'd like to shave now and then
I have some letters to write.

Damn it, General!

These are human beings
we're dealing with.

We have not even honored the
treaty they already signed.

We have been ordered to
deal with the situation

as it stands, Major.

I'll have this thing
cleared up in two weeks.

Then, perhaps, I can get back
to where history is being made.

I'll see you at the
hotel later, Captain.

Yes, sir.

He really is a good man, Max.

So are they all.

All honorable men.

Hello, darling.

Max, what is it?

I want you to pack.

Pack?

We're going back to St. Louis.

Max, what's happened?

Washington has decided the treaty
isn't worth the paper we wrote it on.

Oh, no.

They've cut back
payments to 10 years.

They've refused
all water rights.

And they want me to relocate.

Cut the Indians off from
their grazing land entirely.

Max, you have to stay.

Stay for what? Watch
the slaughter?

You wanted to help these people.

They need you more
now than ever.

Lisette, I am the last person in the world
they want to see. I gave them my word.

Max, they know you. They'll
know you didn't do this.

No, it's impossible.

Max, I know you, too.

I know you better than anyone.

You can't leave.
You'd be miserable.

I don't know.

I don't know anything anymore.

You're not like the others
that come through, Hans.

What made you want
to be a prospector?

A farm I bought in Illinois.

You didn't take to farming?

Born to it.

Well, then?

Didn't happen to take to
the man who sold it to me.

Why's that?

He didn't happen to own it.

You got a real nice
place here, Zendt.

You ought to be very proud.

Well, you know the saying,

"Man plans and God laughs."

I headed for Oregon

and wound up with a trading post
smack in the middle of nowhere.

Well, I got a feeling it won't be in
the middle of nowhere for long, huh?

Lucinda, I'd like you
to meet General Asher.

Mrs. Zendt. How do you do?

And Captain McIntosh,
I believe you know.

Is Levi around?

He's in back.

Max, come on.

Hello. Hello.

What's your name, young man?

Martin.

He's got your eyes.

You look well.

I am.

I think of you.

I think of you, too.

I guess your feet
don't hurt anymore.

No, they don't.

Are you a friend of my mother?

Yes, Martin. I certainly am.

Honey, I'm going with
Max to Jake's camp.

I'll be back first
thing in the morning.

You need anything lugged, you
ask that Hans. He's a good man.

Levi, this is John McIntosh.

How do you do?

Martin, you take
care of your mother.

I will.

Good luck.

Goodbye, John.

Bye, Captain.

Bye, son.

13 years I've been trailing
that little lady. 13 years.

And I finally found her.

Who says 13's unlucky, hmm?

All that talk about
a lost gold mine,

how do you know
it isn't a story?

And if it isn't, what makes
you think you'll find it

when nobody has all these years?

'Cause everybody else
searched in the wrong places.

Me, too.

Rivers, streams.

I got an idea it's
in the mountains.

And I got an idea that
little lady knows.

And I got time.

Brumbaugh?

Brumbaugh?

I'm sorry to see you go, Mr.
Brumbaugh.

We've only known each other a few days and
I already feel like you're our friend.

Well, that's very nice
of you, Miss Zendt.

I guess I feel the same way.

Would you tell Mr. Zendt
thanks for everything?

Yes. Good luck.

Thank you.

Brumbaugh!

You leaving? That's right.

Why now?

To start doing what I
came out here to do.

She told you, didn't she? What?

She told you!

You got up this morning and you
went and got it out of her!

She told you where the gold was!
She told me nothing.

You aim to cheat me out of it,
and it's mine, I tell ya!

You're crazy, Larkin.
You know that?

You're crazy as a loon.

Uh-huh. Well, we'll
see about that.

It's mine, I tell you! Mine!

Morning, Mr. Larkin.

Your granddaddy, Lame Beaver,

he used to live up in the
mountains, didn't he?

Mr. Larkin...

Didn't he?

Yes, but everybody did.

Not really the mountains,
but the foothills.

Well, what was the
name of the place?

I don't know that it had a name.

He used to call it Blue Valley
because of the blue spruce up there.

Well, where was that exactly?

Somewhere up the Platte, past
the fork to the right, I think.

Excuse me, but I've
got work to do.

That ain't good enough! I tell
you, it ain't good enough!

Tell me where it is exactly!
Let go of me!

Now, you told that Deutscher.
You tell me!

Tell me! Stop it!

Get out of here.

And don't ever set foot
on this land again.

I'm just gonna get my hat.

You all right?

Thanks to you. You're as
brave as your father.

They want to change the treaty.

They want you to give up all your
lands along the Platte, the Arkansas.

He's going at it all wrong.

They want you to take land

around Rattlesnake Cliffs.

Rattlesnake Cliffs?

That is a place of death.

I guess I know that
better than anyone.

Is this a message
from Major Mercy?

You traitor.

You old fool who believes
everything he hears.

You see what your weakness
has led us to, eh?

You want it all.
That's it, isn't it?

You want it all!

Now, just a minute. Let me
try to clarify some of this.

Sit down, please.

You see, gentlemen, many white men
want to make their homes out here.

And it's only reasonable that the Great
White Father should ask the Cheyenne

and the Arapaho to share
the prairie with them.

Now, the meeting
at Fort Laramie.

I'm afraid we went a little
overboard in handing out land.

There were some of us there who didn't
realize how much would be needed.

But the White Father
recognizes his responsibility

to his red brothers,

and in this new treaty

there are many wonderful gifts.

Money, 40 acres of
land per family,

timber, water,
farm implements...

Excuse me. Excuse me.

You say 40 acres, eh?

How much is that?

Now, that's a very
good question.

If you'll step outside,
I'll try to show you.

Now, roughly, from
that clump of trees

to the top of the ridge
where the horses are,

from there to this side of
the draw, and back to here.

40 acres at Rattlesnake Cliffs.

That won't be enough to
feed one buffalo calf!

That's just the point, Chief.

You don't have to
worry about buffalo.

You'll be farming.

Many an American farmer has
built a good life on 40 acres.

And where will we
find our water?

Wherever there is
timber and a stream,

you will receive
your fair share.

General,

have you every been to
Rattlesnake Cliffs?

No, not yet.

There are no trees
there, or streams.

An honest farmer
uses what he has.

General,

our lands,

they must touch river, eh?

No, the White Father does not wish for
your lands to reach down to the river

because the white men prefer
to travel along the river,

and it might cause some trouble.

Where do we get our water?

Well, we'll find it. We
just have to work together.

Now, the sooner we get this treaty
signed, the better for all of us.

What do you say, Chief?

I hear that you are a
realistic and far-seeing man.

I have given my life to peace.

I do not wish to end it in war.

In war, you will destroy us.

And if you destroy us,

it will be to your people like a
terrible wound that will not heal.

I will ask that the
treaty be signed.

Good. Thank you, Chief.

The White Father wishes
for you to have this.

You see, his picture is on it.

And this one, too.

Now...

What about you? Will you
follow your friend's lead?

Come on, what do you say?
Speak to me.

General,

you are a big war chief, eh?

Broken Thumb, he's a
big war chief, too.

We know that the white men,

they live in a house
that is divided.

And that soon you have a
big war back in the east.

So maybe some of your troops
be taken away from you, eh?

So maybe any army you
have here be small one.

If you force this treaty on us, then
you'll hear Broken Thumb speak.

You'll hear all the
Cheyenne speak

and the Sioux and the
Shoshone and the Kiowa.

All the nations of the plains.

We will not die in silence.

Don't be foolish!

Think of the future!

Your children!

Chief, tell them what
they're starting.

Mercy, get them back here!

Zendt!

General,

I'm afraid the talking is over.