Gunsmoke (1955–1975): Season 2, Episode 2 - Brush at Elkader - full transcript

ANNOUNCER:

Starring James Arness
as Matt Dillon.

Somebody got shot out here.

Who is it, Buddy?

I don't know who he is.
I don't know.

Anybody see
who done it?

No.
No, nobody.

I better get Doc.

Probably better go
for the marshal too.

Let me through here.

That's Ben
Williams.



Anybody see
this thing happen?

Well, I guess Miss Kitty
saw it about as good as anybody.

She was watching
out the window.

Well, I did everything
I could for him.

Oh, it's a shame.
A nice fella like Ben Williams.

Never hurt anybody
in his whole life.

Was he conscious
at all, Doc?

Well, no, not really.

He...was shot up
pretty bad inside, Matt.

I didn't even dare to try to move him. Huh.

Did he say anything
at all?

Well, he mumbled something.

He was talking about...

some feller named Elkader-



Elkader, something
like that.

Elkader?

Well, that's the name
of a town.

Oh, it is? Well, that's what
he was talking about,

but I couldn't- I couldn't
make out what he said.

Elkader.

You sure, Doc?

Well- Sh- Course I'm not sure,
Matt. When a man's dyin',

you got all you can do
to try to save his life.

You don't strike up
a conversation with him.

And I'm not blaming you, doc.

It's just that I don't have
much to go on here.

I know exactly how you feel.
I feel the same way.

Ben Williams was
a mighty fine man.

Yeah.

Chester.
Yes, sir?

Saddle me a fresh horse, will
you? And get one for yourself.

We'll be ridin' out
in a few minutes.

One of you fellas
lend me a hand here.

Pick him up
and carry him...

up to my office
here.

I hope you catch that skunk,
Matt, whoever he is.

So do I, Doc.

He's dead?

Yup.

Was a no-good
thing, Matt.

Ben Williams
didn't deserve that.

How'd it happen,
Kitty?

Well, he was in here
most of the evening.

He seemed like he wanted
to talk to somebody.

Reminiscing, you might say,

about things that happened
a few years back.

Just ordinary things,
up near Elkader.

Yeah.

Well, it seems like
he used to own

a little ranch
up there somewheres.

But, you know, Matt,
the whole time he was talking,

he was as jumpy
as a cat.

I asked him about it,
and he finally told me

that there was some fella
here in town

that used to have it in for him.

Well, did he say who it was?

Yeah. Somebody by the name
of Lou Shippen.

Shippen.
Do you know him?

Never heard of him.

Oh, what else did
he say, Kitty?

That's all. He left right after.

You know, I just had
a feeling.

I- I guess that's why
I went to the window.

Matt, he didn't even
give Ben a chance to draw.

Yeah, I know.
Shot in the back.

Well, did he-

Did you get any kind
of a look at this man?

This Shippen.

I couldn't even tell you
what color his horse was.

Hm.

Well-

But you get him, Matt,
you hear me?

Because you know
what he did

the last thing before
he rode off?

He leaned out of the saddle
and he shot Ben again,

while he was lying
in the street.

You find him, Matt.

Yeah.

It's like Doc said.

Ben Williams was a good man.

Sure ain't much of a town,
is it, Mr. Dillon?

No, just
a two-minute stop on

the Cimarron
spur line, Chester.

Couldn't be more than
a couple hundred people.

Well, at least that makes
it easier to find out man.

Yeah. They got
a nice caf? though.

Did you notice
that back there?

Yeah. Well, we'll
eat later, Chester.

Come on. Let's get
the horses stabled first.

Yeah.

Howdy.

Howdy. Got room
for a couple of horses?

I reckon.
Good.

Well these have been pushed
some, they'll be wantin' grain.

Might scare up a little.
Cost you extra though.

All right, we'll pay it.

Sure could
use some rain.

Mighty dry
around here.

Yeah. Same way
south of here.

Where'd you say
you was driving from?

Dodge.

Dodge?

You wouldn't be
Marshal Dillon, would you?

Yeah, that's right. Why?

Oh, nothing. I-

I-I just thought marshals
traveled alone, that's all.

Sometimes they do.

Well, I-I tell you, marshal,
I guess I got a little mixed up.

I was just sleeping.
You woke me up.

I-I-I plumb forgot.

Forgot what?

I can't keep your horses here.
I ain't got no room.

Them's all spoke for.
Stable's full up.

Mm-hm.

Well, I can't help it
if the stable's full.

Now, look here, mister.

Those horses are
going in there,

and you can find stalls
for 'em, you understand that?

But-

I told you,
I ain't got no room.

And my friend and I
will be back directly

to see if they've been
watered and grained.

Believe me,
they'd better be.

Come on,
Chester.

Mr. Dillon.

It sure looks like
a nice place in there.

Well, let's eat later, Chester.
We'll get a room first.

Well, too much later, and
there won't be any use.

You'll survive.

Good afternoon,
gentlemen.

Howdy.
Howdy.

We'll be
needin' a room.

Oh, you mean
two rooms, huh?

All right,
two rooms.

'Cause one room
would be cheaper.

Yeah, it'd be noisier too.
My friend here snores.

Snores? Who snores?

Oh, God, you're always
sayin' that I snore.

I never heard
myself snore.

If I thought you
were awake snoring,

I'd ram my gun barrel
down your throat.

Oh, you don't mean that,
Mr. Dillon.

You're just foolin',
ain't ya?

Dillon.

Marshal Dillon.

Yeah, that's right. Why?

Nothing. Nothing.

Oh, I see.

So you were expecting
us too, huh?

No. Never heard
of you before.

Yeah. Well,
that's one lie.

I suppose you'll
tell me another one.

You never heard of
Lou Shippen.

Shippen?

Not around here.

Never heard of him.

No, of course not.

All right, then suppose you,
uh, show us those rooms, huh?

Rooms?

Well, the fact of the matter is,
there aren't any rooms.

What?

Oh, that's right.
I made a mistake.

Heh.

You see, the- There-
There are

so many people
coming in here tonight,

every room is taken.

I just forgot about it,
that's all.

Hm.

Well, you just go on
forgetting about it, mister.

And suppose you give me
a couple of keys

before I lose
my temper.

All right.

Room 4...6.

They're connected.

Thanks.

Come on,
Chester.

I'm gonna send up
some water too.

Water.

That's a poor excuse
for a steak.

I know.

My golly, these rooms
ain't too bad, are they?

No.

At least it beats
sleepin' on a lumpy cot. Heh.

How much you think they're
gonna cost us for 'em?

I mean, you know,
for the night.

Oh, 50, 75 cents maybe.

Really? That much?
Yeah.

I only make
$8 a month.

I couldn't get too long
of a stay, could I?

Ha-ha. No.

Say, I thought you said
you were hungry.

Oh, yeah.

Well, the way people here
have been treatin' us,

I doubt if they're gonna
sell us anything to eat anyway.

Beginnin' to feel
like a frothy dog.

Like a what?

Frothy dog. One of them
slobberin' kind

that goes around biting people
and making everybody sick.

Oh. Heh.

I never been treated so bad
in my whole life.

Well, don't let that
bother you, Chester.

That proves that Lou Shippen's
in town.

He got everybody protecting him.

But why? I can't understand
why they'd even care.

Well, the way
I figure it, Chester,

Ben Williams probably
wasn't the first man

he shot down that way.

Without giving him
a chance, you know?

A man just doesn't get
that mean all at once.

These people
in town know him.

They know him, and
they're afraid of him.

Well, I don't see
how we're gonna find him,

knowing as how we don't know
what he looks like.

Nobody here'll tell us,
or point him out to us.

Or even admit
that they know him.

Well...

there's one lucky thing
anyway, Chester.

Yeah,
what's that?

They got a telegraph
office here in town.

Yeah, they got
a telegraph office. So?

Remember a man by the name of,
uh, Jebel Rainsey?

Ran a feed store
in Dodge last year.

He went to Wichita.

Oh, yeah. I couldn't
very well forget him.

He used to live here
in Elkader, didn't he?

That's right.

Well, you mean that
you can get

a description of this
Lou Shippen from him.

Well, at least
he's, uh...

far enough away so that
he shouldn't be scared to.

Yeah. Well...

Aren't you ready?

Ready?
I'm so hungry now

I could eat
a whole cow raw.

Hmm. We'll eat
later, Chester.

I wanna send
that telegram first.

Later?

What can I do
for you, gentlemen?

I'd like to send
a telegram.

All right, that's
what I'm here for.

Now, who's it
to go to?

It's going to, uh...

Mr. Jebel Rainsey.

Jebel Rainsey.

Say, is that the Jeb Rainsey
who used to live here?

Yeah, same one.

Nice fella.

Always wondered whatever
happened to him.

Well, he's in business
over in Wichita.

That's where
this telegram's goin' to.

Rainsey Seed
and Feed Company.

Wichita, Kansas.
Doing good, is he?

Well, I don't know. I haven't
seen him for quite some time.

All right. Now, what do
you want to say?

Tsk. Uh...

As a personal favor

to me,
Mm-hm.

please wire...

full description...
Mm-hm.

of Lou Shippen.

Something wrong, Mr., uh...

Hinkle.

Will Hinkle.

All right, Mr. Hinkle.
What is it?

What's your name?

Does it make
a difference?

Well, I've got to
put it down here.

All right.
You just sign it Matt Dillon,

U.S. Marshal.

Are- Are you sure

you want to send
that telegram, marshal?

So he's got you
buffaloed too, huh?

I don't know
what you mean.

Oh, no, of course
you don't.

But the man's got half this town
scared to death of him.

About time I made a few people
around here scared of me.

And I might as well start
with you, mister.

I- I don't want
any trouble, marshal.

All right, then you get busy
and send that telegram.

All right, marshal.
I'll...

send it for you.

Come on, Chester.

Ain't you ought to make sure
about that telegram?

Oh, he's not gonna send that
wire, and I can't make him.

He could be putting
anything on that wire.

I don't know
Morse code.

Come on.
Let's go eat.

Eat? You mean now?
You mean it?

Looks like we're gettin'
frothier all the time.

Yeah.

I'm afraid everybody in town
knows we're here by now.

Sure don't make you feel easy

knowing that any man around
might be him.

Just waitin' for a chance
to shoot you in the back.

Yeah.

I guess we'll have to smoke him
out in the open, Chester.

How you figure on doin' that?

By telling a few lies.

Come on, let's
go have a drink.

Yeah, if
they'll serve us.

They'll serve us.

Evening,
Marshal Dillon.

Well...

news gets around fast
in this town.

It's a small
town.

Yeah.
Small and scared.

I don't know
what you mean.

No, of course
you don't.

And I don't suppose you know
Lou Shippen either, do you?

Lou Shippen?

Never heard of him
before, marshal.

And I never heard
of a town

so overrun
with cowards.

Maybe you'd better do
your drinking someplace else.

We'll do our drinking
right here, mister.

You just bring us
a bottle of rye.

You can't come
in this place

and start pushing
people around.

All right.
Rye it is.

That bartender got a signal from
one of those men at that table,

Chester. Did you see
which one it was?

No, I wasn't looking.
I was watching him.

Well, one of those five men
is Lou Shippen.

Let's have
another glass.

Mr. Hinkle's gonna have
a drink with me.

Mm, no, I-
I don't want a drink.

Why, sure you do.

No, I've-
I've got to be leaving.

You mean you're afraid
to have a drink with me?

No, it's just that
I don't want

any more to drink,
that's all.

Shippen.

Tell him it's
all right, Shippen.

He can have
a drink with me.

How about it,
Shippen?

He'll never have
a better chance.

Right now you've got
a split-second advantage.

I can't tell
which one you are.

But you're gonna lose that
advantage at 10:00 tonight.

Am I right,
Hinkle?

No. I-I-I didn't
send that telegram.

So help me I didn't.

You've got a pretty
short memory.

I was standing right
beside you, remember?

No, I- I didn't send
that one of yours.

I made one up.

You tried to
until you found out

I knew Morse code
from the Army.

It's a lie.
That's not true.

Then what am I wasting
my time here for?

He's lying. I didn't send it.

Sure you did, Hinkle.
To Wichita, remember?

Request full description
of Lou Shippen.

And they promised an answer
by 10:00 tonight.

No, I swear I didn't.

I'm much obliged
to you, Hinkle.

Only man in town
who gave me any help.

Thanks. Come on,
how about a drink?

No.

See you at 10:00 tonight...

Shippen.

Psst.

Marshal.

Mr. Hinkle, I'm
sorry I had to

put you on
the spot in there,

but it was the only thing
I could do.

I have to find out
who Shippen is.

I can't tell you.

He's a devil with a gun.

He could kill you.
Then where would I be?

Marshal, you gotta help me.

Well, that's what I'm
trying to do, Mr. Hinkle,

but you've gotta tell me
who he is.

I can't. I don't dare.

All right.

Now, look, I tell you
what I want you to do.

You go back to your office
and stay there,

do you understand?

Yes, but I-

Look, that's all you
have to worry about.

I'll take care of
everything else.

Now, you get going.

Come on.

He's peeking out
again, Mr. Dillon.

Yeah, he's probably getting
a little fidgety.

Well, I can't say
that I blame him none.

I'm gettin' a little
fidgety myself.

Well, maybe Shippen
won't come, Mr. Dillon.

Tsk. He'll come.

Well, not if he figured out
you was lyin' to him.

Yeah, but he can't take
the chance on that, Chester.

Maybe he hit the trail

and won't even try to.
Yeah.

Hold it!

Shippen.

You outsmarted me,
marshal.

You outsmarted yourself,
mister.

There wasn't no telegram?

Nope.

So I lost on a bluff.

Why'd you kill Ben Williams?

I never did like him much.

And that was your reason?

Good enough reason
for killing a man

as any, marshal.

Well, I never heard of
nothin' like that.

He's just plumb crazy.

A mad dog.

Marshal.

Well, hello, Mr. Hinkle.

You can come out now.

He's dead.

I just want you
to know, marshal,

that I was on your side
all along.

Yeah.

Sure you were, Hinkle.

Why don't you go tell
your friends that too.

Tell 'em whose side they're on.

Tell 'em they can crawl out
from under their rocks now.

Come on, Chester.