Gunsmoke (1955–1975): Season 5, Episode 25 - Jailbait Janet - full transcript

♪♪ [theme]

starring James
Arness as Matt Dillon.

[horn blaring]

- Leave that alone, mister.
- What do you want?

Keep that gun on him.

See where we are.

There ain't nothing in
there worth anything.

That ain't the way
I heard it, mister.

You carry the money.

[brakes squealing]

Now, mister, you put
your head outside this door



the next five minutes,
you're gonna get it blown off.

Get going.

Doc!

Doc! Oh, Doc! Doc!

What's the matter?

There's been a train robbery,
Doc, about five miles east of here.

Number 7 it was. And the
baggage clerk's been shot.

- He's hurt awful bad, Doc.
- I'll get my bag.

They must've got on the train when it
slowed down at Walnut Crossing there.

They got away with $50,000.

- Where's the clerk?
- He's still over there in the baggage car.

I figured we ought not
move him until you got there.

That's good.

I gotta get over to the
jail and tell Mr. Dillon.



- We'll meet you at the depot, Doc.
- You go ahead. I'll be right there.

How is he, Doc?

Not very good. Took
one right through the lung.

I'd sure like to be able to talk to
him, find out a little bit about this.

I can give you some
information, Marshal.

Their horses were
tied up in the brush,

50 yards this side of the
Cottonwood water tower,

Milepost 314.

That's where the line
swings down toward the river.

- Who are you, mister?
- I'm the legal agent for the railroad

and for the bank
that owns that money.

My name is
Krocker, J.L. Krocker.

And I want immediate
action on this matter.

I want that money
brought back at once,

and I want the guilty parties
brought to justice immediately.

Mister, I'll talk to you in a
minute. Right now, I'm busy.

I don't believe you quite
understand who I am, Marshal.

[muttering]

Can I talk to him now, Doc?

You can try.

Mister? Mister,
it's Marshal Dillon.

Can you tell me anything
about the robbers?

Uh, three of them.

Wore masks.

Only one of them talked.

Man about 50.

He shot me.

I feel so cold.

Cold... like ice.

Ice... Like i... Like i...

Chester, get the horses saddled.

Yes, sir. Right away.

Marshal, in my opinion,
you ought to form a posse

and go after those criminals.

Well, right now, mister, I'm
not interested in your opinion.

I think I'll have a little
talk with your superiors

when I get back to civilization.

Good. You do that.

And when you're at it, ask him
what happened to my checks.

I haven't been
paid for two months.

- Well, there's Milepost 314, Mr. Dillon.
- Yeah.

You know, the prairie
sure is dry this year.

We haven't had
much rain, Chester.

You know, it might not have
been a bad idea bringing a posse.

They got us outnumbered.
They already killed one man.

I've never had much luck
with posses riding around,

stirring up a dust
cloud a mile high.

It's a dead giveaway.

Let's take a look over here.

They must be
homesteaders on the move.

I never heard of bandits
hightailing it in a covered wagon.

[chuckles] Neither have I.

Let's ride in there
and talk to them.

[horse whinnies softly]

Well, now.

Howdy, strangers.

Howdy.

Climb down and rest your bones.

Thank you.

We have some supper ready
here in a spell, such as it is.

You're welcome to join
us, if you're of a mind.

Well, thank you, but I think
we better keep moving along.

Oh, uh, pushing cattle?

No. We're hunting killers.

There was a train
robbery this morning.

I'm the United States
Marshal over in Dodge City.

Name's Dillon.

Well, I'm proud to
know you, Marshal.

I'm Dan Everly, and
this is my boy Jerry.

- That's Chester Goode here.
- Glad to know you.

Well, that's where me and
the boy's headed... Dodge City.

Oh, is that so? Are you
homesteaders, are you?

That's right.

We did have a
place back in Newton,

but it didn't do too good.

So somebody
robbed the train, huh?

Yeah. There was three of
them. Got away with $50,000.

You haven't seen anybody around
this way this morning, have you?

Nope. Nary a soul.

Yeah. Well, they
might've turned south.

We lost their trail back
there a couple of miles.

Well, we're gonna have some hominy
grits and some side meat here in a minute.

Why don't you stay?

Well, maybe we will. Thank you.

Jerry, rustle things
along, will you?

I'm working on it, Pa.

Well, Chester, let's
loosen up the saddles.

All right.

I think we found them, Chester.

How do you figure that?

Well, there's three of
them traveling together.

The third one's right over
there in the brush coverin' us.

Well, what do you
figure on doing?

Well, the boy's not armed.

- He's no threat.
- Yeah.

When I give the signal, I want you to
grab your rifle and cover the old man.

I'll get the one in the
brush. You ready?

Yeah.

Go.

- Hold it!
- Get your hands up, mister!

Come on out of there now,
or I'll send a bullet in after you.

Don't shoot,
Marshal. Don't shoot.

Come on out, young'un, with
your hands up like the marshal said.

I'll take that rifle, miss.

Why didn't you let me fight them,
Pa? I could've shot them both.

Is this your daughter, mister?

Her name's Janet.

I had her hide out there
till we knew who you was.

I didn't tell her
to shoot, though.

I just wanted to
keep her out of it.

Yeah. You did a fine job keeping
her out of it this morning, didn't you?

You leave him alone. Pa
knew what he was doing.

He had a right to that money.

Young'uns ain't to
blame in this, Marshal.

I brought them up
to do like I told them.

They didn't know no better.

- Where is the money?
- Don't tell him, Pa.

Be quiet, Janet.

We buried the money, Marshal,

and I reckon I'm not
gonna tell you where.

It's ours. We got a right to it.

You said that once before, miss.

What she means...

We had a homestead
back in Newton.

My wife died there.

The young'uns and me... We
fought the prairie for four years.

Crop failures and hard times.

The last four,

we got us a good stand of wheat.

Ripe for harvest.

You know what happened, Marshal?

Sparks from a train
set fire to the field.

Burned us out.

We lost everything.

Railroad company said I'd have to
come back east to prove my claim.

They knew I couldn't do that.

You figure that gives you the
right to rob and kill, do you?

You better get that wagon
loaded up and hitch the team to it.

What you aiming to
do with us, Marshal?

Aiming to do with you?

I'm gonna take you back
to Dodge and put you in jail.

Chester, take them in
and lock them up, will you?

But, Marshal, not the young'uns.

They weren't to blame.

I don't like the idea of locking
them up any more than you do.

But you should've thought of
that before you shot that man.

Let's go.

I didn't mean to kill him. If only he
hadn't pulled that gun when we was leaving.

Well, Marshal, I see you
brought in the culprits.

That's right.

- Well, where's the money?
- I'll talk to you about that later.

Right now, I'm gonna put them in
jail, so get out of the way, will you?

All right. All you folks, go
on about your business.

Go on. Let's go.

[people murmuring]

Matt, one of them's a girl.

- I know it, Kitty.
- Wait a minute.

You can't lock
a girl up in here.

Well, Kitty, I don't
like the idea, but...

This jail wasn't
built for women.

What else can I do?

Why don't you let me take her?

Look, she can stay in my
rooms while I'm working.

And she's not gonna try and
leave town with her family in jail.

Nobody will bother
her. I'll see to it.

All right. Janet?

Janet, this is Kitty Russell.

- Hello, Janet.
- She lives here in Dodge, and...

Well, Janet, I'm not gonna lock you
up. I'm gonna let you go with Kitty.

But I want you to stay right with
her and do everything she says.

Do you understand?

- Yes, sir.
- All right.

Thanks so much,
Matt. Come on, Janet.

What's the matter
with you, Marshal?

You going soft over
some pretty-faced little girl?

There's $50,000 missing.

She's a criminal. She
ought to be locked up, too.

Krocker, I've heard
about enough out of you.

And from now on,
you stay out of my way.

When I find the
money, I'll let you know.

Now go on. Get outta here.

[sighs]

It's an awful shame,
Mr. Dillon, you know?

That girl just pretty
as a field of clover.

Yeah.

The whole thing's
the father's doing,

and yet those two kids are
in it just as deep as he is.

It's too bad.

[Dillon] Kitty?

Oh. How are you, Matt?

- Hello, Chester.
- Howdy.

We're just going in to have a
bite to eat before I go to work.

- How you two getting along?
- Well, just fine.

Kitty's been real nice to me. She's
been showing me how to fix my hair.

- How do you like it?
- Looks fine.

Pa and Jerry...
are they all right?

Yes, they're fine, Janet.

What's going to
happen to us, Mr. Dillon?

Well, I'm afraid that
you're gonna have to

stand trial, and then
it'll be up to the judge.

He won't understand.

Maybe Pa was wrong.

Guess he was.

But he thought
he was doing right.

He thought he was doing
it for us... For Jerry and me.

He didn't mean to kill
that man. He really didn't.

The guns Jerry and I
had weren't even loaded.

Janet, I'm sorry this
whole thing has happened,

but I'm afraid there's not
much I can do for you now.

Uh, Janet, look, why don't you
go on in and get a table for us?

I'll be in in a minute.

You know, Matt, there's a
lot of talk going around town.

Some of the hangers-on
down at the saloon

wonder if you did make
a deal for the money.

Yeah, well, that's
Krocker's work.

He's been shooting
off his mouth all week.

He's offered a thousand dollar's
reward for the return of the money,

no questions asked.

He keeps telling everybody that the Everlys
would remember where they hid the money

if they had some ropes
around their necks.

- Oh, he is, huh?
- Mm.

Well, thanks, Kitty.

Sure.

You better go back to the
office, Chester. I'll see you later.

And I say any law officer who
pampers some pretty-faced little bandit

isn't fit to hold a job.

Why, he could make them tell him
where that money is, if he wanted to.

But if you ask me, he and that
girl are planning to skip town with it.

Any lawman who tries
to pull a deal like that

ought to be run out of town.

And I'll bet you boys wouldn't
be sorry to see him go.

It's about time somebody took
the badge off of that tinhorn marshal

and shoved it down his throat.

And you're just the boys who
could do it if you set your minds to it.

As far as I'm
concerned, that ma...

[Dillon] Go on.
You're doing fine.

Well, this is quite a bunch
you've picked up here.

Barflies, bums, bushwhackers.

Which one of you men is
gonna run me outta town?

Your friends don't seem quite
as talkative as you are, Krocker.

All right, boys. The
party's over. Get outta here.

If I had you back
East for just one hour,

you'd be in jail,
not running it.

Any lawman who'd
neglect his duty

for some pretty-faced
little trollop...

Listen to me, mister. I've
had about a bellyful of you.

Maybe you've never seen
a lynch mob, but I have.

Now get outta here.

Mr. Dillon...

Mr. Dillon, they're
gone... the both of them.

What are you talking about?

Well, the old man and the
boy... They broke out of jail.

Somebody let them out.

How could that happen?
Didn't you lock the front door?

Well, yes, sir, I locked it. But
the back window was broke open.

Whoever let them out
must've got in that way.

They found the keys, 'cause
they're still hanging in the lock.

Matt, the girl's gone.

She must've slipped
out the back of the café.

- I can't find her anywhere.
- Uh-huh. That figures.

- What do you mean?
- Kitty, we'll see you later.

Thanks a lot.

[thunderclap]

That looks like where they
made camp before, Mr. Dillon,

but, you know, I don't think
they even come back here.

Now, Chester, that money's
gotta be buried somewhere

between here and the railroad.

Let's get off and look around.

[thunderclap]

Well, I hope that
storm holds off.

Well, I don't think
it'll hit before morning.

[thunderclap continues]

Hid the money
right under the fire.

Well, then, they must've come
back here after all, Mr. Dillon.

Yeah.

[gunshots]

- You all right, Chester?
- Yes, sir.

Came from that brush over there.

Maybe I can draw his fire.

[gunshot]

In the sycamore, Mr. Dillon.

Yeah.

Be careful, Chester.

Let me see it.

I'm finished, Marshal.

I'm sorry, Everly, but you
didn't give me much choice.

It don't matter.

I just wanted the
young'uns to have a chance.

They have the money?

Let them go, Marshal.

It's their money.
They... I had a right.

Not a right to kill, Everly.

I didn't aim to.

[thunderclap]

A storm coming up?

Looks that way.

I hope the young'uns
find shelter.

Jerry... he caught
a cold in jail.

Sneezing...

Used to worry his
mother when he'd cough.

She's dead now, Marshal.

A long time.

A long time.

She... She died back there.

Back there...

[mutters]

[horse whinnies softly]

Pa... where is he?

We heard the shooting
and came back.

Your pa's dead, Janet.

I knew.

When he made us ride on ahead,

I knew we'd never
see him alive again.

[thunderclap]

I'm sorry.

I'm just sorry it had
to work out this way.

[thunderclap]

Jerry, you know,

Krocker offered a thousand dollar's
reward for the return of this money.

You just returned it.

Maybe I'm stretching
the law a little bit,

but the law as young out here, I
guess maybe that's part of my job.

Go on. Take it.

But... aren't you
taking us back to jail?

You know, if you head north outta
here and keep bearing to the West,

you'll eventually get
to Wyoming Territory.

I understand they're opening up a lot of
new rangeland up there for homesteading.

You, uh... You and your
sister might do all right, Jerry.

I just don't know
how to thank you.

Better get going. Maybe
you can beat that storm.

Thank you, Marshal.

[thunderclap]

Jerry, you take
good care of her now.

I will, sir.

[thunderclap continues]

Don't you think we better get
started back to Dodge, Mr. Dillon?