A fiery horse with the speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty high of silver, the Lone Ranger. With his faithful Indian companion, Tonto, the masked rider of the plains, led the fight for law and order in the early western United States. The stories of his strength and courage, his daring and resourcefulness, have come down to us through the generations. And nowhere in the pages of history can one find a greater champion of justice. Return with us now to those thrilling days of yesteryear. From out of the past in the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse, Silver, the Lone Ranger rides again. Come on, Silver! Let's go, big fellow! I am, Silver! Although the Boonville courtroom was crowded with people he had known all of his life, Eddie Samuel still couldn't believe it was real. Even the familiar sound of Judge Davis clearing his throat as he rapped for order seemed like part of a dream. Order! Order in the court! Gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict? We have, Your Honor. I'll read it to the court. We find the defendant, Eddie Samuel, guilty. Guilty of murder. Fire! Order! Order! Guilty of murder. It wasn't true. He'd shot in self-defense, but no one believed him. Eddie tried to pick out a few friendly faces in the crowd that had gathered to hear his trial. He could find only two. Jean Holley, a slender, dark-eyed girl, and her brother, the deputy sheriff. They'd been with him the night it happened. A dance and masquerade party at the schoolhouse. It would take more than a black mask and a white Stetson hat to fool me, Eddie Samuels. I'd know you anywhere. That's why I'm wearing it. Come on, let's dance. I've been hoping you... Jean! Oh, wait a minute. Here comes Bill. What do we care? It's you I want to dance with, not your brother. Hey, you two. I hate to cut in like this, but I've got a message for you, Eddie. Yeah? What is it? Sheriff wants to see you. Says it's important. Not half as important as what I'm doing right now. Tell him I'm busy. Why, Sheriff Gibbs was here talking to Eddie not over ten minutes ago. Yeah, he was kidding me about my costume. This mask and everything. I know, but after he left here, he ran into Sky Pierce over at the El Dorado. So he wants you to meet him there. I've got nothing to say to Sky Pierce. I told you and the sheriff I saw Pierce hazing some beef across the north end of the spread last week. But if he's tied in with the rustling that's been going on, that's up to the law to prove. Not me. You said you'd help us. I... All right. Excuse me for a few minutes, will you, Jean? Of course, Eddie. If anybody sees me walking down Main Street in this outfit, they'll think I'm loco. You can go in the back door of the El Dorado. Like as not the sheriff and Sky are waiting in Slick Humphrey's private office. Yeah, I'll be right back. Who's there? Open up. I want to see Sheriff Gibbs. What the... Hello, Sky. Is the sheriff around? Bill Hawley told me that... Mass, and I'll hold. I'm no outlaw. This mass part of my fancy dress costume for the party at the schoolhouse. Try to sneak in here and hold up the place. Put that gun down, you fool. I won't stand here and let you drown me. He's dead. I didn't mean to... He shot first, and I... He shot first. The back door's open. There must be somebody who saw... There's an Indian. Hey, Redskin. Uh-huh. Have you been standing out there in the alley? Did you see what happened in here? Sky pulled his gun and started blasting. So I had to... Ah, me see it. I'm sure glad of that. I've got a witness to prove... Say, what's your name? Me, Tonto. Good. I'll let the sheriff in now and tell him what happened. Hello, Sheriff. It's a person like an outlaw. But I don't like the idea of... Who's that? Sky Pierce, Sheriff. He's dead. I got your message, Sheriff. So I walked over from the schoolhouse. Sky was alone. I guess seeing me with this mask on made him kind of jittery. He pulled his gun. Lucky for me, the shot went wild. So I had to... Shut him down in cold blood. No, it was self-defense. He'd have killed me if I... I only heard one shot. That's a lie. You walk into my private office, murder a friend of mine... No, wait a minute. Wait a minute. I did send word for Eddie to come over here, but... Give me Sky's gun. You can tell by that whether or not he fired his gun. Just like a figure. What is it, Slick? Sky's not packing a gun. What? He must be. He shot at me. I asked you to come over, Eddie. I wanted you to help the law. Now take it into your own hands. I didn't. All I did was shoot in self-defense. Sure, against an unarmed man. No, I... Wait a minute. When I came in the back door, I left it open. There was an Indian standing in the alley. He saw the whole thing. He'll tell you that... Indian? Where is he? Right over there. Why? He was standing right there by the door just a minute ago. He said his name was Tonto, and that he saw... There hasn't been a redskin within ten miles of this town for over a month. I'm sorry, Eddie. I've got a duty to perform. You're under arrest. For murder. That's the way it had happened. He'd been arrested. Tried. Now he was being convicted of murder. All because a mysterious and elusive Indian named Tonto had disappeared. Eddie was suddenly aware of Judge Davis' voice. It is a sentence of this court that the prisoner shall be taken to territorial prison immediately, under guard of Sheriff Gibbs. And there, on the last day of this month, you shall be hanged by the neck until you are dead. Oh, Eddie! Oh, Eddie! All right. If that's the way the cards fall, I'll play them. I just have one more thing to say to Slick Humphrey. Yeah? I'll come back. I'll come back from this side of the grave or the other and get even for what you've done to me. It was less than an hour after a verdict had been returned in the trial of Eddie Samuels that Tonto reined up his horse at the Lone Ranger's camp. Ho! Ho! Ho, fella! Ho! Ho, fella! Ho! Tonto, what did you find out? Jury. Jury say young fella guilty. Judge say lawmen take him to prison. Them hang him. I was afraid of that. Hakeem Asabi. Yes? Tonto not savvy. Why you not let me tell Sheriff truth? Because ever since you told me about it, I've been sure that shooting was a frame-up. Oh. There's something else behind it that I don't understand. Sky Pierce was just a small-time gambler who worked for Slick Humphrey. Ah. Maybe lawmen part of frame-up, huh? Yes, it's possible. All the more reason to leave Sheriff Gibbs out of our plans until we're sure. Ah. And what we do? First thing is to make sure Eddie Samuels doesn't reach territorial prison. Oh. Ride back into town, Tonto. Keep undercover, but try to find out how and when Sheriff Gibbs intends to transport his prisoner. Ah, be doing it. I'll wait here for you, but don't waste any time. We may have to move fast. Uh-uh. Get him up, scout. Bill. Bill Hawley. Right here, Sheriff. Go over to the stage depot. Tell Ben Grant, the driver, to stop here before he heads out of town this afternoon. He's going to have two extra passengers. You mean you and Samuels. I'm delivering him personally to the warden at Territorial. Sheriff, I've wanted to ask you something ever since the night Eddie got into trouble. It's the first time I've seen you alone. Well? He isn't guilty of murder. I know he was telling the truth when he said he... Bill? You're my deputy. Is that right? Sure, but... We're both officers sworn to enforce the law. It isn't our business to question a legal trial and conviction. I've known Eddie Samuels for years. He's engaged to marry my sister. I know he wouldn't lie about anything. And when he says he didn't... The court says that he's a murderer. And that's good enough for me. Tell Ben Grant to bring the stage around. I'll get my prisoner and be waiting for him. I... Yes, sir. I'll tell him. Oh, who's the road? Oh, you're the fellow. Oh, oh. Are you sure the sheriff and Eddie Samuels are riding the stage, Tonto? Ah. We see him get in when stage stop at jail. Oh, this is as good a place as any to waylay it, silly big fella. Uh, sky pretty dark, Kimasabi. Maybe big rain comes soon. Yeah, that won't make any difference. Possible I want to board the stage without the driver knowing it. Here, help me drag this log across the trail. Let me help. There. That'll do it. You're right ahead, Tonto. Take Silver with you. Right on the other side of Bear Creek. That'll give me time enough to talk to the sheriff. Uh-uh. Here, Silver. We'll take Eddie with us, then circle back to camp. Hurry, Tonto. The stage ought to be here any minute. Get him up to the count. Come to me. Rain's bad enough without this. Ben, what's wrong? Log across the trail, sheriff. I'll clear it all. Can't see much through this rain. Where are we? This side of Bear Creek Ford. As soon as Ben gets the log cleared away, why will... What the... Masked! I'll keep your gun in the other, sheriff. Have you covered. Who are you? I didn't have this prisoner handcuffed to one arm. You wouldn't do anything except talk to me. You'll do that anyway. I'm ready to go. You all right back there, sheriff? Tell him to drive on. I... Sure. Go ahead, Ben. Get out there. Come on. Get out there. Listen. You're fooling with the law. No free booting owl who can throw down on me again. First, before we start talking, unlock those handcuffs. I'm leaving you the other side of the ford. Eddie Samuels is going with me. You mean you're... So that's the idea, huh? The first time I knew Samuels here was part of a gang. I'm not. I've never seen... Unlock the handcuffs. All right. Can't argue with a gun. But you won't get away with this. I'll have a posse on your trail before I'm on it. Maybe. Well, I mean, where are we going? I'll tell you later, Eddie. Then as the sheriff answers some questions... Oh, ho there! Oh, sheriff! Answer him. What's the trouble, Ben? Don't know. There ought to chance this ford. Crick is rising. Looks bad to me. Well, I... I've got saddle horses waiting on the other side. Time to go ahead. Go on, Ben. We've got to go on. It ain't good sense, but I'll try it. Get up there! There he is now. Look, almost up to the hut. It's bad enough to be hijacked by an outlaw without risking. It's a cloudburst. The river will be over our heads. No, there's... The next thing you can do now, sheriff, is hang on. The curtain falls on the first act of our Lone Ranger story. Before the next exciting scenes, please permit us to pause for just a few moments. Now to continue our story. Normally, the shallow ford at Bear Creek was only a few inches deep. Now it was a raging maelstrom as a solid wall of water, ten feet high, bore down upon the stranded stagecoach. Realizing that the inside of the coach was a death trap, the Lone Ranger shouted a warning as he threw his full weight against the offside goal. Eddie, start this way! The full force of the flood hit the stagecoach and crushed it like a matchbox. In the same split second, the raging water caught the Lone Ranger and Eddie Samuels throwing them up and backward. Any attempt to swim would have been useless in such a torrent. Eddie Samuels realized this, even though he knew the Lone Ranger was making a superhuman effort to help him. A moment later, Eddie sensed rather than saw the huge broken tree trunk that was hurtling toward them on the crest of the flood. He tried to duck, but it was impossible. Then came a sharp, wrenching stab of pain. It was the last thing he remembered. Eddie wasn't conscious, so he never knew that a few moments later, the flood passed Bear Creek Fort as quickly as it came. Nor did he know that the Lone Ranger carried him up the mud-covered slope that was strewn with wreckage of the stagecoach, half buried in sand. He would have been even more surprised that he'd seen the Indian who rushed forward with a glad cry of relief. Come here, Toto. If the flood comes so quick, he may not know what to do. You all right? Soaked to the skin, that's all. How about young fella? Him hurt? Eddie, looks like you have either a badly wrenched shoulder or a broken arm. We'll find out and fix it when we get to camp. Driver fella not hurt bad. Him be all right plenty soon. Good. As long as he can take care of himself, I want to get away from here before he regains consciousness. Help me carry Eddie. Be careful with his shoulder, Toto. That's it. Now head for the horses. What? What the... No broken bones. Guess the flood must have pitched me up here in the bank. Coach! There it is. Smashed all the kindling wood. Sheriff and Eddie Samuels. Caught on the inside like as not. They were killed before they... What the... Who's that? By Juniper, it's a ghost. Just as sure as I'm standing here, it's the ghost of Eddie Samuels. I heard there was a cloud burst at Bear Creek Ford and that Ben Grant's stagecoach was wrecked and that the sheriff and Eddie were... Yes, it's true, sis. Ben claims the wreck threw him off the boot of the stage, up onto the riverbank. He was knocked unconscious. But when he came to... Yes? He swears he saw Eddie Samuels' ghost. What? A ghost that mounted a white horse and rode off south towards the woods. Eddie's favorite saddle horse is white. But his horse wasn't anywhere near Bear Creek. It's in the livery stable, where it's been ever since the night of the shooting. I've never believed in ghosts, but... Oh, just the crack-brain story of an old man who got hit on the head. He even claims the ghost was wearing an outfit like Eddie wore to the dance. Black mask and everything. Maybe it's true, Bill. It can't be. I never should have mentioned such a loco story. You go on home, Gene. I'll see you at suppertime. You... You will keep on looking. For Eddie, I mean. Of course I will. And another thing. Even though he's dead, I'll never stop looking for proof that Eddie was framed. Oh, scott, ho, fella, ho. Ho, fella, ho. Back early, Tonto. Ah, me right pretty fast. Everybody in Boonville may talk about the same thing. That so? Stage driver, see you right away from Bear Creek. Him say, him see ghost of Eddie Samuels. Ghost? Well, that's the craziest. I think I understand how he got that idea. Didn't you wear clothes similar to mine and a black mask the night you shot Sky Pierce? Yes. Well, this is awful. I've got to get word of Gene and Bill. Tell them I'm alive. We'll do that, Eddie. But first, I... Yes, that's it. Here, Sylvie. What do you mean? You and Todd await here. I'm going to see your friend, Bill Hollis. Did he, big fella? I don't understand. Maybe the ghost of Eddie Samuels can accomplish what the laws fail to do. Come on, Sylvie. Hey, what, what the... Hello, Bill. What? Mask. I'll show you... A gun isn't necessary, Sheriff. I'm here to help you and to help Eddie Samuels. Eddie? Well, he was drowned in Bear Creek this afternoon. I've got a search party out now looking... The only thing wrong with Eddie is a broken arm. You... You mean he's alive? Well, where is he? Resting in my camp a few miles south of here. But the cloud burst. It wrecked the stagecoach. We found Sheriff Gibbs' body. And Ben Grant said he saw Eddie... Eddie's ghost. Isn't that right? Yeah. I mean, he swears... Good. Bill, I think both of us are interested in the same thing. Proving that Eddie was framed into shooting Sky Pierce. Why, sure. I've always... And by working together, we can discover who was behind it. I don't know who you are, mister. I don't care. Because what you're saying right now makes sense. How do we do it? By using a ghost. Now, listen carefully. This is what I have in mind. Slick, did you hear about it? Shut up, you old coot. Haven't I told you never to do any talking out here? Come back in the office. Well, what is it? They found the body of Eddie Samuels. The sheriff just told me he turned it over to the corner. Who do I care whose body they find? Don't you see what it means, Slick? No, and what's more, I don't give a... It means I really did see a ghost. He rode a white horse. Ah, shut up. Oh, who's that? How do I know? Open the door. Slick. Oh, evening, Sheriff. I'm glad you dropped in. Been wanting to have a talk with Boonville's new law dog. That's all? Mm-hmm. You see, I got a few games running here in the Eldorado that... Well, you know how it is. A lot of crazy cow punchers don't know how to handle their money anyway, so... You take it away from them. Sheriff Gibbs and I had a little, well, sort of arrangement. 200 a week. I'm not interested. All right, I'll make it 300. I'm easy to get along with. All I want from you, Slick, is the reason why you framed Eddie Samuels. Me? Frame anybody? You're local. I'll tell you the reason. There's been a lot of beef rustled around here lately. I think you are behind it, and Sky Pierce was working for you. You're dreaming, Sheriff. Eddie saw Sky hazing some cattle, so he reported it to the law. Pierce began to worry because he didn't want to take all the blame. This is all news to me. So you decided to put them both on a spot at the same time. It didn't matter who did the killing or who got killed. You and Gibbs knew you could hide the dead man's gun... ...and be pretty sure the other one would hang for murder. Say, you're accusing me of... Sheriff, Slick, look. What's wrong with you? The window. See you standing there looking at us? It's that kid, Eddie Samuels. He's wearing the mask of white stats and just like the ghost. What are you talking about? I don't see anything. It's a ghost, Slick. A ghost. He's come back just like he said he would. Come back and blast the critic. Hey, what's all that for? He's gone. Come on. We'll see. Nobody out here now. You can't kill a ghost. You can't square a guilty conscience by shooting at an empty window. You mean to say you didn't see anybody standing here? Of course not. Well, I've got some work to do. I'll see you later. Well, I'll be... Remember what he said to you in the courtroom, Slick? He said, I'll come back from this side of the grave or the other and get even for what you... Go out to the bar and bring me a drink. I've got some thinking to do. Oh, who's that? Who's that? Who's that? He's a big fella. Set arm, Eddie. Here, I'll help you down. Steady, boy. Thanks. Why, this is... I mean, we're right in the back of the furniture store. What's the idea? Bill has what's supposed to be your coffin resting on a table in here. Well, he said he'd leave the back door open. Come on. You too, Tonto. Quiet. Don't make any noise. What are we getting? Stay over here in the shadow. You know what to say when I give you the signal? Sure. Good. I don't think we'll have long to wait. It's a furniture store. I got a key that'll fit the lock. Come on. Let's wait till tomorrow, Slick. I don't like to go poking around in the dark, looking in coffins to see if dead men... Shut up. If he's really dead, I want to know it. Here. Here. Here's the coffin. Oh, don't touch it, Slick. That's the only way to find out... I told you I'd come back, Slick Humper. Hey, what the... It's the ghost of Eddie Sandals. I'll riddle that coffin till it's killed. What are you gonna do? Your gun's empty. He ain't in the box. He's a ghost. See, he's standing right over there and he's... I got another gun to do it. Oh, do you a bit of good. Oh, my arm. Don't shoot anymore. Please don't shoot anymore. It's to you, Slick. Will you tell the truth? Sure, sure we will. Can't argue with the ghost of Slings, real lad. Yeah, I had to get rid of you and Sky Pierce, so I told... Did you hear that, Sheriff? Yep, every word. Keep him covered till I make a light. There we are. Bill... Bill Holley. Say, what is this? A confession that's going to hang you, Slick, and put Ben Grant in prison. But I... I thought he was dead. Oh, Eddie. Gene. Oh, darling. Bill told me the whole story, but I couldn't believe it until I really saw you. I don't think you'll have any more trouble, Sheriff. Not a bit. And I want to thank you... Forget it. Come on, Toto. Wait. You can't leave without... Two of them. I don't see how they could be... You'll have plenty of time to figure it out. In territorial prison. I don't understand it either, Eddie. Who is that man that they think is a ghost? He's the livest ghost you'll ever see. He's the Lone Ranger. The story you have just heard is a copyrighted feature of The Lone Ranger, Incorporated.
