A horse with a speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty high of silver, the Lone Ranger. With his faithful Indian companion, Tonto, the mask 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, from the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse, Silver, the Lone Ranger rides again. Come on, Silver. Let's go, big fellow. I am Silver. Two horsemen drew rain in the shadow of a stone promontory known as Castle Rock, which overlooked the stage trail to Crawford's Gap. Stage ought to be along most any time now. Yeah. Ain't that its dust yonder? Sure is. Right on time. Now remember, Mike, let it get even with Castle Rock before we ride out to stick it up. That'll take the driver by surprise. Want me to cover the driver? Yeah. You take care of him, and I'll take care of the lady and her jewels. I hope she's on this stage. She's got to be on it. She's booked a singing Crawford's Gap tonight. Ain't no other way for her to get there except for this stage. What if she ain't got that Roger Diamond? Ah, she's got it. Handbill's told all about it. I'll bet that jewel draws more people than her singing. I never went much for high-tone singing myself. But I mentioned to get a look at that diamond of hers. You'll get plenty of chance to see it, Mike. Here she comes, Tire. Yeah. Looks like the driver's slowing down for something, don't it? What? Say, what's he going to stop for? The under's two horsemen riding in on it. Hey, one's wearing a mask. The other's an engine. Hey, whose holdup is this? Well, it ain't ours now. If they ain't holding up their stage themselves, they'd sure see us doing it. Let's get back here undercover. Come on, get up. Come on. Well, young man, here's where you said you wanted to get out. Yes, sir. Castle Rock. This is the place, all right. My, but it seems awfully lonely, and there's no one here to meet you. My friends will be along shortly, though. I surely hope so. I enjoyed the trip with you, Miss Mason. It's the first time I ever met an actress. Now, Dan, I told you before, I'm not an actress. I'm a singer. Well, you're on the stage, and that's about the same. Hey, look. Bandits. One of them's wearing a mask. Hey, they're not bandits. They're friends of mine. Ain't no friends of mine. Get up. Get up. Well, of all the big dummies, that stage driver's scared stiff. Thought it was a hold-up. Oh, silver. Oh, Scott. Hold on. Hello, Dan. How are you? Fine, sir. Hello, Tano. Oh. Here, Victor, for you, Dan. Gee, thanks, Tano. Take it easy, fella. Easy, boy. Him glad to see you. You sure scared that stage driver. Look at him go. I suppose he was surprised to see us. So was I. I thought you and Tano would meet me after the stage was out of sight. Shortly before the stage came into view, Tano and I saw two horsemen ride toward Castle Rock here. You did? Yes. This is an ideal spot for a hold-up, Dan. I was afraid you might get mixed up in it, so we rode out to meet the stage. The two horsemen we saw were planning a hold-up, and they changed their minds. Golly. I'm glad you rode out to the trail, then. But you certainly frightened Miss Mason. Miss Mason? Yes, sir. She was the other passenger on the stage. She's an actress. You mean a singer, don't you, Dan? Yes, a singer. Do you know her? Well, there's been a lot of publicity about her. Handbills all over. She's on a western tour. Sure. She's singing at Crawford's Gap on Thursday night. Now I'm certain those men were planning to hold up the stage. The handbills about her said she was the owner of the famous Raja Diamond. Gee. Maybe they'll try to rob her at the opera house. Me three had better ride into Crawford's Gap. Dan, when we get there, I want you to go to Miss Mason and tell her about the two men Tonto and I saw near Castle Rock this afternoon. Warned to put the diamond in a safe place. Yes, sir. I'll see the sheriff and make certain that he'll be ready in case someone tries to rob Miss Mason. All right. Not good. Come on, Silver. Get along, Victor. As the Lone Ranger, Dan, and Tonto rode away, the frustrated highwaymen watched from their place of hiding. Mike, what do you make of that? That masked critter made no attempt to get the jewel. Maybe he didn't know the actress had it. Then why do you stop the stage? How do I know? The point is, Todd, that she still has the diamond. And that means we still got a chance to get it. Come on. We'll go to town. Give it up. Come on. The stage arrived in town to be met by an excited crowd. Oh, there she is. Ain't she, Purdy? Yes, me. Linda Mason here in town. Woo-hoo. Linda Mason was met by her manager and escorted to her dressing room where she might avoid the crowd. A few minutes later, when Terry, the stage driver, brought in her bags, he found the actress alone and on the verge of tears. There's your luggage, Miss Mason. I... Well, great day. You're crying, ain't you? Oh, it's hateful. It's deceitful. For sakes, what is? What's the trouble, ma'am? There's this terrible thing in the newspaper. About you? About a jewel called the Raja Diamond. Oh, that. Say, that must be a humdinger. I wouldn't know. Huh? To think they couldn't sell tickets to hear me sing. They had to trump up a story like this. Cheap publicity. I... I don't savvy, Miss. Oh, that fool. That lying idiot. Who do you mean? My manager. He trumped up a story about a diamond. He's selling tickets for my concert because people want to see the Raja Diamond. Was that diamond that had me worried when them men come up to the stage? I thought they was aiming to rob you. But, Terry, I don't own the Raja Diamond. I... I have nothing that even looks like it. What? You mean they just made it all up? Just to get people to buy tickets. Now, when the audience comes, there'll be no diamond and they'll probably leave as soon as they find it out. Oh, no, Miss. They'll stay just as soon as you start singing. That's their way. But you can't do that to people. Promise them something and get them there under false pretenses. Well, why don't you pretend it was stolen? Stolen? Sure. You just stop worrying about it, Miss. I'll help you out. We'll tell everybody the stage was held up and the diamond was stolen. That'll be good publicity, too. People will want to see you more than ever. I know. We'll say that masked man and the Indian took it. Oh, but, Terry, I'm afraid to do that. I wouldn't want to get people in trouble. Oh, you won't get nobody in trouble, Miss. As long as they didn't do it, they won't get caught. And you'll get a bigger audience than if you really own the diamond. But it seems so wrong to get an audience that way. They'll get more than their money's worth. You're doing them a favor just getting them there. They'll be grateful afterwards. Seems to be the only way out. Now, you just go to the sheriff and report the robbery, and I'll bear you out. This is the first booking on my Western tour. Oh, it must be a success. Yeah, I think so, too. If this concert's a success, and the ones in Denver, Cheyenne, and Points West ought to be good, too. What do you say, Miss Mason? Well, I guess it's all right. But what if the sheriff should shoot the masked man or the Indian we saw this afternoon? Oh, that would be dreadful. They didn't molest us. Oh, Sheriff Cotter ain't shot nobody since he's been in office. Anyhow, that masked ombre and his engine parred have probably pulled stakes and took the kid with him by this time. Yes, I imagine they have, if they're outlaws. The sheriff may come up here to talk to you. You, uh, you cry a little about it if you can. He'll think you're weeping over the loss of your jewel. I'll be getting down there now to report the robbery. And it was the most hair-raising thing you've ever seen, Sheriff. These two critters come riding down on us with their guns blazing. I seen right off they was killers. They wouldn't stop at nothing. When did this happen, Terry? Out near Castle Rock. It's just the sort of a place a couple of highwaymen would pick. They'd know just what they was after, too. They made Miss Mason hand over that diamond of hers. Is that all they stole? Yep, just the Roger diamond. They didn't bother with nothing else on the stage. Didn't even look to see if there was anything else worth stealing. Why didn't you report this sooner? Uh, well, I ain't had a chance. I came here as soon as I could, Sheriff. What'd these crooks look like? Well, one of them was a redskin. I'd know him if I was to see him again. He was riding a paint horse, and a good one. What about the other man? Well, he rode a white horse, Snow White. Not a mark on him anywhere. His face was masked. I couldn't see much of that. Hmm, just one of the men was masked, eh? Yep. All right, Terry. We'll get busy right away. I reckon I'd better talk to Miss Mason. What's that? The stage was robbed? Sure was. Out near Castle Rock. That singer lost the famous Roger Diamond. You don't say. They say she's brokenhearted over the loss of that jewel. I wonder if she's going to sing tomorrow night. Yep, they say so. You know, there's a tradition in the theater that the show must go on. Oh, I'm going to see her. I wasn't much interested in hearing her, though. I'm going, too. I wouldn't miss it. After being frustrated in their plans to hold up the stage at Castle Rock, the two bandits, Tarfoot and Mike, rode into Crawford's Gap to rearrange their plans. The report of the stage robbery soon reached their ears. What do you make of it, Tar? I don't know. One thing we do know is the stage wasn't stuck up. Yeah, that mass fella in Injun rode off after picking up that boy. Sure upset our plans, though. Sure did. It's all set to grab that diamond when they rode in. Before I could think what to do, the stage was gone, the mass fella and his friends was gone. And we were standing there like a couple of dummies. No use crying over spilled milk. Got to make new plans now. But what if the diamond is gone? It ain't gone. There wasn't any robbery at Castle Rock like the stage driver and that girl claims there was. They're up to something. I don't know what, but I'm going to find out. Sheriff Cotter returned to his office after hearing the story of the holdup and the loss of the Roger Diamond from Linda Mason herself. Because there were certain discrepancies between her story and that of Terry, the stage driver, the sheriff decided to think matters over before organizing a posse. He stabled his horse, was about to enter by a rear door, and he saw through the darkness the figure of a man stealthily enter ahead of him. Now, who's that sneaking in the back door of my office this time of night? Well, we'll soon find out. Looking for somebody stranger? Yes, the sheriff. Get him up. I got your coverage, you sidewinder. I'm not an outlaw. You ride a white horse? Yes, why? Got an engine and a kid riding with you? Yes. Why do you ask? Because it's my business to ask questions, that's why. Only I didn't expect to get the answers so easy. Keep your hands up there, mister. This old cannon goes off easy-like. You have the drop on me. I'll explain who I am. You have no more questions, sheriff. Ah, just a minute. As long as you've answered my other questions, maybe you'll answer this one, too. Were you near Castle Rock on the stage trail today? Ah, yes, I was. That's why I came here to talk to you. You admit it. Certainly, I admit it. Well, mister, you saved me some hard riding. Is that so? Yes, sir. I was going out to get you. But instead, you walked right into my office. You were going to look for me? Sure was. You and your two friends. What for? For holding up the stage and robbing that poor little woman of the famous Rajah Diamond. 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. Covered by the gun of the sheriff, the Lone Ranger heard himself accused of robbing the stage. You had that kid get off the stage at Castle Rock so he could signal to you and the engine whether Miss Mason was a passenger. Then you and the engine rode in and robbed her of that famous diamond. That you did, and you admit it. I admit nothing of the sort. The fact of the matter is the stage was not held up at all. Wasn't held up? I've got two witnesses who say it was, and they'll swear that you done it. Now I'm done palavering with you. Going to lock you up. Keep your hands high there. Turn around slow like. That's it. Now I'll take those shooting iron. Now I'll do it. Got him, Kimasabi. I was watching you creep up on him, Tonto. An engine. Locked the window early. I don't reach for that gun, Sheriff. You'll not need it. Now you've got me disarmed. What are you going to do with me, you sidewinding collude? I'm not going to do anything with you. I only hope you'll answer my questions as frankly as I answered yours. I'll not answer questions asked by a sidewinder. I told you before, Tonto and I are not bandits. Here, look at that. A silver bullet. Say, what you call this engine? Tonto. And you ride a big white stallion? Named Silver. Will you answer my questions now? I'll answer any questions you can ask. At about the same time that the Lone Ranger walked into the Sheriff's office, Linda Mason was listening to a glowing report from Terry, the stage driver. I'm telling you, Miss Mason, the story's spreading like wildfire all over town. I just come up Main Street and was stopped two dozen times. Folks wanting to know all about it. The manager of the aqua house just told me all the tickets are sold. Did the sheriff come up here? Yes, he came. I'm not certain that he believed the story, Terry. Sure he did. Any way you'll have to believe there's nobody around to disprove it. Wonder who that is. Probably the manager. Come in. Hello. The manager said I said come on up to your dressing room. It's the kid that was on the stage. Where did you come from? Golly. What a reception. You'd think I was a ghost. Have you seen the sheriff? No. My friend's gone over to talk to him, though. Your friend? You mean the man with the mask? Sure. He wanted to talk to him about about that Raja Diamond of yours. Holy smokes. The sheriff will shoot him down when he sees him. I knew something awful would happen. Why did you get me into this? Listen, kid. Dad, why did you come here? I came to warn Miss Mason. Warn her? About what? That there may be an attempt to rob her of Raja Diamond. Say, what's all this about? Maybe we'd better tell him, Miss Mason. Yes. Perhaps we'd better tell you the truth, Dan. While Linda and Terry told Dan how the complicated situation had developed and why the Lone Ranger and Tonto had been charged with highway robbery, the Lone Ranger listened to the sheriff. Then Terry went into a description of you and your Indian friend. And accused us of stealing the Raja Diamond? That's right. Did you believe his story? Well, I did at first. Then as I thought it over, there was things about it that didn't ring true. I can remember when Terry was held up and a stage robbed a year ago. He flew in here like a redskin on the warpath, started howling about robbery before he was off their stagecoach. I see. And the same with the ones that was robbed. They were storming around and demanding that I start a posse out to hunt for the robbers. And this time it was different, huh? Mighty different. Terry drove up the same as usual without saying a word about a robbery. Miss Mason went to a room and unpacked her bags. Then I got to thinking things over. It didn't seem right that a girl that had been robbed of anything as valuable as that there Raja Diamond would take the time to unpack her things before she makes a report of the loss. Why did the stage driver say there was a robbery? I don't know. It beats me. It ain't like Terry. He's always been one of the most honest men in town. And Miss Mason isn't the time to start such a story without any foundation. Of course she ain't. She wouldn't risk her reputation by doing anything like that. But why should they tell such a yarn if it wasn't true? Sheriff, let me ask you a question. Go ahead. Has there been a good sale of tickets for Miss Mason's concert? Sale of tickets? Well, I reckon so. There wasn't much interest in it at first. People around here ain't particularly interested in singers. At the first? Then we heard about that jewel that Miss Mason is said to own. And then folks started buying tickets. They did? Yeah, they began to go like hotcakes. Women folks insisted that their men take them to see Miss Mason. They was more interested in seeing her wear the jewel than they was in hearing her sing. I see. Sheriff, I'm going to talk to Miss Mason. Now? Yes. Would you go with me? You bet I will. Toto, take care of the horses, please. All right. You do it. All right. Come on, Sheriff. I'm right with you. Dan Reed could hardly believe the strange story that Linda Mason and the stage driver told. When they'd finished, he said, And you told the sheriff that my friend stole the Roger Diamond? Yes, Dan. I'm ashamed to say I did. Dan, I reckon it's my fault. I wanted to help her out. But, Terry, charging somebody with robbery is serious. Don't you know that? I never expected to see you or your friends again. I thought you were outlaws. So did Miss Mason. Who is your masked friend, Dan? If he's not an outlaw, why does he wear that mask? Never mind now. I've got to get over to the sheriff's office and tell him and my friend what this is all about. It ruined me. Wait, Dan. You, you stay here with Miss Mason. I started all this. It's up to me to straighten it out, if possible. What are you going to do? I'm going to the sheriff. Tell him the truth. Maybe he'll understand. Sure. I'll stay here with her. If my friend is there, tell him where I am and then I understand. I'll tell him, Dan. I'll wait here until you get back. Why did I ever agree to tell him such a story? Now, that's all right. When the... I mean my friend. When he knows the truth, he'll understand. So will the sheriff. I hear somebody coming down the hall. Now, remember, if it's the sheriff and my friend, they'll understand everything. Don't worry. Oh, this is the place. Yeah. And that's her. Who are you and what do you want? Well, I'll be... Hey, Mike, he's the kid that was on the stage. Sure he is. But what's he doing here? You must be officers, deputies. This boy's not guilty of anything. There's been a mistake. What's she talking about, Tar? Tar? Say, you're Tarfoot Tully. So what? You're an outlaw. An outlaw. Keep your voice down, lady. A gun? Yes, a gun. A real one. Shut the door, Mike. Now, lady, where is it? Where's what? Come on, quit stalling. That story about the stage robbery is all bunk. Where's that diamond? There isn't any diamond. I'd bop you one, kid, if I didn't want to talk to you later. It's true that there is no jewel like that. Want me to smack him one time? You big boy. That'll be enough from you. Search them bags, Mike. That diamond's in one of them. We'll take care of this smart kid later. I hear somebody coming down the hall. Now, listen, lady, and you, kid, no matter who comes in here, don't pipe up. Me and Mike will have both of you covered from behind the door. Come in? Sheriff! You wasn't expecting me back so soon, I reckon. I just come over to pick up this boy here. You came for me? Yeah. The masked man confessed to the whole thing. Confessed? You're crazy. Oh, Sheriff, there must be some mistake. No mistake about it. Kid here swiped the diamond right out of your purse when he was riding in the streets beside you. Are you crazy? Yeah, you might as well quit stalling, kid. The masked man admitted everything after I found the diamond on him. But that's impossible. No, it ain't. Look here, kid. Did you ever see this diamond before? Huh? Look close in the palm of my hand. Ever see that diamond before? Sure. Yeah. I... I've seen it before. It's the one you took out of Miss Mason's purse on the stage course today, ain't it, kid? Yes. I took it. In my purse? But I can't understand. Nothing to understand about it, Miss Mason. The masked man confessed first, now this boy's confessed. And I've got the famous Roger Diamond right in my hand to prove it. Hand it over, Sheriff. What? You can't get away with this. Get your hands up. I got him. Now drop that diamond. Pick it up, Mike. I'll get it. Say, this ain't no diamond. This is a bullet. A silver bullet. Why, you... Drop that gun. Mask, hombre. Get him, Mike. Now get your hands up. You're not... Oh, my arm. You're not hurt. Put the cuffs on them, Sheriff. It worked just like you said it would. The minute I showed Dan Reed the silver bullet, he knew just what we was up to. I'll never forgive myself for causing all this trouble. Trouble? You've done this town a favor. We've been looking for those two fellas for a year. But... But, Sheriff, why did Dan confess? You... You see, there was no diamond in my purse. It was this way, Miss Mason. When Terry, the stage driver, started over to my office, he saw Tarfoot and his pal Mike go in the back door of the opera house, didn't you, Terry? Yep, and I recognize them. They tried to hold up my stage a year ago. We wanted to force the hand, so the masked man gave me the silver bullet and told me what to say. That brought Tarfoot and Mike out from behind the door in gun range for the masked man. He was covering the sheriff in the hall. But... But I can't understand how Dan Reed knew what you were doing just because he saw a silver bullet. Why, a silver bullet meant just one thing to Dan. It meant something? Why? It meant that the Lone Ranger wasn't far off. You mean the masked man? That's him, all right. He's the Lone Ranger. The story you have just heard is a copyrighted feature of the Lone Ranger, Incorporated. The Lone Ranger is just...
