A fiery horse with a speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty Hi-Yo Silver, the Lone Ranger. With his faithful Indian companion, Tonto, the daring and resourceful masked rider of the plains led the fight for law and order in the early western United States. 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 come the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse Silver. The Lone Ranger rides again. Titus Henderson was dying. And while the grizzled old prospector and cattleman wasn't afraid of death, he resented the fact that it came so soon. There were many questions still unanswered, much work still undone. That was why he had summoned Monty Craft, the ranch foreman, and Jason Wicks, his lawyer, to the bedside while he read his will. This, this last clause is what I'm interested in. If, after a diligent and thorough search, it is established that my daughter, Lucinda Henderson, is deceased, and she has left no legal heirs, then, and only then, shall my estate pass to Mr. Monty Craft. Don't you worry, Mr. Henderson. That will is going to be carried out to the left. I doubt it. Neither of you gents has got me fooled for a minute. I trusted one man, and I lost my daughter. I'll never... Henderson! Is he dead? Yes, I'm afraid so. Now go out and tell the doctor that he's... Wait a minute. There's plenty of time for that. What about the old geezer's will? You read it. All we have to do is prove that his daughter is dead, and she left no heirs. That's easy. If we couldn't find after searching this long, she's dead. The only catch is a gent named Brett Fargo. I told you where I traced Fargo. He's doing 25 years in territorial prison down south. He's out of the way for... That's not enough. We've got to make sure he's out of the way for good. How? There's a law against walking into prison and killing a man. You won't have to do it personally. I won't? What do you mean? I'll tell you later. You better get your grip packed. You're heading south tomorrow. Brett Fargo, walking ahead of the guard toward the visitor's room in territorial prison, was a small man well past middle age. His thin lips and cloudy gray eyes screened thoughts that were never spoken, plans of escape that would someday be fulfilled. Most of the plans hinged on a loaded Colt .45, that was well hidden under the mattress in his cell. Oddly enough, Brett thought of this as the guard ushered him into the visitor's room. Somebody to see you, Fargo. That gent right over there. Thanks. Well, don't try any shenanigans, because I'll be waiting right outside the door. Hello, Brett. Jason Wicks. What are you doing down here? I... Well, I heard about your trouble. Thought I'd come down and offer some legal advice. Don't want your kind of advice, Jason? Now or ever? Well, I suppose all convicted criminals are prejudiced against... Tell me what you want, Wicks. How'd you find out I was here? Why, look up all my friends and possible clients. Another thing. I just happened to have a copy of a Colorado newspaper, the Austinville News. There's a story here on the front page that... What? ...might interest you. Now listen. It says, Titus Henderson, prominent rancher and mining man, passed away yesterday morning. Henderson? Dead? Here's the rest of the item. It says the Henderson ranch and mining properties will undoubtedly pass to Mr. Monty Craft, foreman, as there are no Henderson heirs. So Monty Craft finally got what he's been trying to steal for the last 20 years. Well, anyway, Monty gets the ranch and that mysterious mine nobody's ever seen, because there's no trace of the old man's daughter. I think her name was Lucy. Oh, that's all? You don't know anything about her disappearance, do you? Why should I? No reason. I just wanted to be sure that... I mean, it's a shame she doesn't know about Titus, if she's alive. For once, Jason Wicks, you're telling the truth. It is a shame. If I were out of here... You'll be getting out, Brett, won't you? Someday. Sure. About 10 years? Too bad. I was just about to suggest a plan to make it sooner than that. What kind of a plan? Tonight. What? Oh, I bought off the guard. You'll open your cell at midnight. You'll find a rope hanging over the wall at the end of the yard. How about a getaway? It's all arranged. I'll be waiting for you outside the wall. I don't know why you're doing this, Jason, but I'll play along. Good. By the way, you don't have a gun, do you? Why? Well, no, no. Of course not. A guard will slip you one. Understand? Sure. I understand. Time's up, Fargo. Well, so long, Brett. I'll see you some other time. I'm sure you will, Jason. At midnight, the door to Brett Fargo's cell was unlocked, and a guard pressed a gun into his hand. He kept his own gun, the one he had kept hidden for so long, beneath his shirt. Brett moved quickly through a darkened prison corridor, across the open yard, and to the stone wall where a slender rope hung free. A few moments later, he had climbed the wall, and he paused to catch his breath, and jumped into total darkness. Over here, Jason. There he is, guard. The prisoner's trying to escape, and he's got an empty gun. Empty? Why are you going to call him at him? No, you won't. You... You've got another gun. Reach, Jason, or I'll blow that lion head of yours into a million pieces. I'll shut up, you double-crossing scum. I don't know why you tried this, you and Monty Craft, but I've got a good hunt, so I'm going to play it. Oh, I didn't know that... I'm going to plug you, but I don't want a murder charge against me. So this will have to do... Oh! The lone ranger in Tonto had made camp not far from the walls of territorial prison. They'd been asleep for several hours when the masked man suddenly threw aside his blankets and spoke to Tonto. Tonto, you hear that gunfire a few minutes ago? Seemed to come from close by. Yeah, me hear it. Freeze! First one of you armies that moves will get his spine split with a bullet. Behind us, Tonto. Don't move. That's good advice, stranger. Now stand up. All right. Keep your hands in the air. Turn around. Well, I'll be... A masked hombre and an Indian. Outlaws, huh? What do you think? I guess I'm in the right company. I just busted out of prison. Well, what do you want from us? A horse, mister. One that can travel fast. So you're going to take one of ours? Yeah. That paint over there. Hmm. You don't look like a horse thief. I'm not stealing your coyotes. Just borrowing them. I'll ride till he's winded and then pick up another one. Do you mind telling us which way you're heading? North. Call it paint over here. Or I'll drill you both and take him. If you don't believe I... All right. Call him, Tonto. Ah. You scout. All right. Smart-looking mount. I don't move, either of you. You, Injun, saddle that horse. I'm mighty grateful to you, gents. If you happen to follow my trail, you might find this critter along about, son. For hours, the Lone Ranger and Tonto, riding double on silver, trailed the outlaw who had stolen Scout. About an hour after sunrise, they reached the outskirts of a small town. Tonto was the first to sight what they were looking for. He must have it. That's Scout. Him wait. Yes, you're right. Oh, oh, Silver. Oh, my food. Scout, bloody tired. Oh, that's hard, right. Right there, Silver. But... Both the horses are tired, Tonto. They overheard a few hours and hit the trail again. Ah. Cook leave, horse. Just like him say. Yes, he kept his promise. That's what puzzles me. We're going to follow that man, Tonto, no matter how far north he goes. It was almost a week later when Brett Fargo rode to a small ranch in southern Colorado. He was dead tired from many hours on the trail. But his eyes brightened when the door of the ranch house was opened by a very pretty girl. Dad? Where in the world did you... Oh, Dad. Lucy, honey. Thank heaven you're safe. Why, of course I'm safe. But where'd you come from? South, down in the territory. But, Dad, in your last letter, it was a long time ago, you said you might go to South America or someplace like that and that you might not be back for... Yes, I know, Lucy. But that wasn't the truth. Not the... Come on inside, Dad. You must be tired. Here, sit in this big chair. Yes. I don't know how to start. Start what? Lucy, I want to tell you a story about a crazy old cowpoke who was working on a mountain ranch here in Colorado about 20 years ago. All right. Who was this crazy cowpoke? I'll get to that. This fellow wasn't very smart. He had a fight with his boss. So for revenge, he took the boss's motherless little kid and hightailed it. You mean he ran away with a baby? Yeah. Who was the man that did that? Me. You mean your... Yeah, and I'm sure not proud of what I've done. The scheme kind of backfired on me anyway. I thought I was hurting my ex-boss. But right from the first, I raised the kid. The little Jigger sort of got a hold of my heart. She called me Dad. But I'm the only one... You mean I was the... That's right, Lucy. You were that little girl. If... If... I mean, then who's my real father? A man named Titus Henderson. But he's dead. Died last week on his ranch over on the western slope. Your right name isn't Fargo, like mine. It's Henderson. Lucy Henderson. Henderson? I don't care. I like Lucy Fargo better. Besides, you're the only dad I've ever known. I don't want to change. You don't understand, Lucy. I'm a crook. I've been in territorial prison down south. I broke out the minute I heard that Titus was dead and that you might be... I don't care what you've been or what you are. You're my dad. And you'll always be. I don't deserve... Lucy, honey, tell me, do you still have that little baby locket that you used to wear? The locket? Oh, of course. Here it is, around my neck. I've always worn it. Remember how you used to tell me it was a magic locket? It is magic, Lucy. More than you know. There's horses here, Tonto, but he's nowhere in sight. I'll try the front door. Will you wait? No, you'd better come along. I think we've finally reached the end of the trail. 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. ...to our story. The Lone Ranger and Tonto walk toward the ranch house where they had trailed to Brett Fargo. Keep your gun handy, Tonto. Ah. I must have caught a slug in my hand. You're not hurt. My bullet just knocked down your gun. Give him a cover, Tonto. Ah. Dad! Oh, Dad, you're hurt. I stayed in the kitchen until... Oh, a masked man. Excuse me, miss. I expected a surprise, but not a woman. Outlaws busting into a man's house. You were trying to kill me, but you shot too high. What do you want? You a lawman? No. Look here, stranger. I'm not going to... You're going to talk and talk fast. I'll tell you what it's all about. My name is Brett Fargo. The girl here is Lucy. Lucy Henderson. The truth. All you want to do is prove that Miss Lucy is the legal heir of the Henderson Ranch and mine. That's right. And if I can do that, I'll be willing to go back to territorial for the rest of my life. And you think Jason Wicks and Monty Craft tried to have you killed because they're afraid Miss Lucy's still alive? They don't know for sure. They wanted me out of the way to be on the safe side. Have you any way to prove that all of the estate belongs to this young lady? Lucy can prove it. Why, Dad. Good. And we'll head for Austinville. We? Are you and the Indian going to help, Dad? Yes. And the sooner we start, the better. Come on. I'll help you saddle your horses. It was late the following afternoon on the rocky bank of a winding mountain stream that was part of the Henderson Ranch when Monty Craft's patience began to wear thin. All right, Jason. Pitch another bucket of that gravel out of the pit. We'll run it through the rocker. We don't seem to be getting anywhere, Monty. This pit can't be the old man's placer of mine. We've washed almost a ton of this stuff. Not a speck of gold so far. If you ask me, Titus' gold mine story is just that. Story. No one ever really saw... He got gold from somewhere. He bought plenty of land. Stocked with first-class beef. You heard what he said before he died. I tell you, Monty, we're wasting our time. Shut up. You can't tell me anything. You haven't done your part of this job yet. What do you mean? Well, for all we know, Brett Fargo's got that Henderson girl hidden out someplace. I don't believe it. Well, I do. And you were going to have Fargo killed so he couldn't get to the girl. I did frame it, Monty, but he... Yeah? All you did was break the ombry out of prison. How did I know he'd have his own... And right now, it's a good bet he's on the prod. Headed this way. Brett Fargo can't do anything. He did plenty to you. Bless your land. Suppose a Henderson girl is alive. Can't prove it. She could come into Austin, do. Raise an awful ruckus because I inherited this property. You've got the ranch, haven't you? What do you care about a fake gold mine that doesn't even exist? Shut up. I'm tired of listening to alibis. I'm up the tool shack. It's getting too dark to wash gravel. There's no use of blowing up like this, Monty. Oh, stop beefing. Let's go up the shack. A few moments later, four riders guided their mounts through a mountain pass that marked one boundary of the Henderson Ranch. The lone ranger was in the lead. Brett Fargo and Lucy followed and Tonto brought up the rear. Brett Fargo brought his horse to a halt. He dismounted quickly. The others followed suit. Here we are. This is it. What, Dad? What are you talking about? The mime. Follow me and I'll show you. Here's an open pit that looks like a placer mine. Oh, this is nothing but a common gravel pit. Titus and I used to... Evidently, someone thinks it's a placer mine. There's a sluice box and rocker down by the creek. Well, I'll be... Monty Craft. He must have been up here. Jason Wicks, too, if he ever got over that punch in the jaw I gave him. If this isn't a gold mine, where is it, Brett? Dad, are you sure that... See that little tool shed across the canyon? Yes. That's an odd place to put a tool shed. How do you reach it? Cable car and bucket. We rigged up a block and tackle outfit so as we could get... Oh, yes. I see the cable now. Is the mine over there? See, I was working for Titus when he staked this claim. He wanted to keep the whole thing a secret, so we figured out a scheme. I don't understand. Then when you was just a little tyke, Lucy, he decided to put the mine in your name. So he had a deed drawn up and gave it to you. You've carried it with you ever since. Carried it with me? That's impossible. If I was too small to remember my father, how could I... The answer is simple, Lucy. That's from the other side. The tool shed. Monty. Monty Craft. We've got to keep down. Kimasadi, that shot come from pass. Brett, is there any other way off this clearing? Just the cable and the trail through the pass where we came in. Those are both covered. They're shooting over our heads now, but if they drop their fire, we're trapped. Not as long as I can sling lead with this .45. Wait. You'll only show them exactly where we are. Low down, scum. No, Brett. Don't stand up. If they're in that shack across the canyon, they can see every move you make. I'm going to show them right now. Dan. Dan, you're... Now, don't move. You'll make the same mistake he did. But he's then wounded. Wait. I'll try to reach him and pull him back behind this rock. Lucy. Dan. Do what you can for him. I don't know. I'll try to find some way to get off this clearing without getting killed. Remember, keep down. Don't show your head above this rock. I'll remember. Lucy. I... I think that bullet had my name on it. No. No, you'll be all right. We'll get a doctor. We're 20 miles from the nearest doctor. Besides, it wouldn't last that long. Lucy. Lucy, listen to me. What is it, Dan? A mine. A gold mine. I don't care anything about... It's yours, child. Don't let Monty Craft or any of the skunks cheat you. I won't. You've got the legal proof right with you. And one more thing, Lucy. Yes. Call me Dad just once more. Will you, Lucy? You are my dad. The best father a girl ever had. Thanks. It's worth anything it ever cost me. I'm sorry. Isn't there anything I could do? The most important job now is to try to save ourselves. How? How can we? There's only one chance I can get across that canyon and come up behind the tool shack. You heard what Dad said. The cable is the only way across. No, it isn't. Toto. Wait here with Miss Lucy, Toto. I'm going to try a long shot. Ah, me do it. What do you mean, long shot? Ask my horse to do the impossible. Wait here and keep out of sight. The masked man bent low and ran zigzag fashion across the open clearing. Flying lead missed him by inches but he finally reached the large rock behind which Silver was waiting. He mounted the great white stallion quickly and spoke in a low voice. Say, big fella. That's up to us, Silver. I mean, it's up to you. That's a 15-foot jump across the gorge. Can we make it? All right, big fella. Here we go. Come on, Silver. Like a bolt of silver lightning, the powerful white stallion shot from behind the protecting rocks and raced across the clearing to the edge of the canyon. There he seemed to pause for just an instant as though he was waiting to hear the Lone Ranger's urgent cry. Jump, Silver. Jump, boy. Then he hurled himself with a masked rider through the air and across the gaping canyon. And a moment Silver's hooves touched the earth, the Lone Ranger shouted his admiration. Good work, boy. I knew you'd do it. Over to the right, back of that tool shed. Oh, Silver, oh, silly fella. Rub your hands, both of you. What the? Back of us. Mask. It's a masked rower. The same one who was over by the pit. Don't know how he got here, but I'm... No, you won't. Stop yelling. Neither of you seriously hurt unless you drop those guns out. No, we won't. All right, I won't. You've got us. Now what? We're going to march out of here. Get into that cable car and cross the canyon. I still can't figure out how you... Just a minute. Before we leave the shack, I want one of you to stomp on the floor as hard as you can. Stomp on the... Are you a loco? You'd better do what I say or... What's the idea of this? That's enough. Sounds rather hollow, doesn't it? For a shack that's apparently built on solid rock. So what? You wouldn't understand. Even if you did, it wouldn't do you any good. Get moving. Both of you. Across the canyon a few moments later, the masked man's prisoners were securely bound hand and foot. All right, Toto. I'll go back to the cable, get Silver, and ride into Austinville and get the sheriff. You wait here with Miss Lucy. I still can't understand what this is all about. Dad, I mean, Brett died trying to protect what he thought was a gold mine. But there's no mine here. I think I know at least part of the answer, Miss Lucy. Walk over toward my horse with me. See, the mine isn't on this side of the canyon. It's over there underneath an old tool shed. Underneath? I'm sure of it. I think there's a vertical shaft sunk beneath the shed. Titus Henderson must have built it that way to keep it hidden. Anyone seeing the gravel pit would naturally think that was it. I don't know what to say. But from what I overheard Brett tell you, the real proof is in that locket you have around your neck. My locket? Open it and see. I... No, there's nothing inside. Doesn't it have two sides? Open the back. All right. I... Why, there's a... It looks like a folded piece of tissue paper. Here, I'm so nervous, I... Let me have a... Yes. This is it, Lucy. A legal deed to the Golden Lucy Mine. It's made out to you and signed by your real father, Titus Henderson. You mean I... I really own a gold mine? And a cattle ranch, too, from the looks of it. Oh, I... I wish that Dad... I mean, Brett were here to... I think Brett Fargo finished his life exactly the way he wanted it to end. Wait here with Tonto. I'll be back soon. Oh, I... Tonto? You call me. You're a friend of that man in the mask. Maybe you can tell me. Does he always do this? Try to help everyone? Ah. Him, Lone Ranger. The story you have just heard is a copyrighted feature of the Lone Ranger Incorporated. POP! THE END THE END THE END
