fiery horse with a speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty hi-o 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. Come on, still there. Let's go, big fellow. I'll still there. The Lone Ranger and his Indian companion, Tonto, were heading toward the town of Possum Gap. They traveled leisurely, and the tall man in the white Stetson smiled reminiscently beneath his mask as he looked at the narrow rock-walled pass ahead of them. That dead man's pass ahead. Yes, Tonto. The pass got its name before Marshal Gilbert came to Possum Gap. Ah. Him make plenty change in town. He's a wise and courageous man. Ah. And him plenty handy with six-shooter. The man who could tame Possum Gap had to be. Him tame town, all right. Clean out bad armories. Make town good place to live. You plan to see Marshal, fellow? Well, I hope to see him, Tonto. Tonto, we were very close friends. Ah. You helped him clean up Possum Gap. I'd also like to see Sam Witherby. Him own big mine and hills? Yes, that's right. Sam must have taken a lot of gold out of his Lady Luck mine the last few years. It's one of the richest loads around here. I think that... Tonto, look ahead. Ah. Let me see him. Horse without rider. Just inside the entrance to the pass. Horse not try to run away. Come on, Tonto. Come on, Silver. Get him up, Scout. Oh, Silver. Come on, Scouts. Tonto, there's his rider. Easy, big fella. Ah. Him not move. Tonto, this man stopped a bullet. Ah, him dead. We'll turn him over and see if he's anyone we know. Then we'll look. Ah. That Marshal Gilbert. Shot in the back. I thought that big gray stallion looked familiar. Horse stay close to master. The fella who shoot, Marshal, stand behind rocks over there. Yes, he was shot just as he started through dead man's pass. Ah. And what we do? We're going to bring his murderer to justice. Ah. Come on, Tonto. Let's look for tracks. Now, Kemosabe. What? Four riders come this way. Probably townsmen. They can take the body back to town. Maybe it's not good then see Maskman near dead Marshal. We can't leave now, Tonto. They've already seen us. Get set for a fast getaway in case we have trouble. I'll be ready. All right, don't reach for those guns, mister. You're covered. I'm not looking for gunplay. Hey, there's the Marshal's horse. Yeah, here's Marshal Gilbert. He's dead. Why'd you shoot the Marshal? Did he recognize you? We didn't shoot him. We just came to the pass. Saw his horse without a rider. We're about to investigate when you came up. Well, it's mighty thin, mister. Maybe the Marshal figured to take you in. Maybe you're the one who's been causing all the trouble around here lately. Marshal Gilbert was a friend of mine. You must think we were born yesterday, stranger. Marshal Gilbert wasn't one to make friends with Mask Owl Hoot. Take his gun, Jerry. Right. I'm Jeff Barnes and head of the vigilante committee in Possum Gap, mister. Now that the Marshal's dead, I reckon that puts me in charge. I'm going to take off that mask of yours and see if you're anyone we know. Before you try to unmask me, take me to Sam Weatherby. He'll verify my story. He can tell you the Marshal and I were friends. I don't know what your game is, mister, but you must know plenty. You figure you're safe asking to be taken to Weatherby. Well, you're stalling. Take his gun, Duncan. All right. If you won't be reasonable. Hey, what? That's Eric Duncan. You'll use him for a shield. Don't fire. You'll hit Duncan. Take it easy and you won't get hurt. Yeah, let him have it, boys. Don't let him bluff you. Jeff, if we fire, we'll hit Duncan. We can't do that. Oh, don't shoot, men. I don't know. Take their gun. Let me do it. Mister, you'll regret this. We'll see. Good. I'll take this man's guns. Mister, if I ever get my hands on you, you'll pay for holding me like this. You're coming with me. What? The rest of you. We'll leave your guns about 200 yards away. You can pick them up as you come along the trail. Now you, get on my horse. Me? Yes, you. You won't get far. I'll have men scouting this county from border to border looking for you. Will we meet again, Barnes? Yeah, you bet we will. Easy, big fella. Ready, Tonto? Be ready. Come on, Silver. All right, hit the saddle. I'll pay a $500 bonus to the man that gets the masked man to India. All right, get it back. Tonto, the Lone Ranger, and Jerry Duncan, whom the masked man had made his prisoner, rode hard for some time. Satisfied that they had enough of a lead to permit a halt, the Lone Ranger signaled to Tonto. Oh, get down. Easy. I guess this is where you let me have it. Bullet in the back, huh? All I want from you is information. What? What's happened in Possum Gap? It used to be a peaceful place to live. Folks settled here, raised their families. Yes, I know all that. I'm interested in what's going on now. Look here, mister. Are you on the level? I didn't kill Marshal Gilbert, if that's what you mean. He was a friend of mine. I came to Possum Gap expecting to see him. I found him dead on the trail. I want to know what's behind his murder. Somehow, I believe you're telling the truth. Now suppose you give me the facts. It started about a year ago. Every time old Sam Weatherby made a shipment of gold from the Lady Luck mine, the stage was robbed. Guards and drivers were killed. So no one would know who's behind the dirty work, I guess. Go on. Sam and Marshal Gilbert were boiling mad. Seems 18, the town in the old days, and they weren't going to sit still for any ruckus racing. The two of them had their heads together all the time, tracking and trailing. I worked for Sam as foreman at the mine. One night about six months ago, he told me he thought he had a lead on who was causing all the trouble. He was going in to see Marshal Gilbert. Yes. He never got to town. He was shot in the back on the trail, just like the Marshal was. I see. His daughter Sally had come from the east about a month before Sam was killed. She took over the mine. Are the shipments still being stopped? Mister, operations at the mine have stopped. Miss Sally's afraid to mine gold. She figures as long as it stays in the ground, no one's going to kill stage drivers or guards to get at it. That's how things stand now. See. The crew at the mine's sitting, twiddling their thumbs. The whole town's afraid to raise its head. Jeff Barnes organized the vigilantes when he saw the Marshal wasn't getting any place. He even thought the Marshal might be behind the trouble. Duncan, I'm going to leave you here. Without a horse, you can't... Those vigilantes are on our trail. They'll be along any minute. You get back to town, all right. Here's your gun. Oh, but I'll take out the cartridges. Mister, I'm no killer. No, I don't think you are. But I'll take no chances. All right, thanks for the information. Now, adios. So long. Come on, Tonto. Easy, big fella. Ready. Come on, Silver. Get up, Silver. After leaving Jerry Duncan, the lone ranger and Tonto guided Scout and Silver along the bed of a shallow stream for several miles. The ground on either side of them was hard packed. Oh, Silver. Oh, Scout. Oh, fella. Easy, fella. Well, what we do now, Kimo, Sammy? I'm going back to town, Tonto. Steady, big fella. Will you wear a disguise? Yes. Help me help get clothes from saddlebags. Good enough. Vigilantes, maybe no silver. Yes, that's true. We'll have to disguise him, too. News of Marshal Gilbert's death spread through possum gap like wildfire. Men stood in front of stores and the town's hotel discussing it at length. None of them paid particular attention to the stallion of nondescript color or the tall man in the saddle as he guided the horse along the town's dusty main street. No one recognized the rider as the lone ranger. It was almost sunset when he dismounted at the hitch rail in front of the general store. He recognized the black horse next to Silver as the one Jeff Barnes had been riding. The lone ranger, disguised as an itinerant cowpuncher, was looping Silver's reins over the rail when Jeff Barnes came out of the general store with Sally Weatherby. Jerry Duncan followed them as they made their way to a buckboard near the hitch rail. Do you really think your riders will be able to catch that masked man and the Indians? Well, I hope so, Sally. I offered a bonus to the man who does. Some of the boys are still looking. Your men won't find them unless they've holed up someplace. In that case, maybe they can be trapped. Catching up with them is another thing. Seems to me you could have stuck with the searching party, Duncan. Well, maybe you have reason to hope the masked man won't be caught. Now, listen, Barnes... You made it awful easy for him to reach out and grab you so the rest of us couldn't shoot. Why, you, if Miss Sally wasn't here, I... You'd what? Boys, boys, please. Jeff, I'm sure you're wrong. Well, maybe. Sally, did your dad know any masked man? Perhaps he did before I came out here, but he never mentioned any to me. Well, this critter asked us to take him to Sam Weatherby. Maybe he didn't know that two months ago Sam got the same as Marshal Gilbert did. Yeah, maybe he was playing it smart, trying to take us off guard. You defending him, Duncan? Listen, Barnes, if you're looking for trouble... Hold on, Jerry. Jeff, Dad wouldn't have hired Jerry if he weren't reliable. I trust him. You're an Easterner, Sally. You don't... Please, Jeff. Well, all right. Sally, why don't you clear out of this territory? This is no place for a woman. You need someone to protect you. She's got the whole crew of the Lady Luck mine to protect her. Well, they didn't do such a good job protecting her father. I'll buy you out, Sally. I don't know, Jeff. You can't let the mine stand idle forever. And every time you make a gold shipment, you lose money. You should sell out. Why should she sell a mine as rich as the Lady Luck? Because it's not safe for a woman to be running it. Oh, you know how I feel about you, Sally. Miss Sally, it's getting close to sunset. Yes. Jeff, I've got to get on home. I'll drive the buckboard, ma'am, and leave my horse at the livery stable. Fine, Jerry. You might as well leave that one spur you're wearing with your horse, Duncan. What happened to the other one, huh? Oh, you've lost a spur, Jerry. That's funny. I didn't notice it. Well, so long, Barnes. Goodbye, Sally. If you need me... I'll be all right, Jeff. Well, I can't help worrying about you. My ranch is close to your place. You just send one of your boys to get me if you have any trouble. The Lone Ranger went into the general store, bought a few supplies, and prepared to return to the place where he had left Tonto. Meanwhile, Tonto had gone by a roundabout route to Dead Man's Pass, where he and the Lone Ranger had found the marshal's body. Finding the body gone, he went over behind the rocks to where the killer had waited in ambush. Maybe me fine tracks here. The rays of a western sunset glinted on a shiny object that immediately caught the Indian's attention. Here's a spur. Maybe it belonged to killer. Tonto was about to put the spur in his saddlebag when suddenly... No, you don't, Redskin. Stay where you are. Get your hands up and keep in there. Well, who are you? We've been waiting behind the rocks. We saw you right up. Yeah. Well, take that spur you found. Take his guns, too, Slick. Yeah, Pete, I aim to. What'll we do with him? Take him to the boss. He's good for $250. Hey, that's right. The boss promised us a $500 bonus for the Indian and his partner. Where's the masked man, Redskin? Me not talk. You better talk, Indian, because it don't matter to us whether we take in dead or alive. 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. Taken by surprise in Dead Man's Pass, Tonto stood with his hands upraised in front of two men who kept their guns on him. He knew that to resist capture would be useless, so he permitted the men to take his weapons, but he refused to answer questions. Ah, it's no use, Slick. He won't tell us where his masked partner is. Hey, we better take him to the boss. The way things are working out, maybe the Redskin and that masked man will fit into his plans better than Jerry Duncan. Slick, you get the horses from behind them rocks. Right. Bringing their horses from the protection of huge boulders, the two men known as Slick and Pete mounted and forced Tonto to mount Scout. Get on your horse, Indian. Now get going. Get him up, Tonto. Get up. The early evening moon was brilliant, bathing the trail ahead in a light that was almost as bright as day. The Lone Ranger was returning from the town of Possum Gap. He had been riding hard when he sighted three riders approaching in the distance. He got his silver to a shadowy clump of Cottonwoods to one side of the trail and prepared to wait until the oncoming horseman passed. The great horse, Silver, threw his head back and whinnied uneasily. Easy, big fella. It was then that the Lone Ranger noticed something familiar about one of the approaching horses. That looks like Scout. As the riders came closer, he saw his Indian companion riding in front of the two other horsemen. The vigilantes must have found our hiding place. If they take Tonto to town, he may be lynched for the murder of Marshal Gilbert. Those two riders are close together. They may be able to take them by surprise. Taking his coiled lariat from its place on the saddle horn, the Lone Ranger waited. As the riders passed in front of him, he tossed the rope high into the air. Easy. An instant later... Don't reach for your guns. I can't reach for them. Let me out of this rope. I'm talking to your partner. He got guns. Good work, Tonto. Come on, Silver. Up, boy. Up. Let go of me. Let me out of this rope. Take his guns, too, Tonto. Um, you gotta listen, stranger. We're taking this redskin in for the murder of Marshal Gilbert. You're in the... In with the law. Me find spur in dead man's past. These fellas make me prisoner. Take spur. Get the spur, Tonto. You hand it over. Yeah, all right. Here you are, redskin. Hey, I'm beginning to savvy this now. This here could as your partner without his mask. But let me tell you something you sidewined and pulled... Shut up! Now, you. Yeah? I'm releasing you. Now, get going, both of you. Hey, what about our guns? Get moving before we decide to use them. All right, all right. We're going. Come on, Slick. I'm with you, please. Steady, Mark. Get up there. Come on. It's a good thing you come along. Tonto, let's see that spur. Yeah. Let me find it in dead man's past where killers shoot Marshal. This spur belongs to Jerry Duncan. A fellow named Slick, say, maybe Maskman and Tonto fit into boss's plans better than a fellow named Jerry Duncan. That's interesting, Tonto. Mighty interesting. You think Duncan fellow killed Marshal? Duncan didn't look like a killer. I think someone's trying to frame him for the murder. And apparently those two know about the plan. Come on, we'll follow them. Come on, Silver. Jeff Barnes' ranch house was low and rambling. But instead of going through the main entrance to the big log structure, Slick and Pete headed for a door at the side. Hey, boss, we got to talk to you. Something's happening, boss. By the light of an oil lamp, Barnes had been totaling up some figures and a ledger on a table in the sparsely furnished paneled room that served him as an office. He blotted his last entry carefully and looked up at his two employees. Well, it's about time you two got back. Get the Maskman, the Indian? We got the Indian, Jeff. Fine. Where is he? We got took by surprise. What? Yeah, Jeff. His partner was waiting on the trail. We were bringing the engine here when his pal wrote me. Just as we were riding along... He took our guns? How many? You lame-brained idiots. So you came directly here. We want you to know about it, Jeff. We figured... You're not paid to figure. You're paid to do as you're told. Where'd you get the Indians? Right at the pass. We went back to get the spurb along to Jerry Duncan. In excitement had taken off half of the mask, man. None of the vigilantes did any looking around inside the pass like we figured they would. That is, like we thought they would. We thought they'd look for tracks behind the rocks and find the spur. But instead they hightailed after the Maskman and... I know all that. What about the Indian? Well, we went for the spur to take it into town and make a big noise about finding it. But the engine was coming along the trail. We got back out of sight. He dismounted and started looking around for tracks. So we nailed him and headed for here. I see. Pete, go down and get the boys. Where are they? Down the cellar. Where's this wall open up, boss? I can't find the opening on this side. Move that picture. Oh, yeah. I'll get him, Jeff. And close that panel. There's a draft in the opening. Maskman, the Indian, might have followed you two. I'll get the boys and we'll be ready for them. Yeah, I never thought of that. Yeah, you wouldn't. Did Pete tell the truth? About the engine getting away? Sure, he told the truth. Don't you believe him? I don't take anyone's word for anything without checking. He's right outside. See who it is. Sure thing. With that mask, man, I'll get my gun ready. It's just Faraday from the Lady Luck mine. What's he want here at this hour? We'll find out in a minute. How to speak? Boss inside? Yeah. What's on your mind, Faraday? Boss, I did a little more eavesdropping up the mine. Yeah? Duncan and Miss Sally were talking. He told her about some questions the mask man asked him. Go on. While I was talking, Duncan said he thought the mask man was all right. Miss Sally remembered hearing her dad and the old marshal talking about a mask man they knew. You mean Weatherby and Marshal Gilbert did know the critter? They knew him all right. In fact, Miss Sally got out a silver bullet the mask man gave her dad. A silver bullet? Yeah. Know what that means, Jeff? It means that mask man on the white horse was a lone ranger. Lone ranger? Anyone know you heard them? Nah. No one at the mine suspects I'm on your payroll. But I'm not staying on it any longer, Jeff. I'm here to collect my share of the gold you stole off them stages. Now that the lone ranger's mixing in this, you can count me out. Yeah, me too, Jeff. You better get that gold out of the cell and clear out this territory. I'll remember now hearing that that mask man helped the old marshal tame this town in the first place. And he'll do it again. And I'm not staying around to get caught in the noose. Shut up. Jeff, I'm in it. I'm through. You're not through till I say you are. But Jeff. Listen. That mask man might have followed Pete and Slick. We'll go out. Hey, what? You're right, Barnes. I thought I did follow your henchman. Hey, you're not wearing any mask. I was, and I met you this afternoon. Blow the door, fellow. Ah, me do it. I'll reach for your gun, Barnes. Where'd you come from? I was just around the side of the building when your friend Faraday came in. I heard enough to know you're behind the murders and robberies in Possum Gap. I see. Was Marshal Gilbert getting too wise for your comfort? As a matter of fact, he was. It was why I ordered him killed. I didn't do the actual shooting. Now, hold on, Barnes. If you think Pete and me will take all the blame for that killing... Relax, Slick. Maybe we can talk this over and reach an agreement with the Lone Ranger. I make no agreements with killers, Barnes. Mister, it's too bad you didn't arrive a few minutes earlier. If you had, you'd have known the wall behind you and the Indian isn't solid. My men are behind you with their guns at your back. Yeah, you didn't hear that panel open, huh? Come in, boys. Right. Now we got both of you. Mister, I reckon you know what we're gonna do. That remains to be seen, Barnes. But I wouldn't be too confident if I were you. The Lone Ranger pushed the table with Barnes behind it against the wall and knocked the lamp to the floor in what seemed to the startled gunman as one lightning-fast gesture. As flames licked at the oil-drenched papers that had been scattered on the table, the Lone Ranger jerked open the door to the outside. Before Barnes or his men could recover from the surprise attack, he and Tonto were on their way to their horses. All right, get them. Get after them. They're going for their horses. And what about the fire? This place will be a furnace in a minute if we don't put out those flames. I'll take care of the fire. Every one of you get after those two. Shoot to kill on sight. Don't worry, Jeff. The moon's bright enough to follow the trail. Yeah, their horses are fast and they've got a hip start on you. We'll get them, don't you work? He won't get away. Shoot to kill. Your lives depend on it. The few minutes start the Lone Ranger and Tonto had gave them a great advantage. They were far ahead of Jeff Barnes' men when they noticed other riders coming down from the hills. The Lone Ranger was about to shout an order to his Indian companion when he heard Jerry Duncan. Jerry Duncan came quickly to the Lone Ranger's side. I'd recognize that stallion stride anyplace, mister. What's the gunfire mean? There's no time to explain now. Tonto, take Jerry and the men from the mine to Dead Man's Pass. Station yourselves at either end of the pass. When Barnes' men get there, you can capture them. And where you go? Up to the hills. I'm going back to Barnes' ranch. I want to look behind that sliding panel. I think that's where he's hidden the gold and the lady luck mine. You mean Barnes' behalf? Tonto, we'll tell you about it after you reach the pass. Jeff Barnes had killed the flames that started when the Lone Ranger sent the oil lamp crashing to the floor in his office. He had gotten another lamp, then went to the crude basement beneath the room. He was working feverishly, packing his stolen gold in strong wooden boxes, when suddenly... Who is it? Did you get the Lone Ranger? Did you... No one got me, Barnes, but I've come back for you and your gold. You? That's right. You see, you can't win. You're going to pay the law for your crimes. I'll get you. I'll get you. It's the last thing I do. Don't you know when you're licked, Barnes? All right. I guess that was my last chance. Was the lady luck mine the prize you thought your murders would get for you? Yeah. After Weatherby was gone, I thought I could either scare Sally into selling out cheap or marry her. Either way, I'd have control of it. Anybody here? Hey, the wall's open up. The flight of stairs here. Walk ahead of me, Barnes. Up the steps. Who's up there? You'll see when you get there. Hey, it's Barnes. You've got him. We came back to tell you he wasn't with his men when we bottled him up in the pass. My men in the pass? We got every last one of them. Ambushed them without firing a shot. They threw down their guns and started talking quick enough when they saw they were outnumbered. What happened to your hand, Barnes? It appears to me like he got into some gunplay. Now, that was downright foolish of you, Barnes. Your men had sense enough to know when they were outsmarted. You should have known that you can't win against the Lone Ranger. This is a feature of the Lone Ranger Incorporated, created and produced by George W. Trendle, directed by Charles D. Livingston, and edited by Fran Stryker. The part of the Lone Ranger is played by Brace Beamer.
