 city and in the territory on West there's just one way to handle the killers of the spoilers and that's with a US Marshal and the smell of guns smoke. William Conrad, the story of the violence that moved West with Young America and the story of a man who moved with it. I'm that man, Matt Dillon, United States Marshal. The first man they look for and the last they want to meet. It's a chance they're job and it makes a man watchful and a little lonely. We're going to stop there for a long time. What are you doing? Yeah, I might as well. There's not much going around town tonight. Oh, dude, look, they got a lit, smart and fire going. Yeah, that wind's got a net to it. All right. It's going to blow up worse for a long time. It might. I'm here, but I don't seem no place. Oh, Matt. Yeah, kidding. Come on, let's go. It's warm. It feels warm right here after that wind outside. It was nice for you, doesn't it? I think I'll use you a little bit of stove, Mr. Dillon. Might be some kind-hearted stranger who'll buy me a beer. Justin never gives up hope. Good on you, kiddie. Thanks, Matt. Don't you believe in kind-hearted strangers? No, not close. I was nine years old. What took you so long? Oh, I was kind of slow growing up. Would you like a beer? If you'll let a kind-hearted stranger buy it. I wouldn't exactly call you a stranger, kiddie. You'll have to admit I'm kind-hearted, though. A couple of beers, Sam. All right. You think a real bad storm's coming up, Matt? It's that time of year. I remember the blizzard last year on Christmas time. Yeah, that was a rough one, all right. Matt, things would be rough this time of year, even if the weather weren't bad. What do you mean? Holiday season. Families getting together in all just ordinary, decent, good times. The people still live that way. Not many out here. I sure don't. Oh, I'm not kidding. This is the time of year. I get you're thinking too much. Remember, you're too much. That's not good, kiddie. It's a hard time. It's a hard country. It goes soft and it'll kill you. I don't remember. Now, if you come in here, have you had to kill a man? Nice to see Joe Sunup not talking alone mostly and dying a dozen deaths inside. Here's sentimentalist Chester. Oh, there you are, Marshal. Shut the door down, Marshal. I've been locked, Marshal. Can't live. That's my old store. How did that happen, Mr. Jonas? Well, before coming in right after closing time, man-man over his face and stuck a gun in my stomach and took everything in the cash drawer. $68. I sure took you a long time to get around telling me about it. When he tied me up, left me there in the back room. I just now got loose. You've got to go after him, Marshal. Out of a tall order, isn't it? Trailing a five-hour head start. That don't matter now, because I know who he is. I thought you said he wore a mask. He did. But I could tell by his horse and his walk. I knew everything about him. It was Clint Doty. Clint Doty. Yeah, he's a home-getter up the river. Yeah, I know him. I know him. But I can't believe that Clint's the kind of do-it-thing like. With him, all right. I'm 100% certain. Well, all right. Right out in the morning and bring him in. If it was him, he'll be there. But Marshal, you... Well, I'm not going to ride 12 miles up that river bottom at midnight with a blizzard coming up for $68. Now, we'll leave in the morning. Let's son it. Well, he's got a whole house to try to shoot it out. Doty's not that type, Chester. Nobody never thought he was a type to hold up Mr. Jones neither. Yes, sir. Who Doty? How are you, Doty? Come on in and sit. I got some coffee on the stove. Oh, it might warm our hands a little bit. Come on, Chester. I reckon Madora can rustle up some eggs inside me to gain it. Well, thanks, Doty. But we had breakfast before we left Dodge. And you can get warm at least. What you trying to do, Marshal? Blow up a storm? It looks that way. It's been snowing since the daybreak out here in the river bottoms. With that wing blown, it's going to start drifting. It probably will. Well, I'll keep this coffee up for you. What brings you out this way, Marshal? Doty? Me? What do you mean? We're here to arrest you. Take you back in. What for? Armed robbery. Armed robbery? You mean that hold up at the general store? News seems to travel fast, doesn't it? How'd you know about it? Well, uh... What's all the answer about armed robbery? Oh, you know my wife again. Yeah, sure. How are you, Marshal? I hear you accusing Clan of robbery, Marshal? That's more a matter of Wilbur Jonas accusing him, man. When did this happen, Marshal? Yesterday evening, around 7 o'clock. Clan hasn't been away from this place for two days. Yeah, I know. I know. My wife's word might not stand for much out of those circumstances, Madora. Stop, Madora. Stop that. There's people seeing me in town yesterday evening. Wilbur Jonas claims he's one of them. The way I heard it, the fellow that held him up was wearing a man. He says he recognized your voice. Wilbur Jonas couldn't recognize Si. Apples, if he had a mouth full of them. Well, I guess that'd be something for the judge to decide, man. And you're going to take me into jail? Unless you can prove you were somewhere else at 7 o'clock last night. That might be kind of hard to do, Marshal. Well, then we better get started. We've got a hard ride ahead of us. Oh, no, wait a minute. I can't go off and leave Madora like this with a storm coming on. Well, maybe one of the neighbors will come over and stay with her. Hey, none closer than five miles, Marshal. And they all got plenty of troubles of their own this time of year. I ain't even got enough firewood to split it up to last year, more than a day and a half. I was aiming to get some laid in today. I'm sure she's made out before. Oh, well, maybe so, but not in her condition. Clan. Condition? What are you talking about? Well, she's going to have a baby, Marshal. Oh, for the lovers. It's mighty hard on a woman having her man took off to jail and not even wooden a house to keep warm. Now, look, Dorothy. You know, it wouldn't take no time at all if the three of us were to pitch in together. All right, Dorothy, let's get at it. Chesedax needs sharpening again, Mr. Dillon. It ain't too good a steel. And the Marshal's got the best of it. You couldn't prove it by me. Oh, listen, sure it don't hold its edge, none. Oh, here, Chester, let me touch it up with a stove. Oh, man gracious, that is just mad easy. You asked me if you've already chopped enough wood to last through this winter and a half, but I stopped that, Dorothy. That stove eats it up pretty fast. Ah, Chester's right, Dorothy. We've chopped enough. Well, she's got you some of it to cook with, too, you know. It's enough here to last till she can make other arrangements. Now, let's pack it into the shed and head back for town before that snow gets any worse. Well, whatever you say, Marshal. Mr. Dillon. You, Mrs. Dillon, are taking on some vittles. I've got the nice hot stew ready. Did you say vittles? Now, we've got to get started, Miss Dorothy. It's getting late. Oh, it won't do no harm to eat first. It'll make the trail shorter, Marshal. Well... Good, but I'm right obliged to you, man. You're welcome, Miss Dorothy. I reckon I'll need every stick of it, too, with this wind driving the snow in through the north wall of the cabin. God dang it, I clean for God. For God what? The chinkin. The chinkin? No, the chinkin. The chinkins all fell out of the north wall of the house. Oh, I was aiming to fix it today. I got a lot of bark slabs cut laying up back to the bottom. Look, Dorothy. It's mighty hard on a woman in Madura's condition with the snow and the sleet blowing in on it. Dorothy, would it be all right if we eat first? That does a job, don't it, ma'am? Yeah, just about through here, too. You know that eat-a-bad piece of work by do's. I told myself, oh, sir, a carpenter couldn't have done one bit better. I ought to keep the wind up. Oh, that looks fine, Marshal. Just fine. I'm mighty obliged to you, man. Oh, that's all right. Well, I know you've got your duty to do. You've got to take me in, and I want you to know there's no hard feelings about it. Oh, sure, Dorothy. And I appreciate the way you've been so decent. How do we get things in shape from the door? It'll be all right here alone. Oh, there ain't many long men that take this trouble. Well, she's got enough problems without making it worse for her. Let's put the tools away and get the tires going to be dark before we get to dodge. Sir, are you sure all right about her having plenty of problems, Marshal? In her condition and all. And now the cattle gone. The cattle gone? Oh, of course we only had about 20 head, but with me going to prison, maybe, it's never been enough to see her through her little little one. What do you mean, the cattle gone? Well, I had them there in the middle, back of the corral, letting them pick clean what pasture was left. I guess they drifted off last. Well, of course they drifted off. When that storm hit, they turned tail and moved along with the wind. The cattle always do that. Man, I guess it don't matter much, though. Madore couldn't take care of no-how, not in her condition. Well, she could if you'd hold them in the corral there next to the barn. All she'd have to do is push the hay out of the loft door. I reckon they drifted down south there about three miles and come up against the bluffs. Oh, they'll probably mill around and freeze to death there. Storm keeps up. About three miles, huh? Mm-hmm. I was aiming to go after them, but, of course, one man alone wouldn't have had much chance. All right, Doty, come on. Let's go find your cattle. A bunch of cattle I ever seen on my born days. The storms really got them spooked. You know, that turned out to be more of a chore than I thought, Marshal. Yeah, it sure did. I just don't know how I done managed without you fellas helping. We're mighty grateful to you, me and Madore, both. Well, we couldn't let the cattle freeze. Well, if you wait now till I put these landings in the barn, we can leave any time you say, unless, of course, you'd like some hot coffee first. Doty, it's dark now. You know as well as I do when I'm gonna ride back to Dodge tonight. Well, say, in that case, maybe you wouldn't mind helping me kill and dress a couple of dozen hens. Couple dozen hens? Hang them up under the eaves to freeze. Oh, my gracious! Chicken and broth might be good for a woman in Madore. Look, Doty, we've already chopped your wood, fixed your house, and rounded up your cattle. Oh, you've been mighty decent. All right. All right, we'll help you dress your chickens. We'll make soap for you, salt down the pork, preserve eggs, anything you say up until midnight. And I'm gonna get some sleep. And at sunup, we're gonna ride into Dodge and you're going to jail. Officially wise during the holiday season to keep Thums nearby for quick relief from upset caused by rich foods and hustle and bustle of holiday activities. Thums, ten cents, three roll back a quarter, or get the new Thums six roll back with free metal carrier, only 49 cents. What's the matter, Mr. Younger? You tell me, you're the one who's supposed to be on guard. Well, it's just a day later. I'm gonna do those off for a second. You'll be in a couple of hours until you please Doty do get away. No, he's not there. I just woke him up. Oh, well. So I kind of figured he wasn't gonna know where he's in that storm. What storm? Well, it's over. Now, it died out during the night. You better get yourself collected, Chester. We're heading for Dodge. Well, I did live at that summer on the snow with you. And I turned out some of them boots out of the swathe. Oh! What's the matter? Oh, Mr. Younger, I'm so lame. I don't even know if I can stand up straight. Well, keep trying. I swear, I'm gonna have to be spoon-fed for a month. I needn't have worked so hard in all my life. Hello! Is anybody home? Somebody outside. My golly, it's Doc. Doc? Well, come on in, you old reprobate. I'm coming. I'm just tying up my horse and buggy. I wonder what he's doing out this way. I'm seeing the patient, I guess. He must have left town off a little early. Hey, did somebody ride up? Yeah, it's Doc. You about ready to leave, Billy? Oh, there's still a marine to take me. Nothing's changed. Chester? Well, this is where you've been hiding. How are you, Doc? Yeah. Well, good morning, Clint. Hello, Doc. Get in the coffee? I'm serving two shakes, Doc. Madora? Yes, ma'am. Will you come out and pick some coffee? Yes, ma'am. What are you doing out here this time of morning, Doc? Oh, the MoDoc baby was acting up. Touched the crook, so I spent the night there. Thought I'd just drop over and say hello to the boarders. As long as I was just closed. You could have done that in town. I'm taking a move. You're taking a move? Before what? Rob and Jonas General's store night before last. Rob and the j... Now, where'd you get that idea? Jonas claims he recognized him. Wilbur Jonas hasn't got the sense the good Lord gave a gopher. Mad. They caught the fella had done that. What? That's right. There was some drifter riding through town. He threw a lot of money into a poker game, and the boys got kind of suspicious. And he finally admitted the whole thing. So they borrowed a jail case from Judge Benton. Locked him up until you get back. Well, Clint, didn't you tell him? Oh, well, I... Tell me. Clint, he couldn't have done that. He was playing poker at the time with me and Moss Grimmick in the back room delivery stable. Don't even... No, I didn't lie to you. You asked me if I could prove where I was. I didn't know Doc's word was actual proof. Clint, don't even... He done that delivery to Dylan, letting us think he was guilty just to get us to do all that work for him. And I suppose the story about your wife having a baby. Oh, that's the gospel truth, Marshal. Yeah, that sure is, Mad. I'll vouch for that. Let me see now. It's about another six months. Let me see. Around the 1st of July. 1st of July? Yes. I didn't say when, Marshal. You didn't ask me. Ain't you gonna wait just well? The 1st of July? So help me, Doty, for two cents. Well, we might even name him after you, Marshal, if we can't think of nothing else. Oh, help me. All right. All right, Doty. How about some of that coffee, huh? Make this one of your merriest Christmases. Join us on CBS Radio as most of these same stations present our fourth annual Christmas Sing with Bing. Right at her husband's side, welcoming you to their holiday celebration will be Mrs. Bing Crosby, Catherine Grant. With Bing as your host, CBS Radio will take you to Rome to hear the Vatican Choir sing. There, too, you'll hear the sound of the bells of St. Peter's as they ring for the holiday mass. Our Christmas Sing with Bing will take you to New York and Salt Lake City, to Canada, Australia, Holland, France, and even the Fiji Islands, where carolers will sing traditional Christmas songs with you. Celebrate Christmas with the world. Join us on CBS Radio Christmas Eve as most of these same stations present our fourth annual Christmas Sing with Bing. Remember, this year on CBS Radio, you can spend Christmas with Mr. and Mrs. Bing Crosby. Gun smoke. Produced and directed by Norman McDonald, start William Conrad as Matt Dillon, U.S. Marshal. The story was specially written for Gun Smoke by Les Quatchfield, with editorial supervision by John Meston. Featured in the cast were Joseph Cairns, Virginia Gregg, and Ralph Moody. Farley Bear is Chester, Howard McNeer, is Doc, and Georgia Ellis is Kitty. This is George Walsh inviting you to join us again next week for another story on Gun Smoke.