 Ranger Bill, warrior of the woodland, struggling against extreme odds, traveling dangerous trails, fighting the many enemies of nature. This is the job of the guardian of the forest, Ranger Bill, pouring rain, freezing cold, blistering heat, snow, floods, bears, rattlesnakes, mountain lions. Yes, all this in exchange for the satisfaction and pride of a job well done. There's an old saying which goes, let me live in a house by the side of the road and be a friend of man. Most of us are willing to be a friend of man. If we're Christians, it's our duty to lend a helping hand and lend it cheerfully in the spirit of Christian love. But there are a few people living here and there who would like to think they're living in their own private world. They're self-sufficient, so they think, and they honestly believe they don't need to do anything for anyone. Isn't it too bad that we have folks like this? There's so much personal benefit to be had from helping others. Don't you feel good when you've done something for someone else just for the sake of doing it? I know I do. Well, let's meet one of these unhelpful people right now in the story I call The Self-Made Man. In the Shady River Valley, there's a small spread owned by Dutch van der Haven. Dutch is in his 60s now. His son was killed in the Korean War. And Dutch has his daughter-in-law Julie and his grandson Peter living with him. Let's go out to the Lazy D spread and meet Dutch van der Haven. Yeah, Peter, what's this? Mom says to come to lunch right away. Yeah, yeah, I come right away. What's taking big boy? He's got bean bunnet full of mischief. Are you sure, Gramps? Looks like he's got a sore back leg. What? Where are you looking, Peter? You are seeing things. I see no sore. Get down there with me, Gramps. Look, it's on the inside. He must have got hooked on something. You are right. So that is what makes him so hard to get along with. Well, after lunch we have to have a look at that sore before it infects. And blood poisoning is the finest herford bull in this valley. You're a good boy, Peter. Yeah, come along now. We go have some lunch. More coffee, dad? Julie, you're always such a good cook, huh? No, don't try to butter me up for another piece of pie. That has to last for supper. What? Has the oven stopped working? Oh, okay. You can have just a small piece. You know what the doctor said about your blood pressure. Yeah, he says you shall need so much. Well, tomorrow I cut down, Peter. Yeah, yeah, tomorrow I cut down. Hey, it's Mr. Sims. Come in, John. Come in. Howdy, folks. Hello, John. Sit down and I'll fix a cup of coffee. Thank you, Julie. Well, how are you, Peter? I'm fine, sir. Thank you. Can I go out and play, Mom? Run along, Peter. Bye. I'm going fishing with Spot. Oh, I should have half his beam and vigor. Even quarter of it would do. I'll say. A wood for me, too. Yeah. It's good coffee, Julie. Thank you. Well, John, uh, this is on your mind. Dutch, as you know I'm on the annual fundraising committee for the orphanage. Well, I'm here to ask you for a contribution. Yeah. That's right. You know it's a worthy cause, Dutch. Not one penny is foolishly spent, and those children get a good home out of it. Yeah. Now, Dad, keep calm. Oh, who's excited? I'm calm as ice cube. No, you're not. You can't afford to get your blood pressure up. Yeah. Yeah. Dutch, when are you going to shell out for something worthwhile around the shady river valley? I show you what I shell out. You see this picture? That's my son, my only son. My daughter-in-law's husband and my grandson's father. That's what we shell out, John. He was killed by a war. I'm sorry about that, Dutch. But a lot of other sons and husbands and fathers were killed in the war, too. What does that matter to me? What comfort is that to me? Tell me, John. Please, Dad, you'll get sick getting so worked up. Yeah, yeah, maybe so. I'm sorry. I brought the subject up. It's just that I thought that since this was the children's home, you might contribute. Yeah, yeah, you thought. How much more do you want from me? I contribute, my son. Hello, Mac. How are you, Dutch? Oh, pretty fine. What are you making there? Oh, this is cabinet for Peter's room. Boys have so much stuff that truly wants cabinets so I can put this stuff in it instead of on the floor. Yeah, boys will be boys. Now, what you come to see me about? We're doing some repair work at the church. We'd like you to help. You're such a fine woodworking expert. What do you say? I'll tell you what I say. No. Oh, come on, Dutch. We need a good craftsman like yourself. Yeah, now you tried the soft soap, maybe. Well, just look at this cabinet you're making. It's beautiful work. We need this kind of work done at the church. We've got men who can do the rough carpentry work but it takes an expert when it comes to finished work. Yeah, yeah, you do, but not me. I don't think I am interested. Good day, Mac. I can tell what the answer is without asking. Yeah, he said no. I'm sorry, Mac. So am I. We need his help and that's no joke. I'll try and talk to him later on. Thanks a lot, Julie. I'll call your home and let you know one way or the other. I appreciate it. What makes him this way anyway? I don't know. I think it has a lot to do with his son, my husband's death. He's taken the attitude that he's a self-made man, whatever that means. Mules and wagon stumpy. Let's do some muleskinning. How are you, Dutch? I'm good. Hey, by the way, I'm helping out over at the church. Yeah, here we go another time. Dutch, don't try to kid this old walrus along. What do you mean, kid you along? What's the real reason you won't help? There's no business of yours. You don't think so, eh? That's what I think. You listen to me, old mule-headed stubborn mule. Go ahead, call me names. I don't listen anyhow. Excuse me for insulting the mules. You're more stubborn than a mule-headed mule. Yeah, yeah, maybe I am, but I have my reasons. Yeah, don't doubt that one bit. Now you listen to me. You're not setting a very good example for that grandson of yours. Not very good at all. That's a matter of opinion. There sure is. Nobody helped me get what I got. They didn't, eh? I suppose you put those barns up all by yourself. I did. I sure would like to see you do it. But I did the beam work with a winch. Everything I got, I got without anybody helping me. I am self-made man. You want me to help at church. I already give God the finest gift I could. My son. Yep. You ain't telling me nothing I don't already know. There's lots of them military cemeteries all over the world. Fully the best gifts a lot of fathers could give. Most of them are proud of it. Beneath the hurt. And even though it hurts, they don't sulk and feel sorry for themselves. Sure is a big bull. Yeah, yeah, don't ever call me a cemeter. You understand, Graves. Sure. He could hurt me real bad, huh, Graves? Big boy, hold still now. I have your son like fixed again soon. Yeah, yeah, Peter. Big boy could hurt you. He could kill you like you killed fly. Wow. That easy? Yeah, yeah. Could he kill a big man that easy? Yeah, yeah. That's it. Open the gate for me, Peter. I bring out all the medicine at one time. Sure, Graves. That's fine. Now close the padlock through the two ends of the chain. Okay, Graves. How's this, Graves? Let me see. Yeah, yeah, that's fine. You're a good boy, Peter. Graves, how much does big boy weigh? Two thousand six hundred pounds. How much is that? Almost as much as Graves' small cockroaches. Wow. That's pretty much. I see what you mean about the fly. How's it going, Mac? All the rough work is going fine, Bill. The finish work is coming along quite slowly. Just only two men on that. Yeah, too bad I can't get Dutch over here. He's a good finish, man. I'll say he is. Let's look at his house and barns. But there's no use trying to talk him into it. He just won't give. I'll say he won't. Well, sonny, are we going to stand here and yackity-ack your pound nails and bang fingers? You bang fingers don't be all pound nails. Thanks. That's mighty considerate of you. Well, where do we start work, Mac? You fellas can start tearing out that old platform, if you will. Yep. Okay, let's get a ribbon. Let's make a noise, sonny. Me too. Nails sure have big teeth. Since when do nails have teeth, old-timer? Well, ain't that what makes them so hard to pull out of the wood? Unless there's somebody holding on to the other end. Well, I guess you fellas really knocked yourselves out. I didn't figure you'd get the whole platform out in one day. Well, I tell you, the wrecking ain't no problem. It's building it up again. It's painful. Yeah, you can say that again. We could only get Dutch over here. You know, that man's fantastic when it comes to woodworking. I know he's good, but what's fantastic about him? Well, his rate of speed. Dutch doesn't move fast nor slow. Then all of a sudden you realize that he's making terrific progress. Mm-hmm. It's his ability to concentrate on his work. You're right, Bill. I've never seen him waste a saw cut or make an error in measurement. Every movement counts toward finishing the job. Well, I'll drive over there this evening, have a talk with the old gent. What makes you think you can do any better than the rest of us trying to convince him and helping? Don't discourage him, Stumpy. At least he can try. Yeah, that's right. Just let me try, fellas, and I'll let you know how I make out. I can tell you that right now, Sonny. You'd get more arguing with a mule-headed mule. It was stony or deaf. Oh, how nice to see you. Please come in. Thank you, Julie. Come into the parlor, Bill. It's more cozy in there. Okay. You should have come into the front door. Am I that special, I guess? You sure are. Sit down. All right, thank you, Julie. What is the occasion for this pleasant surprise? I'm not so sure it's going to be pleasant. Oh? I'd like to talk to Dutch about working on the church. Oh. That little word said a lot that time, Julie. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to, but I'm afraid you're wasting your time. Well, may I try, anyway? Why, of course you can. Me and Peter are down at the creek doing some night fishing. Hmm. Sounds like fun. You go ahead. I'll have coffee ready for you all when you come back. Okay. That'll be wonderful. Bill? Yeah? Don't get angry if he turns you down. And that's the problem we face, Dutch. Work on the church and it'll drag on and on unless we can get a master craftsman like yourself to help. The answer is still no. Dutch, you call yourself a self-made man, don't you? Yeah, yeah, that's right. Everything I got, I got by myself, all by myself. You know, nobody lives unto himself. I don't agree. I live in my own world. Dutch, did you build your barn all by yourself? Yeah. No, you didn't. What are you saying, Bill? I did. You call me a liar? No, I'm not calling you a liar, Dutch, but you didn't build your barn all by yourself. I don't understand. Did you cut down the trees and mill all the timbers and lumber that you used? No, no, I bought it at the lumberyard. I paid cash for it, too. Did you make the timber pegs and the nails you used? No. Did you make your own roofing paper? Hardware? Window glass? Paint? No. No, how could I make all those things? You'd be building the barn if I had to do that. That's the point I'm trying to make, Dutch. You had help to build your barn. Yeah, I did, since you put it that way. But the answer is still no. Then why, Dutch? Tell me why. We, uh, we go back to the house. We have enough fish. Maybe Julie makes some coffee. She said she was. We talk more. Come back to the house, I tell you why. I tell nobody all these years. If you know beer. You're the only man I can talk with and not get mad. Peter, it's time for you to go to bed. And no arguments. Okay, Mom. Good night, Gramps. Good night, Mr. Jefferson. Good night, David. Good night, young fellow. Come on, Mom. You're gonna check up on me anyhow. Might as well be now. Okay, I'll be right there. I'll be waiting. Excuse me, gentlemen, while I get one small boy to bed. Sure thing, Julie. You know, when the boy is in bed and the house is quiet, it's nice. Yeah, it's peaceful. But in the morning, I'm glad to hear his laugh and his noise. I know what you mean, Dutch. Yeah. I remember way back in the early days when we first come to this valley. The river was covered on both sides of the banks by great trees. We called it Shady River. It hasn't changed much. The trees have gone bigger and older. Well, that's the nice part, I remember. Oh. Are there other memories? Yeah. Everybody helped everybody else except Dutch. Nobody ever helped Dutch. You know, I... No, I don't. They called me the stubborn Dutchman in those days. Must have been a reason. Yeah, yeah, it was me. I was stubborn then. And everything had to be done my way, the perfect way else. I didn't want anything to do with it. Pretty soon, your neighbors wanted nothing to do with you. Then, as the years went by and you managed to get along without anyone's help, you told them they could go jump in the Shady River. Your son grew into a strong young man who helped you work the ranch. Then you began to soften a little bit with age and you did help out here and there until your son was killed in the war. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. I've given all the help I'm going to give to anyone as long as I live. Now you've drawn yourself back into your own little world and here's where you intend to stay until you die. Yeah. After my boy died, people asked me if I was going to hire somebody to run the ranch. They joke at me. They say I'm too old now to run this place by myself. They say I was no longer self-made man. Well, I show them a thing or two. Yeah, I show them all right. Dutch, that isn't what the Lord teaches us to do. He taught us to help others and show a forgiving spirit and a Christian love. I give God my son and that's all I'm going to give. Dad, Bill, it's getting late. Yes, you're right, Julie. It is getting late. I've got to get home. Good night, Julie, Dutch. Right, Bill. Drop by again. Yeah, you do that. I'd like to talk with you. I'll do that. Good night. I'm sorry, Mac. I tried. Yeah, I know you didn't. Thanks a lot, Bill. At least you got to talk to him, which is an accomplishment in itself. You can do business with Dutch. He just shuts his ear flaps. That's the end of it. If you like talking to yourself. That's about the size of it, Stumpy. Well, no use crying over spilt milk. We've got lots of work to do, believe you and me. You ain't getting no argument from me. I can see the work. Well, don't just stand there and look at it. And don't bother me, nun. Come along, you old weasel. Time's a-wasting. Come on, big boy. Stop it. Stop rubbing your leg against the fence. Stop it. You're going to make your leg worse. You dumb beast. You're going to have to climb over the fence and stop you. You're going to make your leg more sore than ever. Oh, be quiet. I'm not going to hurt you, you big dumb bell. Yeah, you're dumb. Never get your leg while scratching it against the fence like that. Hey, hey, come out of there. Get out of there. Gramps, big boy's going to charge. Run for the gate. This way, please. Come on. Get out. Okay, I'm going to close the gate, Gramps. Look out. Here comes the big boy. Run, Peter. Run. Gramps is hurt. Big boy's loose. Dylan, Dutch. Pretty good, I guess. Did you have to shoot the big boy? No. Some of the boys now, I rounded him up on horseback and brought him in. Then he's stalling the barn right now. And we're going to fix the gate right now, too. That's fine. What day is it? It's Wednesday, Dad. Been unconscious three days. You sure have, Gramps. I'm awful sorry I didn't listen. And you got hurt. Really, I am Gramps? Oh, that's all right, Peter. I know you are. Yeah, good boy. Dad, the doctor says you've got to stay in bed for three weeks. And no work for three more after that. What is that? Nonsense. It's no nonsense, Dutch. You're fortunate you weren't killed. Yeah, you're right. But who is going to take care of the ranch? I'll help. Honest, I will, Gramps. I know you will, Peter. We need a couple extra hands. Take your grandfather's place. Don't worry about your spread, Dutch. I'll see to it that everything is taken care of. Thanks, Bill. I can see now that it doesn't make much good sense to brag about being self-made. Yeah. Well, gentlemen, what do you say? I speak for all of us. They were not at all inclined to help Dutch out. We may seem a little hard-nosed, but no more so than Dutch. I see. You feel that turnabout is fair play, huh? Yeah, we sure do. Let him find out how it feels to need help and not get it. Oh, fine bunch of men you are. How are you going to show Dutch he's wrong if you make it an eye for an ideal? That's right. Let me recite a little past history about this valley. You needn't bother. We say no, and we mean it. I thought there was only one stubborn, mule-headed mule in this valley. And I can see I was wrong. There's a whole pestilum. I feel scared to be up and around and get out on the porch again. I imagine it does, Dutch. Bill, we sure owe you a lot for all the help you've been. But I don't know what we would have done without your help and that of your men. They've been wonderful. Yeah, yeah, they have. That's more than we can say about those neighbors, sir. They say it's an eye for an eye, Dutch. And I can't blame them in one way, but I do in another. The Lord sure isn't pleased about all this stubbornness between Christian men. I hope and pray that someone will make the first break and end this terrible unfriendliness between neighbors. Yeah, yeah, so do I. But I'm not going to be the first one to break the ice. Dutch, I'm ashamed of you. Is this the appreciation you show to the Lord for sparing your life and your ranch? Well, I'm glad to see you fellas back on the job again. We're glad to be back, too, Brother, we found two good ranch fans for Dutch. And there ain't no hard feelings, either. Not as far as we're concerned in how... Oh, that's fine. Is Dutch up and around now? He's just about as good as new. But he has to get back into the swing of things kind of gradual-like. I think he's going into semi-retirement. Hey, look who's coming up the street with his tools. I can't believe it. It's Dutch. Can you use a poor man like me to help repair the church? Can we use you? Oh, brother, I'll say we can. Dutch, what made you change your mind? God did. Now out of my way so I can go to work. And that's the story of the self-made man who thought he lived in a world all by himself. Well, see you next week for more adventure with... Hi, fellas and gals. Ranger Bill again, stepping in here for less than a minute to invite all of you out there to another half-hour of adventure next week at this special spot on your radio dial. We've gathered a pile of stories for you with mystery and adventure and all kinds of excitement, and we don't want you to miss a single one. So next time, call up your friends or get together with them and join all of us rangers for a session of fighting forest fires, grappling with grizzly bears, or just plain trying to help somebody out. We're sure you'll enjoy the story, and you might just learn something that'll be of real help to you in later life. So next week, be sure to listen.