 The fiery horse with a speed of light, the cloud of dust and a hearty high old silver, the lone ranger. Music With his faithful Indian companion, Tonto, the masked rider of the planes led the fight for justice in the early western United States. No one could match his strength and courage, his daring and resourcefulness. He broke the power of the outlaw bands that roamed the new territory and finally brought peace and security to the lawless frontier. Return with us now to those thrilling days when the West was young. From out of the past come the thundering hoof beats of the great horse, Silver, the lone ranger rides again. Come on, Silver! Run the trail of the Parker gang! Tonto's waiting on the trail ahead! When the sheriff reached his office early in the morning, he found a crowd of people waiting for him. What are all you people here for? There's the sheriff. Sheriff? Last night it was the bank. Don't tell me there's been another robbery around here. Yeah, they got a plenty of cash. The bankers, violent mads. Same crooks that have done the other robberies. No clues at all. Where's Deputy Brady? Yes, sir. Come inside my office. Rest of you keep out. See if I'll watch the Parker ranch all night long. I just now come from there. Well, go on. Parker left the ranch, didn't he? He took them three hired hands of his with him? No. Don't tell me that. Oh, go on it, Brady. Parker is the thief. Sheriff, he couldn't be the thief. I didn't take my eyes off his house all night long and no one left there. Well, it don't make sense. I had Hank watching his house that night the post office broke into and robbed. When Hank said Parker hadn't left the house, I thought maybe Hank was lying. But you tell me... I'm giving you the truth, Sheriff. He can't be Sam Parkes as the thief. It is. I know it is. By smirk and way, he looks at me when I question him. He knows I know he's guilty and he just defined me to prove it. Come on, we're going to see him. Sheriff. Mass. Take it easy. I'll go for a gun. Who unlocked that back door? I want to talk to you, Sheriff. You're having a lot of robberies around here. I know. Did you know that Sam Parker and two of the three men who worked for him worked a thieves game in Colorado? I know Parker is the thief, but who are you? I want to help you. I ain't time for Mass, man. I'm leaving here on business, mister. And if you take a shot at me, you won't get out of town alive. Now, come on, Brady. We're calling on Sam Parker. He's coming to ask more questions, boys. Same as the other times. We know what to do, Sam. See that you do it, Butch. Look, Sheriff has fetched Brady and another deputy along with him. Wait till he rain up before the house, and I'll open the door and welcome him. Remember what we seen last night, boys? Yeah. Well, good morning, Sheriff. Good morning, Sam. Come on in. I saw you riding up the trail. Wait there for me, boys. Last year. I got a few questions I want to ask you, Sam. Sure thing. Sit down there, won't you? Oh, you know my men. Butch there and Lam and Hank. Yeah, I know them. What's on your mind? Just wondering where you was last night, Sam. Here, same as usual. All evening? Sure, all evening. From when till when? Oh, shucks. We finished chores at sundown and had our grub and sat around playing cards until we turned in around 10 o'clock. Butch, you left your knife near the bank last night. Couldn't have been me, Sheriff. I wasn't near the bank. I ain't been in town for two weeks. That's curious. Your knife was found. There must be a mistake, Sheriff. My knife's right here. See? I ain't lost no knife. What you driving at, Sheriff? Heard about the robbery, ain't ya? No. The bank was robbed last night. You don't say. Now, ain't that terrible? By ginger, there must be a right bad pack of thieves around here. Lots of robberies going on all day, ain't they? You sure you don't know more about it than I do, Sam? Well, now why should I? How does things here at your ranch? You making money here? Always have. Reckon I'll keep doing so. You must pay your men more in most ranches. Give them special privileges, too, don't ya? I pay good. Oh, if it's the clothes the boys have been wearing when they went to town, Sheriff, you might ask a couple of them where they got the cash. Butch will tell ya. The boss made a deal for some mining land he owned. He sold it and whacked the cash up with us. I keep the men loyal that way, you see, Sheriff? You got any more mining land to sell? Reckon so. Be another divvy of cash real soon, then, eh? Maybe. About $2,500 to whack up. Ain't that it? Maybe. Just the amount that was stole from the bank. Now, ain't that a coincidence? Look, Sheriff, if you think we're all organized into a gang and sticking up banks and things, why don't you take us to jail? You know why I don't, Sam. Sure I do. Because we ain't guilty. That ain't why. Matter of fact, I think you are guilty. I think you critters are as guilty as sin. But y'all stick together and swear that you was here in the ranch and each of you has an alibi. You got it all figured out, ain't you, Sheriff? Where is this mining land of yours? Over near Durango. Long ways from here. Someday, if you like, we'll set out and take a trip there. I'd like for you to see my claims. Take about a month to ride there and back. No use my going there. You'd have it fixed so I'd really think you'd been telling me the truth. What's wrong with that? I don't want to think that. Because I know doggone well, you critters are thieves. Sheriff, I'm getting a little annoyed at being questioned all the time like this. Every time there's a robbery, you come here accusing me. Now, by thunder, either you arrest me and make a charge of stick or you leave me be. I'll arrest you, Sam. And when I do, I'll make the charge of stick. I'm fed up with your attitude. Who you got with you out there? Frank Hawks and Jim Brady. Brady. Good. Brady. What is it? Care for me? You were watching this house last night. Huh? How did... Did you tell him, Sheriff? No. He didn't need to tell me. We've seen you standing guard. The Sheriff's had a man watching this house ever since he first started thinking I was thieving. You was on the job last night. Ain't that so? Well... Ain't it, Sheriff? All right, he was. I admit I had men watching this place of yours. Then why and tongue could you keep pestering me? You know none of us left here. Now get out and leave us be. You're working it some way, Sam. Blast it all. I know you're crooked. And I know my rights. Now don't come here any... Next time I come to Sam Parker, I'll have proof. I promise you that. Hey, ain't that Dolly March right in here? Yeah, so it is. Sheriff, Dolly March is riding down here like she's needing help. Huh? Oh, God, she sure looks excited. And a sheriff in Parker's house? Yes. Miss Dolly, what's the trouble? You looking for me? Yeah, Sheriff. Sheriff, pause watching you. Well, is there something wrong at the express office? Don't tell me that's been robbed, too. No, it hasn't been robbed yet, but pause real worried on account of having so much gold on hand. No, wait, Miss Dolly. I know you want him to keep it secret, but it's known now that he has all that gold. Ma'am was trying to find out about where he kept it here. Miss Dolly, you'd better come with me. But I've got to tell you. Don't mind us, Miss Dolly. The sheriff was finished with his business here. All right, Mr. Parker. Sheriff, you know how pause has been holding off the delivery of that gold until the thieves around here were caught? A dog on it, Dolly. Save telling them to... No, he's afraid to hold off any longer. He's afraid the thieves will steal us from him. There was a masked man hanging around. Come this way. We can talk while we travel. Come on. Rub in again, Sheriff, when you got something important. I sure will, Sam. You sure handled a neat, Sam. As long as the law's like him, we'll have nothing to worry about, boys. You heard what was said about March having a lot of gold in the express office. I heard it. And there being a masked man hanging around. I didn't miss that much. Gave me a few ideas. Maybe so. Now, Sheriff Doyle is going to be right glad if he can only arrest someone for all the robberies. Why wouldn't it be a good idea to let him arrest someone? Not us. No, not us. Of course not. But if Dolly March and her pa have seen a masked man hanging around... What are you thinking? I don't know why... Shut up. Sit down there and be quiet. I got a lot of thinking I want to do. Maybe I'll go into town and have a talk with March at the express office. I might be able to give him some good advice. I didn't expect to see you go in here, Parker. Mr. Parker heard part of what I told the Sheriff, Paul. I found the Sheriff at the Parker Ranch. Oh, I see. I don't like to bust into things that are none of my business, March, but I understand you've seen a crook around town here. I can't call him a crook. Well... You're a masked man. Yeah. Now, Sheriff Doyle has been having an idea for a long time that I got something to do with the robberies around here. I've heard talk, Parker. Shucks just because I seem to have more cash than I earn with my ranch and because I pay my boys well, the old fool thinks I'm stealing. Yeah. Now, between you and me, March, the job is too big for Doyle. The point is, though, I'd like to be rid of his pestering me. Go on, Parker. I thought maybe if there was something I could do to help prove that this mask stranger is a thief, it'd straighten the Sheriff out as far as I'm concerned. I reckon it would if you could prove someone else guilty of the thief. Well, why don't you tell me all you can about this masked ombre? And then I'll have my boys on the watch for him. Well, I don't know if there's much... Oh, look! Up there. Isn't that his horse? Dog gone. That's what it is, Dolly. There, Parker. See that white stallion? That's the horse the masked man rode. He must be close by somewhere. Oh, he must be. I'll go out and have a look at the cannibal. Dog gone fine horse. Hi there. Take it easy, horse. I don't aim to hurt you. There now. Looking at my horse? Oh, mask. Who are you? A stranger around here that's passing through. You must be hiding from the law, huh? Now, I ain't a lawman, so you needn't be a fear to me. I gave you the idea. I was afraid of you. Figuring on staying near here? What do you want to know? You needn't get sore about a simple question, stranger. I run a sizeable ranch not far from here and I thought you was looking for work. I'm not looking for work. It's the Parker ranch about eight miles out on the trail east. Come on, Silver. You didn't get far talking to him, Parker. No, but I bet he's after the gold you got here. Drag it all. I didn't want it to get out that I had much gold here. I figured it'd be all right to keep it here, at least while I had it hid. I wasn't going to send it east till I figured it'd be safe. Now, hang it all. It ain't safe to send it and it ain't safe to keep it. I reckon I'll have to put it on the next stage out. Well, that'll be best. Get rid of it as soon as you can. It's too big a responsibility for you to keep it here. Who's it belong to? It's from west of here to be shipped east. Well, you take my advice, March. Get it on that stage tomorrow. Later in the day when Sam Parker returned to his ranch, he called his men together. This biggest and best job we ever pulled is lined up and ready to do, boys. I got it all worked out. Sam, don't you think it'd be a good idea if we kept quiet for a time? It would be a good idea, Butch. But it's a better idea to take things as they come. We won't have a chance like this very often. Everything is in our favor. What's it about? March has a lot of gold in the express office. He has? He's kept it secret, fearing to send it out until the gang of robbers was caught. I talked him into putting it on the stage tomorrow, which means that tonight will be a good time for us to get it. Best of all, there's a suspicious man around town who'll be blamed for it. The sheriff would leave us alone if he had someone else to blame for all that's happened. That's the whole point. March knows about this stranger. He wears a mask and rides a white horse. So he'll be blamed, eh? If the sheriff gets him, he'll have time trying to prove he ain't guilty. If the sheriff don't ever find him, then at least he'll have someone else to blame for it. He'll have time to get it out besides us. We'll have other alibis. The same as usual. We're all here for the whole night. We'll see to it that the sheriff knows we're here. I've got a seam around sundown. I'll fetch him and a posse back here, asking him to keep his eye on us. I'll insist that he does for our own protection. Protection? Sure. I'll just tell him this mask man is likely to thief and may rob the express office. You leave it to me. I just rode out here to the ranch to get you boys lined up. I'm riding back now to get the sheriff lined up. It's something when we get the sheriff to help us ain't it? I reckon it is butch. Get everything said boys and I'll get back to town and see the sheriff. Wouldn't he be surprised if he knew how we can be in two places at the same time? 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. How to continue our story. When Sam Parker had given all the necessary orders to his men, he was ready for the second step in his plan to rob the express office. It was just at sundown that he met the sheriff in town. Sheriff, I've been thinking about the goal March told about in the express office. I reckon you have Parker. You'd like to get your hands on it, wouldn't you? I'd appreciate it if you wouldn't make them remark, Sheriff. I'm no thief. Not proved. All right, that's why I'm here. March has planned to ship that goal tomorrow by stage. That stage will be guarded too. Come on out Sam and make a play to rob that gold, will you? You think I'm crazy? Just try it. I think you ought to keep a guard on the express office tonight. Yeah? You may have heard about the mask man. Maybe I have. What about it? If he was to rob that gold, you'd still blame me for it. Maybe I wouldn't be so far wrong. Well, whether you put a guard at the express office or not, will you do one thing? What's that? Have a lot of your men around my house tonight. Why? I want you to be convinced once and for all that I ain't guilty of robbing things in town here. If that mask man steals a gold tonight and you ain't dead sure I wasn't out of the house, you'll be charging me with that as well as with everything else. Parker, you needn't worry. There'll be plenty of men watching your house tonight. I'll appreciate it, Sheriff. Thanks. Steady, boy. Get up. Get up there. Get down there, you crook. I know he's a crook. If only I could prove it. Sheriff. Huh? Oh, hello, engine. You come with Tondo, huh? I'm ready. What's that mask, friend of yours? Him inside the express office. Him wait there. That case all fixed up. Good. Did Parker speak to you, Sheriff? He did. He sure wants me to think you're going to steal the gold, Mr. Very well. Can't pause the other plan you're working. Of course he can, Miss Dolly. But I think he'd sooner be there. If anything happened to Pa, I hate to think of him going out with a posse to maybe shoot it out with a parker gang. I don't think there will be any shooting. These are the cases that are fixed up? Yes. March is going to have them stacked in his office. Like the cases that gold might be shipped in? Sure enough, Miss Dolly. I bet Parker and his gang will be one surprise bunch when they see what the Lone Rangers worked out for them. That night, the sheriff and his men under cover of darkness rode out of the parker's spread. They left their horses half a mile from the ranch house and then continued on foot until they were less than a hundred yards away. Wait right there, boys. I can see Parker inside the house there. Yep, he's still there. What about the rest of the men? There's one of them at the back door near the shed. Looks like he wasn't planning anything in particular. How'd it be to surround the place? Wait, I'm going to keep together here until the Lone Ranger sends a word. Where's he? I don't know. Did he tell you what his scheme was, March? Not a word. I wonder if that masked man's really the Lone Ranger. Why do you wonder? It's his idea that we all come here. It sure leaves a town unguarded. But what's that a stealing town? I don't know. It might be that I've been wrong about Sam Parker all this time. You ain't wrong. He's a crook all right enough. Well, we'll play the hand out and see. There's just the way the ranch looked the last time I was here watching. I seen all the men around like this. He was in town robbing the bank. Well, that's what your puzzles me. They can't be two places at the same time. Hi. Who's that? That's the engine friend of the Lone Ranger. That's you, Tuttle? Uh-huh. Meet here. You already, Sheriff? Yep. Good deputy. They're right here with me. Five good men. I'm not good. What are we to do? Wait here. For how long? Oh, there's Butch stepping out of the front of the house looking up to see if it's raining or something. Yeah, I see him. The light from the house shows him real clear. And now he's always magging inside again. Well, we know that bunch ain't in town, yeah? Yeah. And we know they can't leave the house without us seeing them. Now watch sharp while we wait to hear from the Lone Ranger. Is he inside of a pocketed midnight, Sam? Can't tell the sheriff has men watching us or not. He has. You know that for a fact? I know he won't miss a chance to try and catch a sleeve in the house. Only he can't do it. As soon as we start after that goal, Sam. Wait till around 10 o'clock. Then we'll make out we're going to bed. Now let's see if we got everything all set. What about the horses, Butch? I left them near the rock. They'll be ready. You got one white one there? I got a Palomino. It'll look white enough at night. And you left it? Yeah. You're the biggest of us. You've got to wear that mask and ride the Palomino. Then let March and his daughter or someone else in town get a quick glimpse at you. They get it all worked out, Sam. Good enough. Now all you fellas move around some and be sure to pass the windows once in a while so as a lawman can see you. We'll make out to go to bed around 10. Then we'll start out. The lawman saw the lights in the house turned out as the men apparently settled themselves for the night. In reality, Sam Parker opened a craft door in the floor of the house and descended to a cellar with his men following. Now we can strike a light. Get the lantern going, Butch. Lefty, you close that craft door before you come down the ladder. Yeah. Come on down now, Lefty. All set, Sam. You go ahead with the lamp, Butch. You know your way through the tunnel. Yeah. Shall we lock this door into the tunnel? No. Do you think there's a chance the sheriff might find our tunnel someday? No, I don't think so. The entrance is well hidden. No one on note was there unless they went right into the middle of all that underbrush. If the sheriff ever did find it. Then we'd have to get the sheriff out in the way. And when folks give up hunting for him, get a new sheriff elected. Seems odd to me that he ain't never figured out that we might have some way of getting out of the house without him seeing us. You don't think that far. If he did, he wouldn't figure there'd be a tunnel this long. Must have been an underground river or something here sometime in the past. Yeah, I reckon so. The closer the sheriff gets to the house and watching it, the further he gets from where the tunnel opens at. He'll be good and close to the house tonight. We can be sure of that. I can see the underbrush ahead. We're near the opening now. Here we are. What sound our horses make when we leave will be covered by the cattle beyond the... Sure. Look back toward the house. You see that big rock? That's likely where the lawmen are waiting. After tonight, the sheriff should be doggone sure we ain't guilty on nothing. The men rode into town. While three of them, including Sam Parker, made their way to the express office, Lefty headed for the home of the manager. He entered boldly, gun in hand. All right, March, come up with your hands up. Sam, where you are? Where's your father? He isn't here. Is he at the office? No. What do you want? I want the key to the express office. Where is it? Your mess. What of it? Where's that key? I don't know. I have that key. Father has it. Oh, he has it, eh? Where is it? He's with the sheriff. Who are you? You wouldn't know who I was. If you don't have any key, then I'll have to bust the door down. But I'm roping you. No, you can't... Shut up! I don't need to be interrupted, miss. There, that'll hold you. Now a gag. You won't hurt if you don't fight it. Just tell your partner there's no use trying to find me. I'll be a long ways off by morning. Good evening, miss. Get up there. Good work, Miss Tully. I'll have that rope off in just a minute. There's the gag. Oh, what a frightful man. There you are. He had a light horse just like yours. Yes, and he left the door open so you'd be sure to see it. Is Paul right? Of course he is. Before this night is over, we'll have full confessions from every one of that gang. How did you know about the tunnel they have? I don't know this part of the country very well. He knew about that old tunnel when he was a boy. It was long before this country was settled. Now I've got to go. Don't worry, Miss Tully. You located the boxes of gold, Sam? The boys are fetching them out right now. And they're held up real tight. Have to take them to the ranch and open them there. How'd you make out lefty? Fine. I'll let the girls see your mask and the light horse. She'll tell the story. They'll put us in the clear and put all the blame on the mask man. The last of the boxes is being loaded now, Sam. We can start back. Good. Let's get going then. I wonder if March will figure one man couldn't carry all the gold. You'll figure the mask man had a couple of pack mules or something. It don't matter how he figures. He can't prove a thing on us, Sam. Come on. Back to the house. Get up. Get up. Get up. When Parker and his men arrived at the ranch, the gold was unloaded and carried into the tunnel. At last the cellar of the house was reached and Sam himself went up the ladder and pressed against the trapdoor. Door stuck or something? Push harder, Sam. I'm pushing all the can and won't budge. Here. Let me give you a hand. Crowd over so we can both stand here in the ladder. Now together. Seems like it's locked. It can't be. There wasn't nobody in the house. Don't go on at all. We'll have to find another way to get another house. What? It's a matter. They heard someone coming. In the tunnel? Yeah. You did. There's the mask man. Hugh, how'd you know about this? I followed you from town. You're covered. Don't move. You followed us. You didn't move? I hadn't tied Dolly March as soon as you left that house. I was in the house the time you were. So the girl knows the truth. It's your word against ours, mister. The sheriff won't have much confidence in the word of a mask man. You see, we won't go to jail. You will. We'll tell a story that'll send you there. Now, if you'd like to join up with us... You suggested something like that before. How'd you know about the tunnel? I told you. I followed you from town. I can use you, stranger. I can make you rich. Not where you're going. Why? You think a respectable man like me will go to jail on the strength of what you have to tell? You'll go to jail on the strength of what you tell. See those boxes you stole from the express office? What about them? They don't hold gold. They're wedded with lead and filled with hornets. What? A sheriff is wedding in your house above the trap door. His men in March are there with him. I'm barring the door to the tunnel. You'll get out of the cellar when you confess everything to the sheriff. In the meantime, let's see you fight the hornets. I'll let them out. Stop! Wait! There's three boxes open. Let's open some more. There's the rest of them. No! Get them out of here! Adios! Try that door he went out of. We've got to get out. There's millions of them all in the cellar here. They're stuck in a hundred places. They're having a right fancy time down below there. Open the trap door a little. How about it, Sam? Do you confess the express robbery? Yes, yes. Let us out of here. We've done it. The bank robbery? Yes. The money is down the cellar here. We give it all back. Let us out. We'll be an ender for the hornets. Sam Jergens Robbery? We don't have all the sheriff. All right, come up then. Them hornets. That mess, man. Keep the hornets down below. Don't let them out into the house. You won't be in the house for a minute. You'll be in the jail. You're all covered, so don't try anything. Keep them hornets down below. There must be a million of them. Don't get excited. There wasn't many of them. Only a few and a couple of the boxes. Just enough so you'd hear a little buzzing. And so the Lone Ranger would be speaking the truth. There wasn't a lot of them. Rick and the Lone Ranger figured that your imagination would make up for most of the hornets. Now start marching. You're going to jail. You have just heard as a copyrighted feature of the Lone Ranger incorporated.