 a fiery horse with a speed of light, the cloud of dust, and a hearty hi-ho silver, the lone ranger. Full Indian companion, Tonto, the masked writer of the plains led the fight for law and order in the early western United States. The stories of his strength and courage, his daring and resourcefulness have come down to us through the generations. And 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. Clouds scutted across the night sky. Wind whipped along the border like a serp lashing the shore and swept north with countless whirlpools of prairie dust. Shivering in the wintery blasts, a herd of longhorns huddled closer together and balled plaintively. The waddies, detailed to guard them, blew into their cupped hands and ducked their heads against the dusty onslaught. Watch them calves, Lufty. They stray from the herd. We'll never find them in this dust. Yeah. Can't keep the sand out of my eyes. I'll be glad to get back to the bikehouse. Lufty, look! What? Perry fire. Holy cats. The wind's blowing it this way. Wait for the cattle. And the ranch building's too. Get the boys. We gotta hit it up. As the waddies race to the ranch house for aid to combat the fast-spreading flames, the small shrewd eyes of two men who watched them go flickered with amusement. They pulled their hatbrims over their faces to shield them from the sandstorm and looked again at the now-roaring prairie fire they had started. They won't stop that blazing a hurry, Bonnie. You set a spade. You got the wind with its doom. Yeah, the dust blizzard. Yes, to make it harder for them cowpokes to put it out. It'll take just about every hand they got to fight the fire. Yeah, even them, this guard and the cattle. As soon as they're all busy with the blaze, lay for the boys a rustle of steves. Learning a grass fire is the best decoy we've hit on yet. Yeah, there ain't no way they can meet it. Yeah, the waddies are coming back. Bringing sighs to cut the grass. Look back there. Ain't that a leaf for the boys? Yeah, that's him. They're splitting up to stampede the herd. Bring them sighs over here. Cut down the grass. How unthumbly is supposed to start it? Oh, I don't know. But it'll take every hand to put it out. They're splitting the herd. Yeah, burn like paper. What about the stairs? Yeah, we're trailing after the fire's out. That sure like to get my hands on the polecast to start a prairie fire just to get their crooked fingers on some cash. Sheltered from the dust storm in a cave, the Lone Ranger and Tonto watched a faint red glow spread against the black sky. It's a grass fire, Tonto. Ah. How far away would you say it is? Maybe 10, 15 miles. Well, this wind, it'll take the ranchers hours to put it out. We right there? Ask him or something. I need all the help they can get. Yes, little man. Come scout. All right, big fella. Get him up, scout. Come on, little man. In the back room of the cafe in border city. Yeah, your deal, Bonnie. That idea of yours spade set the grass fire to call off the guards while the leaf and the boys wrestled the cattle. Another thing they could do about it, either. As long as the wind was blowing the flames toward the range. They'll trail the stairs as soon as it's out, Tonto. Not more than a few miles. The boys are coming up the trail by driving the herd of a rocky patch. That way, they won't leave tracks. Yeah. Well, I guess Lave will be collecting the cash from that cattle buyer pretty soon. Lave's got a job to do first. What kind of job? Tad Harris and the Rives in town this morning. Yeah, no. He already went straight to see the sheriff's daughter, Betty. They count the sweet in each other. He was just let out of the state prison. What about it? Tad was sent up for cattle wrestling. Lave testified against him to save his own skin. Yeah, I remember. When the sheriff hears about tonight, he'll suspect Tad. But Tad will have an alibi and put it on Lave's trail. That means our trail. What do we do? Lave's already figured it out. He's aiming to beat Tad to the draw by pinning the blame on him. How? Lave's meeting Tad tonight in Silver Basin. Well, that's the only trail where the boys are running the cattle. Yeah. Lave's gonna cut about 100 long horns from the herd and drive him into the basin. Them stairs will trample Tad, their kingdom come. They'll go right away from him. He can't. Silver Basin's a regular pocket. He'd be trapped by rock walls on three sides and 100 stamp-eaten stairs from the other. Say, that sure is slick. And when the sheriff finds him, he'll figure the long horns ran Harrison into the basin while he was rustling them in. The wind howled wolfishly overhead as Tad Harrison rained in his horse in Silver Basin. He beat the sand from the sombrero and cotton shirt and waited impatiently for the man he had agreed to meet. Steady boy, I don't like it any more than you. At least we're not eating prairie dust for a change. I don't know why Lave Stevens has to see me tonight and hear of all places. I hadn't promised Betty I wouldn't. I'd settle accounts with that double-cross and pole cat. What's that? Sounds like thunder. Long horns come in this way. They're heading in here. Horns thundered towards Silver Basin. Lave Stevens had cunningly prepared for Tad. The Lone Ranger and Tutto raced along the same trail near the Basin's entrance. Rain over the side, Tutto. Those tears will run us down. Then come planning fast for Silver. Let those long horns head the trail. Follow them scouts. Here's the Basin. They're waiting in the entrance while the cattle go by. Looks like the Bar-Z brand Tutto. That's right. They're coming from the direction of the fire. I wonder if they... Maybe Rancher's driving here, taping from fire. They're going in the sky. I'd say the Bar-Z needed all hands to stop the flames. How cattle get here, then? I don't... Look there, from the fire guns. How boys don't do that. They're rustlers. Them stampede some steers this way. They'll travel us, Tutto. Right back into the Basin. Get them up, Tutto! Into the Basin raced the powerful white stallion in a sturdy paint. Behind them, with under 100 Texas long horns. We're gaining one, Tutto. We've got to stop them. This Basin has only one outlet. Get them up, Tutto! With only seconds to spare, the masked man and his Indian friend rode until they faced a sheer stone wall, then leaped from their horses. The lone rangers recognized Tad Harrison and quickly made him a part of his plan. Cut down the brush with your knives. He bitten as many piles as you can. Working against time, the three men raced with scattered brush, cutting it down and heaping it in piles in front of them. Then they set fire to each of the brush eats. The cattle are almost here. They've got to stop. You see? To the three men standing with their backs to the wall, the lone horns seemed to hurl their massive bolts forward for the kill. And the flames from the brush piles leaped into a curtain of fire, shielding the men. The cattle are turning. They're heading back. That was a close one. What was that? Look, the man who stampeded the cattle, he's fallen under them. Riding with Tad to where the fallen man lay, the lone ranger and tanto bent to examine the outlaw. Ah, I'm dead. Well, it's Lave Stevens. Yes, I know. He must have planned that stampede to kill me. That's why he asked me to meet him here. Why would he want to kill you? I don't know. The cattle you saw were part of a herd stolen by Lave and his men from the Barzee Ranch. You know who I am? Yes. Tad, you were sent to prison for cattle rustling. Are you connected with this gang? No. When they set me free, I swore I'd go straight. I believe you, but I doubt if the sheriff will. I don't understand. Those tears were driven from the direction of that prairie fire. I saw the glow in the sky. It's gone now. Ah, then maybe put out flames. That fire was apparently no accident, Tad. It probably was started by men working with Lave so the gang could steal the cattle. I guess you're right. The sheriff will suspect you as one of them. But it's not true. Lave was friendly with two strangers in town. If they're members of the gang, they probably knew of his plan to kill you. I don't know any strangers. And since you just left jail, the chances are they don't know you. But you've got them. It'll be necessary for you to stand a cover for a while. I can't even see Betty. The sheriff's daughter? We were planning to be married soon. You're right. Take care of Lave. What do we do now? We'll trail those stairs. We'll be back soon to take you to our camp, Tad. Come on, Silver. I don't even know who you are. You look in Saddleback. Saddleback? A silver bullet. What? The Lone Ranger? As the Lone Ranger, Tonto and Tad Harrison talked in Silver Basin. The men of the Bar-Z Ranch with neighboring ranches and townspeople hastily recruited by the sheriff threw sand on the last flickering flames of the once-roaring clarifier. Fire's just about out, Max. Tell your men to stack them sides, Lefty. The sheriff has a word to say. All right, boys. Drop what you're doing. We got other work to do. Men, you all know this fire was started so a gang of the lowest coyotes you can imagine could rustle a Bar-Z steers. And when we get our fists on them, we'll teach them what it means to play with matches. I'm calling for volunteers to trail them on breeze right now. Count me in, Sheriff. I reckon he can count us all in, can he, boys? All right, boys. Get your horses and ride. Back on the trail, the muscular legs of the great horse Silver and the sturdy Scouts stretched with powerful strides in pursuit of a stolen cattle. Even in the dark, the herds' footprints were easy to follow, though partly obliterated by the sifting sands. They have mild stretch of stone and shale, known as rocky patch. I was afraid of this, Tutto. Ah, rustlers, handy smart. It'll take hours to patrol the rim of this patch and pick up the trail. The way the wind is blowing the dust, the rustlers' tracks will be completely covered before they're found. We hunt anyway? Now, Tutto, I have a better idea. Wait, the men from the Bar-Z. Ah, them for the cattle, too. Look, Sheriff! A masked man on an engine! Come on, Silver! Get him up, Scouts! 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. Continue our story. The next day, two figures concealed with the low-hanging branches of a tree crept stealthily to the window at the back room of a cafe. One wore a white sombrero and a black mask. The other was an Indian. Those are the two strangers I saw with the late Tutto. They may be members of the gang. We, listen, maybe find them out. Yes, come on. Want to play another game, Bonnie? No. I'm sick of this waiting spade. They take it easy. We've been gambling here all night. What's keeping them? He'll be along. Yeah. I suppose he don't come. What do you mean? It'll be easy for him to slip over the border once he collected the cash. I don't like that kind of talk, Bonnie. They don't like this waiting, either. We risked a noose up in that fire so we could wrestle them cows. I would have seen my cut. Ah, something must have happened, maybe. What? Why? We watched him until he got the kettle clean away. I mean in silver basin while it was stampeding in stairs. Yeah, you look cool. The only thing that could happen in that basin last night happened at Tadden. Mm-hmm. Look, and you're right. I don't see how Tad could turn the tables, but... But what? I'd feel a lot safer if we knew what that ombre looks like. Just in case he got lathe and came gunning for us. Yeah, hogwash spade. You just... I don't know. Oh, hello, Chef. Come on in. You've been in town several days now. You claim you're interested in kettle. We are. Bought any steers? Well, no. Fact is, Chef, we ain't found any of these parts worth buying. So you decided to get them another way, huh? What do you mean? Five hundred prize bars each stock was rated last night. But I guess you boys wouldn't know anything about that, huh? Nope. Or how that grass fire was started so as to make it easy for the rustlers to run the steers. What grass fire? You've been pretty friendly with Lake Stevens. Oh, just had a few drinks with him, Chef. Suppose you ain't chummy with Ted Harrison either. Never met the ombre. Here's to me, it's more than just an accident. Them steers were stolen. The day with Ted was let out of prison. Looks to me like Ted and Lake Stevens buried the hatchet to pull this job. I ain't so sure you two weren't enough. Oh, now you've got us wrong, Chef. Well, maybe I have. Maybe I haven't. But I'm keeping an eye on you. Good day, James. From the place of concealment near the window, the lone ranger and tonto watched the sheriff leave the cafe and the masked man turned to his Indian friend. The sheriff was bluffing, tonto. I don't know. He sure spade and barnier connected with the rustlers, but he has no proof. I'm not giving clue. No. The sheriff may be scaring him out of town. They won't go far without their share of the cash. That's right. It was Lake Stevens' debt. Wait. What do you think? What do you think? We may be able to trick them, tonto. You've got a plan? Yes. It's a long chance, but it may work. What me do? Return to the camp. I'll join you there. Huh. Wish me luck. Meanwhile, in the back room of the cafe, Spade and Barney hastily conferred. Barney. Yeah. This place is getting a little too warm. We better get to Lake before the sheriff does. Yeah. Somebody else's fingers will be on that cash we don't. Let's go. Put up your hands. What the? Missed. Sit down. Who are you? I'm Stephen. Stampeded a bunch of steers into Silver Basin last night. He thought he could make murder look like an accident. How did you know? I'm looking for the man who helped Planet. We didn't have nothing to do with a missy. No, no. It was all Leib's idea. It's the last idea Leif will have. You mean you? He's six feet under. Say, you must be... Who do you think I am? Ted Harrison. Yeah. Well, what's it worth to keep me from turning you over to the sheriff? One third. Sure, Ted. You can have Leif's share. Who has the cash? The man who bought the steers. He was supposed to give Leif the money. Where are the cattle located? That's our secret. Yeah. May not be unless you act. What do you mean? The sheriff traced the cattle to Rocky Patch. His posse is patrolling the patch to pick up the trail and recapture the steers. How do you know? I saw them. Spade, if that posse recaptures the cattle before we collect the cash, our work will be for nothing. But how we get through Rocky Patch with the posse on guard? By kidnapping the sheriff's daughter. What? Going local, Ted? You want to collect the cash and cross the border, don't you? Sure. Then we'll be safe. What's that got to do with it? I get it. To save his daughter's life, the sheriff wouldn't stop us. You mean... Calling this posse and let us travel through Rocky Patch to pick up the cash. What makes you so sure? Because we'll leave a note threatening his daughter with death if she doesn't. I don't know. Afraid to spade? Who's afraid? Ship it then. All right. I mean... Good. We'll draw lots. Which way? Spade. There are three strips from this newspaper. All right. Hold them while Barney and I draw. The one who draws the shortest strip will stand guard outside the sheriff's house while the others go in. Hurry up with them a strip, Spade. I'm arranging them. Well, nobody's a careful about it. All right, all right. Yeah, I'm ready. You first, Barney. Sure. It's a long one. I'll draw. Another long one. That means you have the short one, Spade. Yeah. You'll watch outside while Barney and I go in. When should we pull this job, Ted? I'll meet you at that clump of trees behind the sheriff's house at midnight. Somebody's in for a big surprise. Yes, Barney. Somebody is. That evening, the two outlaws made hasty but careful preparations for kidnapping the sheriff's daughter and eluding the sheriff's posse in order to pick up the cash for the stolen cattle. Meanwhile, the Lone Ranger conferred with Tonto and Ted at their camp not far from town. You know what to do, Kimosawa? Tonto, no. Don't mess with that knife. I mean, not mess. I know I can count on you. Ted, have you written a note to Betty, the sheriff's daughter? Yeah, it's right here. Yeah, what did you say? This is what you told me to say. Told her about tonight's plan and to stay overnight with her aunt to avoid risk. Good. May I take note now? Yes, Tonto. It's going to be time for me to meet the wrestlers. Come, Scout. We'll see you after midnight, huh? Yes, Tonto. If everything works as we planned, Ted will be free to go tomorrow. Thanks to you two. Get up, Scout! At midnight, the masked man met with Spade and Barney in the clump of trees behind the sheriff's house. Barney showed the masked stranger whom he and Spade thought to be Ted Harrison the note he had written to be left after the kidnapping. It threatened Betty, the sheriff's daughter, with death. Unless her father complied with the outlaw's demand that the posse be withdrawn in order to clear their way through rocky paths to the pay cash. Then as the moon hid behind a heavy cloud, the three crept quietly toward the sheriff's house. Breaking their sleep. Yeah. They ain't a light show. Stand by this window, Spade. You can watch the insides of the house from here. Yeah. Barney, now go round to the front. Don't be long. And you're with me instead of Spade, Barney. You've got more nerve. Spade's cautious, that's all. Spade would like to collect the cash from the cattle buyer in one piece, Barney. What do you mean? Remember when we drew Lutz? Yeah. Spade made all three strips of paper long. He did? Yeah. And as long as we drew first, he could throw his strip away or break it short and claim hours were long. What'd he do that for? He wanted to be sure to be chosen for outside duty. This plan fails. It'll be the two of us inside. It'll be trapped. Hey, that's right. Be careful of that, Lutz. Yeah. Come on. Maybe Spade's freaking the double crosses, Ted. We'll soon know. Maybe he's planning on something happening to us. Get your gun ready. It is. Don't worry. If I had thought Spade would double crosses, I'd riddle him in a minute. Spade's watching right outside that window. What do we do? We've got to pass the window to get to the girl's room, Barney. Yeah. You pass the window first. You hear me, whistle? Go up to the floor fast. Who will you be? Watching Spade through the window. And here goes. What happened? Look. A knife. That double crossing polket. I had to pin it with a knife. I'll show you. Get that gun, Barney. Drop it. Another double cross here. Take this. Oh, my head. What's going on here? There's a prisoner for you, Sheriff. Where is he? This is one of the men who started the prairie fire. You ain't selling me out alone, Ted. That double cross of Spade isn't as deep as I am. Don't stand there like a fool, Sheriff. I tell you, Spade's outside. He's as guilty as starting that fire as I am. Get after him. He'll escape. No, he won't. Spade's already been taken care of. He didn't double cross you, Barney. You double crossed him. Someone else threw that knife. You've given the Sheriff enough evidence to arrest you both. I should say he has. I lied, Sheriff. How did you come here tonight, Barney? Glad. You came to kidnap the Sheriff's daughter. So he wouldn't prevent you and Spade from claiming the cash for the stolen cattle. To frame up, I tell you, Sheriff. Sheriff, you'll find proof in Barney's pocket. A note he wrote threatening your daughter with death unless you comply. Oh, you mean to. What about this, hombre, Sheriff? Ted has it. He didn't do any work, but he was one of the Sheriff and the cash. I'm not Ted Harrison, Barney. Of course he ain't. You said you were. Oh, no, Barney. You said I was. You and Spade. Here's a real Ted Harrison right here. He's right, Barney. You won't have any trouble getting Barney to tell you where to find the cattle now, Sheriff. But the gang either. Mister, I don't know who you are. But I don't mind telling you this case had me stumped. I had a pause. He searched in a patch for hoof prints. But after that dust storm, it took a miracle for me to find him. You mean the trail was covered by the dust? Clean as a whistle. Well, that little darn coyote. The man's man knew it all the time. Listen to your breath, Barney. He's gone. Gone? Well, who is he? He's the Lone Ranger. Just heard as a copyrighted feature of the Lone Ranger Incorporated.