 A fiery horse with a speed of light, the cloud of dust, and a hearty high old silver, the long ranger. When the first railroads were built into the western United States, the engineers and men were faced with a constant danger of attack by outlaws and Indians, and their task might never have been accomplished had it not been for the masked rider of the planes. It was his strength and courage, his daring and resourcefulness that blazed the trail for progress, and finally made possible the winning of the West. 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 long ranger rides again. Come on, Silver! We're heading for the canyon. There's going to be trouble. I'll Silver! I'll Silver! I'll Silver! I'll Silver! I'll Silver! The first construction camp of the new southern and western railroad was 50 miles beyond the railhead town of Warren City. 50 miles farther on, Kowago Canyon cut across the right of way, and three, four, five miles a day, the gleaming rails were creeping toward it. Jim Harold was in charge of constructing the bridge across the canyon, and one night he rode out of the camp and headed across the plane toward his own headquarters. A mile to the west, he was hailed from the side of the trail. What's that? Oh, whoa, boy, whoa, whoa, whoa, there, whoa. Who is it? Steady, nice, Silver. Steady, boy, steady. Hold down, old fella. A masked man and a ninja. I don't go for your gun. What do you want? I haven't got any money on me. This isn't a hold up. You're not Matt Kirby, don't you? Sure. You may have mentioned this ring I'm wearing. A ring? That's here. Say, is there a secret compartment in this? I'll show you how it works. Yeah. Well then, then you must be the lone ranger. That's right. We've had a message from a girl who's helped us out a great deal. John Kimberley is somewhere near your camp. Ah. Does that mean anything to you? Not much. I know who Kimberley is, of course. Do you know what he is? Hmm? And better explain, he's trying to slow up the building of the railroad. You see if it isn't completed to Junction City by the 1st of October and Warren and Miles will lose their government subsidy and go bankrupt. But the 1st of October is a long way off. Ah, so Junction City. Kimberley wants to own the southern and western. He may try to interfere with the building of your bridge. How can he? Well, in the same way he tried to stop supplies from getting through to Warren City. I've got all the supplies I need. The last wagon's left for camp this morning. Well, how about your men? Oh, I've got a fine crew. Nearly all of the men have worked for me before. Nearly all? Well, the men are all right. Nobody's going to make trouble in our camp. How about you? Now, what if something happened to you? The work would go on. Maybe not quite so fast, but my son Bob's a fine engineer and Jeremy Stewart can handle them in. You realize, of course, that no tracks can be laid beyond the canyon until that bridge has been finished. Oh, I know how important it is that we get finished on time, but you don't have to worry. With Kimberley around, we all have to worry. Well, thanks for the warning. I'll keep a sharp look out for trouble. There won't be nothing surprises. You watch out on trail back to camp. Sure thing, engine. I'll be on guard. Is that all you want of me? I just wanted to warn you, Harold. Oh, thanks. Drop in at the camp sometime. Always glad to see you. You may be seeing us soon. Good. So long then. Adios, Harold. Ah, him not pay much attention. Not listen to warning. Yes, he listen, Tutto. I don't think he realizes how dangerous Kimberley is. Maybe next time you meet Kimberley, you put him in jail, huh? We almost got him the last time. Now, he'll be more careful than ever. That's right. Hello. We're going to follow Jim Harold. That's a good idea. Come on, Silver. Get him up to count. As the Lone Ranger and Tutto rode after Jim Harold, two men met at the base of the steep walls of Kewago Canyon. One of them was Kimberley. His face was hidden by a bandana and a broad brimmed hat pulled low. The other was a huge man with broad shoulders and a heavy beard. It was Kimberley who spoke first. It's about time you got here. I began to think you didn't get my message. I got here as soon as I could, but I... Hey, what's the idea holding a six-kin on me? Just to keep things peaceful. I wanted to have a talk with you, uh, Butch. Butch? You got me wrong. My name is Sawyer. Pete Sawyer. Your name's Butch Rankin, as far as I'm concerned. And letting your beard grow doesn't change it. It's heavy. So you know who I am, now what? You were smart taking an honest job with the construction game, Butch. Had never think of looking for you here. Everyone thinks I'm Pete Sawyer. If you follow my lead, they can keep on thinking that, and you can keep on being safe. At the same time, you can make yourself some easy money. We won't beat around the bush. I'll pay $100 for every day the construction job is held up. That could count up to important money. That depends on you. But how do I know you're on the level? Take off that bad data and let me have a look at your face. Who are you, anyway? That's none of your business. I'll give you $100 right now. Yeah. You can call it expense. Well, thanks. But I'd like to know who I'm doing business with. In this case, it's impossible. You've heard my proposition. You can either accept it or, uh... Or you'll turn me over to the law. Exactly. What's your answer? It's a deal. You got any ideas about what I should do? The ideas must be yours. But I could suggest one thing. What? Jim Harrell's in charge. If he were to be, uh, eliminated... Uh-huh. But he ain't in the camp right now. He should be back by tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning early. That might, uh, be a good time. Might be. I only have one warning. Yeah? You ever hear of a man they call the Lone Ranger? Hear of him? He's in a palamide of jail. Do you know him by sight? I don't know that horse of his, anyway. Well, you, uh, you may have a chance to get even, butch. The Lone Ranger wants his bridge finished just as much as I want it delayed. If you do see him, I'd, uh, I'd suggest you shoot to kill. Just before dawn, a heavy mist rolled out of the canyon and over the country toward the east. A Lone Ranger and Tonto rode slowly along the trail. They were unable to see Jim Harrell, but they knew he must be nearing the camp Corral. The sun will be up in another hour, Tonto. This mist will start clearing away. Uh-huh. We'll find a place where we can camp for a few days. You'll not ride on to... Tonto. Uh, shot come from that way. Here's the Corral. Rain up. The White Stylian and the paint, obedient to their riders, stopped and stood motionless. In the gray mist, the Lone Ranger stood in his stirrups. Keeneye is searching the shadows ahead. Beside him, Tonto rested his hands on the saddle horn, leaned forward, straining to pierce the gloom. The Corral loomed vague and almost formless in the mist. Horses and riders waited tensely. Since the distance shot, there had not been a sound. The seconds stretched, lengthened. Then suddenly... Horse come. You hear it? There he is. There's Harrell. And no rider. That isn't Harrell's horse. No. At the command, Silver and Scout raced forward, nostrils flaring in the fog that swirled around them. Sure footed his mountain lions, they galloped unerringly down the slight grade toward the Corral. The Lone Ranger's right hand hung on his side, the fingers close to his holster ready for action. This time, his eyes pierced the gloom first. There's the gray. Got it. The opening of the Corral. Ah, where's Harrell? Oh. Oh. Somebody on ground. Yes, I'm afraid it's... Yes. Jim Harrell. Ah. A mad, bad wound. He's unconscious. Tontor triathixil. The men are coming from the bunkhouse. We aren't known here, Kimosabi. It may lead to trouble. Ah. I heard the shot and I heard somebody right away. I heard the same thing. Hard to tell this best, but it sounded like it came from there. They worked there. Are you Bob Harrell? Yeah. Who are you? It was your father who was hurt. I thought I was bandaging the wound. Bullet catch him in the shoulder. Now that you're here, we'll leave him in your care. That's a first. The way he smitted an inch of Bob. It must have been them that did the shooting. Now you're mistaken. Jim knows who we are. He'll tell you when he regains consciousness. In the meantime... In the meantime, you'll stay right where you are. Oh. I'm sorry, Bob. That draws. We're leaving. Ah. Teddy boy. Come on, Silver. Get him up. We'll be waiting for Bob. Say the word and we'll play a small set. Go to it. Come on, Silver. Three days passed. Jim Harrell did not regain consciousness. But the work on the bridge was directed by Bob and Jeremy Stewart. It was nearly 10 o'clock in the evening. The two men were in the cabin that served as an office, checking the day's progress and planning ahead. Now, the way I figure it, we'll have to start laying the foundations on the far side of the canyon tomorrow. I wonder. What's there to wonder about? I don't know. I wasn't thinking about the bridge, Jeremy. Well, stop well-gathering and get to work. You're the only engineer we got. You don't work out the technical problems. Nobody can. That may be. But if you weren't here to handle a man, we wouldn't get anywhere. All right. Let's get this settled before we break our arms, patting ourselves on the back. I'm still wondering. What about? Just before I came over here, I was sitting beside Pa. He's still unconscious, of course. But his lips were moving. I lean on him. But his lips were moving. I leaned real close to see if I could pick up what he was saying. Well? It sounded like a lone ranger. A lone ranger? Yeah. We've all taken it for granted it was that masked man who shot Pa. But if he was the lone ranger, he couldn't have done it. It might have been anyone. Don't you see what that would mean, Jeremy? We heard a horse galloping away. The man that rode that horse or maybe... Who's there? Sally Martin. It's a girl. Yeah, Sally Martin. She owns a bar and ranch to the north. We'll do something about it. Let her... Never mind, I'll do it. Good evening. Gosh. What? Oh, I'm sorry. I just never expected to see a girl like you out here in the wilderness. This happens to be my home range. Are you Mr. Stewart? No, but he's just inside. Won't you come in? Thank you. Jeremy, the young lady wants to see you. Yeah, that's all. This envelope is yours, isn't it? Well, it sure enough got my name on the outside. But I don't serve him. Neither do I. Good night, gentlemen. Oh, now, now, wait. Won't you sit down and visit for a while? I'm sorry, I'm in a hurry. Good night. Jeremy. Get up. Get up there. Have you ever seen anything so pretty in your life? You sure have all the luck. Now, why couldn't she have come to see me instead of you? Read this. Sure. You might as well know there's $500 in this envelope. Jeremy. Do you believe what's in that note or do you believe in me? You don't have to ask that question. But we've got to find out more about this. I'm going after that girl. What could she have to do with it? I'm going to find out. I'm with you. This note is nothing but a lie. No sooner had Bob and Jeremy ridden away than the Lone Ranger slipped into the cabin. He picked up the note that Bob had thrown to the floor and read it. This is for shooting Jim Harold. You'll get the rest when you finish the job. Now, what could Sally Martin have to do with this? I'll take that note. What's that? I got you covered. Reach for the ceiling. 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. At the command from Butch, the Lone Ranger raised his arms and turned slowly toward the door. Then... I suppose you figured you were going after Bob and Jeremy. You must know what's in this note. So what if I do? It explains a lot of things. I have seen it. I... I've seen you before. Sure. The night you shot Jim Harold. You're the one who shot Jim Harold? You think so? You shot him and then you took your quirk to that riderless horse. They'd gallop away into the night. Why should I do a thing like that? Because you had no idea that Tom and I would be riding up. You wanted the men in camp to think some outsider had done the shooting. You got it all figured out, haven't you? It wasn't hard. You're getting a good look at your face. You think you know me? I'm sure of it. Butch. That's good. I want you to know who I am. Because when I pull this trigger, I'll be getting even for Joe. Well... why don't you look me in the eye? Why don't you? But the Lone Ranger was watching the outlaws knuckles. Watching for the first faint whitening that would indicate he was about to pull the trigger. It came. The masked man plopped like a flash, throwing himself forward at the same time but fired. The shot went wide by a fraction. There was no time for a second shot. Spalled on top of the outlaw, the Lone Ranger held his wrist and a grip of steel. Backward, farther and farther, he forced it until the gun clattered to the floor. Both men were on their feet in an instant, but this time the weapons were bare fists. The Lone Ranger matched Butch's power with the speed and precision of his blows. Outside, he could hear the men from the camp. He rolled for the shot and headed for the cabin. He picked an opening and lashed out with a right. He staggered back against the door. Swiftly, the Lone Ranger leveled his guns. Butch was shoved aside as the men crashed through. Where have you moved? I'm going out this window. First man who follows me stops Lynn. Don't stand there after him. Go on, he's heading south. That's the man who shot Jim Hill. To the south. Good. Me, I'm heading for the Bar M Ranch and I'll get there before Bob and Jeremy. Easy, boy. Easy. Hello. How are you? Jim Harrell's men are on my trail. Get away from here before they arrive. I'll let them away from the camp so you'll have a chance to circle back there and look at Jim. He's still unconscious. Here's Scout. You may be able to do more for him in five minutes and they have him three days. I'll shake off these men and then ride to the Bar M Ranch. Come on. Get him up, Scout. Is this the ranch house we're coming to, Jeremy? Yeah, the bunkhouse is about a half mile farther on. It's taken us a long time. Must be a shorter trail than the camp. There is, but it's dangerous at night. We'll find out who wrote that note. Maybe you better have your gun ready. That girl live here all alone? Yeah, since her pa died. It's awful funny to me. Don't look like she's going to answer the door. I don't hear any of the body inside. Try it. See if it's locked. Shall we go in? Might as well. What's happened here? A cyclone must have struck the place. Yeah, everything turned upside down. Must have been a fight. Is Sally Martin mixed up with some crooked gang? They've been using this ranch house for a hideout? Whatever happened, it wasn't long ago. That lamp's still lit and plenty of oil left. I give up, Bob. But I don't. That girl may be in danger. We don't even know she rode back here after she left camp. Must be something around here to give us a... Somebody just rode up. Yeah. Look at that white horse, Jeremy. It's the same one the mask man rode. There he is in the doorway. Where is Sally Martin, Bob? Are you the Lone Ranger? Yes, I am. Where's Sally? We don't know. We just got here. You must have taken the long trail. Yeah, we followed the canyon. That's nearly twice as far. Sally rode back to the woods. And I think Butch Rankin followed her. Butch Rankin? Who's he? One of your men. He's big. He has a black beard and... That sounds like Pete Sawyer. His right name is Butch Rankin. And he's wanted by the law. You hear that, Jeremy? And he must be the one who tried to kill Paul. Yeah, he is. What's a girl like Sally Martin got to do with an outlaw? Nothing at all. But she just brought me a letter. And whoever wrote that letter was trying to put the blame for... I know, Jeremy. And I'm glad Bob wasn't fooled by it. The letter was written to cause a misunderstanding between you two. Sally delivered it? That's because the letter was delivered here. Huh? Well, I'm only guessing. But I know that Sally's honest. That's the simplest explanation. The letter was slipped under her door. But when she read the name on the envelope, she wrote over to give it to you. Say, maybe you're right. But that doesn't matter. I'm afraid Butch has captured her. Where are you going? The ground's fairly soft. Maybe we can pick up a trail. Then what? Follow it, of course. But why would that crook want to hold Sally a prisoner? Or ransom, do you think? More likely to lead you two on. Lead us on? He knew you wanted to talk with Sally. He might be using her to lead you into an ambush. Don't hold water. How would we know she was a prisoner? How would we know which way he'd taken her? If he hasn't left evidence behind, then I'm wrong. I don't say I can figure this out any better. But I think he are. No, Jeremy. Look at the top rail of the corral ahead of us. A piece of paper sticking on a nail? Yes. Let's see if it's a note. Sure it is. You won't get a chance to talk to the girl. Don't try to follow us. It's signed the Claw. The Claw? What's rankin' about this? It's in the same handwriting as the other note. Jeremy, would this stop you from following him if you could find the trail? Leap and cactus, no. There it is. That's right, Jeremy. It's plain as day. He rolled off that way. Here's a little bit. We're going with you. No telling how long it will take to follow his trail to the end. You have to be back at camp early to put your men to work. We've got to go with you. It's our fault. The girl's in danger. Your work is important, too. We've got to go. Very well, then. Come on, Jeremy. Hey, no. Ready, Silver? Hey, boy. Meet the way. Come on, boy. It was just a dawn that Butch rained up in a great circle of rocks at the northernmost end of the canyon. He let the girl steal, bound, and gagged down from the saddle and then dismounted himself. You should take that gag out before I start fixing some grub. Oh. Sort of lonely with nobody to talk to. Yellow couch. You'll pay for this. Yeah. My foreman will be riding up the ranch just about now. You'll find out I'm gone and pretty soon my whole crew will be after you. They won't be the first. What do you mean? Young Herald and Jeremy Stewart. They ought to be showing up any time now. You mean that young engineer? Yep. What are you after? That's money you want. I don't see how I can collect any from you, sister. No. The only reason you're here is to lead Mr. Herald straight up to these rocks. You're going to kill him. That's he gets. But the lone ranger. The lone ranger. That gag going smack. No, you have to help me. That scream came from behind those rocks. Yeah. There's a regular circle of them. Might just well be inside a fort. This was the ambush he'd counted on. We'd have written straight into it if the girl hadn't screamed. Well, we do charge him. Well, we can't take a chance on hitting the girl. Well, we can't just stand here. Quiet, Jeremy. The lone ranger's got an idea. You two ride around with the other side of the rocks. I will cut him off if he tries to make a break for it. What do you aim to do? I'm going to walk straight toward the rocks. What that suicide? You'll have to show part of his body if he wants a shot at me. Be a question of which of us shoots first. Hey, boy. Stay here, silver. You'll be killed. Get around to the other side of the rocks. Come on, get out there, boy. The lone ranger walked down toward the rocks, slowly but never faltering. Then, when less than 100 feet remained, the outlaw's gun flashed. Two shots rang out. Butch cried out. The lone ranger stopped for a moment and then quietly slumped to the ground. The sun was high overhead when the masked man opened his eyes. Dimly at first and then more clearly, he could see Jeremy and Bob and the girl grouped around him. Oh, thank goodness. Where's Butch? We got him tied up. You shot the gun out of his hand and before he could get it again, we rode in and got him covered. Good. How will I talk to him? You'd better not try to get up yet. I can manage it now. Here, lean on me a little. Gully, you don't need help at all, Bob. Butch, you were hired to slow down the building of the bridge, weren't you? It's my business. Perhaps. You've always made it your business to get as light a sentence as possible. It's, uh... it's going to help if you tell us who hired you. I didn't see his face. You must have. I didn't. I met him just three times. He was always at night. He says you wore a bad dad over his face. That's too bad. You'll pay the full penalty for attempted murder. There was somebody else connected with all this? One of the worst crooks in the West, Bob. He's doing everything in his power to slow up the building of the railroad. What's his name? A name doesn't help without any evidence to back it up. Let's get back to camp. But are you sure you're well enough to ride? Yes, I think so. I'm sorry I've kept all of you here as long as I have. Men won't know what to do without your orders, Bob. You've lost a full day's work on the bridge. We couldn't leave you. Come on, Jeremy. Help me get this coyote into the saddle. Kino. Let's back to camp as fast as we can make it. Look at the bridge. Men are working all right. And the far side, too. Just where we figured to send them. How could they know what to do? They didn't. That's your father out in front of the cabin. There's an engine beside him. That's Toto. Hi. Well, come on. Go, go, go, go. You're better, Pa. I sure am. Tom will give me some medicine and fix me up in no time. We got the crook to charge you. Take a look at him. That's Pete Sawyer. His right name's Butch Rankin. And he's going to spend the next 20 years in jail. You will not find Kimberly? No, Kimosabe. And no evidence against him. We'll have to hit the trail again. Here's Scout. Here comes Sally. I thought she was... Whoa, whoa, whoa, there, boy, whoa. What's up? Masked men. There was a stranger stopped at the ranch a couple of hours ago, topped like an Easterner. Is he the one? Where is he now? He told the boys he was heading back for the railhead. What? Come on, Silver. Get him up, Scout. Get him up. Oh, Silver! Oh, hey! Before you have just heard, it's a copyrighted feature of the Lone Ranger Incorporated.