 A fiery horse with a speed of light, a cloud of dust, and a hearty Hio Silver! The Lone Ranger! With his faithful Indian companion, Toto, the daring and resourceful Masked Rider of the Plains led the fight for law and order in the early Western United States. 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 hoof beats of the great horse Silver! The Lone Ranger rides again! Come on Silver, let's go big fellow. Are you Silver? El Capitan had once been a volcano, but it had been extinct for as long as any records could reveal. The crater a natural basin had become a lake that took the name of the mountain, El Capitan. The rain had been falling for many days with intermittent thunder, and for several days the Lone Ranger had been camped in a sheltering overhang on El Capitan's gently sloping side, awaiting his faithful Indian companion, Toto. As the hoof beats of an approaching horse sounded above the steady rain, the masked man rose to his feet as White Horse Silver winnied softly. Yes, Silver, our friend had last. Now we know what delayed him. Oscar, oh fella, oh, Kimosabi. Yes, Toto. Indians say El Capitan Lake spill into valley. We see lake, and Indian right. The lake at the mountain top? That right. Rain make lake higher and higher. Soon lakes start over rim. The water once starts over the rim will soon wash a deep cut. Ah, and all of lakes spill into valley. Make small river through valley overflow. Toto, every ranch in the valley will be under water. That right. The ranches are worn in time. They'll be able to move their cattle out of danger in the hills on both sides of the valley. Maybe you look at lake. See what happens. All right, I'll start now. You ride down to the valley and warn the ranchers. I'll wait for you at the edge of the lake. Adios. Adios. Get him up. Stop. Easy silly big fella. One silly. Toto had to travel slowly on the rain-drenched slope. It took a long time to reach the valley. He told the first man he met, a cow hand named Curly, about the impending flood. Then started up the long hill to rejoin the lone ranger. Meanwhile, Curly hurried to the home of his boss, Joe Munson, owner of the finest ranch in the valley. Boss, that engine seemed to know what he was talking about. I noticed a few Indians on the move, Curly. Our word do for a flood for sure. I'd better pass a word to the other ranchers and then start moving cattle. No, no, wait, Curly. Why should we worry about the other ranchers? Well, promise that Indian I'd pass the word. Who cares about a promise? Let the other ranchers take care of themselves. Well, they'll lose a lot of cattle. All the more pasture for my stock. Well, what about yourself? You know, I'd better get to the settlement. I'll be safe there. Yeah, the settlement will be safe. It's on high ground. I'll go and start the boys moving the cattle. Oh, wait, Curly. There's only one way for the water to get out of the valley. That's through the narrow canyon where the stream flows. There'll be a lot of debris. It's sure to partly close the outlet. What about it, boss? Well, it might be days before the flood subsides. Maybe I can cash in on it. Boss, you can't cash in on a flood. If the valley's flooded, every rancher will seek refuge in town. If they're caught by surprise, they'll have no time to take supplies. Food will be scarce. Anyone who has it to sell can name his own price and get it. I reckon the two cafes in Widow Larson's store will do a land office business. Curly, we've got to work fast. I'm going to town. I'll buy up all the food in both cafes and I'm going to buy out Widow Larson. I'll own all the food in town. Yeah, but with all that buying, won't folks get suspicious? Well, I can handle that. The food will be shipped in. How? The road will be flooded as well as the valley. That's so. But boss, you're asking for trouble. Well, I'll be ready for it. By the time you and the others have moved the cattle into the hills, I'll own Widow Larson's store. You bring the men there and bring guns and ammunition. Now get going. When Joe Munson reached town on top of high ground in the valley, he found that no one had considered the possibility of a flood. He found it easy to negotiate a deal and take immediate possession of Widow Larson's little store. Then he visited both cafes and told stories that were convincing enough to enable him to buy the food supply without arousing suspicion. The rain continued all afternoon and the lake at the top of El Capitan rose steadily and to the licked at the uppermost edge of the old crater. The lone ranger drenched to the skin was watching the water level when Tatl brought his tired paint horse to a stop. Don't come. Oh, fella. Oh, he's just gone. He's safe on that. Now, it's plenty long ride uphill. Trail, plenty slippery. I knew it would take a long time, Tatl. Water heat's very high now. Another hour? It will flow over the edge. After that, it won't take long to wash away a deep cut. That's right. You, uh, warned the ranchers? Ah, we see one fella. Tell him what happened. He'm all excited. He promised to tell all other ranchers. Good. The cattle will be safe on the hillsides and the ranchers will be out of danger in town. That's right. Town on high ground. It'd be plenty safe. Now, we'd better get away from here or we'll be caught in a flood. We go back to valley? Yes. Then to the hills on the south side of the valley. And there we can keep an eye on what happens. Isn't that good? He's just had a big float. He's just got it. He's got him up scouted. Water started over the rim while the lone ranger and Tatl were on the downhill trail. The first trickle washed away loose dirt and volcanic ash to cut a channel. More water rushed through with increasing force and moved more earth to cut a deeper groove. By the time the masked man and his Indian companion had reached the southern hill, the side of El Capitan had become a thundering torrent, spilling thousands of tons of water into the valley. The rain stopped during the night but the water continued to rise. The small river through the valley overflowed its banks and spread out wider and wider until the whole valley was underwater. The lone ranger and Tatl watching at daybreak from the hillside saw people waiting toward the town on higher ground and the water was rising all the time. Hello. Those people have been caught without warning. I'm not right. Most of them have left everything. Well, then get to town safe. They're having trouble but they'll make it. Why were they caught like that? Well, be warned, one fella. And him say him past word. I wonder if he kept his promise. The outlet to the canyon is already blocked. Maybe two weeks before the water ebbs and the roads are open, there's a food shortage in that town and there may be trouble. I'm going to find out. How do you find out? I'll go to town. Oh, water plenty deep now. There's only a couple of hundred yards across. Town on island now. You have to swim. Water plenty fast. Bad current. Maybe bad undertow. I'll take silver. Together we can make it. In the center of the small island that held the town above water, a crowd of people had gathered in front of the locked doors of the store Widow Larson had sold. In the groups stood Marshall Blake and the Widow Larson as well as a number of refugees from ranches. I can't say why Joe Munson doesn't open the store for business. Why, he must know there's a lot of people needing to buy food. I can't figure why Munson bought the store. But he's a slick one. He must have something up his sleeve. My kids are hungry. I'm going to the East Cafe and buy some gruel. I won't do you any good, Hank. I went to both cafes a little while ago. They got no gruel. How come? Joe Munson went to both of them yesterday and bought up what food they had. I didn't know that. I needed it, I must say. What's Joe Munson's game? He told him he needed supplies. And he wouldn't deal with a store because he'd had a row with Mrs. Larson. That's a downright lie. We had no row. He made an offer for my store, and it was a good one, so I took it. It looks to me like Munson controls all the food in this town. Where is he? Why doesn't he open the store? Yeah. He took a lot of rooms in the hotel. He and some of his ranch hands went there last night. Oh, here he comes, huh? Munson! I want to talk to you. Howdy, Marshal Blake. Good morning, everyone. Good morning. Munson, is it true you bought up all the food in town? Well, I made a couple of deals, including the store. That's what you mean, Marshal. These people need food. Fine, fine, and dandy. I got it for sale. I'll have the store open in no time. Of course, you people know about the law of supply and demand. I'll wait. What do you mean by that, Munson? Well, price of goods goes up and down depending on the market. Right here on this island, there's a big market for food. That means the price will be a bit high. How high? Well, maybe two, three times usual. Munson, you ordinary skin flint. You can't do that. Don't tell me what I can do, Mrs. Larson. I know my rights. Of course, I might boost the price higher the next few days, but right now... We can't afford such prices. Well, I can appreciate the fact that you folks might be short of cash. I'm willing to take mortgages on your land. Marshal Blake! Come quick. The man's trying to cross the water. Where's he coming from? Southside. Can't make it. At least got a horse and fighting hard. Maybe we can help him somehow. We'll see what we can do. Come on, boy. Coming up. For the moment, food was forgotten. Marshal Blake led the way to the south side of the island and saw the lone ranger and silver fighting furiously against the tremendous power of the surging water. Several times, both horse and rider were sucked down by the treacherous undertow. There were cheers from the bank when the two once more came into view. There was no way any man could help. If we could get this rope to him... Hold her steady, Ray. If he gets near enough, we'll toss it to him. Hey, Marshal, that man's worth a man's. An outlaw. Outlaw or not, he's going to get all the help we can give him. I never saw a man put up such a fight. We've got a fighting chance, all right? We're pulling for you. We're holding the rope, ready. Come just a little closer. Maybe I can throw that far. Here comes the rope, mister. Try to grab on. All right, let it go, Ray. Good throw, Ray. Grab it, mister. He's got it. Willing hands pulled in the rope and helped the lone ranger and the gallant silver to the safety of shore. Dripping water, the masked man looked at those who had saved him. I owe my life to you people. Not by a junk fool. That horse would have made sure. What a horse! Mister, my name is Blake. As the Marshal, I'm the only law there is. I should ask questions about that mask. You'll have to take my word that I'm not an outlaw. Maybe I will, and maybe I won't. You must have had a mighty good reason to cross that whitewater. Why'd you come here? I knew you'd be cut off from food supplies. I came to see how you were fixed. We're not fixed. All the food and towns owned by Joe Monson came to take our ranchers for enough to eat. He brought out my store. Were none of you warned that there might be a flood? No. I sent a warning. What? If you sent a warning, I'll bet Monson got it and didn't pass it on while at Henri's scheme and full cap. He figured to turn our trouble into a good thing for himself. Marshal, Joe Monson should be taught a lesson. Nothing we can do about it, mister. We got to eat. And to eat, we'll have to pay whatever Monson asked. Maybe not. We'll see what can be done. The curtain falls on the first act of our lone ranger adventure. Before the next exciting scenes, please permit us to pause for just a few moments. All to continue. The people in town were hungry, but not hungry enough to pay the outrageous prices Monson posted for the food he had to sell. Curly told his boss the reason. That mask man, Mr. Monson, the one who swam his horse across in the south shore. What'd he do? He told the Marshal he thought he could get grub. How? Well, it seems he's got a partner in the hills. He's been signaling them by flashing a mirror. I reckon he expects his partner to ride over the south hills and get food from the next town. Only get the grub here, there aren't any boats. I don't know, boss, but that mask man must have some way in his mind. Keep an eye on him, Curly. If we see he has a chance of spoiling my game, we'll take care of him. The Lone Ranger and Marshal Blake were at the water's edge. Tonto had seen the signals and had ridden over the hill. It will be some time before my friend returns, Blake. We can use the time to good advantage. Well, just tell me what's to be done. Everyone in town will give you all the rope you want to hang a skunk like Monson. Actually, Blake, we'll need a lot of rope. Good, strong rope. We can get it. And a lot of logs. There's a sawmill above, Warner. I'll get the boys working on it right away. Hey, there! Get all the men together! We need lots of men, Clark! Tonto rode hard to the only nearby town, a community called Bad Edge, because of its location at the edge of the endless miles of unpopulated rocky country known as the Badlands. There he found a sympathetic storekeeper, but no hope of food. You see, Injun, we had some bad luck last week. Our warehouse burned to the ground, and all the food except what little they got here in the store burned with it. I sure like to help out, but we've got no food to spare. Meanwhile, Marshall Blake directed the men on the island. They hauled countless logs and many coils of rope to the water's edge, while Monson watched from the store where not a sail had been made. Presently, Curly came in with a report. Oh, Curly, did you find out what that masked man expects to do? He's talking to building some sort of a bridge. Across that wild water? It can't be done. Well, I reckon he figures a way till the water calms down some, but it won't do him any good unless the Indian finds a supply of food. What Indian? The masked man's partner's an Indian. Here, look over yonder. Where? Through the window. Look over on the south hill. Here's the rescue now. I see him. He's standing at the water's edge. Looks like he's flashing a light of some kind. It's a bright metal. He's signaling to the masked man. The lone ranger and Marshall Blake stood apart from the men who were hauling logs to the water's edge. When Tatl finished signaling, the masked man said, I... I'm sorry, Blake. Sounds like bad news. Thanos couldn't find a place to get food. Oh, John, and everyone had their hopes up, hauling all those logs to build a bridge? Yes, I know. Well, might be just as well your plan fell through. Just as well? Munson's got his ranch hands here in town with him. They're all bad hombres, gunslingers. I wouldn't put it past him to get rough if they saw Munson was gonna get licked. Surely there are men enough here to handle Munson's gunslingers? Yes, but there'd be shooting and some killing. Oh, just a minute, Blake. You've given me an idea. You think Munson would go a long way to keep us from getting food? I'd count on it. That's just what we'll do. We'll count on it. We'll count on Munson being rotten to the core. I'm going to flash further instructions to Tatl. Uh, what about the men who were hauling logs? Say nothing to them. Let them continue bringing logs here. We'll go ahead with our plans for a bridge. While the men continued hauling logs and Munson watched from the window of his store, the masked man flashed dots and dashes to spell out a lengthy message of instruction to his Indian friend. When he had finished, Tatl rode up the hill a second time and disappeared beyond the crest. That night, the fury of the water lessened. At daybreak, a strong current still flowed through the valley, but it was not nearly as violent as before. When Marshall Blake came to the water's edge and looked toward the south, he saw a sight that made him cry out with excitement. Look over, young man! The Redskins done it! Look over there! People rushed from the buildings and saw the cause of Blake's excitement. Tatl had returned and brought a wagon drawn by two mules. The wagon was piled high with barrels and crates and boxes. It's food! The engine brought food! We can thank the masked man for that. While the crowd watched, another loaded wagon driven by a white man threaded down the mountain trail. There's food enough for all of us. All we have to do is get it across the water. How can we get it here? We got no boats. Boat wouldn't do anyhow. Couldn't paddle against that current. The masked man has something in mind. Where is it? Here it comes. Hey there, look! Your Indian friend has brought food. Yes, Marshall. I knew we could count on Tatl. Now would you come with me to call on Munson? Munson? What? We'll give him one more chance. Curly and all the other Munson employees were with their boss in the store. They saw the masked man and Marshall Blake approaching and their hands crept toward their guns in case of trouble. Leave the guns alone. We came to talk, not to shoot. Munson, I want to talk to you. Well, you paid a high price for this store. So far you haven't sold a dime worth of food. I came to offer you a chance to get back your investment. If you refuse to reduce prices, you lose every cent you put into this store because no one will trade with you. You think people will let their kids starve? Look on the south shore. There are two wagon loads of cases and barrels. Does that look as if anyone will starve? We've been watching you and the others get logs and ropes together. I suppose you think you can build a raft. You think you can ferry the food over here? No, Munson. It would be impossible to handle a raft and waters as swift as that. Then how do you figure to get the stuff here? By using a trick of army engineers, posts will be driven into the ground and logs flowed against them. Those logs will be jammed with a current. They'll be lashed to the posts. Men standing on those logs can drive more posts to extend the bridge. We'll make a log jam that will make a bridge to shore. A floating bridge. You see, Munson? Is that all you've got to say? You have just half an hour to announce fair prices. If you don't, we'll start our bridge and that bridge will break you. All right, go ahead. Start your bridge. The arrival of Tonto with the wagon loads of boxes and barrels gave the men new confidence in the masked man. Eagerly they listened while the Lone Ranger told how to lash floating logs to stakes driven into the ground or where the water was deeper to stakes anchored by heavy rocks. When half an hour had passed without word from Munson, the signal was given to begin work. That evening found the bridge more than half finished. Everyone felt certain that the next day would bring food from the mainland where Tonto waited. Everyone felt confident and proud. Everyone, that is, except Munson and his men. Curly, if they get that food from the mainland, they'll be in a bad way. You'll get it here tomorrow, boss, unless we can do something. Well, we're going to do something. What, boss? We're going to smash that bridge. Regan, we could do that all right. We could cut all the ropes and push the logs downstream. It'd be a big job. You know, that's an easier way. You men, come over here. Food's not the only thing I bought when I took over the store. Look there. There's a supply of blasting powder and fuse. We know how to handle this stuff, boss. Yes. We'll wait till late at night and then go to work. Under cover of darkness, Munson and his men planted heavy charges of blasting powder where the bridge was fastened to the land, then crawled out on the floating logs and fixed more explosives at each of the stakes that kept the timbers from floating downstream. The fuse set, Curly. Yep, it's all set. It's the last one. Made that fuse longer than the others? Sure, just like you said. The shortest fuse is near shore, and each one after that is longer. All right, light that one. Get the others as we go back. Making their way back to shore where the rest of Munson's men were waiting, Munson and Curly lighted each fuse in turn. In the darkness, tiny showers of sparks could be seen along the entire length of the partially completed bridge. The explosion should start in a second or two, boss. Yes, and they should all come close together. Think the men will try to build another bridge? Well, if they do, they'll be mighty short of rope and lumber. They'll probably blame us for this. No one can prove us. Care us at first. Blast after blast rocked the night. The stakes were snapped like matchsticks, and the bridge was broken into small sections that were quickly carried away by the current. Munson and his men watched from shore. A good job well done, boys. Those explosions will bring people from the houses. We better get out of here. Don't try it. Hey, that voice. He's over there. It's a masked man. I'll fix him. Gunplay won't help you. Come on, this way. Watch him, boys. That's the Marshal. We've got you men surrounded. No use trying to escape. Boys, shoot your way out. That's what you want. You'll get it. Don't shoot again. Oh, wait, wait. Hold your fire. I'm not armed. Half a dozen torches flared in the darkness to reveal two score of men advancing from all sides on Munson and his hired hands. Get your hands up. They got your cover. They caught your flat footage, Munson. Any more gunplay, and you'll regret it. All right, quiet. Quiet, boys. Let the masked man talk. Well, Munson, what have you to say for yourself? You. You and all these others were just waiting and watching. That's right, Munson. Marshal Blake was sure you'd go to any length to force these people to buy food at your price. We've all been here watching your whole performance. You destroyed our bridge, Munson. No, wait, wait, man. You haven't got a leg to stand on. You deliberately blew up our bridge. It was our property you destroyed. We supplied the wood. We did all the work. And you, Curly, you had a hand in it. I'm shouting. You'll suffer a lot more unless the damage is made good. That goes for everyone who helped Munson. That bridge meant food for everyone on this island. Boys, let's string them up. That's it, hey, kid. Horse steelings are hanging crime, and what these critters did is even worse. Right. Let's string them up. And we can help ourselves to Munson's food. No, no, no, wait. Just a minute. Munson, this morning you were offered a chance to sell your food at a fair price. All right, I'll do it. I'll sell at the same price Widow Larson did. But don't string me up. One thing more. What about paying for the damage to the bridge? What if I sell the food? These men worked hard on that bridge. They should be paid for that work. Now, hold on. We must argue, boys. Let's string all of them up. No, no. Boys, boys, don't talk like that. Munson will pay. Me and the rest of the boys will see to that. All right. All right, I'll pay. Figure out what I owe. You can take it out of my store and food. You gents take charge of Munson and his men. Hang on to them. I know what I'm looking for. Thank you. You'll not leave me any longer. Silver is saddled and waiting. While you're leaving here? Yes, we must join Tato on the mainland. You're going to swim across that water again? Oh, it's much calmer than it was before. Hate to see you leave before we can celebrate. I must help Tato return the borrowed wagons and horses and the empty cases barrels. Adios. Adios. He won't say it. He said empty cans. Yep. You see, boys, there wasn't any food on the south shore. Those boxes and cases are empty. But don't let Munson know until he's paid off. You see, the masked man counted on Munson to take steps just like he did. He gave him lots of rope and Munson put it around his own neck. Munson met more than his match when he met that masked man. You see, that ombre is the Lone Ranger. Lone Ranger. Lone Ranger. This is a feature of the Lone Ranger Incorporated, created by George W. Trendle, produced by Trendle Campbell Enterprises, and directed by Charles D. Livingston. Tonight's drama was written by Fran Stryker. The part of the Lone Ranger is played by Brace Beemer.