 Around Dodge City and in the territory on West, there's just one way to handle the killers and the spoilers, and that's with the U.S. Marshal and the smell of gun smoke. Gun smoke, starring William Conrad, the story of the violence that moved West with Young America, and the story of a man who moved with it. I'm that man, Matt Dillon, the United States Marshal. The first man they look for and the last they want to meet. It's a chancey job, and it makes a man watchful, and a little lonely. It ain't just a fine morning though, a little nippy maybe, but just fine. Yeah, and in the summer hanging on, winter holding off. You know, just at this time of year, I wouldn't trade western Kansas for everything east of the Mississippi. Good morning, Caleb. I've been waiting in this jail office for a full two hours. What time do you start work, Marshal? Uh, Chester, you know Caleb Andrews, don't you? Oh, yes, sir. Hi, Mr. Andrews. In the U.S. District Court? No. I believe it's your job to serve such orders. It is. I don't get them often, though. Now, order of foreclosure and eviction. Caleb, why are you doing this, Ed? The man borrowed money from me and gave me a mortgage on his farm and household effects. He can't pay it. It only came due three days ago. You shouldn't have wasted any time. Well, I'm not interested in your opinions, Marshal Dillon. Out of the mortgage, $420. What do you need with $420? Your own half of Ford County right now. Marshal, it's not your place. You know as well as I do why Ed Blake can't pay this off. His horse rolled on him last spring and broke his leg, and then his wife and kid nearly broke their backs trying to get a crop out. Oh, I didn't come here to listen to- Now, if you had left this ride on through the winter, you'd get your money out of it. But if you go ahead and foreclose now, you're gonna wipe him out. Marshal, I already have foreclosed. A man for $420 that you don't even need, huh? As I said, your opinions don't interest me. All I expect from you is to serve those papers. All right, I'll serve them. You'll notice they're to be served today. I said I'd serve them. Now, get out. What, son? This office belongs to the United States government, and as far as I know, that's one thing you've got no mortgage on, so get out. Have some influence in Washington, Marshal Dillon. Let's see if you can get me a decent salary for this rotten job I've got. Fine, Mortem, don't... You hide in the barn. I got him with one shot, Marshal, and there wasn't even a full meal. Get down and come on in. Thank you. Give me now that you've showed that thing to Marshal Dillon. Take it away somewhere. All right, Mom. Proud of those chickens of his, and he's done fine with them. Oh, here I am, though, keeping you standing out here in the yard. Come on, let's go inside. Well, uh, we really can't stay, Martha. Oh, nonsense. You don't get out here once in a coon's age. I know, but, uh... And you're just in time. Your favorite dish, Matt. I was just about to take it out of the oven when you rode out. Cornbread, buttermilk, cornbread. Right. Ed's not here, but you will stay, won't you? Oh, uh, Ed's away, huh? Yes, he's in town. Matt, you're not yourself. What is it? Well, Martha, I... I suppose I ought to talk to Ed about this, but maybe it'd be better if he hears it from you. Use what? I've got a court order here. It has to do with that mortgage of Caleb Andrews. It's an order of foreclosure and eviction. And sale. No. Oh, no. Yeah, here it is. We were so sure he'd extended. Oh, sure. Matt, how long before we have to get out? Five days. So soon? You were right, Matt. It is better that Ed hears it from me, coming on top of everything else. Martha, there's anything I can do. You know, you just let me know. Matt, I don't blame you for this. I understand. Come on in now and have some cornbread with us. Why, I couldn't. I'm sorry. Thanks anyway, Martha, but I'm just not very hungry. Sometimes you get to wondering if it's all worth it. It's the Blake's that's bothering you, isn't it, Matt? Chester was telling me. Chester talks too much. That's not your fault, Matt. Somebody had to serve the orders. Yeah, somebody has to be a hangman, too. Life's never all good, Matt. There's always a little bad in it. And on my job, it's more than a little, Doc. Try making your living sometime as a dancehall girl. Yeah, I guess so. But you know, when you have to go out and boot somebody like the Blake's off their land and out of their home, then you just start wondering what is right and what is wrong. Well, if you find out, Matt, that means... Oh, there you are, Marshal. I stopped by the jail. What's on your mind? That Blake family, Marshal. They were supposed to vacate today and they haven't done it. I rode by there a little while ago. According to the court order, they got until sundown. Now, Marshal, I believe I'd prefer to discuss our business elsewhere than in the presence of this woman. Just a minute, Caleb. Matt, I'll go. No. Caleb, you're going to apologize to Miss Russell right now. Matt, no. Apologize? I'm not going to apologize to any cheap little scumpet. Matt, you shouldn't have done it. Sam. Yeah? Take him outside and throw some water on him, will you? Sure, sure, Matt. Charlie. Can't harm you now, Matt. You'll take it all in a blink. I just got an idea. I'll see you later. That man runs a bank. He doesn't always mean he has a free hand in everything he does. Stark Holders, board of directors. I have to listen to them. Well, I think they'd approve the loan, Mr. Barkin. Another thing. Caleb Andrews is the biggest account I've got. He's out to get that Blake farm. I crossed him by making this loan, you suggest. Oh, Matt, he'd break me. I see. All right. Mr. Barkin, forget it. Matt, I realize I'm under obligation to you. You saved my life that time the James Brothers held me up. Saved the bank too, in fact. Oh, that was part of my job. That's no obligation. I was just asking you as a friend to help out another friend. Matt, I'd like to do it, but I just can't. Don't you see? Yeah, sure. Forget it. I've got to think of my wife and the two girls. Of course you have. It's not that I don't want to help. I understand, Mr. Barkin. Forget it. Do you feel good to know you've got a warm place to hold up? You mighty rough. You reckon they vacated this afternoon? I don't know. We were right out there in the morning. The phone was on you for tonight. We don't have any place to go with no money. Well, I wondered if we could sleep in the jail. Well, sure. Take some blankets out of the store room. You want to come help me, Jimmy? Yeah, you're going along with Chester, son. That's why I got your stuff out of the wagon. Walked into town. But you walked. Well, the wagon, the stock, all the household goods, they're all covered in that mortgage, you see. But we didn't take anything, did we? Clothes on our backs. It's all right, Matt. We know how you feel. After all, we started with nothing before, and we can do it again. There's no reason you should have to. We do have to, though, and that's that. Mr. Jones? Yeah, what is it, Chester? He's Jimmy. He grabbed a rifle from the rack and took out the back wheel. I couldn't stop him. Where on earth is he going? I know where he's going, and heaven help him if we don't catch him. The house here on the corner. Looks dark. Yeah, he may not be at home. Ain't no time to boil around. But it's 10 to 1. This is where he headed for. Right back on that tree there at the left. Hmm? Breaking teams? I don't know. Just keep on walking. Me, Matt Dillon, your friend of mine, and I figure you're waiting here to do something you'll be sorry for. And I can't let you do that. Nothing you can do about it, Marshall. I'm going to go through with this. I guess you're going to have to kill me first. Hey, Jimmy, I don't have a choice. But you do. Marshall? If we get a place in here, Mom... Yeah, that's about what he said. The worst of it is everybody in town is just as scared of Caleb as Mr. Botkin is. I doubt if they'll even have the nerve to bid against him at the sale. I know. He'll probably get the place that's not much more than the amount of the mortgage. $20. Matt, I've seen more than that change. Hands across the poker table in one deal. And to think that's all it takes to get... Oh, yeah, Jack. Jack? I'm not usually one to eavesdrop on people, but I have been listening to you two. The reason I butted in, Miss Kitty, I heard you're talking about these people losing their home. I don't know this fellow Blake. He's never done any business over my block deck table. And probably never will. No, I don't think he's ever been in here. Then I don't know if this will make sense. But the thing is, I left home when I was 10 years old and I've been drifting ever since. Well, I see somebody like this Blake that sticks it out and works and fights and then gets a law deal. Well, when I'm getting that, do $50 and that'll help many. Well, this is pretty decent of you, Jack. Thanks. Sure. I said a while ago that nearly everyone in town was afraid of Kaila. Well, it looks like there's some who aren't, like Jack and the other dealers and the girls and the bartenders. Man, I can raise $420 right here in the long branch. I think maybe you could, Kitty. And do as well as Jack to his 50 for me. Everybody, listen to me for a minute. Now, quiet down. Quiet down. I got something to say. I told him what you said, Miss Dylan. How to bring him to the office on a run, if anything will. Anytime Kaila figures he's about to lose the dollar or two, it's hitting him where it hurts. The Blake's turned in for the night, haven't he? I guess so. It's quiet right there. Shut the door, Kaila. Now, would you mind telling me why I've been called here at this time of night? Sure. $420. The Blake's want to pay off that mortgage. Oh. Oh, they do, do they? The court costs up to now probably run about $10. I'll pay that myself. Well, that's mighty generous of you. The Blake farm is worth about $2,000 now and in five years, it'll be worth three times that much. Land's going up in Ford County. So I don't want the money, I want the farm. When it's put up for sale, I'll get foreclosure still goes. I see. Blake's won't get a cent out of the sale. He'll scare everybody off and bid it in a few dollars over the amount of the mortgage and nobody in town will even try this. I'm going over and wake up Mr. Botkin. I got an idea. And if it works, we'll hold that sale at noon tomorrow. Well, that's pretty short notice to find an auctioneer. I don't need an auctioneer, Chester. This one, I'm going to run myself. The foreclosure sale of the property and the household effects of Edward and Martha Blake ordered by the court at the request of that... You lump the household effects together and offer them as one bulk item? I'm sorry, Caleb. I'd rather offer them one at a time. Unless, of course, you'd care to wave all claim to the household effects and withdraw them from the order of foreclosure. I wave the claim. The household goods are withdrawn. I'll get onto the house and land. So ordered. Through this description, you all know the property. It's a good farm. The mortgage is $420. Here, another bid. Now, the farm's worth $2,000. Are you going to let him have it for $450? How about another bid? What is it, Chester? I have been thinking some lately of getting me a little place like this and settling down. The trick, he doesn't want this, please. $1,000 going what? It's $1,200. Caleb Andrews, bid $1,200. What do you say, Chester? Is that much in cash? I'll leave my pay, Mr. Andrews. And then, of course, I only drink mostly beer. Caleb, I guess $420 of this is yours. That takes care of the mortgage. Looks like you made a pretty fair profit on the place. Well, that's better than I expected, Matt. But I'd still rather have the farm than the month. I have been sort of thinking it over. Maybe I kind of lost my head. When you come right down to it, I don't know what I would do with a farm. So $420. You know, there's no law against a man selling his own property. And now the way I see it, Mr. Andrews, is right this minute you're a trespasser on my property. What? So come on now. Let's open to a breakdown. Prepare somebody who'll find out he let us have it. Yeah. All right, Mr. Dillon. I'll see you in town later. All right. How we can ever thank you for what you've done. Not me, Martha. Thank the bunch that work at the long branch. Now, they're bums and drifters most of them. When Kitty told them the story, they really came true. We'll pay it back, Matt, every cent of it. And that girl Kitty, I guess I've said some hard things about her in the past, but Matt, will you ask her to come out to dinner some afternoon? I'd like to thank her myself. Sure, I'll ask her, Martha. I think she'll appreciate that even more than you know. Carmen McDonald stars William Conrad as Matt Dillon, U.S. Marshall. The story was specially written for Don Smoke by Les Crutchfield with editorial supervision by John Messon. Featured in the cast were Gene Bates, Joseph Kearns, Dick Beals, Jack Moyles, Lauren Stopkin, and James Musser. Marley Baer is Chester, Howard McNeer is Doc, and Georgia Ellis is Kitty. This is George Walsh inviting you to join us again next week when CBS Radio presents another story of the Western Frontier. When Matt Dillon, Chester Proudfoot, Doc, and Kitty, together with all the other hard-living citizens of Dodge, will be with you once more. It's America growing West in the 1870s. It's Gun Smoke.