 Down Dodge City and in the territory on West, there's just one way to handle the killers and the spoilers, and that's with a U.S. Marshal and the smell of gun smoke, the violence that moved West with young America, and the story of a man who moved with it. I'm that man, Matt Dillon, 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. The next thing you'll be cutting your own hair. Different, Chester. Different, Mr. Dillon. Stranded on the prairie, 20 miles from Dodge. Spinnike, that's all. But one shoe and stay on till it wears off. After all that trouble it are to. I swear too good, Mr. Dillon. Man, the horse put up here. Yeah, I guess so. It's a livery stable. Yes, I saw. Where'd you come in from? A man got to tell his life history before he can leave a horse here. No, no. All you got to do is find the stable man. Ain't you him? He's up the street. He's got himself a cup of coffee. I'm the Marshal. Oh. I didn't mean no offense, Marshal. That's an un-taken. My name is Argo, Ben Argo. I'm proud to make your acquaintance. How do you do? I was aiming to come looking for you as soon as I got my horse to a carer. Uh-huh. Now, why? You see these easier saddle bags? What about them? They look kindly heavy. They're near $15,000 plus your gold. Oh, there's a strike up there. Oh, it's bigger, all right. A few months of hard work, a man can quit rich. Providing he's lucky enough to keep what he makes. Now, what do you mean? Marshal, there's more crooks and outlaws up there than there is honest miners. The only way I hung onto this was take it out to the diggings with me in the daytime and sleep on at nights with a gun in my hand. Now, you can rest easy, Argo. Things are different here in Dodge. Maybe so. I'd still like to put these saddle bags up in a safe place for the night. I'm leaving tomorrow. Kind of like to be free to look the town over this evening. Never been here before. Now, the bank's already closed. Yeah. A fellow down street tells me there's a storekeeper. Takes care of money for folks sometime. Now, that'd be Wilbur Jonas, but only in case of an emergency like when stage passengers hit town light, you know? Some of that kind. Well, Marshal, maybe you could tell him that this is an emergency. Well, that's it. I ain't a man to spook easy, but there's fellas up in Gold Hill know how much I left with. I told where I was headed. I might have been followed. I'll send Mars to take care of your horse, and you'll meet me over at Jonas's store. I'll wait for you there. I'm much obliged, Marshal. No trouble. Come on, Chester. Yes, you. I'd be grateful to both of you. You think somebody could have followed him and the dog, Mr. John? I don't know, Chester. Just depends on what his reasons are for lying. Lying? Yeah. Well, what are you going to do about it? For the time being, nothing is going to have to wait. Look, you better tag him around and keep an eye on him anyway, huh? Yes, sir, Mr. John. Is you that memory expert? Well, yes, I guess I am at that. Oh, what are you committing to memory now? I'm reminding myself to get my wife a new ID card. Yes, she needs it to get medical care under the Dependence Medical Care Program. And how do you remember that? What? To get your wife a new ID card so she can use Medicare. Oh, by association. By association. What are we talking about? Making sure your Dependence have an ID card. Right. I associate cards with thinking, thinking with headaches, headaches with pain, and pain with doctors. And then just to be sure, I write it down in this little book here. Hey, wait a minute. Oh, that's funny. I could have sworn I brought it with me. For more about Medicare, get the Pamphlet Dependence Medical Care Program. Final straw. Look at that. Or else they slap on a place and call food in this town. Just look at that. Well, it's dark if you don't like beefsteak. Beefsteak, he says. Matt, that is buffalo. Buffalo is good, mate. Not when it's a seven-year-old bull and tougher in a cavalry boot. Matt, you know something? I am pulling sticks. Yes, I am. I'm going back east. I see. Last time you said that was about a month ago. I don't care. I mean it. I am through riding herd and a bunch of shuffles. No good prairie rats that never pay their doctor bills. 90% of them nothing but drifters, cutthroats, saddle- I thought it was the food jib, Jack said, too. I could be living like a civilized human being back east, eating at all the finest restaurants in the world. Like Bernheimer's, they... Pass the sugar, will you? Here. Yes, I could go back tomorrow. Yes, I can. And by heaven I think I'll do it, too. I'm going to do it. I am not taking another case in this town. Not one. You know, dark is going to be kind of hard when you're used to shaving regular, talking polite, putting on clean shirts and keeping your collar button. I haven't always lived like a rough-nick sod buster. I know how to act like a gentleman. Why, when I came out of medical school, I was one of the most promising human... There you are, Doc. Chester, I thought you were over at the long branch keeping an eye on Ben Argo. Yes, sir, I was till he snuck out, Mr. Dillon. He what? He snuck out. There was a couple of men come in and I heard him ask him for them. When I looked around, he was gone. But we don't have to worry, Mr. Dillon. He ain't going to leave town. Not a while he's got all that gold and Mr. Jonas is safe. I guess you're right, son. Doc, what I come for is you're wanted out of the rencer place. What for? Well, because Ms. Rensler's about to have a baby. They sent word for you. By golly, isn't it? Hand me that bag, will you, Matt? Yeah, sure, Doc. How are you going? Well, I'm going out to the... Where the tarnation think I'm going? Back east, you said. Well, I couldn't leave a woman... Doc's been threatening to leave town again. Oh, shut up. Good night, Doc. Good night. Come on, Chester. Let's go over to the long branch and have a talk with those men, huh? Matt, I'm just going to send for you. No, what for? I finally came. Month later, of course, and only one instead of six, but I guess there's better than none. One what, Kitty? What are you talking about? Beer. Just one barrel came in on the Santa Fe today. Oh, Doc. Good dog. You and 500 other men, Chester. You better hurry. It's not going to last long. I'll catch you, Matt. Couldn't we just take time for one glass? Them fellas ain't going nowhere right away. You go ahead, Chester. I'll join you in a few minutes. Yes, sir, I'll be right down there next to the barrel. Kitty. Mm-hmm. You know those two men down there at the end of the bar? Are those two? Yeah. I came in about an hour ago. I've never seen them before. Prospectors, I think somebody said from way up around Gold Hill. Ah, I see. They were asking for somebody named Ben Argo, but I've never heard of him either. They don't look very much like prospectors, do they, Matt? I'll see you a little later, Kitty. Save a glass of that beer for me, will you? Sure, but you better hurry, Matt. Good evening, Marshall. Mr. Jonas. Care to join me in a glass? Very well. How are you, gentlemen? I understand you just got in from Gold Hill. Mr., if you're looking for talk, we'll find somebody else. Uh-huh. If you're a partner, feel the same way. You're here, dude. You boys are pretty edgy, aren't you? You got some reason for it? Suppose that badge you're wearing means you're the marshal around here? Yeah, that's right. My name's Dylan, Matt Dylan. My name's Pete Wells. My friend here is Rocky Martin. Look, you ain't got any business with us, Marshall. We just hit town and we don't know a soul here. Not even Ben Argo? Never heard of an old Ben Argo. Huh? Well, I thought you might have followed him from Gold Hill. I said we never heard of him. And you wouldn't know that he was carrying $15,000 in gold. Look, Marshall... You're making a trying to take it away from him, aren't you? Why should we? What kind of men you think we are? Well, if you boys just happen to meet anybody with ideas like that, you tell them to forget it, huh? Because we got laws here in Dodge City. It's been real nice talking to you, Marshall. Come on, Rocky. Don't leave on my account. I'll figure me and Rocky better turn in before we break one of them laws of yours. Up to something? I don't know for sure, Jonas, but they're lying that Ben Argo was lying, too. And I'm not just sure why. Ben Argo, the fellow who put his gold in my safe? Yeah. He told me he thought he might have been followed from Gold Hill. Well, that's better than 400 miles. That's right. And then these men ride in and ask for Argo. And now they tell me that they don't even know him. I'm going to stop letting people use my safe, Marshall. There's $50,000 in it tonight, and that's too much to be responsible for. Forty, though. Why'd you get that much money? Hell, I had accommodated before a gold buyer from East. He got in on the late stage this evening. Heaven, Marshall, he came down from Gold Hill, too, now that I think of it. Well, maybe the two of them... Joe, darling, put down the paper. I've got something important to ask you. Okay. Joe, how many savings bonds do we have? A good one. How many? I'm not sure. I'd have to count. And I'm reading the paper. What do you want to know for? Have we got enough to make things comfortable for us? Very comfortable. That's why I buy in a payroll savings plan. Up on the month, we'll give us quite a nest egg for the future. Enough for a college education? Eventually. But who's going to college? Our children, silly. We don't have any yet. Oh? What do you mean, oh? Better buy some more bonds, honey. Daphne, you mean? We've got a new investment. How about that? Two of them, right here in the street. All right, I figured I was packing that gold round with me. Yeah. Well, that's one of them fellas who was in the long branch, Mr. Dillon. His name's Martin, according to his partner. Let's turn him over a little bit. Yes, sir. Well, we'll go see if Doc's left yet, Mr. Dillon. Hmm. There's no hurry, Chuss. You mean he's dead? Yeah. Where'd the other one go, Argo? Dang fine, no. Just lit out like a scared rabbit. Hmm. They didn't have such easy mark as they thought, I reckon. Have you ever seen them before? Why, sure, up around Gold Hill. Other ones' name is Pete Wells. Got a bad reputation up there. Is that so? Well, they ain't prospectors. Never done days working their life. Just rob off of them it does. Well, they miss this time. But it's luck, is all. I just got a glimpse of them when they stepped out of those shadows over there, and that'd give me just enough edge to beat them. I see, and if it had been for that, I'd be the one laying dead right here in the street. Yeah. I had to haunt somebody who was going to make a try for that gold. Well, I guess the next thing to do is to round up Pete Wells. Yeah. I guess the next thing to do is to round up Pete Wells. One killin' a night is enough. You figure he's still hanging around somewhere. That wouldn't be a surprise. Go and try to get even. Marshall, I ain't safe here. I'm not going to wait until morning. I'm going to pull stakes and ride out of here tonight. Maybe that's what he wants you to do. No, no, it ain't. The last thing he'd be looking for. And when he does find out, he won't know which way I headed. Now it's up to you. I'm going to be out of here in 10 minutes, Marshall. It... provided you find that storekeeper for me so I'd get my gold out of his safe. And I'll have to look around for him. It may take a little time. Mr. Jones, I thought he was back there. Chester, suppose you stay with Argo in case Pete Wells has another try at him, huh? All right. It won't take long, will it, Marshall? Sooner I get out of Dodge, easier I'll feel. No, I don't think it'll take very long. Mr. Jones is storing about 30 minutes. That looks that way. Thank you, Mr. Jones. That's right, Chester. You find that storekeeper, Marshall? Yes, he did, Argo. And if you ever have it a bothering folks in the middle of the night, I'll thank you to keep your valuables elsewhere in the future. Oh, don't you fret. Ain't likely I'll be coming through here again. I see now. Is this the key? Come in, gentlemen. Yes, sir? The only burglar proof safe between here and Kansas City. I just hope I can remember the new combination. What do you mean? Don't worry, Argo. He always says that when he opens it. Been saying it for six months, ever since he got this new safe. I don't know where we're here. I'm back to here. And that ought to... Well, let's see now. This bag in front belongs to someone else. The buyer knows yours right behind it. If I can reach you. Take them all out. You get your hands up, Marshal. You two, all three of you. Here, what do you think you're up to? Do what he says, Chester. Get your hands up. Yes, sir. This is what you were after all along, wasn't it, Argo? To get your hands on that buyer's money. That's right, Marshal. Noti was on his way here from Gold Hill. Noti always leaves his cash overnight in his storekeeper safe. You put that gold to yours in the safe so you'd have a reason to get Jonas to open it later. Figure things out. Just fine, Marshal. After it's too late to do any good. I knew you were lying the minute I met you. But I had to wait and find out what you were up to. Lying? Oh. You said you'd been working a placer claim all winter. But you made a big mistake by shaking hands with me. Your hands were as soft as a baby's. Hmm. I suppose you stole the gold, huh? Why, sure. From Wells and Martin. That's why they come after me. Of course, Wells don't like me. They come after me. Of course, Wells don't trust the law, or he'd have told you. I think he trusts it now. You're covered, Argo. Drop that gun. Wells? You found it, Marshal. You set me up on this. That's why you stole me off. Do what he says, drop your gun. Ain't dropping nothing. Nothing else to do, Marshal. He didn't give Rocky no chance at all. Before he tried that kind of fool move, you ought to remember Rocky. He remembered, all right. That's why he tried to kill you. And you bet he remembered. George Walsh speaking. Join us again next week for another specially transcribed story on Gunsmoke. The United States Armed Forces Radio and Television Service.