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The Lone Ranger - "Desert Murder" (Old Time Radio, 1940) · The Lone Ranger | Old Time Radio

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Across the salt flats, two outlaws flee with stolen silver
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: while a rancher faces a false accusation. The Lone Ranger
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: and Tonto take up the pursuit in the desert, following
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: a trail where the heat, the distance, and the evidence
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: all matter. From the Earl Grosser era of the Lone Ranger,
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: this is Desert Murder, episode 1176, first broadcast August 7th, 1940,
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: on the Mutual Broadcasting System. Grazer is the Lone Ranger,
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: with John Todd as Tonto, in a frontier case that
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: carries them across a hard, open country in search of
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: the truth. And now, our story begins.
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: The Lone Ranger.
• 1:02
  Speaker 3: A fiery horse with a speed of light, a cloud
• 1:04
  Speaker 3: of dust, and a hearty high old silver.
• 1:07
  Speaker 2: The Lone Ranger.
• 1:08
  Speaker 4: The Lone Ranger. The Lone Ranger. THE END.
• 2:50
  Speaker 3: When gold was first discovered in the western United States,
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: thousands of miners and prospectors headed for the new territory.
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: Many of them became wealthy overnight. Many more never hit
• 3:00
  Speaker 3: paid earth.
• 3:01
  Speaker 5: But the greed for.
• 3:01
  Speaker 3: Gold seemed to arouse the worst instincts in men, and
• 3:05
  Speaker 3: it was in the mining country that the mask rider
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: of the plains faced his most difficult task in the
• 3:10
  Speaker 3: cause of justice. Return with us now to those thrilling
• 3:13
  Speaker 3: days when the West was young. From out of the
• 3:14
  Speaker 3: past and the thundering hoofbeats of the great horse Silver,
• 3:17
  Speaker 3: the Lone Ranger rides again.
• 3:19
  Speaker 4: Hello, Silver!
• 3:21
  Speaker 5: We're heading across the desert for cactus death! Hello, Silver! Hooray!
• 3:38
  Speaker 3: A copper-colored sun beat down on the Lone Ranger and
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: Tonto as they guided their horses at a slow pace
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: toward the distant town of Cactus Gap. They followed no trail.
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: The country through which they passed was a rock-spruing desert
• 3:51
  Speaker 3: where cactus and sagebrush were the only vegetation. But they
• 3:55
  Speaker 3: had chosen this route because it was a shortcut to
• 3:57
  Speaker 3: their destination.
• 3:59
  Speaker 5: How far are we from that waterhole you mentioned, Tantor?
• 4:03
  Speaker 2: Get there about noon.
• 4:05
  Speaker 5: Down, Silver. Steady, old fellow.
• 4:07
  Speaker 2: What's the matter, Silver? I don't know.
• 4:09
  Speaker 5: Something's gotten into him. Steady, old boy. Nothing can harm you.
• 4:14
  Speaker 5: You're all right, old fellow. Is it a snake you see?
• 4:19
  Speaker 5: How to not see snake? Nor do I.
• 4:22
  Speaker 2: I wonder.
• 4:24
  Speaker 5: These rocks we're approaching, Tantor... Silver didn't act up until
• 4:28
  Speaker 5: we got close to them.
• 4:29
  Speaker 2: Maybe that is. We'll see.
• 4:31
  Speaker 5: This way, Silver.
• 4:32
  Speaker 2: That hit all right.
• 4:35
  Speaker 5: It certainly seems to be something to do with those
• 4:37
  Speaker 5: rocks that bothers him. We're looking into this. Oh, Silver. Come, Tata.
• 4:44
  Speaker 5: They look behind them. Leave the horses here. Poor country
• 4:52
  Speaker 5: for walking. This way, Kimisabe. You won't catch your moccasins
• 4:57
  Speaker 5: on those boulders. There's a clear space here.
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: Ah, yeah. What's that?
• 5:02
  Speaker 5: It's a man.
• 5:03
  Speaker 6: Hurry.
• 5:03
  Speaker 7: Ah.
• 5:08
  Speaker 2: How about him?
• 5:09
  Speaker 4: Dead.
• 5:10
  Speaker 5: Shot, Tonto.
• 5:11
  Speaker 6: Murdered.
• 5:12
  Speaker 5: Ah. Let's have a look at him. Yes, shot through
• 5:17
  Speaker 5: the back. And the way he's dressed, I'd say he
• 5:20
  Speaker 5: was a prospector.
• 5:21
  Speaker 2: That right. Bearded.
• 5:24
  Speaker 5: About 65 years old. Wouldn't that be your guest, Hunter?
• 5:28
  Speaker 4: Uh-huh.
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: Him about that.
• 5:30
  Speaker 5: Maybe something in his pockets to identify him. No, nothing here.
• 5:37
  Speaker 5: Whoever's responsible for this probably went through them before we
• 5:40
  Speaker 5: got here.
• 5:41
  Speaker 2: Why fuller come this way?
• 5:43
  Speaker 5: It's hard to understand. He'd been prospecting in the hill.
• 5:45
  Speaker 5: The trail to Cactus Gap wouldn't have brought him here.
• 5:47
  Speaker 2: Not right.
• 5:49
  Speaker 5: Maybe someone in town will know about this. How long
• 5:52
  Speaker 5: would you say the man's been dead, Hunter?
• 5:54
  Speaker 6: Mm-hmm.
• 5:55
  Speaker 2: And not dead long. Maybe half day.
• 5:59
  Speaker 5: Long enough to give the murderer a head start on us.
• 6:02
  Speaker 5: Even Silver couldn't overcome that kind of a lead.
• 6:04
  Speaker 2: Not right.
• 6:05
  Speaker 5: Tonto, I'll tell you what we'll do.
• 6:07
  Speaker 2: What's that?
• 6:07
  Speaker 5: We'll build a cairn for the chap. Cover him with stones.
• 6:11
  Speaker 5: That's better than a grave in this kind of country. Ah.
• 6:14
  Speaker 5: Then we'll wait a day before asking questions. If he
• 6:16
  Speaker 5: was expected in town, a few hours delay wouldn't cause
• 6:19
  Speaker 5: any alarm. But a day and a half should.
• 6:22
  Speaker 2: Then what do?
• 6:23
  Speaker 5: Then we'll learn what we can without mentioning what we found.
• 6:26
  Speaker 5: The killer, no doubt, thought this fellow would be safe
• 6:29
  Speaker 5: from discovery here. We may accomplish more if we keep
• 6:32
  Speaker 5: the discovery to ourselves.
• 6:33
  Speaker 2: Ah, that's a good idea.
• 6:35
  Speaker 5: Of course, we may be able to spot the killer
• 6:37
  Speaker 5: without making a secret of this. If we can, so
• 6:39
  Speaker 5: much the better.
• 6:40
  Speaker 2: That's right.
• 6:41
  Speaker 5: Then give me a hand here, Kimisabe. We'll give this
• 6:43
  Speaker 5: poor chap as decent a burial as we can.
• 6:53
  Speaker 3: Two days later, the Lone Ranger, wearing a disguise, entered
• 6:56
  Speaker 3: Cactus Gap, hoping to find a clue to the identity
• 6:59
  Speaker 3: of a man he and Tonto had found out in
• 7:01
  Speaker 3: the desert. He drifted from one cafe to another, listened
• 7:04
  Speaker 3: casually to the gossip of the idlers, and then, acting
• 7:07
  Speaker 3: on what he'd heard, went on to the general store
• 7:10
  Speaker 3: owned by Granny Timmons. The sharp-tongued old woman was waiting
• 7:14
  Speaker 3: on table billings.
• 7:15
  Speaker 8: Now then, evil, your supplies are all packed and ready
• 7:18
  Speaker 8: for you. Let me see the color of your cash.
• 7:21
  Speaker 6: You know what I told you, Granny.
• 7:22
  Speaker 8: And don't you call me Granny. I ain't your grandma,
• 7:25
  Speaker 8: am I? It's insulting, that's what it is, you stoving
• 7:28
  Speaker 8: old repubate. You, a dud and old digit of 60
• 7:32
  Speaker 8: calling a young girl like me Granny. Don't show decent respect.
• 7:37
  Speaker 6: Oh, no.
• 7:38
  Speaker 8: I said here's your supplies. Now, where's my pay for them?
• 7:41
  Speaker 6: Blast it, you old harpy. If you'd let me get
• 7:43
  Speaker 6: a word in edgewise, I'd tell you.
• 7:45
  Speaker 8: Careful of them names.
• 7:46
  Speaker 9: What I calls you ain't a patch of what you've
• 7:48
  Speaker 9: been calling me. Nope, what I've been trying to say
• 7:51
  Speaker 9: is that I can't pay till Jake gets to town.
• 7:53
  Speaker 8: Well, he's here, ain't he?
• 7:54
  Speaker 6: No, he ain't.
• 7:56
  Speaker 8: You come in here day or four yesterday and you're
• 7:58
  Speaker 8: set to get these things together for you. You left
• 8:01
  Speaker 8: a list of what you needed, and you said Jake
• 8:02
  Speaker 8: Bevins would be in the next day. Well, the next
• 8:05
  Speaker 8: day was yesterday. Where's Jake?
• 8:07
  Speaker 6: That's something I wish I knew.
• 8:08
  Speaker 5: What kind of a looking man is Jake Bevins, Abel?
• 8:12
  Speaker 6: Oh, howdy, stranger. You, uh, you was asking what Jake
• 8:15
  Speaker 6: looked like?
• 8:16
  Speaker 5: Yes.
• 8:17
  Speaker 8: I can tell you what he looked like, mister. Did
• 8:20
  Speaker 8: you ever see tumbleweeds rolling across the prairie?
• 8:23
  Speaker 2: Of course.
• 8:25
  Speaker 8: Well, that was Jake. He was so much beard, it
• 8:29
  Speaker 8: looked like he'd gone to weed. Surrounded by whiskers the
• 8:32
  Speaker 8: way he was. Looking at him, you couldn't tell offhand
• 8:36
  Speaker 8: whether he was a clump of vegetation that appeared to
• 8:39
  Speaker 8: be a man or a man that appeared to be
• 8:42
  Speaker 8: a clump of vegetation.
• 8:43
  Speaker 9: Don't pay no attention to a stranger. Jake was a
• 8:46
  Speaker 9: right fine looking man.
• 8:47
  Speaker 5: How old was he?
• 8:49
  Speaker 9: Don't recollect Jake ever knew his own self.
• 8:53
  Speaker 6: Looked to be somewhere in his 60s or... Say, uh.
• 8:56
  Speaker 6: You seen him?
• 8:57
  Speaker 5: I don't know. You been expecting him, you say?
• 9:00
  Speaker 6: He promised he'd be in town before this.
• 9:01
  Speaker 8: What I can't see is if the two of you
• 9:04
  Speaker 8: was done working that claim you spoke of for the season,
• 9:07
  Speaker 8: why didn't you come into town together?
• 9:09
  Speaker 9: Because we tossed the coin and Jake lost. He took
• 9:13
  Speaker 9: our dust and headed for Sand City to have it
• 9:15
  Speaker 9: changed into cash at the bank there.
• 9:17
  Speaker 8: What you want to do that for? Dust is as
• 9:19
  Speaker 8: good as cash anyway.
• 9:21
  Speaker 9: But when you're paying cash, you know what it's costing you.
• 9:25
  Speaker 9: Pay with dust and with the slick scales some of
• 9:27
  Speaker 9: you folks in town use, you're likely to pay double.
• 9:30
  Speaker 8: By all honor, old hot toad. You mean to stand
• 9:32
  Speaker 8: there and say I ever cheated you with my scales?
• 9:35
  Speaker 6: No, no, ma'am. I never said no such thing.
• 9:38
  Speaker 8: You better not.
• 9:39
  Speaker 5: Sand City's on the other side of the hills. Jake
• 9:41
  Speaker 5: had gone there. He'd have had to recross the hills
• 9:44
  Speaker 5: to return here. But he'd have come by the regular trail,
• 9:46
  Speaker 5: wouldn't he?
• 9:47
  Speaker 6: Sure he would. Stranger, you ain't asked these questions for nothing.
• 9:52
  Speaker 6: What's up?
• 9:53
  Speaker 5: You sounded worried about your partner's absence. I simply wondered
• 9:56
  Speaker 5: what caused his delay.
• 9:58
  Speaker 6: Delay ain't a terrible word. yet.
• 10:00
  Speaker 9: The day sure don't make a heap of difference on
• 10:03
  Speaker 9: a trip like that.
• 10:04
  Speaker 6: Worst thing is, I'm dead broke till he gets here.
• 10:06
  Speaker 8: And you don't touch those supplies till he gets here
• 10:09
  Speaker 8: to pay for them, neither.
• 10:10
  Speaker 6: All right, all right. Hey, what's that?
• 10:15
  Speaker 8: That blameful cowpoke Fritz Daly. That's who it is. Out
• 10:19
  Speaker 8: on a spree and letting off steam again, I'll bet.
• 10:22
  Speaker 5: He's coming in here. Hi, Granny. What's a good word?
• 10:27
  Speaker 5: Who's your customers? Hey, you don't need that lantern, do you?
• 10:31
  Speaker 5: Now you watch out! Yippee! How's that for shooting, Granny?
• 10:35
  Speaker 5: Ain't lost my eye yet, have I?
• 10:37
  Speaker 8: You get right out of here before you bust up
• 10:39
  Speaker 8: my place.
• 10:39
  Speaker 7: Oh, shucks now, Granny. Nothing to get mad about. I'm
• 10:42
  Speaker 7: aiming for fun. I'm willing to pay for it.
• 10:44
  Speaker 6: There.
• 10:45
  Speaker 5: That pay for the lantern?
• 10:47
  Speaker 8: Reckon so.
• 10:48
  Speaker 5: Hey, old fella. How much would you charge me to
• 10:50
  Speaker 5: put a bullet through that hat you're wearing, huh?
• 10:52
  Speaker 6: You leave me be, you local Renahan.
• 10:55
  Speaker 7: Reckon I'll shoot at it anyhow. Ain't much excitement in town.
• 10:58
  Speaker 7: I got to cook up my own. Now, just stand
• 11:00
  Speaker 7: still and you won't get hurt at all.
• 11:02
  Speaker 2: No, you don't.
• 11:03
  Speaker 7: Ow!
• 11:03
  Speaker 5: My arm. You're twisting it off. Drop that gun.
• 11:06
  Speaker 9: Ow!
• 11:07
  Speaker 5: There it is.
• 11:08
  Speaker 2: Stand back.
• 11:09
  Speaker 5: You won't need this gun again today.
• 11:12
  Speaker 2: Here, Mrs.
• 11:12
  Speaker 5: Timmons. I think the gun will be safer in your hands.
• 11:16
  Speaker 8: You're sure I handled him good, stranger?
• 11:19
  Speaker 5: Sure, I'll keep it.
• 11:21
  Speaker 8: And the crazy fool won't get it till he sobers
• 11:23
  Speaker 8: up neither.
• 11:24
  Speaker 6: Now, look here, you can.
• 11:24
  Speaker 5: It's for your own good. A little more of that
• 11:26
  Speaker 5: reckless shooting and you'd be getting into trouble. I don't
• 11:29
  Speaker 5: need nobody to tell me what to do.
• 11:31
  Speaker 8: That's just what you do need. What have you been
• 11:34
  Speaker 8: celebrating now?
• 11:35
  Speaker 5: Listen to this. Hear him? Cash, that's what I got.
• 11:40
  Speaker 5: Pockets full of cash. You seem to have quite a lot. Yeah,
• 11:43
  Speaker 5: this is my day to howl.
• 11:44
  Speaker 7: The way I took them tin horn gamblers over to
• 11:47
  Speaker 7: the Silver Star Cafe was a sight to see.
• 11:51
  Speaker 5: They were sure glad to see me clear out.
• 11:52
  Speaker 8: And I'll be the same. Now you tell me what
• 11:55
  Speaker 8: you come in here for so I can give it
• 11:57
  Speaker 8: to you and you can get out of here.
• 11:58
  Speaker 7: I didn't come in to buy nothing, Granny. Just been
• 12:01
  Speaker 7: dropping in every place, that's all. See what's going on.
• 12:04
  Speaker 8: Well, there ain't nothing to keep you in here.
• 12:07
  Speaker 5: Give me my shooting iron back, won't you?
• 12:08
  Speaker 8: Come back tomorrow and show me you're sober and you
• 12:11
  Speaker 8: can have it, but not before.
• 12:13
  Speaker 5: If you won't, you won't, I reckon. Afternoon, Granny. No
• 12:18
  Speaker 5: hard feelings, stranger.
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: That's all right.
• 12:21
  Speaker 5: Maybe I was just a little reckless, like. I'll be
• 12:23
  Speaker 5: seeing you.
• 12:24
  Speaker 4: Yippee!
• 12:27
  Speaker 6: Get up, boy. Come on, horse.
• 12:28
  Speaker 5: Get up there.
• 12:29
  Speaker 2: Is he always like that?
• 12:30
  Speaker 8: Him? Stranger, he's the wildest young fella ever was around
• 12:35
  Speaker 8: these parts. Always celebrating something. When he wins gambling, he celebrates.
• 12:42
  Speaker 8: If he gets a job, he celebrates. And when he
• 12:45
  Speaker 8: gets fired, he celebrates again. Only from the sound of
• 12:48
  Speaker 8: that cash he was carrying on him. Maybe this time
• 12:51
  Speaker 8: he had a little more.
• 12:52
  Speaker 6: Reason for it. He wanted gambling, eh?
• 12:55
  Speaker 8: What are you picking up from the floor, Abel?
• 12:57
  Speaker 6: It's a piece of paper.
• 12:59
  Speaker 9: It fell out of that young fellow's pocket when he
• 13:01
  Speaker 9: paid you that cash for your lantern.
• 13:02
  Speaker 5: And if it's.
• 13:04
  Speaker 6: What I think it is, I... Yes, sirree, that's just
• 13:07
  Speaker 6: what it is.
• 13:08
  Speaker 2: Something important?
• 13:09
  Speaker 9: A paper wrap at the bank over to Sand City.
• 13:11
  Speaker 9: He used this for wrapping up cash.
• 13:13
  Speaker 6: Take a look at it.
• 13:14
  Speaker 5: I see.
• 13:14
  Speaker 8: A bank at Sand City? But Fritz said he got
• 13:17
  Speaker 8: that cash gambling.
• 13:19
  Speaker 6: Yeah, yeah.
• 13:20
  Speaker 9: And Sand City is where Jake was gonna swap our
• 13:22
  Speaker 9: dust for cash.
• 13:24
  Speaker 6: And Jake ain't showed up here yet.
• 13:26
  Speaker 5: What do you mean by that?
• 13:27
  Speaker 6: I ain't saying for sure. Look here. Has that young
• 13:31
  Speaker 6: fellow been out of town for a few days lately?
• 13:33
  Speaker 8: I don't just savvy, Abel.
• 13:34
  Speaker 9: What I mean is, could he have gone to Sand
• 13:37
  Speaker 9: City himself and got cash from the bank there?
• 13:39
  Speaker 8: No, I don't reckon so. Seems to me he's been
• 13:44
  Speaker 8: around town for the last month or so.
• 13:46
  Speaker 6: That's just what I thought.
• 13:47
  Speaker 8: Now where are you going, you old idiot?
• 13:48
  Speaker 5: To tell this here is something that I've got on
• 13:50
  Speaker 5: my mind.
• 13:50
  Speaker 6: I haven't looked into it. If what I'm suspicioning is true.
• 13:55
  Speaker 9: There's a certain young fellow in this town that's going
• 13:57
  Speaker 9: to have a heap to explain.
• 14:03
  Speaker 3: When Abel Billings headed for the sheriff's office, the Lone
• 14:06
  Speaker 3: Ranger left town to rejoin his faithful Indian companion, Tonto,
• 14:10
  Speaker 3: who was less than an hour later when he reigned
• 14:12
  Speaker 3: up in his secret camp.
• 14:13
  Speaker 5: Oh, oh, there's Silver.
• 14:14
  Speaker 6: Oh, boy. Oh.
• 14:17
  Speaker 2: Tonto.
• 14:19
  Speaker 5: You'll find out. Who, Peller, got killed? I can't be sure, Tuller,
• 14:23
  Speaker 5: but I think I have.
• 14:24
  Speaker 2: Who, Peller?
• 14:24
  Speaker 5: I think he's a man by the name of Jake Bevins.
• 14:26
  Speaker 5: At least he answers the description. And I know that
• 14:29
  Speaker 5: he was expected and cacked his gap no later than yesterday.
• 14:33
  Speaker 5: I learned more than that, however.
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: What's that?
• 14:35
  Speaker 5: Something interesting happened in the general store while I was there.
• 14:38
  Speaker 5: A young cowboy entered with his pockets full of cash.
• 14:41
  Speaker 5: He claimed he'd wanted gambling.
• 14:43
  Speaker 2: That how him get cash? I don't know.
• 14:45
  Speaker 5: But I do know, after he'd left the store, Jake's partner,
• 14:48
  Speaker 5: Abel Billings, picked up one of those paper wrappers banks
• 14:51
  Speaker 5: use to make up their packages of cash.
• 14:53
  Speaker 7: Ah.
• 14:54
  Speaker 5: The wrapper had been issued by the bank at Sand City.
• 14:56
  Speaker 5: Abel said his partner had gone to Sand City to
• 14:59
  Speaker 5: exchange dust they had panned for hard cash.
• 15:01
  Speaker 2: Then killer take cash. Yes.
• 15:04
  Speaker 5: And Abel claimed the young cowboy dropped the wrapper. Ah.
• 15:07
  Speaker 2: What we do?
• 15:08
  Speaker 5: I think I have a plan. I haven't got it
• 15:11
  Speaker 5: entirely worked out yet, Kimisabe. But I will by the
• 15:13
  Speaker 5: time we've returned to town.
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: Go there now?
• 15:15
  Speaker 5: Yes. You'd better get mounted.
• 15:18
  Speaker 6: Here's count.
• 15:18
  Speaker 5: While we ride, there are some other things I want
• 15:20
  Speaker 5: to tell you.
• 15:21
  Speaker 3: Huh?
• 15:22
  Speaker 2: What then?
• 15:23
  Speaker 5: Steady, old fellow. Some things I notice that require a
• 15:27
  Speaker 5: great deal of explaining.
• 15:28
  Speaker 3: Uh-huh.
• 15:28
  Speaker 5: However, if our plan works, we'll learn the explanation. Ready, Tonto?
• 15:32
  Speaker 2: Me ready.
• 15:32
  Speaker 5: Then let's go.
• 15:33
  Speaker 6: Hail Silver!
• 15:34
  Speaker 5: Hail Silver! The curtain falls on the first act of
• 15:41
  Speaker 5: our Lone Ranger drama.
• 15:43
  Speaker 3: Before the next exciting scenes, please permit us to pause
• 15:46
  Speaker 3: for just a few moments.
• 15:49
  Speaker 4: Now to continue our.
• 15:57
  Speaker 5: Story.
• 16:09
  Speaker 3: On returning to camp after a visit to Cactus Gap,
• 16:12
  Speaker 3: the Lone Ranger confided in Tonto. He believed he had
• 16:15
  Speaker 3: not only learned the identity of the dead man they'd discovered,
• 16:18
  Speaker 3: but that of the killer as well. As they rode
• 16:21
  Speaker 3: back to town, the Lone Ranger removed his disguise and
• 16:24
  Speaker 3: put on his mask. In the meantime, Abel had found
• 16:27
  Speaker 3: the sheriff, and the latter, at the old prospector's request,
• 16:31
  Speaker 3: had summoned Fritz Daly to the office.
• 16:34
  Speaker 5: You wanted me, Sheriff?
• 16:35
  Speaker 6: Yeah.
• 16:36
  Speaker 9: Abel here's got something on his mind, and he wanted
• 16:38
  Speaker 9: you here before he'd say what it was.
• 16:40
  Speaker 5: Oh.
• 16:42
  Speaker 7: Mad about me shooting inside the store when you was there,
• 16:44
  Speaker 7: is that it? Shucks, I never done no harm. Leastways
• 16:48
  Speaker 7: none that I didn't pay for.
• 16:49
  Speaker 6: That ain't it. Huh?
• 16:50
  Speaker 5: Well, then what is it?
• 16:51
  Speaker 9: Sheriff, I ain't told you what this was all about yet,
• 16:54
  Speaker 9: because I wanted you to see this ordinary snake's face
• 16:56
  Speaker 9: when I told you about it.
• 16:57
  Speaker 7: Hey, now, what kind of talk is that? I never
• 17:00
  Speaker 7: even seen you before today. I never crossed your trail, any.
• 17:03
  Speaker 6: But you crossed my partner's. Get to the point, Abel.
• 17:05
  Speaker 6: What's this about?
• 17:06
  Speaker 9: I reckon you know I was here waiting for Jake,
• 17:08
  Speaker 9: don't you? I reckon like telling you about it.
• 17:09
  Speaker 2: Yeah?
• 17:10
  Speaker 9: Well, I was waiting for him because he went to
• 17:12
  Speaker 9: Sand City to get cash from the bank there. He
• 17:15
  Speaker 9: likely had about $ 2, 000 or more on him.
• 17:17
  Speaker 5: What's that got to do with me?
• 17:18
  Speaker 6: You'll find out soon enough. Sheriff, watch the critter so
• 17:22
  Speaker 6: he don't make a break for it.
• 17:23
  Speaker 5: Go on.
• 17:24
  Speaker 6: Go on. Get this off your chest. All right then, Sheriff.
• 17:27
  Speaker 6: Take a look at this. Huh? It ain't nothing but
• 17:30
  Speaker 6: a piece of paper with a bank's name on it,
• 17:31
  Speaker 6: as far as I can see. The bank in Sand City.
• 17:34
  Speaker 1: Uh-huh.
• 17:34
  Speaker 9: And this poor cat here dropped it on the floor
• 17:36
  Speaker 9: of Granny Timmon's store.
• 17:38
  Speaker 6: I picked it up myself.
• 17:39
  Speaker 3: That's a doggone lie. Ain't neither.
• 17:41
  Speaker 9: I can prove it by Granny herself. There was a
• 17:44
  Speaker 9: stranger in the store at the same time. He seen
• 17:47
  Speaker 9: me pick it up. Find him and Granny and they'll
• 17:49
  Speaker 9: tell you the same. Where would I have got a
• 17:51
  Speaker 9: paper like that? You got it after you killed my
• 17:53
  Speaker 9: partner and stole the cash he was carrying. Why you little...
• 17:55
  Speaker 9: Break it up. Break it up, the both of you.
• 17:58
  Speaker 9: I'm the law here, and I'll handle this. Now then, Fritz,
• 18:02
  Speaker 9: did you or didn't you have a wrapper like that
• 18:04
  Speaker 9: on you?
• 18:04
  Speaker 5: I didn't.
• 18:05
  Speaker 6: Well, prove you did.
• 18:06
  Speaker 5: Shut up!
• 18:07
  Speaker 9: Now then, Abel, even if Fritz did drop it, what
• 18:10
  Speaker 9: would you say it proved? Hey, I just told you,
• 18:14
  Speaker 9: he killed Jake. That's why Jake ain't shown up yet.
• 18:17
  Speaker 9: Where's Jake's body? Ask this bullcat. You can't know it.
• 18:20
  Speaker 6: Go on, if you fellas don't smooth your hackles down,
• 18:22
  Speaker 6: I'll gag the both of you. Abel? Maybe there's something
• 18:26
  Speaker 6: you don't know. What's that?
• 18:27
  Speaker 9: You can't prove murder on nobody till you got the
• 18:30
  Speaker 9: body of the fellow that was killed to show for it.
• 18:32
  Speaker 6: Now, maybe you've got evidence against Fritz, and maybe you haven't.
• 18:36
  Speaker 9: But unless you show me where that Jake is, there's
• 18:38
  Speaker 9: nothing I can do about making an arrest. Then go
• 18:40
  Speaker 9: looking for him. He was coming back on the trail
• 18:43
  Speaker 9: here from the hills. Take a ride out that way
• 18:45
  Speaker 9: and you'll find him.
• 18:46
  Speaker 6: I reckon not. And why not? Shocks, there's been half
• 18:49
  Speaker 6: a dozen fellas come into town in the last two
• 18:51
  Speaker 6: days of travel that trail. They'd have seen Jake if
• 18:53
  Speaker 6: he was there, wouldn't they? Then he hit him.
• 18:55
  Speaker 7: A little more of that talk and I'll fix you
• 18:57
  Speaker 7: so you won't be able to open that big mouth
• 18:58
  Speaker 7: of yours.
• 18:59
  Speaker 6: You see, Sheriff, now he's strutting at me. Can't say
• 19:01
  Speaker 6: as I'm blaming him much. You don't expect a fella
• 19:04
  Speaker 6: to be told to his face he's a killer and
• 19:05
  Speaker 6: like it, do you?
• 19:06
  Speaker 4: Yes, but.
• 19:06
  Speaker 5: Hold on now.
• 19:08
  Speaker 7: Sheriff, you heard this fellow say I done for his partner.
• 19:10
  Speaker 7: The only proof he's got is a piece of paper
• 19:12
  Speaker 7: he claims I dropped, but didn't.
• 19:14
  Speaker 6: Well?
• 19:14
  Speaker 7: Well, what I want to know is this. Are you
• 19:16
  Speaker 7: arresting me or ain't you? Because if you ain't, I
• 19:18
  Speaker 7: ain't staying here to listen to any more of this
• 19:20
  Speaker 7: wild talk.
• 19:20
  Speaker 6: Kill him.
• 19:21
  Speaker 9: Don't you hear how I can? Maybe I can suspicion him,
• 19:24
  Speaker 9: but like I just said, that ain't enough.
• 19:26
  Speaker 5: What the mess, man? What?
• 19:28
  Speaker 6: Mr. Up with your hands!
• 19:29
  Speaker 5: Don't show up with your guns.
• 19:30
  Speaker 6: I don't do. Reaping catfish, did you see that draw?
• 19:33
  Speaker 5: Pastor, chain light.
• 19:34
  Speaker 6: You can't get away with this. I'm the law here.
• 19:36
  Speaker 6: No masked fellow can just walk in my office and
• 19:38
  Speaker 6: do as he pleases.
• 19:39
  Speaker 2: I'm doing it.
• 19:40
  Speaker 6: Quiet.
• 19:40
  Speaker 5: I have news for you. About a murder.
• 19:43
  Speaker 6: A murder? Who killed? Who was killed?
• 19:45
  Speaker 5: If you listen, I'll tell you about it.
• 19:46
  Speaker 6: We're listening.
• 19:47
  Speaker 5: Tonto and I found the body of a man who
• 19:49
  Speaker 5: had been shot through the back. Gosh.
• 19:51
  Speaker 6: Whereabouts?
• 19:51
  Speaker 5: I'll get to that later. It was a man around 65. Bearded.
• 19:56
  Speaker 5: Looks like it might have been a prospector.
• 19:57
  Speaker 6: Sheriff, that's Jake. That's my partner. I know doggone well
• 20:01
  Speaker 6: it is. Sounds like it.
• 20:02
  Speaker 9: You were saying you had to find the body before
• 20:04
  Speaker 9: you could take action. All right, here's the fellow that
• 20:06
  Speaker 9: found it for you. Now let's see what you're.
• 20:08
  Speaker 6: Going to do.
• 20:09
  Speaker 5: He can't do anything. Because I'm not telling where the
• 20:12
  Speaker 5: body was found.
• 20:13
  Speaker 6: My heavens, you will, stranger.
• 20:14
  Speaker 5: As long as I have the drop on you, you
• 20:16
  Speaker 5: can't do anything.
• 20:19
  Speaker 6: If you didn't have the drop on me.
• 20:20
  Speaker 2: You don't care to hear more?
• 20:22
  Speaker 6: All right, you hold all the aces. Go ahead.
• 20:25
  Speaker 5: The killer likely believed Jake died immediately.
• 20:27
  Speaker 2: But he didn't.
• 20:29
  Speaker 6: He didn't?
• 20:29
  Speaker 5: No.
• 20:30
  Speaker 6: What's that got to do with it?
• 20:31
  Speaker 5: At the place where I found him, he evidently had
• 20:33
  Speaker 5: made an effort to accuse his murderer before dying.
• 20:35
  Speaker 9: What?
• 20:36
  Speaker 6: How could he do that?
• 20:37
  Speaker 5: He took a stone and scratched a message in the earth.
• 20:39
  Speaker 6: What was that message?
• 20:40
  Speaker 5: I'm not sure I care to say.
• 20:43
  Speaker 6: Did it name the killer?
• 20:44
  Speaker 5: That's just it. It didn't. A man who was familiar
• 20:47
  Speaker 5: with the murderer would probably recognize what the message meant.
• 20:50
  Speaker 5: I'm a stranger here. It had no meaning for me.
• 20:53
  Speaker 6: That don't make no difference. What did Jake write?
• 20:55
  Speaker 5: No, I still don't believe I'll tell you that. Sheriff,
• 20:58
  Speaker 5: this masked fellow's up to something.
• 20:59
  Speaker 6: Up to what?
• 21:00
  Speaker 7: Don't you see it, Sheriff? He come here figuring if
• 21:02
  Speaker 7: he reported the murder, he wouldn't be suspicioned. All this
• 21:05
  Speaker 7: talk of a message or something that the fellow he
• 21:07
  Speaker 7: found was supposed to have read out.
• 21:08
  Speaker 5: Don't mean nothing. He's just making that up. What would
• 21:10
  Speaker 5: I have to gain by it?
• 21:12
  Speaker 6: How would I know that?
• 21:13
  Speaker 5: But you've got some reason for it, I'll bet a million.
• 21:15
  Speaker 6: There ain't no reason why you can't tell where Jake
• 21:17
  Speaker 6: is anyhow.
• 21:18
  Speaker 5: I've said all I'm going to say. If I'm going
• 21:20
  Speaker 5: to be accused, the less said the better. I'm leaving, Sheriff.
• 21:23
  Speaker 5: Don't attempt to follow.
• 21:24
  Speaker 7: Hey, hold on!
• 21:25
  Speaker 5: Don't let him get away, Sheriff. I said don't follow.
• 21:31
  Speaker 2: Come on, Connor.
• 21:33
  Speaker 5: The Sheriff will be after us in a second.
• 21:35
  Speaker 6: Get him up, Scout.
• 21:36
  Speaker 5: Come on, Silver.
• 21:40
  Speaker 3: Now, where to? Don't ride too fast. The Sheriff has
• 21:43
  Speaker 3: to follow us. Because now he's convinced there has been
• 21:46
  Speaker 3: a murder.
• 21:47
  Speaker 5: As far as he knows, we're the only ones who
• 21:49
  Speaker 5: can lead him to the body.
• 21:51
  Speaker 2: Look back.
• 21:51
  Speaker 5: Is anything happening?
• 21:53
  Speaker 2: Him out on the street. Jump up and down.
• 21:57
  Speaker 5: He'll get a posse. It'll soon be dark. We'll let
• 22:01
  Speaker 5: them keep us in sight until then. And then the
• 22:04
  Speaker 5: sheriff is going to get a surprise. Hail Silver Hawaii!
• 22:13
  Speaker 3: The sheriff had no choice but to follow the masked man.
• 22:16
  Speaker 3: A posse was quickly formed and led out to the trail.
• 22:19
  Speaker 3: All through the night, the Lone Ranger and Tonto were
• 22:21
  Speaker 3: kept in sight. When it came dark, they disappeared. The
• 22:24
  Speaker 3: sheriff did not realize they'd merely found cover in a
• 22:27
  Speaker 3: grove of trees next to the trail.
• 22:30
  Speaker 2: Here they come, Tonto. In he big hurry.
• 22:34
  Speaker 5: You think you can make the sheriff out?
• 22:35
  Speaker 2: Him ride gray horse.
• 22:37
  Speaker 5: That's the one. He'll be alongside in a moment.
• 22:39
  Speaker 2: Already? He got rope.
• 22:41
  Speaker 5: Be sure you make your throw true. We miss on
• 22:43
  Speaker 5: the first attempt. We may not have a chance for another.
• 22:46
  Speaker 6: Make ready. Keep on, fellas. They must have disappeared over
• 22:50
  Speaker 6: that ridge ahead.
• 22:51
  Speaker 5: Get up there.
• 22:52
  Speaker 6: Get up.
• 22:53
  Speaker 5: Now, Tudor.
• 22:54
  Speaker 6: Get up there. Get up. What now?
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: Come on, Silver.
• 22:58
  Speaker 3: Get him up, Scout.
• 22:59
  Speaker 6: Help. Stop, fellas. I broke.
• 23:01
  Speaker 2: Help. Hold it.
• 23:02
  Speaker 5: Hold it.
• 23:03
  Speaker 9: Hold it.
• 23:06
  Speaker 6: Get back!
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: Get back!
• 23:07
  Speaker 5: You're riding with me, Silver. Your horse won't be fast enough.
• 23:11
  Speaker 6: Silver's carrying double. Go right into the saddle, will you?
• 23:14
  Speaker 9: Come on, Silver!
• 23:22
  Speaker 3: With the sheriff their prisoner, the Lone Ranger and Tonto
• 23:25
  Speaker 3: turned around and guided their mounts once more toward the desert,
• 23:28
  Speaker 3: where they found the body of Jake Bevins. All through
• 23:30
  Speaker 3: the night they rode, but in the morning they stopped
• 23:32
  Speaker 3: for a short rest. And the mask man explained his
• 23:35
  Speaker 3: purpose to the lawman.
• 23:36
  Speaker 5: You see, Sheriff, there was nothing else I could do.
• 23:39
  Speaker 5: I couldn't tell you where the body was because the
• 23:41
  Speaker 5: murderer was in the office at the same time.
• 23:43
  Speaker 6: Oh, that was it.
• 23:44
  Speaker 5: Yes. That story of a message written in the earth
• 23:47
  Speaker 5: by Jake before he died wasn't true.
• 23:49
  Speaker 6: Then why in tarnation did you tell it for?
• 23:51
  Speaker 5: To give the killer a motive for riding to the
• 23:53
  Speaker 5: scene of the crime. He believes he has to go
• 23:56
  Speaker 5: there to destroy the evidence before someone else finds it.
• 23:58
  Speaker 9: Why, stranger, that's pretty slick. I wouldn't have thought of
• 24:01
  Speaker 9: a stunt like that in a million years.
• 24:02
  Speaker 5: Whoever the murderer is, we should have passed him by now.
• 24:06
  Speaker 5: I wanted to be sure to get there ahead of him.
• 24:08
  Speaker 5: But he doesn't know we came this way. When we
• 24:10
  Speaker 5: get to the place, there are plenty of rocks which
• 24:12
  Speaker 5: will hide us and the horses from his sight.
• 24:14
  Speaker 6: Doggone sorry I took after you with my posse like that.
• 24:16
  Speaker 2: I'm not.
• 24:17
  Speaker 5: It had to be done that way. And for two reasons.
• 24:20
  Speaker 6: Maybe so, but doggone if I can see him.
• 24:21
  Speaker 5: The first was to give the killer a chance to
• 24:23
  Speaker 5: sneak away in the excitement. And the second was to
• 24:26
  Speaker 5: make him confident he'd be too busy chasing me or
• 24:29
  Speaker 5: either one of us to trail him.
• 24:31
  Speaker 6: I guess I just ain't got the brains to think
• 24:33
  Speaker 6: of them things.
• 24:33
  Speaker 5: You simply weren't acquainted with the facts. Tata, how are
• 24:36
  Speaker 5: the horses now?
• 24:37
  Speaker 2: They're all right. Get plenty of rest.
• 24:40
  Speaker 5: Then we'll be on our way for the last lap
• 24:41
  Speaker 5: of our trip. When we get there, we're going to
• 24:44
  Speaker 5: catch a killer.
• 24:45
  Speaker 6: Here, Silver.
• 24:46
  Speaker 5: Get to the saddle, Sheriff.
• 24:48
  Speaker 6: You bet.
• 24:48
  Speaker 9: Stranger, it's a downright honor to be a straddle all-fly fisherman.
• 24:53
  Speaker 2: Let's go. Come on, Silver.
• 24:55
  Speaker 5: Let's go.
• 25:04
  Speaker 3: The three men rode until at last they reached the
• 25:07
  Speaker 3: cairn the Lone Ranger and Tonto had built. There they
• 25:09
  Speaker 3: dismounted and concealed themselves and their horses behind the huge
• 25:13
  Speaker 3: boulders that surrounded the cairn. Hours of waiting followed. But finally,
• 25:17
  Speaker 3: the lone ranger turned to the sheriff beside him.
• 25:20
  Speaker 6: Sheriff.
• 25:21
  Speaker 5: Over there.
• 25:22
  Speaker 2: A rider.
• 25:22
  Speaker 6: Sure enough.
• 25:23
  Speaker 2: That killer all right.
• 25:24
  Speaker 6: The sneaking varmints.
• 25:25
  Speaker 5: Notice one thing, Sheriff. He claimed in your office that
• 25:28
  Speaker 5: he didn't know where Jake could be. And yet he's
• 25:30
  Speaker 5: riding directly for this group of stones.
• 25:32
  Speaker 6: I noticed that.
• 25:33
  Speaker 5: He won't be able to claim later that he discovered
• 25:34
  Speaker 5: the place by accident. If he tries a story like that,
• 25:37
  Speaker 5: it'll just go to the worst for him.
• 25:38
  Speaker 6: Quiet.
• 25:39
  Speaker 5: He'll be here in a moment.
• 25:40
  Speaker 6: Yeah. Get up.
• 25:41
  Speaker 9: Get along with it.
• 25:43
  Speaker 4: Get up there.
• 25:46
  Speaker 5: Get up.
• 25:46
  Speaker 6: Whoa, whoa, whoa. We're in the Dickens. He ain't even
• 25:52
  Speaker 6: laying here. He's carrying it.
• 25:54
  Speaker 5: Somebody must have covered him up.
• 25:56
  Speaker 6: I don't see nothing on the ground either. I don't know.
• 25:59
  Speaker 5: No.
• 25:59
  Speaker 6: All right, you lying coyote. Heist your hand.
• 26:02
  Speaker 2: Come on, Sheriff.
• 26:03
  Speaker 5: Come on.
• 26:03
  Speaker 9: Are you able to kill your own partner? Kill the
• 26:07
  Speaker 9: fellow you teamed up with all these years? Why, I
• 26:09
  Speaker 9: ought to hang you on the spot. And after you
• 26:12
  Speaker 9: tried to frame Fritz for this, I wish there was
• 26:14
  Speaker 9: something worse than hanging I could give you.
• 26:15
  Speaker 6: Sheriff, I never killed Jake.
• 26:17
  Speaker 5: I never did that. The lion won't help you now.
• 26:19
  Speaker 5: Unless you had, you'd never have been able to ride
• 26:20
  Speaker 5: directly here.
• 26:21
  Speaker 9: The masked man's right. And it was him that figured
• 26:24
  Speaker 9: this whole thing out. Careful. All right, you got me.
• 26:28
  Speaker 9: How'd you know it was me? I never left no trail.
• 26:32
  Speaker 9: Did Jake really write something before he died like you said, stranger?
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: He didn't.
• 26:35
  Speaker 6: Then how did you know?
• 26:36
  Speaker 5: There were several things, Abel. But the chief one that
• 26:38
  Speaker 5: trapped you was your anxiety that trapped someone else.
• 26:41
  Speaker 6: Hey, hey, dude, it's heavy.
• 26:43
  Speaker 5: You gave yourself away that day in Mrs. Timmons' store.
• 26:46
  Speaker 5: You claimed that Fritz dropped that paper from his pocket.
• 26:49
  Speaker 5: It seemed to you like too good an opportunity to
• 26:51
  Speaker 5: miss when he came in there with all that cash.
• 26:53
  Speaker 6: Yes, but I.
• 26:54
  Speaker 5: I was almost certain, however, that you would.
• 26:55
  Speaker 2: Drop the paper.
• 26:56
  Speaker 6: Bless you.
• 26:57
  Speaker 5: This is the first time I could be positive, though.
• 27:00
  Speaker 5: I couldn't be sure until we saw you riding here
• 27:02
  Speaker 5: that the killer hadn't been Fritz after all.
• 27:04
  Speaker 6: What were the other things that made you suspicious of him?
• 27:06
  Speaker 5: One thing, he knew Jake was coming with cash. I
• 27:09
  Speaker 5: couldn't see how anyone else could have known it in
• 27:12
  Speaker 5: time to ride here and kill him. For another, I
• 27:15
  Speaker 5: believe Mrs. Timmons is a good judge of character. I
• 27:19
  Speaker 5: noticed that she allowed Fritz to call her Granny, but
• 27:21
  Speaker 5: she resented it when Abel did the same. That showed
• 27:25
  Speaker 5: clearly that she liked the one better than the other.
• 27:27
  Speaker 6: You can't beat Granny for sizing folks up.
• 27:30
  Speaker 5: Can you handle this man alone now, Sheriff? He'll have
• 27:32
  Speaker 5: to ride double on his horse on the way back
• 27:34
  Speaker 5: to town.
• 27:34
  Speaker 9: Don't worry about me. I've handled worse than him a
• 27:37
  Speaker 9: hundred times over.
• 27:39
  Speaker 2: Here, Silver.
• 27:39
  Speaker 6: Here's Count.
• 27:40
  Speaker 5: Then we'll be leaving you.
• 27:41
  Speaker 6: Hell, get even for this, mister. Shut up! You ain't
• 27:44
  Speaker 6: gonna get even with nobody. Cause you're gonna stretch him.
• 27:47
  Speaker 5: Hail, Silver Cowboy!
• 28:00
  Speaker 4: THE END THE END.
• 29:01
  Speaker 9: THE END.
• 29:29
  Speaker 5: THE END.
• 29:40
  Speaker 3: The story you have just heard is a copyrighted feature
• 29:43
  Speaker 3: of the Lone Ranger Incorporated.
• 29:52
  Speaker 1: This has been the Lone Ranger in Desert Murder. Good
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: night and thank you for sharing this western broadcast.