- Thank you, Jason. On time.
- You bet!
Link. Link Appleyard!
- Miss Hallie.
- Hello, Marshal.
- Howdy, Mr Senator.
- No, no. Rance. Rance.
Rance. Sure glad you could come.
Your wire caught us in St Louis.
Thank you.
My buckboard's right over there.
Jason, give me that box.
You knew they were coming!
That's the first time you ever
kept a secret! Blabbermouth!
Was that anybody
worth a line in the paper?
A line? You blasted young fool,
that's Senator Stoddard and his wife.
You can fill your newspaper
with them!
Hi, Lydia. Charlie Hasbrouck.
Emergency!
Tell the office Senator Stoddard
and his wife just got here!
- That's right! Thanks!
- Hey, that's a nickel!
Charge the ''Shinbone Star''!
Senator! Senator Stoddard, ma'am.
Could you give me an interview?
Exclusive-like. A scoop!
''Shinbone Star''...
Well, now, son... all right.
l'll give the interview,
but only for one reason.
One reason. Dutton Peabody, founder,
publisher, editor in chief
of the ''Shinbone Star'' once fired me.
l'll be fired
if l don't get this interview.
ls it true you're going to...
Here he comes now.
Senator Stoddard, this is a surprise
and an honour, sir!
- Maxwell Scott, editor.
- How do you do, Mr Scott?
- This is Mrs Stoddard.
- A pleasure, ma'am.
What brings you back to town, sir?
ls it true...?
Oh, no. Hold on, Mr Scott.
Who am l giving this interview to,
you or this young fellow?
- Who asked first, by the way.
- l sure did.
lf you're a good reporter invite
them in, out of the sun and dust.
He's right. To make a man talk,
make him comfortable.
lt's back in business again.
Politics.
Link, why don't you take Hallie
for a little ride around town?
Lot of changes, huh?
l'll go with these fellows
and mend a few political fences.
l notice
you're not wearing the star.
Shucks, Miss Hallie. They haven't
elected me Town Marshal for ages.
The only one of us from the old days
still working steady is the senator.
Place has sure changed.
Churches, high school, shops.
Well, the railroad done that.
Desert's still the same.
- The cactus rose is in blossom.
- Maybe...
Maybe you'd like to take a ride out
desert way, and maybe look around.
Maybe.
You knew where l wanted to go,
didn't you?
Well, you said you wanted
to see the cactus blossoms.
There's his house down there,
what's left of it.
Blossoms all around it.
He never did finish that room
he started to build on, did he?
No...
Well, you know all about that.
There's a lovely one there.
Gentlemen, l promised myself
this trip l would not talk politics,
and look here,
that's about all l've been doing.
Surely you're going to Capitol City
and talk to the assembly?
Not this trip. lt's purely personal.
Purely personal? That isn't good
enough for my readers.
Why did you come to Shinbone?
No mystery, is there?
No. No, there's no mystery.
l'm here to go to a funeral.
- Funeral?
- Who's dead, sir?
- No, sir. l...
- A man by the name of Tom Doniphon.
There's my good wife. l'll...
l've enjoyed the visit, gentlemen.
Tom Doniphon?
- Hello, Clute.
- Ransom Stoddard! And Miss Hallie!
Senator, l didn't think... Why didn't
you let me know they was coming?
l'd have had a real bang-up funeral.
Folks from all over everywhere
would have come.
The county's gonna bury him.
l won't make a nickel out of it.
Pompey?
- Miss Hallie.
- Pompey, l'm sorry.
Maybe you'd like to...
Where are his boots?
They was an awful nice pair of boots,
almost brand-new, and l thought...
Put his boots on, Clute,
and his gun belt and his spurs.
He didn't carry no handgun, Rance.
He didn't for years.
Yeah, sure.
Sir, l don't wish to intrude,
but a United States senator is news.
l'm the editor of a newspaper
with a statewide circulation.
l've got a responsibility to know
why you came all the way down here
to bury a man.
You can't say his name was
Tom Doniphon and leave it at that.
Who was Tom Doniphon?
He was a friend, Mr Scott,
and we'd like to be left alone.
Scott, let's go.
l'm sorry. That's not enough.
l have a right to have the story.
Yes, l guess maybe you have.
This story not only concerns me.
Old Pompey in there, Link...
they were part of it.
But l suppose l'm the only one
who can tell it through.
l read of the old days in the paper's
files. There was no mention...
You're a young man! A young man.
You only know it
since the railroad came.
A lot different then. A lot different
before, Mr Scott. A lot different.
First time l came to Shinbone,
l came by stagecoach.
A lot like that one right there.
Could be the same one.
Could be the same one.
''Overland''...?
Say, l think it is the same one!
Well, l declare.
Well, l declare.
l was just a youngster,
fresh out of law school,
bag full of law books and my
father's gold watch, $1 4.80 in cash.
l had taken
Horace Greeley's advice literally:
Go west, young man, go west,
and seek fame, fortune, adventure.
Stand and deliver!
Shotgun, shuck your shells.
Throw down the cash box. Now!
All right.
Get the passengers out of the coach.
Looks like slim pickings,
but lift their wallets anyway.
- l'll take that pin, too.
- No. My dead husband gave it to me.
- Please!
- A widow? l'll take it...
Take your hands off!
What kind of men are you?
This kind, dude.
Now, what kind of man are you, dude?
l am an attorney at law, and l'm
duly licensed by the territory.
You may have us now,
but l'll see you in jail for this!
Jail?
Stop it!
Get him out of here!
Get in that coach! Go on, move!
Get in there! You, too!
Come on, inside!
- He could die!
- We'll send him flowers!
Chico, cut the leaders!
Get going!
Put that in here
and get to your horses. Hurry!
A book?
Law?
Lawyer, huh?
l'll teach you law... Western law.
Let's get out of here.
Come on! Come on!
Hallie! Wake up, gal!
Tom Doniphon! 5:30am.
What's the matter with you?
We've got a man down here ambushed.
Ambushed!
Like to die
if we don't get care for him.
- lt's the man from the hold up.
- That's right.
How did you know?
Stagecoach stopped by last night
to notify the marshal.
Link Appleyard?
Don't stand there gossiping.
Get him inside. Pompey!
Think you can make it, pilgrim?
Pick him up, Pompey.
Put him on the couch.
Tom, he's hurt real bad.
Thanks, Pompey.
Poor man. Beaten, whipped and kicked,
just for trying to protect a woman.
- How's that again?
- Stage driver told us all about it.
Well, Pompey, looks like
we got ourselves a ladies' man.
Hallie, we...
- Get some bandage.
- But...
l'll take care of him.
Pilgrim, you'll need
a couple of stitches.
Pompey, go find Doc Willoughby.
lf he's sober, bring him back.
Nora, sorry to bust in on you
like this. He's in trouble.
- Such a beating.
- This is just simply terrible.
By golly,
l'm going to get the marshal.
You want coffee?
l make some breakfast. Hallie?
Take her easy there, pilgrim.
You all right?
Here we are. Drink this.
ls that coffee?
Yah, coffee, and aquavit.
Swedish brandy. Good for you.
No, l don't care for that.
Here, you must drink.
That make you feel better.
lt ain't mannerly out west
to let a fellow drink by himself.
- All right if l smoke, ain't it?
- Sure. Go right ahead.
- Good. Now you will feel stronger.
- Thank you, ma'am.
Took my watch. My money's gone,
every cent l had in the world.
Don't fret about that, pilgrim.
You can eat here
until you get back on your feet.
- My credit's still good, Nora?
- Yah, Tom.
- Lie down. Please lie down.
- No. No, not now.
Not now.
l've got something to do.
Got something to do.
What did you say his name was?
The man with the silver-knobbed whip?
l said Liberty Valance,
but if that's what you got to do,
you better start packing a handgun.
A gun? l don't want a gun.
l don't want a gun.
l don't want to kill him.
l want to put him in jail.
l know those law books mean a lot
to you, but not out here.
Out here,
a man settles his own problems.
But do you know
what you're saying to me?
You're saying just exactly
what Liberty Valance said.
What kind of community
have l come to?
You all seem to know Liberty Valance.
He's a no-good, gun-packing,
murdering thief,
but the only advice you give me
is to carry a gun.
Well, l'm a lawyer!
Ransom Stoddard, Attorney at Law.
And the law is the only...
A little law and order around
Shinbone wouldn't hurt anyone.
All right, Hallie.
Arrest this man! Arrest him!
Nobody seems to want...
Well.
Here comes Mr Law and Order himself.
- He's hurt bad.
- What are you dragging me here for?
Ain't being up all night on account
of this hold up business...
- Who's this?
- From the hold up.
- l knew l shouldn't come over.
- Wait a minute, Marshal.
Tom, if he's got a formal complaint
to make, he should make it to me.
He just wants you
to put Liberty Valance in jail.
Liberty Valance? Do you think
l'm crazy? Tom, let me out of here.
Hallie thinks he's right.
You'd better listen. He's a lawyer.
Somebody better listen to somebody
about him!
Mamma, Liberty Valance
rides into town...
lf he behaves himself in this town,
l ain't got no...
Jurisdiction.
What he said.
l ain't got none of it.
You all know
l'm only the town marshal.
What Liberty does out on the
road ain't no business of mine.
Ain't that right, Mr Lawyer?
Technically, l suppose
it is a territorial offence.
- You mean l'm right?
- Yes, Marshal, you're right.
l knew it! l knew we'd be friends
the minute l stepped in here.
You folks all know that,
well, the jail's only got one cell,
and the lock's broke,
and l sleep in it.
l should have known nothing would
happen when you came in here.
Now get out,
you big old fat water buffalo!
- We got work to do!
- Hallie, l ain't ate yet.
l could sure use a snack
of six or seven of those hen's egg
and maybe a side order of bacon,
and is that flapjack batter?
On the cuff. Sit down.
Papa, get your pants on!
Get out of the way! Sit down!
You know, you look mighty pretty
when you get mad.
Like l say, you can eat here
till you get back on your feet.
- May l have your name?
- Doniphon. Tom Doniphon.
Forget what l said about buying
a gun. You're a tenderfoot.
Liberty Valance is the toughest man
south of the Picketwire, next to me.
- Mr Peabody!
- Evening, Marshal.
Did you know that Liberty Valance
is in town tonight?
l'd be a poor newspaperman indeed
if l didn't know
what everybody else knows.
l don't know what to do,
Mr Peabody, l swear.
Do what you're paid to. Run him out!
Run him out... Liberty Val...me?
- My advice to you as...
- Coroner.
- And your personal pos...
- Physician!
ls to get supper and go to bed.
No charge.
Sound advice, Marshal. Sound advice.
Hallie, my love, where are you?
l await you, my dear.
Good evening.
Saturday night, Mr Peabody.
Better order early before those
drunks come from across the street.
Hallie, please. The proprieties
concerning the cutlery.
How many times have l told you,
the fork goes to the left
of the plate, the knife goes...
You superstitious or something?
What are you having to eat?
The usual.
Steak, beans, potatoes
and deep-dish apple pie.
- Three steaks with a lot of black.
- All right.
- Lot of black-eyes, Hallie.
- All right, Kaintuck!
Three steaks,
burnt black for the Lazy ''J'' boys.
Heavy on the beans.
Usual for Mr Peabody with fixings.
- Steak, beans, potatoes.
- And deep-dish apple pie.
Someday, he'll order something
different, and we'll all faint.
Goodness, Rance,
aren't you finished yet?
No wonder if your mind isn't on it.
Let me help.
Hallie, l found it. l'll show...
No, my hands are wet.
Get the book.
Come on, take the book a minute.
Nora, Peter, come here and hear this.
Now, get the book.
That place right here where it says,
''Under the law of this territory.''
Hallie, you read it out loud.
l got Liberty Valance exactly where
l want him. Exactly where l want him.
What's the matter? Go ahead. Read it.
- l can't.
- What? You... Well, why not?
l never had the schooling,
that's why not.
You mean you can't read at all?
No, l can't read, and l can't write.
Here, take your book.
For heaven's sakes,
isn't Mr Peabody's order ready?
- Hallie...
- Not enough beans on it.
Hallie, l'm sorry.
l could teach you.
What for? What good has reading
and writing done you?
Look at you. ln an apron.
Be right with you, boys.
l do look funny in this.
l didn't mean to hurt her.
She'll get over it. What is
reading and writing for a girl?
She'll make a wonderful wife
for any man.
And if Tom Doniphon is smart,
he pops the question
before some busybody l am married to
upsets his bag of apples.
Aw, you!
Eat supper before come the drunks.
- But l'm not finished.
- Go sit down! Eat!
What you cooking, steak and potatoes?
l'm hungry. Could l impose
upon your hospitality?
Just a couple of those steaks
and no beans.
Marshal.
You're the man l'm looking for.
Not so loud.
And double on the potatoes.
One steak for one marshal
on the cuff.
Marshal, l was wrong the other day,
but l've been reading up,
and there it is.
l'll draw up the complaint,
take care of the details,
but you do have jurisdiction,
it says so right there.
The next time he sets foot
in this town, you arrest him.
Anything you say, Mr Stoddard.
l'll be tickled to death to...
- What was that? Arrest who?
- Liberty Valance.
Arrest Liberty Val...
You mean Liberty Valance?
Just when l was starting
to get my appetite back.
A lot of black-eyes.
Steaks for the Brophy boys
with black-eyed peas. Burn 'em.
- They're sober tonight, too.
- Burn four.
Here's the supper for Rance.
- Thank you, Hallie.
- Sit down!
You pop up
every time a girl speaks to you.
- You get in the habit.
- Rance, do you think l could?
l mean, grown-up and all?
Could l learn to read?
Sure you can, Hallie.
There's nothing to it.
lt'd be... Can you learn to read?!
Why, l can teach you.
A smart girl like you? Of course
you can. Do you want to try?
lt's awful worrisome not knowing how.
l know the Bible from preacher talk,
but it'd be a soul comfort
to read it myself.
l'll teach you how. ln no time,
you'll be reading everything.
Hallie, can l have
just one more steak?
One steak on the cuff!
All right, all right.
Excuse me.
- Nora, did you hear the news?
- No.
- Rance'll learn me to read.
- ''Teach me to read.''
Teach me to read.
l cannot say my ABC in Swedish.
Maybe you can teach me in English.
Sure, Nora.
You'll be my second pupil.
Hal's my first. You'll be my second.
Peter, you hear that? Peter!
Well, pilgrim, l see you're still
protecting the ladies.
Tom, look at you.
You're all dressed up.
- lt's Saturday night.
- Don't you look handsome?
l brought you a little present.
Prettiest cactus rose
l ever did see.
lt's a beauty. Look at it, Nora.
- Should look nice in your garden.
- But it should go in now...
- l'll be pleased to plant that.
- Thank you, Pompey.
The Hash outfit just arrived.
Burn eight.
- Not too close to the ocotillo bush.
- Yes, ma'am.
''Ransom Stoddard, Attorney at Law.''
You're a persistent cuss, pilgrim.
You really aim to hang that up
outside?
- That's why l painted it.
- Take some advice, pilgrim.
You put that thing up,
you'll have to defend it with a gun,
and you ain't exactly the type.
Comin' up.
Thank you.
A girl needs six hands on Saturday
night, and it's so hot. Look at me.
Any more colour and you'd be
prettier than that cactus rose.
Tom, that's mighty flattering.
Burn me a good, thick one, Pete,
meat and potatoes.
- Hello, Kaintuck.
- Evening, Tom.
- Tom.
- Object to company, Mr Peabody?
Not to yours, Tom.
Sit down, sit down.
l suppose you know
who's across the street?
Yeah. l hear he sent word on ahead.
He won't like what the town's been
saying about him and that hold-up.
How about you, Kaintuck?
- l'd like a st...
- Steak?
- Yes, ma'am.
- Well-burnt.
- And d-d-dee...
- Deep-dish apple pie.
- Yeah.
- Coming up.
Mighty nice girl,
that Hallie. Mighty pretty.
l agree with you, sir.
Just told her so.
What? Do l hear wedding bells?
When can l print the story?
Don't rush me,
Mr Editor. Don't rush me.
There's your cactus rose.
Sure is pretty.
Thank you, Pompey. lt is pretty.
Go and get supper.
Thank you, ma'am.
Look at that. lsn't that
the prettiest thing you ever saw?
Very pretty.
- Did you ever see a real rose?
- No.
But someday if they dam the river,
we'll have water
and all kinds of flowers.
When you finish the dishes,
will you help wait tables?
- Sure.
- Washing dishes is enough for him.
- A man waiting on tables?!
- No, l'd be glad to help.
- Be glad to.
- l thought we was busy.
These steaks look done
just right for us.
You cowhands ain't in no hurry
to eat, are you?
Well, l am!
l guess we could do
with another drink.
That's right neighbourly
of you, partner.
Especially after all the lies
l hear folks been saying
about Liberty Valance.
Wait a minute!
One of Mamma's pies for Tom.
Lookee at the new waitress.
That's my steak, Valance.
You heard him, dude. Pick it up.
- No!
- Pilgrim, hold it.
l said you, Valance. You pick it up.
- Three against one, Doniphon.
- My boy Pompey in the kitchen door.
l'll get it, Liberty.
l said you, Liberty. You pick it up.
What's the matter?
Everybody here kill-crazy? Here!
There! There!
Now, it's picked up!
Why don't you get yourself
a fresh steak on me?
Show's over for now.
Try it, Liberty. Just try it.
Get out!
l wonder what scared him off.
You know what!
The spectacle of law and order here,
rising up from the gravy
and the potatoes.
All right, you made your point.
The gun scared him off.
Pompey's gun, your gun, Tom.
Why did you interfere? He tripped me.
lt was my steak.
And you would have killed him for it,
or he would have killed you
over one measly steak!
- That's why l picked it up!
- Thanks for saving my life, pilgrim.
That isn't why l did it!
Nobody fights my battles.
Rance, l'm sorry.
l'm not in the habit
of eating my steak off the floor.
Well, cool off, pilgrim.
lt's all over. Nobody got hurt.
lt's not all over, and everybody
here knows it. He'll be back.
He will, but not after me.
After you, pilgrim.
And you can't shoot back
with a law book.
What Peabody's saying is,
if you want to stay healthy,
there's two ways to do it.
Buy a gun or leave the territory,
is that what he meant?
- That's it, pilgrim.
- By golly...
l'd hate to see you go.
You're news, Mr Stoddard,
and you've been news
ever since you hit town.
''Ransom Stoddard, Attorney at Law.''
l didn't mean to hurt
your feelings out there.
l'll tell you what.
You decide to stick around,
and l'll let you hang this
outside the newspaper office
rent-free, for as long as it lasts.
No. The first time
Liberty rides into town,
he'll shoot it to pieces,
and the whole newspaper office.
- How about that, Mr Peabody?
- Well, that'd be news.
l accept your offer, Mr Peabody.
How about letting me hang that up
tomorrow?
- Tomorrow? Well, of course.
- Thank you.
Why not?
l'm staying,
and l'm not buying a gun either.
Good luck, pilgrim.
Hallie,
l'll be out of town for a while,
north of the Picketwire,
horse-trading.
Goodbye, Tom.
And take note of what goes on around
town, because by the time l get back,
there won't be no newspaper
to read it in.
- Well, any news?
- Hansons had a baby, eight pounds.
- But not twins?
- Not twins.
l got this list of voters for you.
There are 37 new registrations
over last year,
and not one needed a lawyer.
lf we can only get them to vote,
maybe we can handle those cattle
barons from across the Picketwire.
- Did you write this, Mr Peabody?
- Yeah.
- This is great.
- You like it?
This thing's just great.
As my old boss,
Horace Greeley, used to say,
we'll tear their hearts out.
l'll be right there.
Let me have this.
l'll use it in class.
Good morning. l'm sorry l'm late.
A teacher should never
be late for class. Take your seats.
Quite a turnout this morning.
We have more pupils every day.
- Morning, Marshal. How you feeling?
- Just fine, fine.
- Your head cold?
- No, no. l have a...
Excuse me. l just wanted
to see how Julietta was doing.
- Julietta's doing fine.
- Gracias, seor.
How's the rest of my family
doing in reading?
Hallie's in charge
of the kindergarten.
Hallie, why don't you run through
the ABCs?
All right, you ready?
One, two, three.
A, B, C, D, E, F, G
H, l, J, K, L, M, N, O, P
Q, R, S and T, U, V
W, X and Y and Z
Now l know my ABCs
Tell me what you think of me
That was just fine, just fine.
Well, l see a couple more
new pupils back there.
Highpockets, Kaintuck, you fellas
really serious about readin'?
Go on. Stand up. Tell him.
Well, Miss Hallie, she
talked such a right smart argument
to the Lazy ''J'',
the boss of the Lazy ''J''.
He just up and told
all the hands to cut the cards
to see who come to school,
and l lost.
l see. We'll try.
Good morning, Mr Carruthers.
Good morning. Caught him
playing hookey again, fishing.
Catch anything, Herbert?
- No, sir. They weren't biting.
- That's too bad.
- Ain't you gonna whop him?
- He's too big.
For the benefit of those of you
just starting...
None of us in here smoke,
Mr Carruthers. Thank you.
For those of you
who have just started,
l might explain to you
that we've begun the school
by studying about our country,
and how it's governed.
Now, let's see. Well, Nora...
Would you tell the class what you've
learned about the United States?
The United States is a republic,
and a republic is a state
in which the people are the boss.
That means us.
And if the big shots in Washington
don't do like we want, we don't vote
for them, by golly, no more.
- Any more!
- Any more.
That's fine, Nora. That's just fine.
Now, l wonder
if anybody in class remembers
what the basic law of the land
is called.
You remember l told you it had
to be added to and changed sometimes,
by things called amendments.
Does anybody remember?
Julietta, your hand's always up.
Pompey, you try this one.
lt was writ by Thomas Jefferson
of Virginia.
- ''Was written'', Pompey.
- Written by Thomas Jefferson.
- He called it the Constitution.
- Declaration of lndependence.
lt begun with the words...
''We hold these truths to be...''
- Self-evident.
- Let him alone, Charlie.
- ''Self-evident, that...''
- ''That all men are created equal.''
- That's fine, Pompey.
- l knew that, but l plumb forgot it.
A lot of people forget that part.
You did just fine, Pompey.
- Thank you.
- This law also states
that governing power rests
with the electorate.
That means you,
that means the people.
And you exercise this power
through the vote. Yes?
Con permiso, los gentlemen's?
Well, Hallie?
Go right ahead, Hallie.
Here is the best textbook in
the world. lt's an honest newspaper.
This is the ''Shinbone Star,''
Dutton Peabody, Editor in Chief.
And reading this ought to bring home
to everybody
the importance of using that vote.
Now, the headlines say:
''Cattlemen fight statehood.
Small homesteaders in danger.''
lt says clearly that if big ranchers
north of the Picketwire River
win their fight to keep this
territory in open reign,
then all your truck farms and your
corn, the small shopkeepers
and everything, your kids' future,
it will all be all over, be gone!
And they call upon you,
in this article,
they call upon you to unite
behind a real strong delegate
and carry this fight
to Washington if necessary.
Hello, Tom.
Welcome back. You want to join us?
l'm looking for Pompey.
l've been away three weeks, and
there's no sashes or doors in yet.
Why have you been wasting time here?
Get to work. Your schooling's over.
Don't get rough with Pompey.
He's entitled to a...
What l got to say to you
will be a whole lot rougher.
The good editor here
has written some noble words,
and you read 'em good,
but if you put that paper out,
the streets of Shinbone
will be running with blood.
Why are you against this,
you of all people?
Aren't there more votes
south of the Picketwire than north?
That's right, but votes
won't stand up against guns.
Guns? What guns, Tom?
You think Valance stays away
from here cos he's scared of you?
He's recruiting hired guns
for the big ranchers.
- Si, papacito?
- Take the little ones home.
Come on.
Hallie, it would be a good idea
if you dismissed class.
- Dismiss class?
- Go on. Dismiss them, please.
Class dismissed! Same time tomorrow.
You get to the store.
lt could get worse
than the sheep wars.
You think
they'll start something here?
lt's already started. Valance and
his men crossed the river yesterday,
killed a couple of sodbusters,
old man Holiday and his son.
You know that for a fact?
l do. They tried to bushwhack me,
unfortunately for one of them.
- You putting that in your newspaper?
- lt's news, and l'm a newspaperman.
Print that,
he'll kill you sure as hell.
You think they'll come here, Tom?
They'll be here,
tomorrow or the next day
according to how much
who-hit-John they consume,
but election day, pilgrim, you
can depend on it. They'll be here.
Hallie, go where you belong. l don't
want you in no shooting gallery.
Now, you listen to me, Tom Doniphon.
What l do and where l go isn't
your business. You don't own me.
Like l said, Hallie,
you're awful pretty when you get mad.
Rance. After all you've taught us,
how can you say
we should knuckle under now?
You heard what Tom said.
When force threatens,
talk's no good any more.
Hallie, go find Tom
and make it up to him.
He's only trying to protect you.
Better let him go, Hallie.
Why? Where's he going?
He's going to need
all the practice he can get.
Practice? What are you talking about?
l might as well let you know.
When he came in with me,
l let him have a gun of mine.
He's been going out in the country
twice a week practising ever since.
You mean he's going to face up
to Liberty Valance? Rance?
That's the only way l figure it.
He never discussed it.
He just keeps on practising.
Tom! Tom Doniphon!
Hey, professor.
Where you going?
- l want to talk to you at my place.
- Tom, l'm going...
Step down, pilgrim. Take a look.
All right, Tom,
what are you trying to tell me?
l'm telling you
that Hallie's my girl.
l'm building that room and porch
for her for when we get married.
Tom, l guess everybody
pretty much takes that for granted.
Everybody except Hallie, maybe you.
That's a damn lie, and you know it.
Why did she come to me
fretting herself sick
because you were going to get killed
facing up to Liberty Valance?
- l never told her.
- Peabody did.
l think you're bluffing.
l'm not bluffing about anything.
Wait a minute, Tom. What?
Pompey, bring two or three
of those paint cans.
- You have a gun, right?
- Yes.
Get it.
Come on.
All right, gunslinger.
Hit that can.
Pretty far.
- Pilgrim, you got to cock it.
- l forgot.
Balance it light in your hand
and don't jerk the trigger. Squeeze.
You don't have to coach me.
Pompey, bring me those cans.
Give me that thing.
l'll show you how easy it is.
Take these cans.
Put them on those three posts.
Go ahead.
That's it. That first post.
- There?
- That's right.
Not there! On the far post.
That's right.
Now put that last one in the middle.
Pilgrim.
l hate tricks, pilgrim,
but that's what you're up against
with Valance.
He's almost as fast as l am.
l don't like tricks myself,
so that makes us even.
Pilgrim, you forgot your popgun.
l got you, Lyde. Ruf McMard.
Highpockets. Kaintuck.
Kaintuck! Leave the jug.
l am so proud of him.
Dutton Peabody
exercising his franchise.
- Dutton Peabody.
- Ransom Stoddard.
Rance, we'll need you
for some of that legal stuff later.
''Ransom Stoddard, Attorney at Law.''
Check.
- Peter Ericson, American citizen.
- Go on in, Pete.
- See you for supper, Pete?
- Yeah.
- Tom, look, we need a statehood!
- l agree.
Herbert? You're too young to vote.
Back to school.
Greetings. Hey, excuse me. Excuse me.
- l'll have the usual.
- Bar's closed.
The bar is closed, Mr Editor,
during voting.
You can blame your lawyer friend.
He says that's one of the fundamental
laws of democracy, no exception.
No exceptions for the working press?
That's carrying democracy too far.
A small beer.
Bar's closed.
Give me that bung starter.
All right. Settle down!
Sit down, everybody!
Come on. Settle down.
Since our legal authority
closed the bar on us,
l propose that Ransom Stoddard,
Attorney at Law,
come up here and run this meeting.
- l second the motion.
- l third it.
Ransom. There he is. There he is.
All right. All right. All right.
All right, now, if you want,
l can show you the rules.
The meeting will come to order.
Settle down please.
Mr Peabody, would you keep
a record of the meeting?
Rance, please. There are other men...
Give me a drink.
- Bar's closed.
- Just a beer!
- Bar's closed.
- A beer's not drinking!
- Before we start...
- Sit down, Doctor, please?
l have a pencil right here.
Thank you.
You all know why we're here.
We're here to elect two delegates,
because a growing population
south of the Picketwire entitles us
to two.
These two delegates will represent us
in the territorial convention
for statehood.
You know the issue.
The cattle interests want to keep
this territory an open range.
No!
Ruled by their high-handed ideas,
whatever they are.
And we - that means everybody
in this room - we're for statehood!
We want statehood, because it means
the protection of farms and fences.
lt means schools for our children
and progress for the future!
Just sit down, please.
Now we'll proceed
with the nominations.
You can nominate as many as you like,
and in order to show you
how this procedure works,
l'll leave the chair temporarily.
That's parliamentary law.
You can do that.
l'll step out of the chair,
and l'll make the first nomination.
l'd like to nominate a man l think
is the only man in Shinbone
who has the right qualifications to
lead us in our fight for statehood.
l could stand here
talking about him all day,
but l know everybody here
could do the same.
l don't think that's necessary.
l nominate Tom Doniphon.
Come on, sit down. Sit down.
Stop sucking on that cigar
and put that pencil away.
- l refuse the nomination.
- You can't refuse now.
Yes l can, because l got
other plans, personal plans.
Mr Attorney, go on with your meeting.
You don't live south
of the Picketwire. You can't vote.
l live where l hang my hat.
Come on, move! Out of the way!
Hashslinger, why are you
standing there so high and mighty?
He's running this here meeting,
or hadn't you heard?
The whole shebang.
l'd like to nominate the chairman,
Mr Ransom Stoddard, as delegate
to the territorial convention.
Wait a minute.
And l second that nomination,
not only because he knows law,
but because he throws a good punch.
Now listen, all you sodbusters,
you hard-rock farmers.
- l aim to be the delegate.
- You don't live south.
Floyd, say your piece like l said.
l nominate
Liberty Valance for delegate.
- l second the nomination.
- Move the nominations be closed.
Now wait a minute. That ain't
exactly legal, is it, Mr Attorney?
We need two good delegates
to Capitol City, Valance,
Two honest men.
We've got one in you, Mr Stoddard.
- You looking for trouble, Doniphon?
- You helping me find some?
- You heard my motion, dude!
- All right. Put his name down.
- Liberty Valance, address unknown.
- Have l got a right to speak?
- Go ahead, Highpockets.
- Then what about Mr Peabody?
He can read and write
and runs the newspaper.
Yeah, and when he's drinking,
why, he can talk the ears
off of a w-wooden lndian.
l second the motion.
No, you don't. No!
l'm a newspaperman, not a politician.
No, politicians are my meat!
l build them up. l tear them down.
But l wouldn't be one.
l couldn't be one.
- lt would destroy me! Give me a...
- Bar's closed.
Good people of Shinbone,
l'm your conscience.
l'm the still, small voice
that thunders in the night.
l'm your watchdog
that howls against the wolves.
l'm your Father confessor!
- What else am l?
- Town drunk?
- Dutton Peabody. Write it down.
- l move the nominations be closed.
- l second the motion.
- All in favour?
Now we'll proceed with the election.
You sodbusters are a brave bunch
when you're together, but don't vote
any way now that you'll regret
later when you're alone.
Those in favour of Ransom Stoddard
as delegate, raise your hands.
All those in favour of Liberty
Valance, raise your hands.
All those in favour of Dutton
Peabody, raise your hands.
- Let's get you a drink.
- The bar's closed.
According to Mr Stoddard,
the bar's closed.
- Anything further on the election?
- Legally, the election's finished.
Then the bar is open.
That vote don't mean a thing.
Stay out of this.
He's been hiding
behind your gun long enough.
You got a choice, dishwasher.
Either you leave town,
or tonight be on that street alone.
You be there,
and don't make us come and get you.
Well, he called it plain.
Too bad you didn't come
to me sooner with that gun.
Pilgrim. Come full dark, Pompey will
be at the Swedes' place
with a buckboard.
Why don't you leave town?
Thanks.
''Liberty Valance defeated.''
D-E-F-E-E... T-E-D?
The unsteady hand betrays.
What's the matter, Mr Peabody?
Are you afraid?
The answer is indub... yes.
No courage left.
Well, courage can be purchased
at yon tavern.
But have we credit?
That is the question. Have we credit?
Well, credit is cheap.
Wait for me,
old servant of the public wheel.
Our shining hour is yet to come.
As for you, Horace Greeley,
go west, old man,
and grow young with the country.
Don't do that, Mr Peabody.
Why are you out here?
Don't you know that everybody
is supposed to get off the street?
My inalienable right,
the pursuit of happiness.
Sure, but it don't go to the saloon.
Liberty Valance is back there.
You should hear
what he's swearing to do to Rance.
And he ain't leaving you out, either.
Go in and let the Mexican fill that.
But l doubt if my credit is good with
these Spanish-American gentlemen.
Sure, it is. He's my wife's
step-uncle by her sister's marriage.
But would you say something nice
about me in your paper?
My dear friend, Link Appleyard?
The fearless,
fighting marshal of the west?
Your name will go down in history
with Buffalo Bill.
Mr Peabody's drunker than a skunk
over in that Mexican joint.
He ain't eating tonight.
He ''isn't'' eating tonight, remember?
lsn't, ain't,
what difference does it make?
Ain't going to be no school anymore
with you leaving tonight.
Good evening, folks. Mr Rance,
l have the buckboard out here.
l'll be waiting for you
if you need me.
Go, Rance. Go now, while you can.
Nora and Hallie
can finish the dishes.
Go. Please go.
l owe you for
three days' room and board.
l want to square my account. l want
to square my account before l go.
And those in England now asleep
shall think themselves accursed.
They were not here whilst any lives
that fought with us
on St Crispin's Day.
But when the blast, the blast of war,
blows in our ears and we summon up...
Liberty Valance. And his vermidons!
Liberty Valance taking liberties
with the liberty of the press?
- Had your supper yet, Peabody?
- My supper?
No. That's a splendid idea.
- You can start by eating this.
- That's a poor joke, Liberty.
Eat it!
Eat it!
He's dead.
Mr Peabody.
Rance? Rance Stoddard?
- Mr Peabody.
- Let's get him up.
- Where's Doc Willoughby?
- Still in the saloon.
Go get him.
Rance? Rance!
l sure told that Liberty Valance
about the freedom of the press.
Marshal?
Marshal...
you tell Liberty Valance
l'll be outside.
- Pompey!
- Miss Hallie?
- Where's Mr Tom?
- Down the road.
Get him!
Rance is out front with a gun!
Yes, ma'am.
You've heard of Gettysburg. 240...
Doc, Mr Peabody's awful hurt.
He needs you at his office.
What's wrong?
Somebody have an accident?
So that's it. Another one of your
accidents, Valance?
l'm waiting for the day
when they'll call me for you.
Paid in advance.
$10 into the cans.
Liberty, what you did to Mr Peabody,
ain't that enough?
Ain't that enough what, Mr Marshal?
You all know that Rance Stoddard
couldn't shoot the hat off his head
with a gun in his hand.
You mean, he's got a gun in his hand?
l'm calling you, Valance.
Kings and threes.
Good hand,
but not good enough.
An ace is an ace. Thank you.
lf you gun him down,
it'll just be pure murder.
Well, Mr Professor,
l thought you left town.
Why are you out here?
l'm waiting for Liberty Valance.
Why doesn't he come out?
Well, that's none of our business.
You heard him say he had a gun,
right?
- l didn't say that!
- That ain't murder.
That's a clean-cut case of
self-defence.
You heard him call me out,
didn't you?
Now get out of my way.
Hashslinger, are you out here?
l'd say that was Liberty Valance
there now. Wouldn't you?
- Yes, l would.
- We be seeing you, Mr Stoddard.
Come closer where l can see you.
Get out of that shadow, dude.
You got two hands, Hashslinger.
Pick it up!
All right, dude...
this time, right between the eyes.
Liberty?
Liberty? Liberty!
Hey, Doc! Doc!
Liberty!
lt's Liberty! He's hurt!
lt's Liberty!
- Whisky, quick.
- Here, sir.
Dead.
Rance, if it had been you
instead of Valance, l would...
Oh, no, Hallie. Hallie...
l can't help it.
This feels so guilty.
l didn't want you to run away.
l wanted you to stay.
He might... l'm sorry.
- Forgive me.
- Hallie.
Hallie, please don't.
Hallie.
l'm sorry l got here too late,
Hallie.
You got yourself
out of that fix real handy.
l'll be around.
- Tom! Liberty...
- l know.
He wasn't going to kill him,
just nick him a little.
He was just gonna make a pass.
You saw that!
- That lawyer shot him in cold blood!
- Now, that ain't the way.
lt was murder! Pure murder!
And l say if the marshal
don't put Stoddard in jail,
we ought to
take care of him ourselves!
- l say we ought to hang him!
- That's right! Hang him!
Give him a rope! Let him swing!
Can't a man get a drink
around this town in peace?
- No one's bothering you, Doniphon.
- You are!
Marshal!
Why are you paid? Drag this scum out.
You heard him.
Kaintuck and Highpockets,
- l deputise you to give a hand.
- Hand me that bung st... That's it.
Tell those ranchers north of the
Picketwire that hired you
that me, Link Appleyard,
run you out of town,
and l'll do it again
if you ever come back!
- Now look, Pompey, you know l...
- Who says he can't?
- Pour yourself a drink, Pompey.
- l don't drink no drams, Mr Tom.
l said take a drink.
No. We got a mare in foal and horses
to feed and water. Come on home.
Home...
Home sweet home.
You're right, Pompey.
We got plenty to do at home.
Well, what are they
paying you guys for? Play!
Be merry! Sing!
Leave me be!
Mr Tom!
The horses, Pompey. The horses.
Hello! How are you?
- You made it on your own feet!
- Yeah! Thanks to Doc Willoughby.
- Here. Let me pin this on you.
- That's him.
- Well, this must be Ransom Stoddard.
- Rance, this is Handy Strong.
How do you do, sir?
lt's quite a city here.
lt's not much according
to your eastern standards,
but that railroad station there
leads straight to Washington.
Come on, Rance.
Order! Order!
Order! Order!
Order! Order! Quiet!
Order! Quiet!
The roll call having been completed
and the delegates
recognised and seated,
this session
of the territorial convention
is hereby declared open.
Order!
Order!
Mr Chairman.
The chair recognises the Honourable
Major Cassius Starbuckle...
soldier, jurist, and statesman.
Mr Chairman, fellow delegates...
ladies...
and gentlemen,
l came here
with a carefully prepared speech,
but this is no time for oratory.
Let me speak to you from the heart.
l come before you
to place in nomination
the name of a man
more qualified than any other
to represent you in Washington.
You ill-advised.
You poorly counselled.
Fly not in the face
of heaven's handiwork.
Join with us in supporting the man
who for five terms in Congress
has kept this great territory
inviolate.
l nominate
for the territorial delegate
to the Congress of the United States
the Right Honourable
Custis Buck Langhorne.
Order! Order!
Now that you got your rope on him,
hang the horse thief!
Order! Order!
This is a convention,
not a rodeo, Langhorne!
Mr Chairman! Mr Chairman!
The chair recognises
its old friend...
that distinguished member
of the fourth estate...
founder, owner, publisher and editor
of the ''Shinbone Star''...
Mr Dutton Peabody, Esquire.
Thank you, Mr Chairman,
for those kind words,
but tell them the whole truth...
founder, owner, editor
and l also sweep out the place.
Fellow delegates, like all of you,
l've listened in awe and admiration
to the magnificent oratory
of the Honourable
Major Cassius Starbuckle...
the cattlemen's mouthpiece.
The lowing herd is still with us.
But, seriously,
under the spell of his eloquence,
l could see once again
the vast herd of buffalo
and savage redskin
roaming our beautiful territory
with no law to trammel them
except the law of survival,
the law of the tomahawk
and the bow and arrow.
And then, with
the westward march of our nation,
came the pioneer and the buffalo
hunter, the adventurous and the bold.
The boldest of these
were the cattlemen,
who seized the wide-open range
for their own personal domain,
and their law
was the law of the hired gun.
But now, today have come
the railroads and the people.
The steady, hard-working citizens,
the homesteader, the shopkeeper,
the builder of cities.
We need roads to join those cities,
dams to store up
the waters of the Picketwire,
and we need statehood
to protect the rights
of every man and woman,
however humble.
How do we get it? l'll tell you how.
We get it by placing our votes
behind one man.
One man!
And we have that man with us here.
He is a man who came to us
not packing a gun,
but carrying instead
a bag of law books.
Yes. He is a lawyer and a teacher.
The first west of the rosy buttes.
But more important,
he's a man who has come to be known
throughout this territory
in the last few weeks as
a great champion of law and order.
Ladies and gentlemen,
l nominate as your delegate and mine,
to the Congress at Washington,
the Honourable Ransom Stoddard!
Let's have order!
Get going, Starbuckle.
Thank you, Mr Chairman. Thank you.
Well...
l see this demonstration,
but l can't believe my eyes.
ls it possible
that such a representative body
of honest, hard-working Americans
can endorse a candidate
for the Congress
of our beloved country
whose only claim to the office
is that he killed a man.
Do you call Liberty Valance a man?!
Order! Order!
Hear me out!
Who is this Ransom Stoddard?
And what qualifications has he
that entitle him to aspire
to such great office?
We are told he's a lawyer,
an attorney at law,
an officer of the court.
Yes, but what kind of lawyer?
A man who usurps the function
of both judge and jury
and takes the law into his own hand.
Quiet! Quiet!
What other qualifications
has he, then?
The blood on his hands?
The hidden gun beneath his coat?
The bullet-riddled body
of an honest citizen?
Honest citizen?! Liberty Valance?
You fool! Liberty Valance,
an honest citizen?
ls this your fearless champion
of law and order?
- Mr Chairman!
- The mark of Cain is on this man,
and the mark of Cain
will be on all of us
if we send him
with bloodstained hands
to walk the hallowed
halls of government...
- ..where Washington...
- Mr Chairman!
- Mr Chairman!
- Order! Order!
...yes, and Lincoln still live,
immortals in the memory of man.
Mr Chairman!
Rance! Rance!
Order! Order!
Pilgrim.
- Where are you going?
- l'm going home, Tom.
l'm going back east where l belong.
Valance couldn't make you run away.
What is it now, your conscience?
lsn't it enough to kill a man,
without trying to build a life on it?
You talk too much, think too much.
Besides,
you didn't kill Liberty Valance.
- What?
- Think back, pilgrim.
Valance came out of the saloon.
You were walking toward him
when he fired his first shot.
Remember?
Pompey.
All right, dude.
This time...right between the eyes.
But...
Tom, why did you do it?
Cold-blooded murder,
but l can live with it.
Hallie's happy. She wanted you alive.
- But you saved my life!
- l wish l hadn't.
Hallie's your girl now.
Go on back in there
and take that nomination.
You taught her
how to read and write.
Now give her something
to read and write about!
Well, you know the rest of it.
l went to Washington,
and we won statehood.
l became the first governor.
Three terms as governor,
two terms in the Senate,
Ambassador to the Court of St James,
back again to the Senate,
and a man who,
with the snap of his fingers,
could be the next vice president
of the United States.
You're not going to use the story,
Mr Scott?
No, sir.
This is the west, sir.
When the legend becomes fact,
print the legend.
He's right, Rance.
lt's getting late, Hallie.
We'll keep in touch with you,
Pompey. l promise.
- But, Mr Rance...
- Pork chop money.
Hallie...
Hallie, would you be too sorry
if once l get the new
irrigation bill through,
would you be too sorry
if we just up and left Washington?
l sort of have a hankering
to come back here to live.
- Maybe open up a law office.
- Rance...
lf you knew how often
l'd dreamed of it.
My roots are here.
l guess my heart is here.
Yes, let's come back.
Look at it.
lt was once a wilderness.
Now it's a garden. Aren't you proud?
Hallie, who put the cactus roses
on Tom's coffin?
l did.
Here, l got a brand-new spittoon...
Cuspidor, Hallie.
and Luke the engineer's got a full
head of steam in this tar bucket.
We'll make 25 miles an hour
or bust a boiler trying.
And we wired ahead to Junction City.
They'll hold the Express.
ln two days and two nights,
you'll be in Washington.
Thank you, Jason.
l'm going to write a letter
to the officials of this railroad
and thank them for their kindness
and for going to all this trouble.
You think nothing of it.
Nothing's too good for the man
who shot Liberty Valance.
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