Speaker 1: Slaughter's my name. Luke Slaughter. Cattle's my business. It's a
tough business, it's big business. I got a big stake
in it, and there's no man west of the Rio
Grand big enough to take it from me.
Speaker 2: Luke Slaughter of Tombstone. Luke Slaughter of Tombstone. Civil War
cavalryman turned Arizona cattleman. Across the territory from Yuma to
Port Defiance, from Flagstaff to the Wachukas, and below the
border through Chihuahua and Sonora. His name was respected or feared,
depending on which side of the law you were on.
Man of vision, man of legend. Luke Slutter of Tombstone.
Speaker 3: Man, I thought I've had about ten pounds of dust.
Speaker 1: This last couple of weeks will be much longer, Jim.
With luck, they'll be in Tombstone day after tomorrow.
Speaker 2: Won't be none too soon for me.
Speaker 3: Once I get out of this saddle, I'm gonna stay
out of it a while.
Speaker 1: You never been to Tombstone, Jim. A couple of things
you ought to know, as such as what to be
a pretty wild town. They got some peaceful law abiden
citizens there, all right. They've also got some of the
toughest drifters in the world. Gone swiners. Yeah, so remember
you keep that itchy trigger finger of yours under control.
Don't you worry not about me? Hold it?
Speaker 4: What's your matter?
Speaker 1: A little smoke coming out of that pressure over there, Jim,
keep the herd headed straight. Come on with you to
let's take a look.
Speaker 5: Right, could be a campfire. Yeah, this is Indian country
around here.
Speaker 1: And it slaughter, Indian country, bandit country, wrestler country, you
name it.
Speaker 5: But as soon as we get up to the edge
of the wars here we Yeah, there is little campfire
down there, that clump of oak.
Speaker 1: Till the fires up, still smoking.
Speaker 6: No shine of life around.
Speaker 1: You're reckon hold it. Movement back there in the mesquite.
Speaker 7: All right?
Speaker 1: Come on out of there, come out. I'm coming.
Speaker 3: Don't you shoot now?
Speaker 1: Who I am? My name's Ralston.
Speaker 6: He's got a leg wound, slaughter.
Speaker 1: What are you doing here? You a marshall?
Speaker 8: No, I got into a scrape in Tombstone.
Speaker 4: I had to get out.
Speaker 6: With a souvenir in your leg.
Speaker 1: Huh.
Speaker 8: It's not bad, but it slows me down. My horse
got away from me last night and I couldn't catch it.
I had to hold up here kind of scrape where
you're in. I didn't do nothing wrong me, sir, I'm innocent.
Speaker 1: I didn't ask you about that. I asked what kind
of scrape Florida? Yeah, I see him, two of them,
rifles across their saddles.
Speaker 5: You think this fellow was a decoy to get us
into a trap.
Speaker 1: No, No, that's not true.
Speaker 6: One of them's wearing a bed.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I've seen him before. Taggart, Sir from Tombstone. All right, Roston,
just hold the right where you are. Don't try nothing.
That bad legga is serified. Doubt he's gonna try much. Fugitives.
Speaker 6: I don't take no chances.
Speaker 1: Stranger.
Speaker 6: Thanks for rounding him up for me.
Speaker 1: He's a fugitive. He sure he is.
Speaker 6: Miame's Taggert. I'm the sheriff of Tombstone. It's my deputy Blackwell.
Been trailing Ralston for two days.
Speaker 4: Now.
Speaker 1: What's a charge?
Speaker 4: It' a lie.
Speaker 9: You keep your mouth shut, Ralston. Everybody in Tombstone knows
you did it.
Speaker 6: Easy black Well. He ain't gonna make no trouble.
Speaker 1: We'll see to that payroll.
Speaker 6: Robbery is saying, yeah, one of the mines he was
supposed to be guarding it.
Speaker 1: Instead he took off with it. You've got any witnesses,
He's got plenty of evidence. I asked you if you
had any witnesses.
Speaker 9: What business is it of yours?
Speaker 1: A minute? Blackwell, I'm talking to Tiggert. Who are you, stranger,
Luke slutter?
Speaker 6: Slaughter? I heard of you supposed to be pretty fast
with a gun, ain't you.
Speaker 1: It's a matter of opinion, yes, me, much more opinion.
I didn't ask you what your don You've got a
warrant for Ralston's arrest, Taggart, Well, there's no time to
get a warrant. It's funny. Last I heard there was
a judge right there in Tombstone wouldn't have taken you
very long. How about you busting right across the border
without any papers or anything? Lauda.
Speaker 6: You got a bad habit of being insulted.
Speaker 1: That's a habit I'm gonna break. Now. Let's take him, Taggert, Can.
Speaker 5: You take both of us, Black Whirl.
Speaker 6: We've got the drop on.
Speaker 1: You, Slaughter. That's a matter of opinion too, Taggard, meaning
what those rifles of yours are pretty clumsy at close quarters.
I don't think you've got the drop on me at all.
Let's find out.
Speaker 6: I'm here to take my prisoner back to Tombstone, not
without a warrant.
Speaker 1: You don't move that rifle unless you're gonna use it.
Speaker 6: You got a herd out there, Slaughter, you're heading for Tombstone.
Speaker 1: That's right, I'll see you in Tombstone. It's fine with me.
Come black woman.
Speaker 4: Thanks Slaughter, thanks a lot.
Speaker 1: Get Rolson up behind you, witch your tongue. Let's get
back to the herd. My sunset. Two days later we
were in Tombstone, headed the cattle into the pens. Then
we went to the Crystal Palace to collect our money
from the cattle buyer Asra Canfield.
Speaker 4: Well, i've checked them cattle over, Slaughter. He's in good
condition considering the distance you brought him. Here's your money,
Count it with your tom right. What are your plans now?
Speaker 1: Heading right back to Mexico. Take up another herd, dud.
Speaker 4: I got a lot of hungry miners here in Tombstone.
Eat all the beef we can get now.
Speaker 2: Don't tell me we gotta leave right away, Slaughter.
Speaker 3: I'm wanna see the sights around here.
Speaker 1: Kim Stone's not a very good town for you to
be wandering around loose and Jim.
Speaker 6: I promise y'all won't get no trouble slur.
Speaker 3: I just want to do a little living for a change.
Speaker 1: One. He's all here, all right, Jim. Take it back
to the hotel room. Sit on it.
Speaker 2: But what about seeing the sights?
Speaker 1: Talk about that later.
Speaker 3: I'll get moving a right dog on it.
Speaker 4: Sounds like he's sure spoil this evening, slaughter.
Speaker 1: And I think we can arrange for him to get
a couple of breaths of night air around here before
we take off.
Speaker 4: Taggard just come in.
Speaker 1: I see him.
Speaker 6: Well, Canfield, look like you ain't too particular who you
do business.
Speaker 4: Well, here's nothing wrong with them cattle he sold me, Sheriff,
I checked him a Saturday.
Speaker 1: And what I meant, I'm.
Speaker 6: Talking about slaughter here, obstructing justice, refusing to turn over
a fugitive to me.
Speaker 1: Where are you hiding? Ralston?
Speaker 4: Now, slaughter?
Speaker 1: You ought to know you're the sheriff.
Speaker 6: What's that signify?
Speaker 1: I had a little talk with Ralston on the trail.
All he wanted was to be served, getting back here
in one piece, to stand a fair trial. Turning himself
into your night guard at the jail. You're bluffy, Well,
that'll be an easy bluff to call. Why don't you
go find out?
Speaker 4: I aim to. He's a pretty poor excuse for sheriff Slaughter.
But these all we got, what.
Speaker 1: Do you expect? Who'd want the job? Tombstone's a rough town.
Speaker 4: Not too rough for the right man. I think you
could be the right man, Slaughter me. Yeah here, A
lot of us around here would like to see law
and order established once and for all. Slaughter. And we
know about you. No, you can handle the worst of him.
Speaker 1: You know that.
Speaker 5: I'd be such bad idea if you ask me, nobody did.
Speaker 1: What's your time? I'm sorry, Canfield, my business is cattle,
not law enforcement.
Speaker 4: In Tombstone, law enforcements everybody's business.
Speaker 1: Get over.
Speaker 5: So hey, if you wish to take the job, Slaughter,
I'll bet Jim and be glad to be your deputy.
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's all i'd need around here, and I'll probably
start more fights than he'd stop.
Speaker 5: Come on, Slaughter, I wonder about you sometimes. I wonder
if you wasn't already a law man. Once.
Speaker 1: I wonder about you too. It's a time I wonder
if you were born with that big nose of yours.
That did you grow it later handed?
Speaker 5: As long as I can remember, Hey, training if I
didn't know it ever too soon?
Speaker 1: It isn't very heavy? Would last long?
Speaker 6: Slaughter?
Speaker 1: What is a ticket?
Speaker 6: What kind of play is this?
Speaker 1: I don't know what you're talking about.
Speaker 6: Ralston is what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1: I told you Ralston turned himself in. Eh, well he
ain't in the jail.
Speaker 6: Now that cell door is wide open, and once more
my night guard's been festival. Looked like Ralston had a
friend helped him to break out. You wouldn't know who
that it'd be, would you?
Speaker 1: No? I wouldn't.
Speaker 9: Rus has been stolen from Wilkie's livery table. That's proudly
how Ralston made his get away.
Speaker 6: Looks like I got you to thank for this slaughter.
Speaker 1: I think so. Yeah.
Speaker 6: If I handle things my own way, this wouldn't have happened.
Next time you crossed me, he's gonna be the last time.
Speaker 1: Don't be too sure of that, Taggart.
Speaker 5: You know, Slater, you got a natural talent for making enemies.
Speaker 1: Man like Taggart. That isn't hide. Come on, let's get
back to the hotel.
Speaker 5: I still don't get it, Slaughter. Why would Rawson have
gave himself up and then busted out of.
Speaker 1: Gee, some men you never know about till they make
a move. Ralston didn't do it alone. He had have
a friend.
Speaker 5: Maybe's friend convinced him you wouldn't get a fair trial.
Speaker 4: Maybe anyway, he schlaughter.
Speaker 5: Look Jim on the floor.
Speaker 1: He's been slugged. He's out cold.
Speaker 7: The cattle money, yeah, it's gone.
Speaker 2: In a moment, Luke Slaughter of Tombstone returns. Whatever significant
events take place, you can count on CBS News to
bring you first hand and well detailed descriptions of what
is happening, often broadcast right from the scene of the event.
You can count on CBS news men, too, to make
certain that fact is emphasized and conjecture clearly labeled. Each
correspondent on staff brings a fine background in reporting to
his job, and in the tradition of the CBS newsroom,
they all share an uncompromising respect for the truth. So
why don't you let CBS News keep you as fully
informed as an expert? And now Act two of William N.
Robeson's production of Luke Slaughter of Tombstone.
Speaker 1: Jim Jim, come on with w that's it, Come on,
come out.
Speaker 5: Of it, all right, Jim, I guess.
Speaker 1: So what happened, Jim? I don't rightly, no, Slaughter.
Speaker 3: Heard a noise sounded like it come from outside the
window on the balcony. I went over and stuck my
head out to look something awful. Hard hit me on
the side of the head. I went down, and then
somebody climbed through the window into the room. I tried
to get to my feet and he hit me again.
That's the last I remember.
Speaker 1: You got a good look at him, Jim. No, His
hat was.
Speaker 3: Pulled down a low and he had a band down
over his face. I don't know he took the cattle
money then? Yeh, fine, guard I turned out to be.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's too late to worry about that. Just be
glad you have a hard head. Slaughter.
Speaker 4: Yeah it was Rolston.
Speaker 1: How do you figure.
Speaker 5: Remember that ring he wore Mexican work looked like what about?
It had a green stone set in it, carved like
a snake's head.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I remember here it is.
Speaker 6: I found it on the floor.
Speaker 5: Must have been John Loose when he slugged him.
Speaker 1: It's a stone, all right? Well it looks like Taggart
was right after all.
Speaker 6: Hell, well, so you finally wised up to Ralston's laughter
too late, of.
Speaker 1: Course, have you not, Taggert? Whit's your time. You got
the grub ready and pack saddle bag.
Speaker 6: Maybe next time you won't interfere when I'm trying to
enforce the law.
Speaker 1: How about the bedrolls which you're going after him? Huh
what do you think?
Speaker 6: I think there's a couple of things wrong with that idea,
Like what in the first place, you got a poor
chance of finding his trail at night.
Speaker 1: In the rain. Rain's letting up, it'll stop soon. I
want to be ready to start trailing as soon as
it's light.
Speaker 6: The second thing is wrong his law enforcement is my
business lawder not yours.
Speaker 1: That's my money you gotta Yeah, but there's still a.
Speaker 6: Matter of that mind payroll he's got stashed away somewhere
and looking slaughter In no sense. Our be in each
other's throats all the time. You crossed me once. It
riled me, but I'm willing to let it pass. I
think everybody's entitled to one mistake. Depends on what the
mistake is, doesn't it. The point is we both want Ralston.
Now the smart thing to do is for us to
trail him together. Mean, Blackwell, you and witch Dog, I
bout it all right, take it good good. I'll get
word to Blackwell right away. He's on his ranch out
of town aways up near Crocker Mason.
Speaker 5: Oh, he ain't a full time deputy.
Speaker 6: His town can't afford one. I'll send word to him
to meet us in the morning.
Speaker 1: We'll be ready to sun up. That's keeping Blackwell ticket.
Will you be long any minutes? Laughter?
Speaker 5: It's been hour since Raine stopped. We're wasting time. That
trailer is gonna get cold on us, even if we
managed to pick it up in first place, and that
ain't gonna.
Speaker 1: Be easy easier, and you think maybe, what do you mean, tag?
Speaker 6: I had to talk with Wilkee down the stable last night.
Had stolen the horse, had thrown a shoe off of
his left hind hoof. Wilkie didn't have a chance.
Speaker 1: To put a new one on.
Speaker 4: That'll help some, oh, he'd Blackwell.
Speaker 9: Sorry, I'm l like gents busted a sin strap saddling
up and I had to Rickinggno it for no arm, Blackwell.
Speaker 1: Ten minutes.
Speaker 6: It's gonna make much difference one way or another.
Speaker 1: It does to me, all right, gentled down slaughter.
Speaker 6: I figure Austin headed south out of town, towards the border.
We'll cover that area first.
Speaker 1: Let's get moving, jents. Looks like that was a bum
hunch of yours about Ralston headed for the border. Take it.
You've covered every trail leading south out of Tombstone.
Speaker 6: Well, like I says lord, everybody in the title of
One Mistake, God admit was logical. Reckon he'd beheaded straight south.
Speaker 5: We covered most of the country west of town too.
Speaker 1: Well, we just keep circling. Maybe he took off to
the north. Hold up, what is it over there?
Speaker 5: Tracks?
Speaker 1: I'll take a closer look. What about it?
Speaker 9: Blackwell, Yeah, this is the one we're looking for, all right.
No shoe on the left hind hook.
Speaker 5: Hidden straight west?
Speaker 6: Eh, from the San Pedro River.
Speaker 1: Let's move the tracks sleep right into the river.
Speaker 6: Yeah, it's an old trick, but it still works. Probably
rode up a downstream aways there out on the other side.
His trail gonna be tough to find again. Over there,
that's pretty rocky ground. So I see, and we do
pick it up again. I bet it turns south. I
still think he's heading for the border.
Speaker 1: Let's cross and split up to upstream to downstream right.
Speaker 6: Wherever.
Speaker 1: Pick that tail on the other side. Fired too shot, right, dang, I.
Speaker 5: Can figure fellow like rolvester out, Slaughter. I'm sure I
never figure he'd take this way of paying it back
for everything you've done for him.
Speaker 1: Hold it here with your tore. What's matter but Taggard
and Blackwell get out of side around that bend. Now,
let's get back to the river bank.
Speaker 4: I don't get it, Slaughter, and.
Speaker 1: I'm gonna look for tracks on the other side of
the river. We're gonna look for him on this side.
I know what you mean. Get off your horse and
take a look a close look at those tracks we've
been trailing, which it down.
Speaker 5: Well, there's a little dry dirge in the bottom.
Speaker 4: Of each one.
Speaker 1: Yeah, it was raining last night when Ralston supposed to
have stolen our money in the horse and made his getaway.
Speaker 5: Eh.
Speaker 6: Rain stopped about an hour before SunUp, and.
Speaker 1: These tracks were made after it stopped raining. That's why
you see dry dirt with a hooves cut through the wet.
Speaker 5: Wait a minute, you mean somebody rigged this trail to
lead us on a wild goose chase.
Speaker 1: It's just what we're gonna find out. We worked our
way along the river bank. Half a mile upstream, we
picked up the tracks coming back out of the river
and circling. We followed them, headed northwest. Twenty minutes later
we came over a rise and spotted a small ranch
house in the hollow below. The only sign of life
was a few buzzards clustered on a mound and a
little gully behind the ranch. We left our horses concealed
and worked our way down the slope under cover. Buzzards
reluctantly took flight. We saw what had been buried in
the mound, or what was left of it, Rawston's body.
There was still a cattle. Money busted ralson out of jail,
forced him out here, He killed him?
Speaker 5: Yeah, questionnaires?
Speaker 6: Who done it? Who's ranch?
Speaker 3: Users?
Speaker 1: See over that of the right, It's Crockers.
Speaker 5: Mason Taggart said Blackwell had a ranch near Crockers Mesa.
So who Blackwell's are? Men?
Speaker 1: Looks like it. We better get back to.
Speaker 5: That ranch house before Blackwell gets back.
Speaker 1: It might be too late. If they figure we tumbled
to the fake trail, they could circle back here to
the ranch ahead of us. Hey, you mean Taggart to
find out. Keep down as much as you can. We'll
circle around the corral.
Speaker 6: There's Taggart on the porch.
Speaker 5: Where the rifle.
Speaker 1: Get down. I don't see a question about Taggart. Sure, gosh,
no doubt about it. They're in it together.
Speaker 5: There he goes inside the house.
Speaker 1: We gotta bust him out of that house somehow. Wait
a minute, that wagon there beside the corral. When I
get the word, we'll head for it. Get behind it now,
who were Now The ground slopes down to the house
from here. Let's get this wagon moving. He'll cover us.
Ah shouts, Stay close behind it. You're ready to shoot
when it hits stay low. Yeah, sure we'll.
Speaker 6: There's your goes, come on fast. Yeah, there's black ball
at the window.
Speaker 1: I'll get it. I'll the taker drop your gun, drop it.
Speaker 6: All right, slaughter, all right, don't try it.
Speaker 2: In my mind.
Speaker 6: He took a little convintion.
Speaker 1: Where's the money, black bell? Where is it? Uh? Under
loose board in the floor.
Speaker 4: I got it.
Speaker 6: Yeah, yeah, yeah, here's.
Speaker 5: Our cattle money all right, and the mind payroll.
Speaker 1: I guess that's that.
Speaker 5: Yeah, you no slaughter, appears to me you was taking
quite a chance just winging Blackwell and knocking out taggers.
Did of gun them down? You don't know them, no favors.
Speaker 1: I wasn't doing him any favor with it, an I
was just saving him, saving him for what the citizens
a Tombstone.
Speaker 2: Luke Slaughter of Tombstone, starring Sam Buffington, written by Robert Stanley,
with editorial supervision by Tom Henley, and directed by William N.
Speaker 1: Robeson.
Speaker 2: Supporting mister Buffington were Junius Matthews, Sam Edwards, Vic Perrin,
Lawrence Dobkin, Jack Moyles, and Frank girstaal next week. At
this time we returned with.
Speaker 1: Slaughter's the name Luke Slutter. We meet up again, you
can call me that Luke Slutter.
Speaker 2: Special score for Luke Slaughter was composed and conducted by
Wilbur Hatch. Stay tuned now for Frontier Gentlemen following immediately
on most of these same stations of the CBS Radio
network