Speaker 1: James Stewart as the six Shooter. The man in the
saddle is angular and long legged. His skin is sundyed brown.
The gun in his holster is gray steel and rainbow
mother of pearl. Its handle unmarked. People call them both
the six Shooter. Coleman, America's leader in modern automatic home
heating equipment, and the National Broadcasting Company present James Stewart
as the six Shooter, a transcribed series of dramas based
on the life of Britt Ponsel, the Texas plainsman who
wandered through the Western territories, leaving behind a trail of
steel remembered legends. Now and just at the moment immediately
following this important announcement, you will here act one.
Speaker 2: Of the six Shooter.
Speaker 1: Last year, thousands of Americans who tried to get away
with carelessness on the highways were killed or permanently injured
in traffic accidents. And remember, accidents don't always happen to
the other fellow. Unless you are meticulous in your observance
of the rules of highway safety, you and your loved
ones are vulnerable to the menace of traffic accidents. Every
motorists should take an active role in supporting the safety
movement in his or her community. Encourage driver training in
your high schools. Teach your children the rules of safety.
Speaker 2: On the highway.
Speaker 1: Remember the life you save may be your own. Now,
Act one of the six Shooter starring James Stewart. I
had a grand stand seat a rocking chair on.
Speaker 2: The front porch of the Temple City Hotel. Not that
there was much to watch. A couple of women looking
at the bonnets in the windows of Bradley's Murcanteal, and
some kids playing mumblety peg over in the alley next
to the bank, and the checker game in the shadow
of a big alm across the street. But it was
a couple of days before I was due to pick
up some cattle in Atterbury for Missus Pritchard, and well,
Temple City seemed as good a play as then he
to stop over. I was considering taking a little nap
when I saw well, at least that's who I thought
it was. He was coming out of the general store
carrying a box of groceries. I couldn't be sure, though,
because just as he started to climb into a wagon,
another man wrote up alongside and shut off of you. Well,
look who's in town.
Speaker 3: You're doing the marketing. Will thought the women usually did that,
But I guess in your case it ain't such a
bad idea to switch things around.
Speaker 4: I hope we're not run into your temple.
Speaker 2: Two of my cows have been killed this week.
Speaker 3: You mean your wife's cow, don't you will?
Speaker 2: It wasn't two three.
Speaker 3: The boys found another one raising on my side of
the creek this morning. You're gonna have to do something
about that fancy yours.
Speaker 2: You won't have no stock, wept, Paul. That fence was
all right yesterday.
Speaker 3: Maybe this is today.
Speaker 2: Now you listen to me, Temple.
Speaker 3: I figured it's about time you done the listening. Will.
I want your wife's rand, and made no bones about it.
She was willing to sell until you came along.
Speaker 4: She ain't willing enough.
Speaker 3: I'll give you two dollars an acre. That's more in
a fair price. Anybody will tell you that we're not gonna.
Speaker 2: Be shoved off that land up for two dollars an
acre or twenty and.
Speaker 3: Maybe i'd better talk to Sarah, seen as how it's
her proper.
Speaker 5: No.
Speaker 6: Oh, I'm warning you you stay away from our ranch
in our cattle rough or.
Speaker 3: Ell well, go on, tell me what you'll do, Will,
I'd be real interested to find out.
Speaker 4: Come on.
Speaker 3: Dot was Sarah given him the warm I might take
it seriously, seeing as how she wears the pansion the family.
Speaker 2: The wagon moved in closer where I was sitting. I
got a good look at him. Now. He changed a
lot since the last time we met up. He was older,
and there were a couple of those squint wrinkles between
his eyes. Even so, he still could have been more
in twenty three or four, seeing us how he was
only about twenty when we worked on the West Star
round up together. Hey well, well, hey, well, I thought
he'd recognize me, but I well, I guess i'd changed
some too. I wasn't getting aged or like that, but
i' I ripened up a bit again. Anyway, Will kind
of glanced my way and then drove on, And from
the way he was holding those reins, I had a
pretty good idea of what he was thinking. This temple folly.
He pushed him too far, and if I knew well
he was getting ready to do something about it, well,
there was no point in trying to run him down.
Now we'd probably meet up later. Oh, I went into
the hotel and looked around for places to down. Clerk
behind the desk was playing again the solitaire.
Speaker 5: As it something I can do for you?
Speaker 2: No, no, no, think so real? All right? Yes, fine,
really fine.
Speaker 4: Real pleasure having you staying with us.
Speaker 2: Anything you'd like the Black Queen huh? The playure on
the King of Diamonds.
Speaker 4: Oh, oh, thank you. I like to look at gun
for paper just came in on the stage.
Speaker 2: No, no, thanks, the same. I I sort of figured
on a little snooze a little too. It wasn't too
much rocket outside.
Speaker 4: I know what you mean.
Speaker 5: Noah Temple's got a voice that carries out right. I
could hear him and Will hard again clearing. Yeah, tell
him out for nothing now said. They've been squaring.
Speaker 2: Off like that ever since Will moved the town.
Speaker 5: Married Sarah Blake. Oh, looks like I'm stuck everything. I'm
not playing for gam and huh, i'd be out of
fifty blacks.
Speaker 4: You see.
Speaker 5: Noah's got the idea of Bayings Harris Ranch, and he's
gonna be no stopping him from to buy it.
Speaker 2: Would he need her alone for any reason?
Speaker 4: Sure thinks he does. If they can just get me.
Speaker 5: The Ace of stage and forty years ago, Noah's grandfather
started this time.
Speaker 4: He owned all the acres between the foothills and the
creek outside old Temple said he his.
Speaker 5: Name for him as a matter of fact, that's all.
But the old man's son, Fred, well.
Speaker 4: He wasn't much good person, you know. He'd sold off
nearly everything his dad had left him. Noah took over.
Speaker 5: He swore he'd get all the temple property back again.
Speaker 4: I guess it sort of stuck in his crawl.
Speaker 5: The temples wasn't the biggest outfit in the valley. No
more on that black seven How's nor temple than done?
Speaker 2: Well?
Speaker 5: First folks didn't take him serious. They thought he was
just a talker like his father. But he's sure fooled
him today he's got more acres than his granddaddy. Ever,
here there's only one piece of the original temple set up.
Speaker 4: He ain't been able to buy it back that land said.
Speaker 2: Oh, sure was.
Speaker 4: A surprise when Will wouldn't let her sell it.
Speaker 5: Nobody ever figured he'd stand up to Noah a man
like him.
Speaker 2: Was something wrong with him?
Speaker 5: It's seven an Oh, well, you see, mister Bonton, Will's
a coward.
Speaker 4: Let see as he's yellow clear through.
Speaker 5: He won't ever wear a gun if there's a posse
being formed, but he don't go wrong. And if there's
a fight, he lays low. You can call him names,
you can sell him the way, know what, Temple Then
he just takes it.
Speaker 2: She that sure doesn't sound like him to me, you know,
will mister used to those two a couple of years ago.
We worked around up together.
Speaker 5: All that must have before he moved to Temple City. Yeah,
he's done Texas. Back there, Willie Techman wasn't afraid of
nobody or nothing, and for a youngster, he's mighty fancy
with a gun.
Speaker 4: Technic.
Speaker 2: That's right.
Speaker 5: Yeah, but that ain't his name, mister pantet. Will's name
is Fetter. Oh yeah, Will Fetter.
Speaker 2: I wonder you were surprised about him being yellow.
Speaker 4: You got the wrong man. Uh huh, Well they must
look alike. It's a friend of yours and Will Fetter.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I guess I do.
Speaker 7: Yeah.
Speaker 2: I went upstairs to my room started to pull my
boost off. You know, it's funny. I hadn't been doing
anything but said all day, and my feet hurt worse
than have been walking twenty mile oh, well, h looked
out the window. Last sun is just about even as
the church steeple. I'd be around three o'clock. I had
a couple hours for supper, so let myself down in
the bed. M hmm, yeah, yeah, wel come on in,
come on in. Oh, oh, excuse me, ma'am. I I
didn't know it was a lady. I'm sorry to bother you, mister. Well,
not all, not all. I wasn't exactly what you'd call busy,
won't you start? Yeah, wait, I'll get those boots.
Speaker 4: Tell you what mister.
Speaker 2: I'm Will's wife. Oh oh, I'm please make you ma'am. Well,
Will tell me you were in town today.
Speaker 8: He saw you, and you saw.
Speaker 2: Him, didn't you, Yes, ma'am, at least I thought I did.
Speaker 8: Well, you can't tell only one he's here, mister Potson.
You didn't come to Temple City looking for Will, did you.
Will thought maybe that was the reason we heard about
what happened in Prescott last winter when he came across
bar Clever.
Speaker 2: Well, you heard wrong, ma'am. I didn't come across clear.
He came across me. Manna's for a while.
Speaker 8: He's made a new life here, a good life if
he has to go back to prison.
Speaker 2: Prison.
Speaker 8: Oh you knew about the bank robbery and Austin and
about him breaking up before you knew, didn't you?
Speaker 2: No, man, Oh I haven't been back that way.
Speaker 8: You wouldn't have told the marshall, but we thought, who
was sure?
Speaker 2: Oh, I just take it easy.
Speaker 8: If I hadn't come to see you, nobody would have
known it was Will Tichman.
Speaker 2: You know, thanks have a way of coming on sooner
or later. How much longer was Will supposed to serve
two years? Huh? Well that's not so long when you're young.
Speaker 8: We're gonna have a baby, mister possit. But I almost
wouldn't want to have him if he was going to
grow up known as father had been in prison. Why
should Will have to go back?
Speaker 2: Why? Well, I guess maybe you had better ask the
judge who sentenced him.
Speaker 8: Then what I mean is they say it's so a
man will live a decent, respectable life when he comes out.
And Will's already living a decent, respectable life. He works hard,
he never makes trouble for anybody. He doesn't even wear
a gun, and he promised me he never will.
Speaker 2: Was that your idea not wearing a gun.
Speaker 8: Before we were married, he told me about the trouble
in Austin and how it broke out of prison.
Speaker 2: I suppose I.
Speaker 8: Should have made him go back, but.
Speaker 2: I was so much in love I couldn't.
Speaker 8: So I asked him to give me his word he'd
never use a gun again, even carry one.
Speaker 2: It must have been kind of hard on a fella
like Well to keep holding himself back that way.
Speaker 8: I've heard with men like Noah Temple caller, what will
take this?
Speaker 2: He's kept his word, this fall of Temple. You know
the way he and Will were going out of today,
it sounded like they were heading for trouble. It won't
be anything serious.
Speaker 8: Will just doesn't want us to be pushed off of
the ranch.
Speaker 2: You can't hold that against him, No, no, no, there's not.
Speaker 8: Then you you won't tell the Marshall over in Addabury
or anybody.
Speaker 2: Well. I don't imagine Marshall Sanders like me mixing into
his business. This is his district. I guess he can
take care of it anyway he has so far, But
now I don't care.
Speaker 8: Thank you, mister pun.
Speaker 9: Thanks for Wilson.
Speaker 2: Wait wait, just wait, Well, after all, you know most
of what she said was true. Sending Will back to
prison might do more harm and good. But and it
wasn't enough to me to sit judgment on him. I
was going to be leaving town up there so anyway,
and if anything happened after that wouldn't be my concern.
So of course a man does have certain duties, even
if he's not wearing a bad man whose sponsor wanted criminal,
he's supposed to report it, and I always had before.
I scraped some of the mud off my boots and
washed my face, put on a clean shirt and went
downstairs in the lobby. Clerk was still playing solitaire.
Speaker 5: Just beat myself again, mister Pondon, I was playing in
the game. And now the ahead of a one hundred
and forty dollars.
Speaker 4: Pretty good for one afternoon there.
Speaker 2: Ah yeah, real good by time supper.
Speaker 4: A red On and Malo Hicks. You got big hand man?
Speaker 2: Fine?
Speaker 4: Oh say miss concert Yeah, remember us.
Speaker 5: Talking about Will Fetter and him being afraid to carry again.
One of the darnest things this happened, or it wasn't
any more than fifteen minutes ago, I guess everybody's talking about.
He went into Bradley's Murcan team, and he brought himself
a car being. Oh, of course he's just trying to bluff,
know a temple folks are.
Speaker 4: Giving ten to one. Will don't even know how to
load the rifle. Where you got the dining rooms over there?
Speaker 7: Uh?
Speaker 2: I guess maybe I'm not hungry. I'd say whereabouts as
well as ranch. I think maybe I'll take a little ride,
maybe work up on appetize.
Speaker 1: We'll return to James Stewart as the six shooter in
a moment. First, a word from Coleman, America's leader in
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Speaker 2: Remember, comfort costs so little with a Coleman.
Speaker 1: Now, Act two of the six Shooter, starring James Stewart
as Britt Punson.
Speaker 2: The Better Ranch was about two miles south of town,
and from the outside, looking neat comfortable, we all kept
up the ground, stretching out behind those good raising lands.
Or it was worth at least five dollars an ac,
or maybe more. My tired scar to a cottonwood in
the yard, walked up the door.
Speaker 9: That time he got home.
Speaker 2: Man, come on here, well's not here.
Speaker 8: No, he was gone when it came back.
Speaker 2: What's wrong? You haven't changed your mind? Haven? Where's the
Temple Ranch? Live? From here?
Speaker 8: It's all around, all four sides of.
Speaker 2: Eyes and Temple's ranch house. Where is that dewey.
Speaker 9: But what's that going to do with it?
Speaker 2: What's happened? Will was in town this evening. He bought
a rifle.
Speaker 8: I don't believe it. He promised me. You're wrong, mister ponsaid,
Will isn't gunning for Noah Temple.
Speaker 9: He's out tending stock.
Speaker 2: Well, he'll be home any minute, he'll see Maybe where
are you going?
Speaker 12: Here?
Speaker 2: Temple got quite an odd says worth time on it.
Speaker 10: You won't find Will there. He gave me his word
he'd never use a gun again. You won't find him.
Speaker 2: I had a due east for about a quarter of
a mile, and when I came to the edge of
Will's property, I saw a sorrel tether to a fence post.
Looked like Will had decided to go the rest of
the way on foot. So I climbed out of the
saddle and looked around. There was a big break in
the fence, but the cattle hadn't made it, and barbed
wire had been cut, and there were four heifers and
a couple of steers lying just over the temple boundary.
They just wasn't much questioned about it. They'd been shot.
So I crawled through the opening and went right past
a big sign that said Temple Ranch trespassers will be
shot upound some footprints. I figured they were Wills. About
thirty minutes later I caught sight of the ranch house.
It built about halfway up the side of a pretty
steep hill, big strawling building. There was a light inside
and I could just barely make out noise sitting at
the desk working on some papers and where it was well.
He had plenty of time to get here. And I
heard a step and swung around and one of Temple's
hands pacing up and down near the stable alongside the house.
The way he was holding the rifle, it looked like
an army semper instead of a cow hand. All of
a sudden he gave a little gaff. I saw a
shadow tighten around his throat the SEMPERI went down and
there was a struggle, not very noisy, though not noisy
enough for Temple to hear it. And then everything was quiet.
The shadow stood up. It was Will Techman. He was
inching his way toward the house, toward the window where
Temple was sitting. I came up behind him. I pull
on my gun. He was starting to aim his rifle
well drop it. Well, yeah, I might have known.
Speaker 4: You turn up give me a rifle.
Speaker 2: Will could get off a shot at me, even not
a temple. Temple gets our arranched, and I go to
Christmas Eddy, and we'll talk all about that as we
get back to your place. Now, come on. I carried
Will's rifle and led the way. About twenty minutes later
we passed another one of Temple's guards. He was dozen,
didn't notice him. I still had a couple of miles ago.
Before we'd reached the fence where we left the horses.
Will was sort of patting for breath. All right, let's
rest my can. Thought, you promise your wife you'd never
take up a gun. Yet.
Speaker 9: Well, mister possaid, she didn't dead Helfer Silver by the
fence had about wipes.
Speaker 2: I heard out. I found that, my I have to
do something.
Speaker 12: As long as you knew who I was anyway, as
long as I was going back to prison, I had
to fix it.
Speaker 2: So Sarah wouldn't have the ranch taken away from You
wouldn't think a piece of land would be worth everybody
getting too excited about it. I've been shoved around, but
ever since I was a kid, I've been shoved around.
Even when I held up the Austin Bank, I wasn't
the one who the one who was nothing nothing.
Speaker 6: Since I married Sarah, well, I've had to take a
lot that other man wouldn't put up with. Because of her,
and because her knowing what I was sting with, Temple
got under my skin. I made up my mind to
stay end up to him. A man's got to take
a stand sometime somewhere.
Speaker 2: I'm sorry, Well, hey, what's that? Get down? Well he's dead,
rites better best passion. I ain't a long Temple, brit
pantes with me. That's right, Temple, I better come along
like just four of us and take care of to you.
Speaker 3: He won't be much the opponent fight, okay.
Speaker 2: I could see one of his boys firing from behind
a tree behind him, so I aimed at his arm,
hit him on the shoulder, and he lurched forward. Not
only three of them now, but they were closing. Will
still didn't say anything. He was waiting for me to
make the next move. I tossed him the rifle. Thanks Red.
He got to his knees and started across a little clearing.
He was still all right when he died behind a boulder.
I knew where he was heading too. Noah Temple had
been shooting from behind a clump of pines about fifty
yards back for a couple of minutes. I didn't get
a chance to watch him. Temple's two guards were on
either side of me. Now one of them was more
than eight ten feet away. I saw the barrel of
his car being rise up and behind the bush. Not
only one guard left at that time. Seemed like he'd
had enough anyway. I moved across the clear and towards
the pine trees where Will had disappeared, pulled up behind
a rock. There was no Temple, crouched down low, his
gun ready. Little bit of movement in the brush caught
my eye. It was Will.
Speaker 4: He was right behind a temple.
Speaker 2: The temple did not he was looking my way. Will
had a perfect shot. I saw Will's finger curl around
the trigger.
Speaker 1: But.
Speaker 2: Will didn't fire. I couldn't figure out what gun nto him.
He didn't fire, and then he threw his rifle to
one side and let out a yell. Temple turned and
got off a shot. Well. He was surprised. He couldn't
do much aiming. And then Will was on top of
up and twisting the gun out of his hands. And
after that I saw a fight the like of which
I've never seen before in my life. Lard Will hit
the Temple across the face and he went over backwards,
and then Temple kicked in his foot lifted Will right
off the ground. But before Temple could pick himself up,
Will Will was right on top of him again, and
Temple tried to reach for his gun, and Will brought
his boot right down on Temple's hand. Temple quit reaching,
and then Will backed away and let Temple up again.
And as soon as Temple was studying again, Will drove
his dif flight in the Temple's stomach and Temple his
hand full a party was wide open. Will hit him again,
and hit him, hit him again again. Finally, finally Temple
managed to send his fist and the Will's face him.
Will looked like maybe he was going to go down,
but he still had to fight left to land the
right that snapped Temple right back, and it was Temple
a tall blow over, and then I knew he wasn't
going to get up again, not for quite a while.
Feel better, well, yeah, yeah, lots better. You had your
chance to kill him you had a perfect shot. You
didn't have to fight him that way. It's the only
way I could fight him. Brett.
Speaker 12: Huh, I had him in my sight. Something kept me
from pulling the trigger. Maybe you think I'm crazy. I
can't remembering what I promised, Sarah, I wouldn't use the
gun again. I couldn't pull that trigger, Britt, I just couldn't.
Uh huh.
Speaker 2: Well, let's let's see if we can get Temple here
to a doctor. You know, it looks like he needs one.
We left all with the doctor Temple, Sady and I
started off Radburry, I've I made up my mind to
tell the Marshal about well, all about him, Sarah and
Well the agreed. They they like a show though.
Speaker 12: But then again, and the way I see it right now,
the state of Texas.
Speaker 2: Is looking for a gun total bank lobber named Will Techman,
and I just don't think Marshall Sandon would be very
much understood in the law. Biden Rancher's called Will Feather.
Speaker 1: I'd like to take a minute here to remind you
about some of the great entertainment that's in store for
you on NBC Radio now for most of us Monday,
evening is a time to relax, sit back, and take
it easy. NBC had exactly that in mind when they
designed their Monday Night of entertainment. You want to listen
to the delightful music of the Railroad Hour as they
resume their fall schedule of popular operettas that.
Speaker 4: Have entertained for so many years.
Speaker 1: Gordon MacRae will be your host and star, and during
weeks to come, you'll have many charming guest stars to
add to your listening pleasure with their famous voices. And
you'll want to relax to the melodies of the Firestone
Orchestra and Chorus under the direction of Howard Barlow on
the Voice of Firestone. Another great Monday Night favorite is
the Telephone Hour, with its wonderful program of music directed
by Donald Bories. Yes, every Monday Night here these three
fine musical programs on NBC Radio. Coleman, America's leader in
modern automatic home heating equipment, and the National Broadcasting Company
have presented James Stewart as the six Shooter. Mister Stewart
may currently be seen in the Universal International picture Thunder Bay.
Others in the cast were Michael Ann Barrett, herb Ellis
Howard mcneer and Will Wright. The Six Shooter is an
NBC Radio Network production in association with Review Productions, and
it is based on a character created by Frank Burt
and today's transcribed story was written by him. Special music
was by Basilasmm and the entire production is under the
direction of Jack Johnstone. All characters and incidents were fictitious,
and any resemblance to actual characters or incidents is purely coincidental.
Speaker 2: Hell give me speaking