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Teaser:

The scene is almost idyllic in the sunlit quiet of mid-afternoon.  Abruptly the silence is broken by thunderous sounds coming from inside the Bank of Cottonwood, perhaps a premature celebration of Independence Day or a meeting of the National Rifle Association.  The doors burst open and two desperate men come running out, heading our way.  They are a disreputable pair known as Mugs McGeehu and Hank Silvers, wanted in three territories, having just now added the third territory, Utah, to the list.  The sound, we now surmise, was of firearms, perhaps directed at the two fleeing men, who are armed but empty-handed.  We are watching all this from an alley in which McGeehu and Silvers have left their horses.  They reach their horses and swiftly mount up, the two men's faces bathed in sweat and fear as they storm off down the alley.  As we watch them go we hear a half dozen voices shouting imprecations and advice connected with posses, horses and getting after them two.  We have had a good look at Mugs and Hank and will remember them well when we meet them again.

Opening Theme:

"Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry, the two most successful outlaws in the history of the west...."

Curry and Heyes are riding along a road through a desert.  Ahead of them, an elderly man, Moroni Stebbins, is adjusting the harness on a horse attached to a buckboard.
Curry:  As they pass by, "Howdy."
The man looks up with a friendly greeting, which is aborted by a swift and portentous change of expression in Moroni Stebbins' weathered face.  Curry and Heyes continue on their way.
Curry:  "He thinks he knows us.  D'you suppose he's right?"
Heyes:  "If he does anything about it, he's right--whether he knows us or not."
Behind them, Stebbins climbs into his buckboard and races off in the other direction.  Heyes and Curry spur their horses into a gallop.  We see a series of shots of them as they gallop past desert buttes and sandstone formations, leaving a cloud of dust behind.

Heyes and Curry ride into the town of Sagers and into the livery stable.  The stable proprietor is working inside.
Heyes:  "You see three men ride through here?"
They dismount and begin stripping the gear from their sweating, tired horses.
Proprietor:  "Three men?  No, I didn't.  Sagers ain't a very big place.  Anybody in perticular?"
Curry:  "Outlaws!  They musta gone around ya!  We need fresh horses an' we'll trade you these and five dollars for those two over there."
Proprietor:  "You law men?"
Heyes:  "Deputies."
Proprietor:  "Six dollars more and you got yourself a trade."
Heyes and Curry are already saddling the two fresh horses.
Heyes:  "You got a deal!"
Curry:  "Do you rent horses?"
Proprietor: "Rent horses?"
Curry:  "Yeah.  By the hour, let's say?"
Proprietor:  "By the hour..."
Curry:  "Well, if you did rent horses, how much would you charge, by the hour?"
Proprietor:  "Reckon I'd have to have about fifty cents per the hour."
Heyes:  "You got another deal!"
They open the stalls and chase all the horses out of the stable.
Proprietor:  "What are you fellows doin'!?  Leave my horses alone!  Don't do that!  Cut that out!"
Heyes:  "We're rentin' 'em!  Pay him, Carruthers!"
Proprietor:  "Wait!  What are you doin'?"
Heyes and Curry mount the two fresh horses and ride out of the stable.  As Curry passes the proprietor, he pauses briefly to hand the man some money.
Curry:  "It'll take about an hour to round 'em up--this ought to more'n cover it!"
He kicks his horse into a gallop after Heyes.  We see them riding through more desert.

A posse rides into the Sagers stable, led by Deputy Wermser.  The proprietor is inside.
Wermser:  "You seen two men ride through here?"
Proprietor:  "You mean three men, don't ya?"
Wermser:  "No, two men!  Kid Curry and Hannibal Heyes!"  He looks around at the empty stalls.  "Haven't you got any horses?"
Proprietor:  "Did have 'til about ten minutes ago, but somebody's drove 'em off."
Wermser:  "Now, who'd do a dang thing like that?!"
Proprietor:  "K-Kid Curry and Hannibal Heyes?"

A train comes to a stop at a water tower.  Heyes and Curry are crouched nearby behind a clump of brush.  We see alternating scenes of the posse galloping through the desert, Heyes and Curry, and the train as it takes on water.  Finally the train begins to move.  Heyes and Curry run towards a boxcar with an open door.  As the train picks up speed, Heyes pulls himself into the car, followed by Curry.  Curry slides the door closed.  We see a dusty, grimy man huddled on the floor behind a crate.  It's Harry Briscoe.  He slides down a little further, then peers over the top of the crate.
Harry:  "You two!  What are you fellas doin' here!?"
Heyes and Curry, surprised that someone else is inside the car, move closer and recognize Harry, who remains where he was behind the crate.
Curry:  "Harry?  Harry Briscoe?  Harry, you know what we're doin' here.  We're runnin'."
Heyes and Curry crouch in front of Harry.
Heyes:  "The question is what you're doing here."
Harry:  "Sure is a small world, isn't it?"
Curry:  "I was hoping you weren't going to say that, Harry."  He takes off his hat and tosses it on top of the crate.

The posse has reached the railroad tracks.  They turn and ride along the tracks after the train.

Heyes:  "Harry, what are you doing here?"
Harry:  "Lost my job."
Curry:   "How'd it happen this time, Harry?"
Harry:  "They just... let me go."
Curry:  "No!  Why?"
Harry:  Irate.  "They said... incompetence.  Can you imagine that?  Harry Briscoe incompetent?"
Heyes:  "Oh, no, Harry, we can't.  We've met lots of Bannerman detectives in our time, and there's no way that you could be any more incompetent than they were."
Harry:  "Thanks, Heyes." 
Harry smiles, and reaches out to shake hands with Heyes, then with Curry.
Heyes:  "Sure."
Harry:  "It's a wonderful surprise, runnin' into you fellas this way."

We see the posse, galloping along.

Harry:  "You know, you're the only real friends I got in this rotten world."
Curry:  "I don't think I'd let that get around if I were you, Harry--the world could get even rottener."
Harry:  "That's certainly true, cause--"
Heyes and Curry hear the sound of the posse's horses.  They move to the boxcar door to look out.  The posse stops near a telegraph pole, and one of them gets off his horse and begins to climb the pole.
Curry:  "Heyes, what's he doin'?"
Heyes:  "Climbin' that telegraph pole."
Curry:  "Yeah, I can see that.  But why?"
Harry:  "If he has the right kind of equipment with him, he can send a message from there."
Curry unhappily slides the door closed.
Curry:  "Well, I suppose we could put a few miles between them and us and then jump off."
Heyes:  "Without horses?  Without water?  And the nearest town the one they're telegraphin'?""
Curry:  "Yeah, the same town this train'll be stoppin' at in thirty minutes--Little Grande.  At least at the moment, we're leaving 'em far behind."  He leans against the side of the car.
Heyes:  "Kid, the first American who ever saw this part of the country said it was not gonna be able to sustain human life.  And he was absolutely right."  He walks across the car.  "And we can't jump anyway.  They'd run us down like that!"  He snaps his fingers.
Harry is sitting on a box, fanning himself with his hat.  Suddenly Heyes turns to look at Harry.
Heyes:  "Harry, do you still have your Bannerman Detective credentials?"
Harry looks suspiciously at Heyes, then at Curry, and back at Heyes.  He gets up, walks to the crate, and sits on top of it.
Harry:  "Nope.  Nope, nope."
Heyes:  "Now, Harry..."
Heyes moves to stand next to Harry.  Curry stands behind him.
Harry:  "Yeah, yeah.  I got 'em.  They tried to get 'em back but I told 'em I lost 'em."
Curry:  "I'll bet they believed you, too.  Didn't they, Harry?"
Heyes:  "Harry, do you have a razor in that bag?"
Harry:  "Razor?  Of course I got a razor.  Do I have a razor."
Heyes digs through Harry's bag and finds the razor.
Curry:  "Heyes, you're a genius!"
Harry:  "Hey!  Hey now!"
As the train travels the rest of the way into Little Grande, we see Heyes shaving Harry, who's now wearing only his long underwear.  At the same time, Curry brushes Harry's coat and trousers, cleans Harry's hat with a billow of dust, and shines Harry's shoes.

The train arrives at the Little Grande depot.  A group of men, led by Sheriff Tankersley, check the train, looking under cars as they pass.  The Sheriff is next to the boxcar occupied by Heyes, Curry and Harry when the door slides open.
Harry:  "All right, you two.  Get out."
Heyes and Curry jump down from the car with hands raised.  They are unarmed.  The Sheriff and his men gather around as Harry Briscoe, neat and clean-shaven, emerges and sits in the car door, his revolver pointed at Heyes and Curry, who stand looking at the ground.
Sheriff:  "What's goin' on here, mister?"
Harry:  "Howdy, Sheriff.  Harry Briscoe, here.  Bannerman Detectives, Incorporated.  These men are my prisoners, Sheriff."
He hands his credentials to the Sheriff, who examines and returns them.
Sheriff:  "Your prisoners, huh?  You know who these men are?"
Harry:  "Do I know!  I been on their trail for three months!  Lost 'em a few days ago, then they made the mistake of jumping on this train--and I grabbed 'em."
Sheriff:  "Who are they?"
Harry jumps down to whisper to the Sheriff.
Sheriff:  "You don't have to whisper.  We know who they are.  Do you?"
Harry:  "Sheriff, a BDI man doesn't arrest someone without knowing exactly who he is.  These men are Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry, and I intend to personally deliver 'em to the Wyoming authorities."
By the time Harry's through talking, his gun is pointed at the Sheriff, who pushes it back to pointing at Heyes and Curry.

Curry and Heyes, handcuffed to each other, are standing with Harry next to a stagecoach at the Little Grande Station.
Curry:  "Heyes, the Sheriff's been in that telegraph office for fifteen minutes!  He's gotta be checkin' on Harry!"
Heyes:  "Or telling the Sheriff in Cheyenne we're on our way."
Curry:  "That takes a quarter of an hour?"
Harry:  "If he's checking on me we're all in trouble, and I--"
Curry:  "Shut up, Harry."
The Sheriff and Deputy Wermser come out of the telegraph office.
Sheriff:  "Briscoe, I've decided to send my Deputy Wermser with you.  Even handcuffed and unarmed, these men are dangerous."
Harry:  "Sheriff, when you've been an agent of the BDI as long as Harry Briscoe--"
Sheriff:  "BDI likes to think of itself as some kind of Federal police force.  Well, it ain't.  It's got no official status.  Now, the reward might be yours, but the responsibility's mine."  To Wermser, "Use your cuffs, Wermser."
Wermser:  "All right, Sheriff."
Wermser takes out his handcuffs and attaches himself to Heyes.
Sheriff:  "You got that, Wermser?  I'm holding you responsible for getting these men into the jail at Cheyenne."
Wermser:  "Yes, sir."
Harry:  "All right, let's load up."
The men climb into the coach.  The Sheriff watches as the stagecoach pulls away.

The stagecoach is rolling along through the desert.  Inside, Curry and Harry are on one seat, Wermser and Heyes the other.  Curry is handcuffed to Heyes, across from him, and Heyes is handcuffed to Wermser.  Everyone is dozing except Wermser, who's complaining.
Wermser:  "...then on the next night, I'll miss the church social."  He yanks the chain attached to Heyes to wake him.  "Now, that'll be Saturday.  Then on Sunday--"
Curry looks up and pushes his hat back.
Curry:  "Mister Wermser, you remember what the Sheriff said about our reputation?"
Wermser:  "Yeah."
Curry:  "Well, if you don't stop complaining about the trouble we've caused you, I'm gonna do my best to live up to it.  You understand?"
Wermser:  "Well, all I was tryin' to say is, I wouldn't be here at all if the Sheriff had got a answer to that blamed telegraph he sent."
Heyes:  Surprised, "What telegraph?"
Wermser:  "The one about Briscoe here."  To Harry, "He sent a wire back to that Bannerman Detective company to see if you was good enough to take these two men back to Cheyenne by yourself.  But he didn't get no answer--leastwise, not in time.  So here I am."
Harry, Curry and Heyes exchange looks.

A posse, led by Sheriff Tankersley, is galloping after the stagecoach.

Curry gives Harry's leg a hard nudge with his knee.  Wermser doesn't notice.  Harry looks at Curry, who is staring at him intently.  Curry gives him another hard nudge.  Heyes is also staring at him.  Harry thinks furiously.  What are they trying to tell him?  An idea forms in Harry's head.  He sticks his head out the window and looks down the empty road behind them.
Harry:  Shouts up at the driver, "Get moving!  I saw some dust back there!  Might be the Devil's Hole Gang!"
Wermser sticks his head out the window and looks.  He doesn't see anything and sits back in his seat.
Wermser:  "I don't see no dust back there.  I don't see nothin' back there."
Harry:  "Well I did!  That's one of the special qualifications to be a BDI man, son.  Vision.  Average vision just ain't good enough."
Wermser looks again.  This time he sees a cloud of dust in the distance.
Wermser:  "By golly, there is somethin' back there!"
Surprised, Harry puts his head out to look again.  He sees the dust.  He sits back in his seat with an expression of uncertainty.
Heyes:  "Well, now we're gonna see if you BDI agents are as smart as people say you are."
Curry:  "But you better think fast, Mister Briscoe, 'cause those are our boys back there--there's no doubt about that."
Wermser looks to the rear again.
Curry:  "I knew Wheat and Kyle wouldn't let us down."
Heyes:  "Unfortunately, Kid, I think Detective Briscoe is gonna come up with something."  He gives Harry a look.
Curry:  "I don't know, Heyes.  Maybe BDI men aren't really that smart."
Harry knows they are trying to tell him something again and he is thinking furiously.  He comes up with an idea.
Harry:  To Wermser, "Is there a ranch near here?"
Wermser:  "Yeah.  This is Circle Y country.  We ought to be passin' their road in the next three or four miles."
Harry leans out the window and shouts to the Driver.
Harry:  "Give 'em the whip!  Spur 'em in the eye, driver!  We're bein' pursued!"
The driver whips the horses and the stagecoach moves faster.
Curry:  With a sigh, "I knew he'd think of somethin'."

We see the posse still in hot pursuit.

The stagecoach stops at the Circle Y road.  There is a "gate" here, two high poles with a cross pole on which hangs the sign, "Circle Y" and the brand, a Circle with a Y inside it.  A road runs through the gate from the main road.  Harry, carpetbag in one hand and revolver in the other, jumps out.  Heyes and Curry climb out, still handcuffed together.  Harry shuts the door with Wermser still in the coach and shouts up at the Driver.
Harry:  "Stay ahead of 'em as long as you can!  Now, get movin'!"
Wermser:  Hanging out the window, to Harry, "Wait a minute, Mister Briscoe.  I'm supposed to stay with you an' them outlaws!"
Harry:  "I explained that to you already!  You gotta keep stickin' your head out every now and then or the gang'll catch on!  They'll know the stage is empty!"  To the driver, "Get movin'!  Get movin'!  Get movin'!"  To Heyes and Curry, "Let's get movin'!"
The stagecoach pulls away.  Harry, Curry and Heyes run up the road toward the Circle Y Ranch.
Harry:  "How'd I do, fellas?"
Curry:  "You did great!  Come on!"
Heyes:  "And the BDI fired you for incompetence!?"

The posse gallops right on past the Circle Y road, still in pursuit of the stagecoach.

Heyes and Curry, Harry behind them with revolver pointed, arrive at the Circle Y Ranch headquarters.  Several people are outside--the Ranch Owner, his two teenaged daughters, and a few ranch hands.
Ranch Owner:  "Well, will ya look at this!  Now, what have we got here?"
Harry drops his carpetbag on the ground, takes his credentials from his inside coat pocket, and shows them.
Harry:  Out of breath, "Harry Briscoe here.  Bannerman Detectives Incorporated.  I was takin' these prisoners to Cheyenne by stagecoach when their gang tried to overtake us.  But I fooled 'em."
The girls have been eyeing Heyes and Curry with warm approval.
Second Girl:  Whispers to her sister, "Aren't they handsome?"
Harry:  "Jumped outta the coach, used it to decoy the gang away, and came here for help."
Ranch Owner:  "Now, that sounds serious.  What can I do, Mister Driscoll?"
Harry:  "Briscoe.  Harry Bartholomew Briscoe.  All I need from you, sir, is three horses, and I'll be on my way.  The Agency will, of course, reimburse you for horses and gear, and I will give you a signed receipt."
First Girl:  "Mister?  Who are they?"
Harry:  "I'd rather not say, pretty little lady.  It's safer not knowin' who these two are."  To Ranch Owner, "And we're kind of in a hurry."
Ranch Owner:  "Well, if we're gonna give you three horses and gear, I think we oughta know who we're helpin' to hang."
Harry:  "Well, we need those horses.  The truth is these fellas are Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry."
This gets quite a reaction, especially from the girls.
Ranch Owner:  "No wonder you're in a hurry!  Saddle up some horses, boys!  Curly, get some grub together.  They can take it with 'em."
The men scatter to do as instructed.
Second Girl:  To Heyes, "Are you really Kid Curry?"
Heyes:  "No.  But he is."
First Girl:  To Curry, "Are you as good with a gun as they say you are?"
Curry:  "Honey, you just give me a gun, I'll show you."
The girls giggle and the Ranch Owner laughs.

The posse is gaining on the stagecoach.  Wermser sticks his head out for another look back.  Suddenly he recognizes Sheriff Tankersley.
Wermser:  To Driver, "Hey, Bill!  It's the Sheriff!  Pull up!  Pull up!"
The stagecoach stops.  The posse rides up.  Wermser climbs out of the coach, and the Sheriff sees that the coach is empty.
Sheriff:  "Where are your prisoners, Wermser?"
Wermser:  "Well...  we thought you was..."
Sheriff:  "Wermser...  Where are your prisoners?"
Wermser:  "We dropped 'em off at the Circle Y Road, Sheriff.  Me and Briscoe thought you was the Devil's Hole Gang."
Sheriff:  "Stay with the stage, Wermser.  Go to Cheyenne.  Don't ever come back."
The Sheriff and posse turn and start back the way they came.  Wermser climbs back in the stage.  As it pulls away, he looks down at the badge pinned to his vest.  He takes it off and tosses it away.

Harry, Heyes and Curry are riding their fresh horses, going north.  They are no longer handcuffed.  Curry is in the lead, followed closely by Heyes.  Harry is several lengths to the rear.  At the summit of a rise Curry reins up and looks back, as does Heyes.  Harry catches up.
Curry:  "All clear?"
Heyes:  "I think so."
Curry:  "All right, let's head south."
Harry:  "South?!"
Curry:  "Yeah. Cheyenne's north and the nearest railroad is south, Harry.  Any comment?"
Harry:  "I think we oughta head south."
They head south at a gallop.

Sheriff Tankersley and the posse ride up the road to the Circle Y ranch.

Curry, Heyes and Harry are heading south as fast as the horses can run.

The Ranch Owner, his two teenaged daughters, and a few ranch hands are in the ranch yard.
Ranch Owner:  "...and Briscoe had 'em handcuffed and covered.  Now, it's my guess he's takin' 'em up to Cheyenne just like he said.  He seemed like a right competent fella."
First Girl:  Pointing, "They rode out that way, Sheriff, headin' north."
Second Girl:  "Was they really Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry?"
Sheriff:  "I wish I could say they wasn't.  Come on, boys."
He turns his horse and starts off, followed by the posse.

Curry, Heyes, and Harry are still riding south.

The posse is on their trail.  The Sheriff finds the spot where they turned south and stops to examine the tracks.
Sheriff:  "They turned south.  Pete, I'm goin' back to town.  You stay with 'em just in case they don't head for the railroad.  Jim, you and Oren come with me."
The posse splits, the Sheriff and two men heading back, the rest following Curry, Heyes, and Harry.

Curry, Heyes and Harry are riding along.  Suddenly Curry's horse squeals.  Curry pulls the horse to a stop, leaps to the ground, and picks up the horse's left front hoof.
Curry:  "His frog's cut pretty bad--I'm gonna have to leave him."
Heyes:  "Come on.  Get up with me, we'll make it."
Curry mounts up behind Heyes.  They move off at a lope.

The larger part of the posse is still in pursuit.

Curry, Heyes and Harry are riding at walk.
Harry:  "No question about it, they're gonna catch up with us.  I'm gonna go to jail for aidin' and abettin'.  No question about that at all."

The posse is still riding at a gallop.

Harry:  "There I was, sittin', nice boxcar, all comfortable, mindin' my own business...  I'd a got to California.  I coulda got a job on the San Francisco police force, 'stead of bein' saddled with a criminal record--"
Curry:  "Harry, one more word out of you an' I'm gonna take your horse and leave you here for the posse.  That's what we should be doin'."
Heyes:  "And may I remind you, Harry, that if it hadn't been for us you would've been in jail six months ago for theft.  Course, you prob'ly don't want to remember that."
Harry:  "Now, fellas!  I was only just, you know, talkin', keep your spirits up.  There's nothin' I wouldn't do for you boys.  You know that!  Nothin'."
Curry:  "I think you just came up with the right word, Harry."
They hear the far-off whistle of a railroad engine.
Curry:  "Well, I think we can make it to the tracks, but the train's not goin' the right way."
Heyes:  "It's movin', Kid, and as long as it's movin' it's goin' the right way."
Heyes spurs the tired horse into lope.
Harry:  "Fellas!  That train'll take us back to Little Grande!"
Curry:  "Give us your horse, Harry, we'll skip the train!"

The posse is still riding at a gallop.

Heyes, Curry and Harry are riding at a lope.

The posse is still riding at a gallop.

Heyes, Curry and Harry reach the tracks.  The train is close.

The posse is still riding at a gallop.

Curry, Heyes and Harry dismount.  Heyes chases the two horses away and all three crouch in the brush.  As the train moves past them, they run toward a boxcar with an open door. Harry tosses his carpet bag in.  Curry climbs in, then pulls Harry in.  Heyes grabs the edge of the door and swings inside.  From inside, Curry slides the door shut.
McGeehu:  Behind them, "Put your hands up.  Now turn around."
Putting their hands up, they turn to look at Mugs McGeehu and Hank Silvers, who are leaning against the end wall of the boxcar, both holding cocked and pointed guns.
Curry:  "What are you pointin' a gun at us for, friends?  You can see we're not armed."
This is quite obvious in the case of Heyes and Curry, whose empty holsters are in plain sight.  It also appears to be true of Harry, but he wears a shoulder holster.  His revolver isn't visible.
McGeehu:  "Who are ya?"
Heyes:  "Um, my friend and me here, we're out-of-work cowhands."  Indicates Harry, "This here is Slick McSweeney.  He's a gambler, as you can plainly see.  We were run out of a little minin' town just north of here."
Silvers:  "Caught ya dealin' off the wrong end of the deck, huh?"
Heyes:  "They thought we was, which is just as bad."
Curry:  "We sure would appreciate it if you invite us to sit down."
McGeehu and Silvers move forward.
McGeehu:  "Pull up a chair."
He kicks a crate toward Curry, who sets it next to the wall of the boxcar and sits on it.  Heyes and Harry sit on the straw on the floor.
Silvers:  Unpleasantly, "You know, cowhands I feel friendly to, 'cause we're out-of-work cowhands ourselves, 'cept gamblers I don't like."
Harry:  "Dishonest gamblers are one thing, honest gamblers another.  I'm honest."
Silvers:  "Ain't no such animal as a honest gambler."
Heyes:  Smiles, "Well, Slick tries to be dishonest but his heart's really not in it.  That's why he's as down and out as we are."
McGeehu and Silvers sit on the floor opposite Heyes and Harry.
Curry:  "How far you boys goin'?"
McGeehu:  "Little Grande.  We ain't never been there, but we hear it's a right friendly little town."
Harry:  "Oh, a real friendly town--except toward my friends here."
Harry pokes Heyes in the back with his thumb.
Harry:  "They got in trouble last month--with the Sheriff.  They're gonna have to jump off this train before it gets there."
He is still jabbing Heyes with his thumb and Heyes is doing his best to interpret it without much success.  Curry is getting no message at all.
Harry:  To Curry and Heyes,  "Remember that rock the train passes about ten miles this side of town?"
Curry:  "Yeah, I remember the rock.  What about it?"
Harry:  "You fellas jump off there.  I'll go into Little Grande, get you some horses and grub."
Heyes:  "Uh, you sure you know what you're doin', Slick?"
Harry:  "Can you fellas afford to be on this train when it stops in Little Grande?"
Curry:  "No.  Can you?"
Harry:  "Sure.  They like me there."
Curry:  "They like you there!?"
Harry:  "Well, they got nothin' against me.  That's more'n you fellas can say."
Curry and Heyes look at each other.  It's true that Little Grande is a place to avoid, but that applies to Harry too.
Curry:  "You know, Slick, I think you're out of--"
Heyes:  "No.  Maybe... uh, maybe he's right."
Curry:  "I think you're both out of your minds."
McGeehu:  "What have they got against you fellas in Little Grande?"
Heyes:  "Disturbin' the peace."  He stands and glances at Curry.  "My friend here has got a drinking problem."
Silvers:  "Oh yeah?  Like what?"
Heyes:  "When he drinks, he...  he thinks he's Kid Curry."
McGeehu and Silvers look at Curry and laugh.  Curry glares at them, then turns to look at Heyes.

The train is nearing the big rock.
Heyes:  "Well, so long, Slick."
Curry slides the door open.  McGeehu and Silvers stand behind them to watch.  Heyes jumps.  Curry jumps.  They hit the ground in a cloud of dust, roll, and get to their feet.  As the train leaves them behind, they run toward the rock and brush.  Sweaty and dusty, they sit with their backs against a tree and catch their breath.
Curry:  "All right.  Tell me.  What are we doin' here?"
Heyes:  "Well, Harry was right about one thing.  They'll search that train in Little Grande.  We had to jump."
Curry:  "Yeah, but did we have to jump ten miles from town?  Ten miles from water and horses--not to mention food?"
Heyes:  "Well, Harry had somethin' in mind."
Curry stares at Heyes in stunned silence.
Curry:  In disbelief, "Harry had something in mind?  Is that what I heard you say!?"
Heyes:  "Well, Kid, all the time he was talkin' he was jabbin' me in the back with his thumb."
Curry:  "And that's your answer?  All of it?"
Heyes:  "Yeah, I think that's all of it."
Curry:  "Heyes, I depend on you to do our thinking.  I trust you.  Now, have you got any reason at all to think Harry isn't gonna get arrested and tossed into jail just as soon as that train gets into Little Grande?"
Heyes:  Looking at Curry, searching for a little compassion, "No, Kid.  I... I tried to come up with a reason, but I didn't make it."
Curry:  "Yeah, but you decided to jump anyway?"
Heyes nods in dejected silence.
Curry:  "You know, it's very probable that the Sheriff, who seemed to have a brain in his head, split up the posse and went back to Little Grande, isn't it?"
Heyes:  "Very probable."
Curry:  "And they really don't like Harry in Little Grande, now, do they?  Meaning the Sheriff."
Heyes:  "Kid, I lost my head.  I...  He was just...  He was pokin' me in the back all the time he was talkin' and I...  I thought he had something in mind."
Curry stares at Heyes another moment, then looks away, out at the baking desert.
Heyes:  "You know, the plain gut truth of it is...  I'm stupid, gullible and idiotic."
Curry:  "Those are your good points."
Heyes:  "You know, Kid, you don't know what a low opinion I have of myself, and how little I deserve it.  Maybe we ought to bust up."
Curry:  "Maybe we ought to bust up?  How?  There's a posse out there somewhere and it's probably gonna walk over us any minute.  Let's talk about busting up when we got some place to go, okay?  Preferably two places."

McGeehu and Silvers are sitting on the floor at one end of the boxcar playing cards.  Harry is sitting on the floor several feet away, leaning against the side of the car.  Watching the two men, he slowly moves his hand up inside his jacket toward his holster.  Silvers looks his way.  Harry scratches his chest, then scratches his thigh.

In the brush, Heyes and Curry are lying on the ground.
Curry:  "All right, we've faced it.  We're not gonna get any help from Harry.  So what do we do?"
Heyes:  "I guess we wait an' take a train goin' east."
Curry:  "Are you kidding me?  They go by here top speed--twenty, twenty-five miles an hour.  Rip our arms off."
Heyes:  "Well, we could wait 'til dark, walk back to town.  It's only ten miles."
Curry:  "Think I'd rather get my arm ripped off."
Heyes:  "I tell you what, Kid.  If you--"
He breaks off as they hear a horse.  The posse is riding along at a walk, heading home.  Heyes and Curry lie flat on their stomachs as the posse passes them on the other side of the bushes, only a few feet away.

In the boxcar, McGeehu and Silvers are finishing a hand.  Harry scratches his chest again.
Silvers:  "Lay 'em down.  What do you got?"
McGeehu:  "Three threes."
Silvers:  Angrily, "That ain't no trey, it's a deuce!"
McGeehu:  "All right, all right.  Danged cards are so wore I can't see the spots."
Harry gets his pistol out.  He has it pointed and cocked before McGeehu and Silvers see it.  Harry motions with the gun for them to put their hands up.  They do.
Silvers:  "Well, where did you git that!?"
McGeehu:  "And what are you doin' with it?"
Harry:  "I'm putting you both under arrest."
Silvers:  "What'n the devil for?"
Harry:  "For grand theft.  You're Hank Silvers, you're Mugs McGeehu, and I'm Harry Briscoe of the BDI.  I spotted the two of you the minute I got on this train."

The train arrives at the Little Grande depot.  A group of men, led by Sheriff Tankersley, check the train, looking under cars as they pass.  The Sheriff is next to the boxcar occupied by Harry, McGeehu and Silvers when the door slides open.
Harry:  "All right, you two. Get out."
McGeehu and Silvers jump down from the car with hands raised.  They are unarmed.  The Sheriff and his men gather around as Harry Briscoe emerges and sits in the car door, his revolver pointed at McGeehu and Silvers.
Harry:  "Oh, afternoon, Sheriff.  Here I am again.  Harry Briscoe, Bannerman Detectives, Incorporated."
Sheriff:  "I can see that, Mister Briscoe, but I can't believe it.  You mind tellin' me what you think you're doin'?"
Harry:  "My job, Sheriff.  I'd like you to meet my prisoners, Mugs McGeehu and Hank Silvers.  There's a three thousand dollar reward on each of 'em in the State of Colorado for grand theft."
Sheriff:  "If they are McGeehu and Silvers, they're wanted for murder right here in Utah, committed a few days ago at Cottonwood."  To his men, "Get 'em up to the jail, boys."
The men grab McGeehu and Silvers and start toward the jail.  Harry begins to follow but he is stopped as the Sheriff grabs his arm.
Sheriff:  "Not you, Briscoe.  We got some talkin' to do."
Harry:  "Talkin'?  Fine, Sheriff, fine.  What would you like to--"
As Harry turns, he points his revolver at the Sheriff, who pushes it to one side.
Sheriff:  "Put that gun away!"
Harry:  "Yes, sir."
Harry replaces the gun in his shoulder holster.
Sheriff:  "Now, what happened to Curry and Heyes?"
Harry:  "You see, Sheriff, the Devil's Hole Gang was tryin' to overtake us, an'--"
Sheriff:  "That was me, Briscoe."
Harry:  "You chasin' the stagecoach?  No."
Sheriff:  "Yeah.  And I got a hunch you knew it all along."
Harry:  "Not me.  No.  Would I of jumped outta that coach if I'd of knew it was you back there?"
Sheriff:  "Yeah, I think you would."
Harry:  "Never.  Anyway, they jumped me.  You know, you were right, Sheriff.  That is a dangerous pair."
Sheriff:  "They jumped you?  While they were handcuffed?"
Harry:  "That's right.  They...  They coordinated their action.  You see, they leaped off their horses right onto me.  They overpowered me."
Sheriff:  "Where?"
Harry:  "Well, um, now, I guess you spotted where we turned south."
Sheriff:  "I did."
Harry:  "That's where it happened, right there.  And you know, Sheriff, they left me without so much as a horse.  That's when I jumped on the train, and that's where I captured Mugs McGeehu and Hank Silvers right in that boxcar."
Sheriff:  "That's quite a story, Briscoe.  It might even hold water, except for one little thing.  Why would Heyes an' Curry let you keep your gun?"
Harry:  "'Cause they took the bullets out first, Sheriff."  He takes out his gun and spins the cylinder so the Sheriff can see the empty chambers.  "See?"
It sets the Sheriff back a little, so he tries another tack.
Sheriff:  "You know, Briscoe, I sent a wire to the Bannerman Detectives Incorporated, inquiring about you.  When they got around to it, their answer was that you didn't even work for 'em."
Harry:  Forces a laughs after a moment, "That's standard procedure, Sheriff.  To protect we agents."
Sheriff:  "How in the devil would that protect their agents?"
Harry:  "We work under cover a lot.  See?  That's standard procedure, workin' under different identities.  Now if I was to send that telegraph, and use the right code phrase, everything'd be cleared up, Sheriff."
The Sheriff stares at Harry, then, handing him his carpetbag, grabs him by the arm and drags him off.

Out in the desert, Heyes and Curry are leaning against tree trunks back in the brush.
Heyes:  "Our best chance is the train east."
Curry:  "Yeah, if we don't starve to death before it comes by."

In the Little Grande telegraph office, Harry and the Sheriff watch as the telegrapher sends the message.  Harry is worried.

Heyes:  "I wonder what Harry's doing?"
Curry:  "He's doing time in the Little Grande jail, where he belongs."
Heyes:  "I keep feeling that something must've made him think he could stay out of jail and help us."
Curry:  "Sure.  It's called stupidity."

The telegrapher is writing out the return message.  He hands the message to the Sheriff, who's been standing behind him.  Harry has been watching from across the office.  He's worried.  The Sheriff crosses the office to stand in front of him.
Sheriff:  Reading, "Harry Briscoe, etcetera.  Have informed the Governor of McGeehu-Silvers capture.  Stop.  Have claimed reward.  Stop.  Return to Denver immediately.  Stop.  Congratulations.  Stop."
The Sheriff stuffs the message into Harry's pocket.
Sheriff:  "Now I think I see what you mean about the right code word.  You get any part of that six thousand dollar reward?"
Harry:  "Twenty percent."
Sheriff:  "Which leaves the Bannerman Agency eighty percent.  Right?"
Harry:  "Yes, Sheriff.  That's how it works out."
Sheriff:  "You know, Briscoe, you're a lucky, lucky man.  You lost me Heyes and Curry, but you brought in McGeehu and Silvers instead.  And since a lot of folks love Heyes and Curry for makin' the railroads unhappy, and since the whole territory is all fired up about what McGeehu and Silvers done in Cottonwood, I'm way ahead on the deal."
Harry:  "I appreciate that, Sheriff."
Sheriff:  "You appreciate what?  I ain't even told you what I'm gonna do yet.  You wanna know what I'm gonna do?"
Harry:  "Well, I'm sure I'm gonna appreciate it, Sheriff, whatever you do."
The Sheriff grabs his jacket.
Sheriff:  Angrily, "I'm gonna let you go.  But I want you out of town on the first available transportation."
Harry:  "I appreciate that, Sheriff."
The Sheriff slams the door on his way out.

Curry:  "You realize, Heyes, we've never tried to jump a train at night before?"
Heyes:  "Yep."
Curry:  "Think we can do it?"
Heyes:  "I'll tell you later."
Curry:  "Well, maybe we'll get lucky and the train won't come 'til tomorrow."
Heyes:  "That's what I like about you, Kid.  You always see the bright side of a situation.  I was gonna sit here thinkin' we were in serious trouble."

A train is chugging along.  Heyes and Curry are lying in the shade, asleep.  The train's whistle wakes them.  They jump up and run closer to the track, where they crouch behind some brush.  As the passenger car passes, they spot Harry Briscoe in one of the windows.  He sees them and smiles and waves.  Curry and Heyes stare in entire disbelief.  The passenger car passes on by and the freight cars begin to appear.  The boys move fast, running to find a spot to cling to on the rapidly moving train.  Heyes manages to grip a ladder, his body is flung violently to the side, but he holds on and plants his feet on a lower rung.  Curry gets a chance at the ladder of the car next in line, manages to get a grip with only one hand, and when the speed swings his body violently to the side he loses the grip and is flung out and onto the desert sand where his body rolls and comes to a stop.  Heyes watches in horror to see if Curry will rise.  He does not.
Heyes:  "Kid!"
Heyes hesitates a moment, turns, takes in the lay of the land as it slips past him.  He jumps, rolls, gets to his feet and is running toward Curry, who has not moved.
Heyes:  "Kid!"
Heyes reaches Curry, hits the sand on one knee and gently turns his friend.
Heyes:  "Kid, you all right!?  Hey!  Hey!"
Curry does not move as Heyes stares down at him with a stricken air.
Heyes:  "Oh... oh, Jesus."
Curry lies motionless.  After a long moment he swallows, blinks a few times, and sees Heyes.
Curry:  "What you do? Jump off the train?"
Heyes:  Relieved, "Yeah.  Yeah, I had another one of those spells of stupidity, and found myself up to my ears in hot sand."
Curry:  "Heyes, you gotta pull yourself together."
Curry rolls, and Heyes helps him to his knees.  He's still unsteady.
Heyes:  "Kid, now, what would you do without me, huh?  Did you ever think about that?"
Curry:  "Constantly.  Heyes, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be where I am today.  Let's go back to our office.  Plan our next move."
Curry makes it to his feet.  They start back toward the brush.
Curry:  As they walk,  "But you know, Heyes, maybe we should split up, 'cause we've never committed murder, and I will soon be committing a murder."
Heyes:  "Good old Harry?"
Curry:  "Good old Harry.  I am gonna track him down and strangle him with my bare hands."
Heyes:  "No, Kid, you are not gonna do that because I am gonna track Harry down, take him out into the desert, where I am going to bury him up to his neck, laven him with molasses, and then rent a colony of ants."
They've reached the patch of brush.

The sun is blazing overhead.  Heyes and Curry are seated against tree trunks, thirsty, hungry, weary, and dusty.
Curry:  "Heyes, we've gotta walk into town tonight and get some food and water."
Heyes:  "And some horses."
Curry:  "Yeah.  Think we can make it?"
Heyes:  "We gotta try."
Curry:  "Yeah.  You realize how long we've gone without food?"
Heyes:  "Doesn't matter, Kid. It's water you can't do without."
Curry:  "Need I also point out we've gone the same length of time without water?"
Heyes:  "No."
Curry:  "You really think we can sit here another whole day and get up and walk ten miles?"
Heyes:  "Maybe we'll get lucky, Kid.  Look on the bright side."

It's night.  Heyes and Curry are walking along beside the railroad track, headed toward Little Grande.  They hear a horse, and hide in some bushes.  A boy on horseback is approaching, leading two saddled horses.  Heyes and Curry get up and intercept the boy.
Heyes:  "Hold it right there!"
Curry:  "Where you takin' these horses, son?"
Boy:  "They're mine."
Curry:  "Now, we didn't say they weren't yours.  Where you takin' 'em?"
Boy:  "That's for me to know and you to find out."
Heyes:  "Now, that's what we're tryin' to do.  Where you takin' 'em?"
Boy:  "To some very important people."
Curry:  "Who?"
Boy:  "Can't say.  Anyway, you don't scare me.  You don't have no guns."
Heyes:  "Well now, you see those bushes over there?  Now, we got friends hidden in those bushes and they got guns.  Now, where you takin' those horses?"
Boy:  "I can't say.  The man who's payin' me is very important, too.  I promised him I wouldn't let nothin' go wrong."
Curry:  "That man wouldn't happen to be Detective Harry Briscoe of the BDI, would it?"
The boy smiles a little.
Heyes:  "Those horses are for us, son."
Boy:  "Well, Mister Briscoe said his friends would be over at Emigrant's Rock."
Heyes:  "That's where we were.  Did he tell you our names?"
Boy:  "Yeah, but I ain't gonna tell you."
Curry:  "How about Smith and Jones?"
The boy smile is wider.
Boy:  "There's grub in the saddle bags and water in the canteens!"
Heyes and Curry move to the horses, get the canteens, and drink.  The boy drops the reins of the led horses.
Curry:  "Thank you, son.  Detective Briscoe'll be proud of you."
Boy:  "Thanks.  But what about your friends?  Up there in the bushes.  What are they gonna ride?"
Heyes:  "We haven't got any friends, son.  That's our trouble.  The only friend we've got in this whole rotten world is Harry Briscoe."
Boy:  "That's terrible."
Curry:  "Yeah, and we never let ourselves forget it.  By the way, when you saw Detective Briscoe, how was he getting along with your Sheriff?"
Boy:  "Real good, I guess.  He brung in them two killers."
Heyes:  "What two killers?"
Boy:  "Mugs McGeehu and Hank Silvers."
Heyes:  "Thanks, son."
Curry:  "You better be getting' on home now, son."
The boy turns his horse and starts back home.  Heyes and Curry mount their horses.

Heyes and Curry are riding through the desert at a lope.  All around them are red sandstone formations.
Curry:  "You know, Heyes, this is really beautiful country.  We're gonna have to stop running through it so fast.  We never get to see anything."
Heyes:  "You're right, Kid.  We gotta give some time and effort to just lookin' and appreciatin'."
Curry:  "Well, to do that we gotta slow down, right?"
Heyes:  "Right.  It's practically immoral to race through country like this."
Curry:  "Right."
They slow their horses.  Ahead of them, an old buckboard is approaching.  As they pass it, they greet the driver.
Heyes:  "Howdy."
They recognize the driver--it's old Moroni Stebbins again--and he recognizes them.  They hear reins slapping, the old horse leaping forward, the buckboard beginning to clatter.  They look back at the buckboard, going like mad.  Heyes and Curry spur their horses and start racing off, going past all that glory, its beauty once again squandered upon them.  We watch them go, and go, and go.

Closing Theme and Credits