02x12 - Duel at Parkinson Town

[bunniefuu]

[ vulture screeches ]

[ calf moos ]

[ g*n fires ]

Where did you find him?

Across the creek, Pa,
on Sherman land.

Shot in the back?

Maybe.
I don't know, Pa.

Yeah?

Floyd was cutting out
a Sherman calf.

I mean,

Pa, Floyd was caught
doing something he oughtn't.

We'll bury your brother.

We'll read the Book
over him,

then we'll ride over and give
the Shermans a chance

to bury one of their own,

an eye for an eye,
a tooth for a tooth,

and a life for a life.

That's what's
writ in the Book.

And I ain't a-gonna settle
for no less.

Come on.Come on.


Come on, boy.

Well, for the love of Pete.

A little wolf cub.

But how did you catch him?

Oh, I found him
climbing out of a hole.

Good thing his mother
didn't see you.

She mighta
taught you a lesson
on what not to touch.

Well, could I keep him,
Slim?

I'll build a pen for him.

It wouldn't be fair
to the little fellow, Andy,

to pen him up.

Besides,
you're going back to school.

Well, as soon as
he gets used to us,

I'll let him run around.

That's just the point, Andy,
getting used to people.

One of these days
you're gonna have
to turn him loose

or he'll be scratchin' on
the back door of a ranch house

around here wantin' a handout.

They're gonna sh**t him.

Well, could I keep him
just for tonight?

One day won't hurt.

Be sure you let him run off
tomorrow, though, Andy.

All right.

Hey, I better feed him.

What do wolf cubs eat
anyway?

You might try
a couple of fingers.

If that doesn't fill him up,
soak some bread in milk.

I remember I found a baby cougar
once when I was a kid.

Family thought
they were gonna have to
cast me loose along with him.

[ horses approaching ]

Well, that's sure a sight.

The Parkisons paying a visit
to the Sherman ranch.

The Parkisons?

Is that the family
you told me about once

that had the feud with
the Shermans in the old days?

That's right.

The Shermans
and the Parkisons

used to keep the undertaker
in business.

h*!

Good morning,
Mr. Parkison.

I'll say it's good
when you produce the man

that shot my boy Floyd
in the back.

Floyd?
Yeah.

And I ain't gonna
quarrel with you

over your right
to protect Sherman stock,

but I got a heap to say
about a man

who would sh**t
a poor defenseless boy
in the back

just for roping
one of his calves.

This is the first
we've heard of it.

Yeah?

Who else but a thieving,

lying Sherman would sh**t a boy
in the back

for roping a calf, eh?

We give you our sympathy,
Mr. Parkison,

but nobody
from this ranch did it.

Yeah,
we didn't find no tracks

leading away
from Floyd's body

that didn't lead right here.

Well, now, wait a minute.
That creek's on my property.

Certainly you're gonna find
tracks leading back here.

You didn't hear right,
Sherman.

There weren't notracks except
the ones leading back here.

You know,
a r*fle could have been fired

from a half a mile off.

You wouldn't pick up their trail
by the creek

if somebody'd bushwhacked
him from a distance.

Yeah, my boy's r*fle wasn't
stole from a distance, was it?

Huh!

Lee, search the house.

All right, Pa.

Search the house?

Yeah, I'm giving you
ten-to-one

he'll find my boy's r*fle
in there.

Now you just hold it.

I told you I was sorry
about your son's death,
and I am.

But I give the orders
around here.

You want to search my house,
you ask me.

You don't tell me.

Me?

Ask a Sherman?

Then you better
get yourself a warrant.

Heh Heh. And give you time
to hide the r*fle, huh?

You're just as oily
and as double-tongued
as the rest of your clan.

I've tried to make allowances
for your grief,

but now I'm telling you,

you get off my ranch
and stay off

till you can talk some sense.

Huh?
I'm telling you something, too.

And you better listen,
'cause I'm throwin' it
right in your face.

I say you're a dirty,
thieving, lying,

black-hearted coward.

Now if you want satisfaction,
you'll be in Parkison Town
at sun-up.

I'll be there.

You better be there, too,

or else be hiding your
cowardly yellow tail in bed

just like your pa done
before you.

Come on, boy,
get out of here!

Did I hear wrong
or was he challenging you
to a g*n fight?

Yeah,
he was challenging me.

Only in his day
they called it a duel.

That crazy old coot.

Uh, he's not crazy,
Jess.

Just a g*n-sick old man
living in the past.

Looking for an excuse
to open up the old feud.

Wouldn't it have been simpler
just to let him search the house
and get it over with?

Not on his terms.

I wonder
who did k*ll his son.

Some dr*fter probably,
after the r*fle.

Slim, are you gonna
fight with him?

No, Andy.

Well, how are you gonna
get out of it?

Just wait
till the old man cools off,

and then talk to him
again.

Yeah, but suppose
he don't cool down.

Go in the house, Andy.

Well, I was only asking.

Beat it, partner.

Get the wheel, Jess.

What started this feud,
Slim?

Water rights.

The creek was on our property.

You know what burns me

is Pa was the one
who tore down the fence

and let him use the water.

And that's the thanks
he gets.

Old man Parkison
calling him a coward.

You're not gonna
let that old buzzard

get under your skin,
are you?

Some old men you have to treat
like children, Slim.

You wouldn't give it
a second thought

if some kid started
throwing a lot of names around.

Speaking of kids,
I kind of felt sorry

for his son
having to dress like that,

sit there and listen
to his old man spout off.

Yeah, he's gonna turn out
just like him

if he listens to him
much longer.

Hey, what's this Parkison Town
he was talking about?

They got a whole town
up them in hills?

Yeah.

It's where they used to
hold their duels.

And they had
a big spread out there.

All of a sudden
the wells went dry.

Inside of 6 months
there wasn't a soul around.

Last I heard
it was almost a ghost town.

Seen a lot of
g*n fights before,

but I never heard them
call duels.

Guess
the only difference is

in a duel you had
more time to get scared.

You'd line up
on opposite ends of the street.

And you start
walking toward each other.

You got five b*ll*ts.

No reloading.

What kind of g*ns?

Come on, I'll show you.

I haven't been up here
in a long time, Jess.

Quite a collection.

Yeah, some of these things
are a hundred years old.

The Alamo.

Used to belong
to Davy Crockett,
or so my Uncle Jack said.

'Course, he was
such a terrible liar
I wouldn't swear to it.

That's him there.

That's my pa over here.

No black sheep
in the family?

Yeah.

They had a cousin
that was hung in Denver

for horse stealing.

But they never
talked about him much.

Here it is.

The p*stol
all the Shermans used.

Sure is a long barrel.

It had to be, for distance.

Looks more like a r*fle.

How do you load it?

They used percussion caps.

Here's a ball.

This lever here...
pack the powder in the ball.

A man got hit with this,
he'd sure know it.

Five Parkisons did.

How many Shermans?

Three.

Five to three.

Maybe that's what's wrong
with the old man.

He wants to even things up.

If he wasn't such a mean
old codger, Jess,

I'd feel sorry for him,

sitting up there
in his ranch house

year after year
watching his range go dry,

seeing the town
his people founded

turn into a ghost town.

What's this?

Yeah. That's the old
challenge notice.

That's the way
they used to do it.

Kind of formal, wasn't it?

"I, Clifford S. Sherman,
do hereby give notice...

"I, Benjamin Parkison..."

Do hereby...

give notice

to all lawmen that--

Go on, go on.

I do hereby...

"Let it be known that Sherman
shall bear no guilt in my death,

if the Lord sees fit
to carry me from this earth."

I want that printed
in your newspaper.

And I want it put up
on your public notice board
outside there.

Well, I don't know
about putting up on the public
notice board, Mr. Parkison.

There hasn't been
a notice like this

tacked up on that board
in 20 years.

There ain't, eh?

Getting paid, ain't you?

Put it up!

[ indistinct chatter ]

Word for word,

same as I read it here


What got into old Ben?

I don't know.

I thought that
feud was over and done with.

That's right.

Come on, boy.

Come on.

He's gettin' to follow me
like a regular dog.

You suppose
maybe I could talk Slim
into letting me keep him?

You're not gonna be able
to talk Slim into anything

unless you start doing
some work around here.

You know
you haven't lifted a finger

since you got
this man eater.

I bet I could train him
if I only had a chance.

[ wagon approaching ]

Whoa!

Whoa!
Oh, hi, Jess.

Hi, Waldo.Where's Slim?

Well, I don't know.
He's around here someplace.

Slim!

Hey, Slim!

Say, what did he do
to Ben Parkison?

He didn't do anything.

Why?
How did you find out about it?

It's all over town.

I tried to talk Ben out of it,
but he made me do it.

SLIM: Made you do what?

Oh.
Well, this.

I thought
I ought to show it to you.

He made me put it up
on the bulletin board, too.

What's it all about?

Somebody k*lled his son
Floyd.

He thinks I did it.

Oh, that's ridiculous.

Tell that to him.

Well, can't you
reason with him?

What do you think?

I didn't have
any other choice.

Well, you own the paper,
don't you?

Can't you set your own policy
on what you print?

Not on a paid ad.

Well, this is one edition
you're gonna sell out.

You think Mr. Parkison's
a better shot than Slim?

Well, I tell you, son--

Oh, now don't go
talking like that.

Yip!

How do you like that?

Public notice.

He sure got the bit
in his teeth.

I wonder if Parkison
will really show up tomorrow.

Oh, he'll be there.

He's been looking forward to
this all of his miserable life.

Hey, I thought of a name
for the cub.

I thought I told you
to get rid of him.

No, you didn't.

You told me I could keep him
till tomorrow.

I'm sorry, Andy.

I guess I let that notice
get under my skin.

Forget it, Slim.

Everybody knows
Parkison's a little balmy.

Besides, he probably got it
out of his system by now.

[ g*nshots ]

[ dog barking ]

Here.

I want you to take this here g*n
and clean it for me,

just like I done for my pa

the mornin'
he met Jonathan Sherman.

But, Pa...

See you make a good job
of it, too.

Yes, sir.

Benjamin.

Whoa there, boy.

Howdy, Doc.

Just got your message.

You mean to tell me
you're really gonna go through

with this rigamajig
dueling thing?

I asked you
to come to Parkison Town

in your professional capacity
as a medical man,

not as a meddler.

But Ben, this is 1870.

Will you be there
or won't you?

Yes, I'll be there.

I should have known
better than to think

I could talk any sense into
that stubborn head of yours.

You're getting your fee
for attending the wounded.

Not for giving
unwanted advice.

Sometimes
free advice is worth

more than
cash on the barrel services.

I won't be detaining you,
Doc.

What are you waiting for?

Maybe he's right, Pa.

What's that you're saying?

Pa, they were laughing at us
in town.

I don't care nothin'
about town folks
laughing at me.

But I care
if they laugh at you.

Pa, a sh**t-out
after an argument is one thing,

but to ask a man up to
some old hill town for a duel?

People just don't do that
no more.

I do.

And blaming Sherman
for Floyd's death.

It seemed to me
he looked mighty surprised

when you told him
about Floyd.

He had plenty of time
to look surprised, didn't he?

Plenty of time
to figure it out.

You think your brother
was k*lled for stealing a calf?

No.

Your brother was k*lled
'cause his name was Parkison.

And when Sherman
pulled that trigger,

he pulled it 'cause
he was k*lling a Parkison.

And it didn't mean
very much to him neither.

You shoveled dirt
in your brother's face.

What you gonna do now?

Spit on that dirt?

Well, no, sir,
but I just feel that--

Let me tell you
something, son.

Your name is Parkison.

Now, maybe there ain't very much
left of that name now.

Nothing left
but just the name.

But I'd sooner have that name
stay clean and unchanged

than have them hills there
turn into solid gold.

Let me tell you, son,
when a man's buried,

he's buried with just himself,
a suit of clothes,
and a name.

When you get to be
as old as I am,

you'll understand that in time
everything rots away,

that is, the man
and the clothes.

Nothing remains
but the name.

The name remains forever.

Here, give me that g*n,
I'll clean it myself.

Any luck?

Nothing.

All the tracks
I found either

lead up into the hills,
back to the Parkison place,

or to the ranch.

I can't figure it,
Jess.

Whoever shot Floyd had to
leave tracks somewhere.

I covered about


Well, let's trade sides
and try again.

Hi, Doc.

What brings you out
this way?

[ sighs ] Oh,

a futile effort
to talk Ben Parkison

out of that
crazy notion of his.

He means it, Slim.

I figured he did.

I promised him I'd turn up
in case anybody needed me.

Look, I don't know
what you're planning to do,

but nobody will think
you're anything

but sensible
if you don't show up.

I don't intend to.

Good.

I'm glad somebody around here
has some sense.

Well, I'll sure sleep
a lot better tonight.

What's Doc Sweeney
doing out here?

Parkison asked him
to stand by tomorrow.

We better
find those tracks.

Where are you going?

To bed.

What about him?

Well, I thought
he could sleep with me.

Andy, he's a wolf cub,
not a puppy dog.

Couldn't I keep him, Slim,
please?

We'll let him decide.

You keep him outside tonight,
and if he wants to stay, he can.

If he wants to take off,
well, then you won't be holding
him against his will.

Is that fair?All right.

Now you stay here

and I'll give you a real
good breakfast in the morning.

Hey, no fair bribing him.

Well...

'night.

Good night.

I'll see you
in the morning.

Sure.

I thought you were gonna
fight with Parkison.

You sound like
you want me to.

Oh, no, Slim.

Why, you might get k*lled.

That's not the reason
I'm not gonna do it, Andy.

Yeah, I know.

But it sure
must make a fella feel funny

being called names like that.

Funny isn't exactly the word
for it, Andy.

But when you're bigger
than the other men

or better with a g*n,

you don't have to be afraid
of backing down from a fight.

You're better with the g*n
than Mr. Parkison?

A long g*n like he uses?

Go to bed, Andy.

Beat it, Andy.

Getting under your skin?

Yeah, a little.

Not so much that you might
do anything foolish, huh?

Don't worry.

At sun-up I'll be exactly
where he said I'd be.

Hiding my tail in bed.

Well, I'm gonna turn in.

You coming?

In a little while.

See you in the morning,
Slim.

Where is he?

Guess he went back
where he came from, Andy.

Oh, gosh,
and I was hoping he'd stay.

It wouldn't have
worked out anyway.

You've been here
all night?

Yeah,
just wasn't sleepy.

Well, Benjamin,

looks like nobody's gonna
need my services this morning.

For which I sincerely
thank the Lord...

and Slim's good sense.

It proves one thing.

Sherman k*lled my boy.

Don't much see
any connection.

Only a coward would have
shot my boy in the back,

and only a coward
would refuse to meet me here.

Well, I'll agree
that it took a coward

to sh**t Floyd down,

but I don't agree

that Slim Sherman's
afraid to face you.

He's just got good sense.

I said I was gonna
get me a Sherman...

and that's just
what I plan on doing.

Whoa!

I'll be right back, Andy.

I thought you said he wouldn't
show his face in town anymore.

I understand
you're a late sleeper.

Just what does that mean?

Ribbin' you, Slim.

Nobody
with 3 ounces of sense

expected you
to duel with Parkison.

Besides, that old hill man
handles that long g*n

like he was teethed on one.

There's no rush on this,
Mr. Saunders.

I will take a sack of grain
back with me.

Right over here.

Sure wish you'd watch
where you put your feet,

Mr. Sherman.

Why, you near ruined
that 5 cent shine

I just had
put on these boots.

You was right, Doug.

That shade of yellow shows
right through his shirt.

Yup, I think I can see it.

Well, Slim, nice morning.

I see that challenge notice
is still hanging outside
the newspaper office.

It is? Well,
I hadn't passed by there
today yet.

Why is it still there?
Why haven't you ripped it down?

Nothing ill*gal about it, Slim.

Wouldn't you say it's disturbing
the peace of the county?

You could say that.
You'd be stretching the point.

What does it take
to get you out of that chair?

Another k*lling?

I'm gonna make allowances
for that remark, Slim.

Now you listen to me,
young fella.

A lawman does so much
and no more.

He doesn't expect
to have to wet nurse
every citizen in the county.

When words fly,
he just sits back and waits.

Most of the time
it's just words.

Right now
all I hear is words.

You want me
to make out a warrant

charging Parkison with slander
I'll do just that.

I guess this thing
is kind of getting to me.

Now you'd be a fool
to let it do that to you, Slim.

Nobody believes you
k*lled Floyd.

You'll notice I didn't even
ride out to question you.

I'm just keeping my eye out
for any dr*fter

with an old Winchester.

Yeah,
that's the explanation,

somebody k*lled him
for the r*fle.

I sure wish you'd find him.

Slim.

You stay out
of Parkison Town.

Number one,
you'd be no match

for Parkison's long g*n.

Number two, I'd arrest
the winner of any g*n duel

and do my best to see
that he's convicted of m*rder.

Whoa.

Andy, you haven't said a word
since we left town.

Slim, are you really scared
of Parkison?

Hiya, Duggan.

Hiya, Jess.

No stopover in this run,
mister.

Stage is pulling right out.

If it does, it'll be
the first sign of efficiency

I've seen
west of the Missouri.

Where'd you
pick him up at?

Real polite, ain't he?

Newspaperman
stopping over at Laramie.

Alexander,
St. Louis Dispatch.

How do you do.

I was on my way back
to St. Louis

when I heard
about the old Parkison feud
boiling up again.

Thought I'd chance
coming over here,

perhaps pick up
a human interest story.

"Ghosts of the past
haunting young rancher,"

that sort of thing.

I'm afraid
you're whipping a dead horse.

There's no feud
as far as I'm concerned.

Oh, come now, Sherman.

You not only
have the right,

but the obligation
to defend yourself

against the charges
made by Parkison.

I'm not interested
in starting a debate
in the newspapers.

Well, perhaps
you'll feel a little better

when I tell you
I intend slanting the story

well in your favor,
detailing the idiocy

behind the challenges
of the past.

Now I believe Sherman Senior--

my respects to his memory,
of course--

also backed away
from a duel.

Am I correct in that?

Mr. Alexander.

Yeah?

You're holding up
the stage.

Oh, come now, Sherman.

Let's not be sticky
about this.

I said you were
holding up the stage.

Is it, do you feel,
a question of
"the less said the better"

about a 15-year-old child
being shot in the back?

Get out!

I note you have
quite a temper, Sherman.

I was told otherwise.

I understood you controlled
your temper rather well

when Parkison called you
a coward and a m*rder*r.

But perhaps your temper
is governed in proportion

to the other man's reputation
with a g*n.

Oh! Control yourself, man!

I'll send you a copy
of the paper, Sherman.

You'll be
cut down to size!

I'll have his name
smelling like last week's fish.

Mister, if I know Slim,
he's probably looking
for his g*n.

Now if he finds it,
would you like to borrow mine
for self-defense?

Ha ha ha ha!See you, Duggan.

What do you want?

Well, I was gonnasay
Duggan saw some fencing down
in the east section.

I thought I'd ride out there
before the stock starts
wandering.

I'm sorry, Jess.

For what?

Acting like a human being?

A man's skin
is just so thick, Slim.

What's the matter
with people?

I don't know.
I guess just because
they're people.

Bored. Maybe they thought
they were gonna have a g*n duel
to talk about for a while.

But what just
left on that stage,

I don't call people.

Meeting Parkison
in that ghost town

would have been
the easy way out.

I thought anybody
with any sense could see that.

Well, maybe they have,
maybe not.

Don't get yourself
pushed into something

just to satisfy
a bunch of loudmouths.

I won't.

I'm gonna check
on that fencing.

I'll see you later.

[ horse snorts,
nickers ]

I was hoping
I'd find me a Sherman here.

So you did it.

I figured somebody had been
using wire cutters.

Drop your g*n.

You keep trying
to give orders, don't you?

You just do
like Pa tells you.

Drop it!

I reckon
you'll have to do.

Slim?

Jess ought to be
home for supper.

Slim, I didn't mean
what I said.

Mean what, Andy?

About you ever
being afraid.

That's all right, Andy.

You're not sore?Forget it.

I wonder why people ever
say things they don't mean.

I guess if they knew why,
they wouldn't say them
in the first place.

[ horse neighing ]

That must be Jess.

Hello, Doc.

I was looking for Jess.

That's what
I come about.

What do you mean?

Parkison's got him.

Ben told me to tell you
that they'll hang him at sunup

if you don't show up.

I was gonna
go for the sheriff,

but Ben is
so unpredictable,

I was afraid
it might force his hand.

Don't go for the sheriff.

I should have known all along
there was only one way
to end this.

Maybe if I was to tell Ben
you want to talk to him.

You tell Parkison
I'll be there.

And I won't be doing
much talking.

Is that Jess?

No. He sent word
he's staying over in town.

Sure wish I could go
into town at night.

Andy, I'll be leaving
early in the morning.

When you get up,
will you do the chores?

Where are you going?

There's some steers
I want to see a fella has

over by the junction.

Hmm.

You better go to bed, huh?

All right.

Say, Andy,
when I get sore at you,

try and remember
the good times.

Yeah.

G'night.

Good night.

Bring him out!

Untie him.

All right.

You can go now.

Curious to know if you'd have
gone ahead with it,

but I'm willing to settle
for being curious.

Sorry, Slim.

I walked
right into their trap.

Don't worry about it,
Jess.

If that hadn't had worked,
he'd have thought
of something else.

Takes a heap of doin'
to make you fight, don't it?

I'm here now.

Yeah, well,
you got your choice.

Which end of town
do you want to start from?

Doesn't make
any difference.

Nah, we'll do it right.
You choose.

South.

You know the rules.

Only what's in your g*n.

I know the rules.

All right.

We'll start
whenever you're ready.

So this is how it's done.

Nobody loses their temper,
just a quiet game of death.

I must have had these duels
described to me
a hundred times, Jess.

Stories always
seemed real enough.

This morning
nothing about it seems real.

We can still make a run
for it, Slim.

It's too late for running,
Jess.

Maybe it always was.

He's out to k*ll you,
Slim.

I know, Jess.

Parkison Town.

[ sighs ]

'Tain't dead;
just sleepin'.

Just sleepin',
just like the names
of the men who died here.

But their names...
[chuckles]...

their names
goes on livin' forever.

Are you ready?

I'm ready.

Sherman!

Here's number one.

Now, you got witnesses
that you fired in self-defense.

Not yet, Slim.

Go ahead, Slim. Now!

sh**t, Slim, now!

Stay back, Jess!Slim--

Stay back!

You stay back, too,
Doc.

I got a bill to collect.

Go ahead,
pull the trigger.

Go ahead and fire!

I ain't asking for no mercy
from a Sherman.

You won't get any.

Go on, pull the trigger!

You want to die big.

Be a legend.

A foolish, senseless legend.

So your son can carry on
with something.

It's up to you, Lee.

Will you promise that the feud
will be over for all time...

or does he get his wish?

We ain't making no promises
to no Sherman!

You're not running
things anymore.

What is it, Lee?

Now!

I promise.

I'll make no such promise!

You don't count anymore,
Parkison.

You want to know why?

Because you owe me
your life.

Now...

today...

tomorrow...

until you draw
your last breath.

Until this is fired,

you owe a Sherman,
Mr. Parkison.

Let's go home, Pa.

What do you think, Doc?

Anybody that tough,

it's gonna take a lot
to k*ll him.

I asked Jess to fetch you
to show you this.

Andy was out hunting
for his wolf cub.

Found this in the stream.

There's still prints here,

but Floyd must have
set the g*n down...

before he crossed over.

Now look here,
powder marks on the rocks.

Just like there would be
if the g*n fell over
and went off.

Then I guess that's the way
it happened, Pa.

Mr. Sherman, we're obliged
to you for sending for us.

You'll be wantin'
to keep this.

Thank you.

Thank you.

You, uh...

you gonna be wearing
that there cane for long?

Not more than a week or two,
according to the doc.

I'm glad.

Mighty glad it
it weren't no worse.

Come on, son.

I never thought
I'd hear it.

It wasn't easy for him,
Jess.

Slim, I'm curious
about something.

When you had that g*n
pointed at Parkison--

if his son hadn't agreed
to end the feud,

would you have shot him?

That's a good question.

I thought about it, too.

Hey, look what I found.

Can I keep him?
I'll take good care of him.

All right, Andy,
you can keep him.