flint, hey! flint: aah! come on, wake up! get up! what is it? come on, get up! i wawa to show you something! you are the roughest soul. come on. want you to look in this water barrelel get me up in the middle of the night to look in a water barrel? just look in the barrel, will you? ice?! yeah, ice! woke up cold, decided to make myself some coffee. charlie's got the watch. looked at the thermometer-- 30 above right now. doesn't feel that cold. by golly, i'll tell you, it is. ow what that means, don't you? that means it could snow any day from now on. that'd be nice, right in the middle of these mountains. we've been pretty lucky so far. only a few flurries.

we could be snowed in inside of five or six hours, and lord only knows for how long. that means you're gonna have to get on that horse of youou and go to work. i know there's some passes through these mountains that other trains have used, might save us three e four days. are you telling me about the passes? yes, i'm telling you. now wake up, will you? all right, i'll get on my hohoe just as soon as i've had some breakfast. well, boy, i don't like to rush you, but if you don't find the right pass for us, there may be a lot of people starting to freeze to death. that, i assume, means you want me to eat on the trail.

( shouting ) ( indistinct chatter ) ( snoring ) not being a doctor, i can't give an expert opinion, but i'd say he's n n so much hurt, just half-starved. well, i can't figure out what he was doing up there in the mountains. you know, there's some kaw indians up here a little ways. he might have been captured and maybe escaped, huh? wellllthen, why'd he try to jump me? maybe he doesn't like your looks. i know you find that hard to believe, but it is possible. mm-hmm.

take it easy. you got nothing to worry about. you're among friends. easy, fella. back. you're all right. you're all right. you're all right. you're among friends, remember? the man told youou can you tell us your n ne? your name? my name? yes. my namam.. my name... it's... i don't know.

do you remember what happened to you? do you remember where you're from? i don't know. i don't know! easy, now, easy. take it easy. ( labored breathing ) what's the matter? hey! major. i fixed him up a good, thick broth. well, that's fine. i'll get a pot. don't! it's blazing hot! hey, fella, listen, you can't t ink that that fast! it'll kill you! poor man! rest of it! ow! god! now, wait a minute! wait a minute! he may be out of his mind, but there's sure nothing wrong with his teeth. poor devil. well, i'd better get back out on the trail. major: make sure you scout that canyon, will you? we've already lost a day. no! what's wrong? you can't go there! you can't t there! he can't! he-- he can't go there!

he can't go there! he can't! sit down, sit down, sit down. get out of here, ellen. sit down, now, you're all right. listen to me, you're all right, you're all right. you hear me? easy. that's the stuff. easy. i want this train totoe ready to roll the minute mccullough gets back here. now, pass it. did you have any luck? yeah, i found a pass that we can get through, i think. good! it's been usus before by a wagon train. then we can get rolling. wait a minute. i think you'd better come and look at it. you just come and look at it. charlie, get my horse. yes, sir. there it is.

well, this is what he didn't want you to see. there wasn't any sign of life, huh? no.

well, this is it. real purdy, ain't it? hey, here's something. what? no. nothing. here's something. the mcclintock party-- independence, missouri, to sacramento, california. the mcclintock party? you know how long they've been looking for that outfit? they disappeared about a year ago, didn't they? yep. they left salt lake in the fall. nobody heard of 'em since. oh, lord. what am i ever gonna tell that girl? hmm? emerson's daughter. young fella she was gonna marry was with that outfit.

yeah, i guess so. wonder how he did it. what? i wonder how he managed to survive. lord only knows. let's get out of here.

fella! try to remember? the mcclintock wagon train! look at this, will you? look at it! doesn't that mean anything to you? just like talking to a stone wall. major, my father said you found the mcclintock wagon train. that's right, ellen, we did. you're sure it's not some mistake? it isn't some other one? no mistake.

about someone? honey, the man doesn't even know his own name. but i must talk to him! it won't do you any good. i've got to know about jim! please. go ahead. you must help me, please. please try to understand what i'm saying. if you were with the mcclintock wagon train, james norton. yes? yes? please try. he's 24, and he has a big, booming laugh that i swear you can hear for five miles. please listen. he's a big man, with the wildest shock of red hair that anyone ever did see.

ld apart if he'd a mind to. but as strong as he is, that's how gentle he is. if you were with that wagon train, you must have known him! i... i don't remember. but you must! ellen. ellen, dear, please. please, ellen, please. ( weeping ) major... ( weeping ) ...you don't suppose anyone else was left alive? none. ( weeping ) major! major, wake up! come on, wake up! what's the matter? what do you want? well, he's gone! who's gone?

well, why the devil would he leave? i went out to check the horses and saw him ride off. did you see which way he headed? yeah, he went north. north, huh? yeah. well, i bet i know where he went. you better get flint and my horses saddled. come on, charlie, give me a hand. always something.

hey, wait a minute! no, no! give it to me! here, here, here! you can't read it! come here! i've got to burn it! you can't read it! i've got to burn it! will you listen to me! give it to me! i've got--! "the diary of william capehart." capehart? yeah. "i intend to keep a day-by-day account of my journey "from independence, missouri, to sacramento, "which... may be of interest hey join me in california." it's a record of the whole trip. february 10th. i wonder why the devil he was trying to burn it. well, come on, we've got to get this fella out of here. he blew it. i'll give you a hand. come on, come on. get up, there.

all right, fella, you can get down now. no. listen, i told you i was sorry i had to hit you. now, nobody's gonna bother you here. come on, get down. take him to the wagon, bill. flint, you'd better get yourself some coffee and something to eat and get back on the job. i want to get out of here today! say, what was he doing when you found him? he was trying to burn this-- an account of another wagon train. no, i just have time for some coffee. may i look at the diary? i don't think you'd find it very pleasant reading. please. it might mention jim. she has a right to look at it if she wants to, flint. please. you're her father. thank you. reckon we'd all like to know what's inside there.

ellen, don't read any more of that. it won't do any good! i want you to hear some of this! you should all listen! "december 9th. "still it snows. will it ever stop? "two more children died today-- "joan higgin, aged 8, "and the lausen baby, who was not one year old. "buried them in the snow. "everyone but george danton attended services. "some of the people saying that "upon returning from burial "that some of their rations were missing. "though this looks bad for danton, "i cannot believe any human being would do such a thing. "god rest the two little children. "they are finally at peace. "christmas day. "everyone is ill, and growing weaker, "except george danton, "who somehow remains in good health, "despite our hardships.

"fast losing all hope. "mr. marsh and helen blake died during the night of starvation. "we are reduced to boiling hides in snow water "until they melt into a sort of glue. "despite its dreadful taste, "no one refused a portion-- "no one but danton, who continues to thrive, "though how i do not know. "everything that can be used has been eaten-- "all our animals, "our dogs, "even field mice. "not even hides are left. "four of us remain alive. "very weak. "can hardly write. "danton alone remains strong and well. "he has the last of the ammunition.

helen... let me alone. we know who you are and what you've done. we know that you're george danton!

filled with timber. i figure with two days of hard work, we ought to be able to hack our way through. once through there, this is a meadow which goes into rolling hills, and we pick up-- major. hey, fella, you better get back in that wagon. my name is george danton. yeah, i know. that's why i'm telling you, get back in the wagon. how long do you think it'll take to clear that place out? well, like i said, two days. that's fine! here at salem point, we pick up the immigrant road. yeah, but you tell me-- how tough is it right down in here where you said we'd have to hack our way through? i said two days of hard work, but i think we can make it. well, that's all right-- man: hey! major: danton! danton, put that razor down and get in the wagon! i never wore a beard. even during the worst days,

world a favor and cut your throat! ( onlookers gasp ) give me that razor, danton. i haven't finished with it. all right, i'll wait. you go ahead and finish shaving, then you get in the wagon like i told you. he don't look no different than anybody else. woman: ( softly ) he's different. ( onlookers murmuring ) what have they got against me? man: you should know!

they sure didn't look like heroes. and they didn't like it when i said i wasn't gonna die-- and i didn't! i'm here, alive, with food in my belly! don't boast about it, danton! you should be ashamed! now get back in that wagon. folks, our-- our scout here has finally gotten around to earning his pay, so we can get on the move again. plan to start hitching up right away, and we can be on the road inside an hour. emerson: major, what about danton? when he stole food for himself,

quick. yes, indeed! man: what's more humane? we'll let the authorities take care of danton. why wait that long? what would you suggest, mr. harris? i've got some high-grade rope in my wagon. like i said, inside of an hour, we'll be on the trail. ( murmuring ) i don't like people looking at me like that. just like those in the other wagon train. it makes me sick! you know what those fine people in the mcclintock party tried to do? they tried to kill me! i'm telling you, they tried to kill me! i wonder why. you don't believe they tried to kill me? well, let me tell you--

how's it going out there? all right, i guess. let's go. don't stop for anything! all right. charlie, no matter what, keep 'em moving. don't stop at this camp for anything. don't let that fella stick his head out of that canvas. right. man: hold it!

ho! ho! hold it here. major: hold up! hold up! we got trouble! how the devil did this happen, bill? they hit that rock back there.

get off your horses and give us a hand here, will ya? bill, you go up to wentworth's wagon and borrow his axle. he's got a spare. right. mr. wentworth! we'd like to borrow that extra axle of yours. help yourself. thank you. bill! get him! good work, bill.

i guess i'd better. major? yeah? how much longer will it take? we're almost finished now. this is killing ellen. look at her! why the devil didn't you keep her in the wagon? believe me, i tried. well, keep at it, bill. right. look, mama. look what i found. can i keep it? no, chris. go sit by the fire, darling.

it wouldn't be so awful if... if i knew which one was jimmy. but not even to know that he's here... not even to know where to look! i know, honey. i know. come on. pretty good, isn't it? supplying free transportation to the skunk who helped do all this! i can't stand it! and i can't stand looking at that wagon, knowing he's inside, safe! i hate him! i hate him! major, you wouldn't say i was a hothead like our friend harris here. i don't think so, no. why? well, i think we should settle with danton here and now, right where it happened. this is a wagon train, mr. wentworth, not a jungle.

ny different countries, different faiths, many different backgrounds. so? so the basic laws of humanity should apply to us just as much as they do to any community. man: that's right! man #2: he's right! why don't you get to the point, wentworth? the point is that civilized people have always had the right to deal with criminals like danton! forget ellen, major. remember some of the things capehart wrote in that diary. he watched sick men starve to death, and heard them beg for the food that he had stolen, and that meant nothing to him! elonged to children, and he stood there and watched those children die! let's get him! ( onlookers shouting approval ) major: hold it! ( indistinct shouting ) stand back there, will ya? i'm gonna tell you once, and once is all i'm gonna tell you! my men and me have got guns. i'd hate to use 'em on you. if you go in there and try to get danton, you'll force me to. we can deal with danton, but we'll do it as wentworth says, as civilized men.

the first thing we do is see that he gets a fair hearing. isn't capehart's diary enough? as one piece of evidence, yes. but that diary's only one man's word. there may be other things around here that'll tell us a different story. how can that be?! i don't know. but we can find out. well sift through everything in this whole camp-- find any books, any letters, anything that'll tell us anything about danton, for him or against him. is that fair enough? yes. all right, then. ke we planned. we can't. we'll give ourselves two or three days. it'll take that much, at least, to do it right. two or three days is liable to cost most of the people in the wagon train their lives. major: flint's right. you might just as well face it. and how do you figure that? charlie. yes, sir. go see what that thermometer says. what does it read, charlie? mercury stands right at 38, major. ( onlookers murmuring ) that shouldn't surprise you folks too much.

the coffee pots have been doing a real good business. take a look at that sky up there. in case you don't know it, those are snow clouds. how can it snow very hard in october? i don't know. according to the almanac, it can't. but do you want to believe the almanac, or do you want to believe that ice you found in your water barrels this morning? it's easy standing around here in our warm clothes with our bellies full and all of our wagons full of good supplies, everything we need, the very best of everything-- meat, flour, dried fruit, everything. it's real easy for us to talk about a man like danton, but if we get caught in the snow, maybe we won't be so quick to judge when our food is gone and we've eaten all our livestock, and we're down to where we're boiling the hides and even the harness, and then we go out looking for field mice to eat! then we really begin to starve! then it's a question of whether you stay alive or whether you die in the snow! then who knows? maybe we'll find a danton or two in our own outfit.

n you, mr. emerson? nobody can be sure just where a man's breaking point is, not until that point is reached. we can't stay here. we can't be trapped in the snow! mary, be quiet. i've got two babies to worry about. doesn't that mean anything? isn't that supposed to count? what about our kids? are we supposed to take a chance on them dying so that danton can have what you call a fair trial? man: i agree with him! that's a good point! that what you said, wentworth? that doesn't mean we should jeopardize the lives of the entire train. i couldn't agree more. so why don't we do like i said-- take him with us and turn him over to the proper authorities. i'll guarantee he won't get away again. emerson: wentworth, i-- well, i-i don't want it on my shoulders, i mean, if staying here is gonna get us into trouble. i know ellen feels the same way about it. all right, then, let's here no more about it! we pull out at daybreak!

why don't you calm down, harris. major: hold it, boys. let him alone, let him alone. ( gunshot ) danton! ( onlookers murmuring ) man: he'd have no reason to...!

r yeah. wonder where he got this gun? i don't know, but i'll guarantee i'm gonna find out. charlie, get the medical kit. hey, wait a minute. wentworth told me that he had some new-fangled instruments. why don't you go get him, ask him to come down here and give us a hand. all right. is he dead? not yet. mr. wentworth, the major wants to see you right away. why? you're the closest thing to a doctor we have. this man's pretty bad off. but i'm not a doctor... ...and therefore not bound by any of the laws of medicine. . but this man could die. that man is responsible for a lot of other people dying. mccullough! wentworth, what's keeping you? mr. wentworth says the answer is no. oh? rest of you agree with that, do you? man: you bet we do! well, this sunday when your prayer books are open and your voices are raised in sacred hymns,

the good book says, "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth." maybe you know more about that than i do, but it seems to me it also says, "'vengeance is mine,' so saith the lord." major, he's bleedin' again. flint, go get wentworth's medical kit, will you? mr. mccullough, those supplies are my property. mccullough, in case any of these civilized citizens try to stop you, you've got a gun. use it. i don't need a gun. wait. but we'll take this matter up again later, major. flint. yeah? is there some stuff in there called collodion? yeah, spirits of collodion. douse some of it on some cotton, will you, and give it to me.

im for now. keep that pressed tight for me, will you? "i beg all to... forgive me." he left this note. oh? "i beg all to forgive me. george danton." i sure don't like the way he's breathing. he's probably doing the best he can, charlie. guess he is. major, come here a minute. what's the matter? he can't be george danton. look. look at the handwriting. what? same in the diary as it is here in the note. let me see that. see the names? by golly, you're right. this is mr. william capehart. then why'd he say he was danton? probably because we told him he was! we did. he's out of his head.

yeah, do that, will you? it's true. but how could it be? the handwriting's the same. he is capehart. what if we had brought him out of that wagon? and used some of harris' free rope? yeah, that would have been pretty, wouldn't it? what we almost did. sometimes i wonder if god doesn't get just a little tired of forgivin'. well? the bleeding's stopped, but he's still unconscious. better sit down, major. thanks, bill.

and why'd he try to kill himself? i don't know. and how'd he stay alive until we found him? harris, i can't give you any neat little answers all wrapped up like a package. i don't know. anybody knows that when the snow melts that there's berries to eat, or the bark of a tree, or grass. maybe he was able to hit a rabbit in the head with a rock. who knows? i don't. and maybe the will to live had something to do with it. des, he wasn't much alive when we found him, anyhow. even if he were danton, what right did we have to be judge, jury, and hangman? you didn't talk that way before. none of us talked that way before. thank you. our problems with the man inside aren't finished. what do you mean? better tell them, major. well, folks... i usually make the decisions on my train,

i think you should make this one. i want you to realize that when a man makes a decision, he's got to accept the responsibility for that decision. so here's your problem-- if we pull out of here tomorrow morning like we planned, there's every chance in the world that that man in that wagon will start to bleed again. if he starts to bleed, he's all through. on the other hand, if we stay here and we get snowed in, well, just look around you. you can see what might happen. ion for you people. you're going to have to make it yourself. if you say pull out in the morning, we pull out. sometimes god doesn't forgive and let it go at that. well, what's it gonna be?

an bleeding to death? you know, bill, a man can just drive himself batty trying to figure people out. but don't ask me what i'd have said if he was really danton! major!

you're all right. what happened? you shot yourself. but you're gonna be all right. where am i?

who are you? i'm seth adams. but i'm... with the mcclintock party. we're snowbound. we're in desperate trouble. we're starving, in need of food! no. that's wrong. it's too late for food. did some woman... tell me that i was... george danton... or was that a dream? we know you're not george danton. not danton? i didn't know who i was. i only knew that i'd... done something wrong. i had to keep everybody away from the place.

and when she said that i was danton... i told myself it must be true. and that's why i wanted to kill myself. you're not danton. you're william capehart. william... capehart? capehart. you wrote this diary. you remember that? diary? i tried to burn it. i remember now... what i did. it never stopped snowing. never. we grew hungry and sick... began dying. every day... one, two, or three,

"yea, though i walk "through the valley of the shadow of death, "i shall fear no evil, for thou art with me." ( watch ticking ) is he all right? he's all right. finally, there were just the three of us-- james norton, myself, and george danton. danton was... waiting for us to die. but somehow-- i don't know-- we hung on. day after day he watched and waited. he knew he couldn't leave anyone alive who might tell what he'd done, and we were so weak, with a single kick of his boot, he could have killed us.

and then, one night, he said... he said... "if you're alive when i wake up in the morning, you won't be alive for long." now, danton was asleep, and jim and i knew that he'd kill us in the morning, and we were too weak to do anything about it. jim was almost dead. he couldn't talk anymore, but thinking of him somehow living through the night and danton killing him-- no. i had a knife, and in the dark, i crawled to where danton was sleeping. my heart was pounding. i was close to him. then he groaned in his sleep. he was waking up. he'd see me with the knife!

it was all right. he was still sleeping. i reached up. i raised the knife over the whiteness of his throat, and then... i couldn't do it. i couldn't kill. but i must. "kill him, kill him, kill him." he moved again. he was waking up. "do it now." i plunged the knife down. that's the last thing i... remembered...

you know, young lady, you're taking on quite a bit of work for yourself. our wagon is roomier than yours. oh? helen, don't try to fool me. well... i want to take care of him. maybe that way i won't feel so ashamed. well, honey, there's nothing wrong with shame. you know, it's funny-- the only animal in the whole world that feels shame is the human animal. now, you go on, take care of your patient. s, major. come on, charlie, let's get ready to roll. all right, you folks, get loaded up. we're gonna roll right away. hurry up, now. well, what's that silly grin on your face for? you know, major, when i first met you, well, to put it very frank, i didn't think you were any too bright. oh! but it's amazing what a couple of years with me has done for you. well! well, boy, i just want you to know

? roll along ? ? wagon train ? ? rolling over prairie where there ain't no grass ? ? rolling over mountains where there ain't no pass ? ? sitting on a board, eyeing the weather ? ? praying to the lord we stay together ? ? side by side on the wagon train ?

? ? picking up a passenger in every town ? ? wondering if he's ever gonna shoot you down ? ? looking for a pal, ain't it a pity ? ? looking for a gal, needn't be pretty ? ? if she'll ride on the wagon train ? ? wagon ho! ? ? gotta keep 'em on the run ? ? time to go ? ? and follow the sun ? ? roll along ? ? wagon train ? ? never had a cabin near a general store ? ? only had a wagon and a .44 ? ? sitting on a board, eyeing the weather ? ? praying to the lord we stay together ? ? side by side ?

[music] >> excuse me. you see him before he sees you. you sure you won't change your mind, daniel, about coming along? it promises to be an interesting hunt. >> oh, no, mingo. it's been three days since i sat dinner table. if i don't get there soon they will be feeding me at the back door like i'm a stranger. >> i suppose since you are the chief of the cherokee you will get the first shot. i want you to do me a favor. drop that bear before mingo does because if you don't i will never hear the last of it. >> i intend to, daniel. >> looks like it's big enough to feed your whole tribe for the winter. >> plenty of meat. >> good luck. >> judging from the way it's