Cimarron Page #7

In that hour of dark terror came a wolf

in sheep's clothing, gentlemen.

A wretch, posing as a friend...

false promises, lies, deceit so palpable...

that it would have fooled no one

but a young girl...

such as you, yourself, Mrs. Wyatt,

in your maidenly days.

Surely, you must remember.

Yes.

- Helpless, crushed by the...

- I object!

- Objection's overruled.

- I note an exception!

I note that my worthy opponent

is exceptionally able at noting exceptions.

Quiet. Proceed.

Gentlemen...

my only object in being here

is to try and get at the truth.

For that purpose, Your Honor,

I call as witness the defendant...

Miss Dixie Lee.

Miss Lee, you will take the stand.

Do you solemnly swear to tell the truth,

the whole truth...

and nothing but the truth,

so help you God?

I do.

You are under oath to tell only the truth.

You'll therefore answer my questions

to the best of your ability...

and in your own words.

At the death of your father

and your dear mother...

- just how old were you?

- I was 15.

Left in comfortable circumstances?

My father had been ill

as long as I could remember...

and my mother's health had broken

nursing him.

They left me without anything.

Now, it isn't my purpose to humiliate you,

Miss Lee, in front of these people...

but I must ask you to tell them

just what followed.

Tell the jury.

Well, I got work in the public library.

I met a man who said he loved me.

We were married secretly.

And then I found out that he already had

a wife and that our marriage was a fake.

- Did you continue on with this man?

- I never saw him again...

and after my baby died...

I left the city.

Did you make an effort

to secure employment...

so you could earn your own living?

Work of any kind?

Yes, I did.

Tell the court just what happened.

Well, I managed to get a position

as schoolteacher and then...

someone found out about me, and l...

And they blamed you instead of the man,

and you were forced to get out.

I object! That's leading the witness!

Objection sustained.

Strike out the question.

Did you try to secure other employment

in that town?

They wouldn't listen to me.

- I had to leave.

- What did you do?

Well, I got work in another town

as a nurse girl.

But the same thing again and again,

wherever I went, always the same.

In other words, refused

even the poorest kind of work...

to try and keep body and soul together.

- I object! Irrelevant and immaterial!

- You left out incompetent.

- Sir!

- Gentlemen, gentlemen!

That is all, Your Honor. Your witness.

No questions. Prosecution rests.

- Proceed.

- Thank you, Miss Lee.

Gentlemen of the jury,

you have heard only part of the truth.

My worthy opponent objects.

He is afraid of your knowing

all the pitiful facts of her life.

Gentlemen, an immortal soul

has been tortured on the rack...

and I ask you as men

with blood in your veins...

who have helpless women

in your own homes...

to think of one of your innocent,

dear ones...

wronged and oppressed,

like this poor defenseless woman.

Where could she turn in her cruel anguish?

Why, the very promises of God

are denied her.

Who was it that said:

"Come unto me, all ye that are weary

and heavy laden...

"and I will give you rest"?

She is indeed heavy laden...

with the persecution of her own sex...

why, gentlemen, a thief or murderer

may sin alone and is alone to blame.

But this woman is not alone.

Social order is her accomplice.

If she is guilty,

then all in this room are guilty.

I charge you,

judge not that ye be not judged.

Oh, set her free to go her way.

Let a wisdom higher,

far higher than ours...

pass judgment on her.

Your Honor, I rest my case.

Gentlemen, you have heard the evidence.

You may retire.

Gentlemen of the jury,

have you reached a verdict?

We have, Your Honor.

We find the defendant, Dixie Lee,

not guilty.

Not guilty?

You won by lies, with a trick,

and you know it.

Possibly a trick,

but I wouldn't say lies, sugar.

Don't you think the result

justifies the means?

Justifies?

You stay away five years,

come back and do a thing like this.

They've talked about you,

said everything about you...

and I wouldn't believe them.

But now, what do you expect me

to think of you and that woman?

You humiliated me.

All I've worked for to help things

in the town I've got to live in...

raise my children in, you've torn down.

I've tried to drive that woman

out of Osage.

Honey, if I know anything

about Dixie Lee...

she'll leave town after today...

but driving her out won't help matters.

Dixie Lees have been stoned

in the market place for 2,000 years.

You've got to drive the devil out first.

Can't you see, honey,

your conscience will be clear?

You haven't sent to prison a woman

instead of a real criminal...

social order, which you can't change, yet.

My only interest in Dixie Lee was to see

that she got one less kick.

You mean, what she said

about herself was true?

Every word, sugar.

At times I saw a look in her eyes...

I'll never forget.

It's a wonder to me

that she hasn't killed herself.

Maybe, if things had been different,

she might be like I am...

married, safe.

I'm thankful I've got you,

that we've got each other...

and our home.

Oh, sugar, I love you.

Hell and high water, all the way...

there's never been anybody but you,

and you know it.

Hold me close.

Oh, my boy.

That Bear Creek pool is a whopper.

Say, those Osage Indians

are sure striking it rich.

Gobs of money.

You mark my words...

this State is gonna be sprouting

a million barrels of oil a month, someday.

Sure, and $1 million

won't look much, either.

Correct it and print it.

Stand still, Donna...

or I'll never have this dress finished

for you to take back to school.

Sabra, darling, if you think I'm going

back to New York Finishing School...

wearing a homemade fizzle like this,

you're seriously mistaken.

What will you wear?

I'm not going back to school.

Do you suppose I'm going to let those girls

give me the laugh...

because we haven't struck oil?

- They think we're all millionaires out here.

- Donna, you're the most...

Why, even the Indians have more money

than we've got.

You ought to be punished, big as you are.

And the men in this family, editorials...

and maybe governor

at $100 a week, maybe.

And Cim, the rising young engineer.

I suppose he's out gassing

with Ruby again.

Well, now, I've spoken to him...

and I'll give him

another good talking to tonight.

Go on, sit down, over there.

I'll stitch this up.

Mother, I'm going out

to the Osage reservation.

I've studied enough geology,

and they need new engineers out there.

You're not fooling me for one moment,

young man. It's Ruby.

Well...

Why, I should think you'd be ashamed

of yourself...

mooning around with an Indian hired girl.

Ruby isn't an Indian hired girl.

She's the daughter of an Osage chief.

Osage, fiddlesticks.

She's just as important

in the Osage nation as...

well, as Alice Roosevelt is in Washington.

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