Red River Page #2

We'll bury him. Move!

Matt, I told you to get away.

You might have got hurt.

He went for his gun first,

but you seemed to know--

Next time, do what I say.

- How'd you know he was gonna draw?

- By watching his eyes.

- Remember that.

- I will.

Get a shovel and my Bible.

I'll read over him.

"We brought nothing into this world,

and it's certain we carry nothing out.

The Lord gave,

and the Lord hath taken away.

Blessed be the name

of the Lord. Amen."

Turn 'em loose.

[ Cattle Mooing ]

[ Matthew ]

They're going to get away.

[ Dunson ] Wherever they go,

they'll be on my land.

My land. We're here,

and we're going to stay here.

Give me 10 years. I'll have that brand

on the greatest ranch in Texas.

The big house will be down by the river,

and the corrals and the barns behind it.

It'll be a good place to live in.

Ten years and I'll have the Red River D

on more cattle than you've ever seen.

I'll have that brand on enough beef

to feed the whole country.

Good beef for hungry people.

Beef to make them strong,

make them grow.

It takes work, and it takes sweat.

And it takes time,

lots of time.

It takes years.

Well, we've had

our ten years and more.

- About 14.

- Near to 15, and we've got the cattle.

- About 14.

- Near to 15, and we've got the cattle.

Thousands of heads of good beef.

And there as they stand there isn't

a head worth a plug three-cent piece.

Three-cent piece? That's more silver

money than I've seen since the war.

That's right. It all happened

while you were away, Matt.

More cattle than a man could

gather elsewhere in two lifetimes.

And I'm broke.

Unless we can move them, I'm broke.

Figured that's why

you rounded them up.

I'm not going to take it haunch-backed

like the rest around here.

- If there's no cattle market in Texas--

- And there ain't.

Then I'll take them

where there is a market...

if it means driving them

a thousand miles.

- Missouri?

- Yeah.

That's what I figured.

Seems you two have been

doing a lot of figuring.

While you were at it, did you figure out

the best way to get them there?

Which trail to take? Yeah. San Saba,

then Meridian, then along the Brazos--

That's the long way around.

Along the Brazos and up Palo Pinto--

- I said that's the long way.

- I know it's the long way.

But there's good water

clear all the way up to the Red.

But going that way,

we'd get two extra crossings.

- You're not going. How do you know--

- I'm not?

No, you're not.

How do you know the water's good?

- I led a patrol that way.

- You think it's worth--

You think it's worth--

What are you mumbling about?

Where are those store teeth

Matt brought you?

- In my pocket.

- Why don't you use them?

They whistle.

I use them for eating.

- Can't understand you.

- Everybody else can.

What did you say?

I said, there's a lot of things

you don't know about, Mr. Dunson.

- What?

- First, about me going on this drive.

Go ahead.

- It's a thousand miles to Missouri?

- That's right.

You figure me and my bad leg

couldn't ride a horse that far.

-That's it.

-It might be I could ride a chuck wagon.

We've already got a cook.

That is right, Mr. Dunson.

But might be Old Cookie might not

like grubbing the trip all that way.

You heard me good that time,

didn't you?

It might be the time of year when old

Cookie would like a change of scenery.

Might be I already persuaded him,

'cause he up and quit this morning!

Well, then, it might be we could

persuade you to drive the chuck wagon.

Might be, Mr. Dunson. Might be.

That's a pretty nice gun

you're scratching those matches on.

- How is your gun arm?

- I've used it a lot the last few years.

- Get me my horse, will you, Matt?

- Yeah.

Funny thing about guns--

Draw!

I haven't heard that

in a lot of years.

He beat you.

You knew it was coming. He beat you.

I'd say he was just a little faster,

just a mite faster than you was.

Matt, draw up a map of that country

we were talking about--

- I did. It's on your desk.

- [ Groot Cackles ]

Mite faster

about a lot of things.

I'll see you later.

That's the first time in one year

I see the grin on his face...

except the other day

when you come home.

- Didn't you see anything else?

- Huh?

That look on his face

when he was talking about the cattle.

- He's afraid.

- Afraid?

- You're crazy. You're looney--

- Am I?

Sure, sure. I'm scared too.

But I've been here

watching and seeing--

- Seeing what?

- Seeing a man fighting.

Fighting with his soul and gut

to hang on to this place.

Fourteen years of it,

and it cost him dear too.

Cost him a woman.

The only woman he ever wanted.

- Yeah.

- Yeah. You know about that.

Cost him the killing

of them seven graves.

Men who tried to take the place

away from him, but that weren't hard.

He knows that kind of fighting.

What else?

Then come the war

while you was away.

He learned a lot of things

for himself.

He learned that a ranch

ain't only beef but it's money.

But the war took all the money

out of the South.

He didn't know about money. He never

had none. He didn't know what to do.

You mean he just doesn't know

who to fight.

That's all right.

He's just been waiting for you

to head the herd north in a full drive.

It's never been done before.

Ten thousand cattle clear to Missouri.

- We could make it.

- We--

I'm glad you come home, 'cause--

Well...

I'm glad you come home.

Let him go!

Hey, Matt. It's a Diego.

Let him go.

Another Meeker.

- Turn him loose.

- Hold it!

- Put a brand on him.

- It's a Meeker steer.

- I said brand him.

- He's wearing a Meeker iron.

I can't see it.

Brand him.

All right, but the next one up

is another Diego.

Brand him.

Put the iron

on all of them, Teeler.

Anything you see, slap it with

a Red River D and burn it deep.

Why not?

You're going to wind up branding

every rump in Texas except mine.

Hand me that iron.

- You don't think I'd do it, do you?

- No, I don't.

I'm going to Missouri with every steer,

cow and bull I can lay my hands on.

I think Meeker might be real pleased

to see our brand on his stock.

That I'll argue with Meeker.

And now might be a good time. He's

even got some people to back him up.

I want to see this.

Howdy, Dunson. Matt.

I hear you're making

a drive, Dunson.

News travels fast.

Yeah, we're going to Missouri.

That's what I heard. I also heard

something else yesterday.

Cumberland, a neighbor of mine,

drove 3,000 head to the Red River.

When he got across,

the Missouri border gangs jumped him...

stole the herd, killed all his men.

- Hard luck.

- You know about it then?

I know about Cumberland and Shriver

and a lot of others...

but nobody's gonna take my cattle.

I don't want anybody

to take mine either.

I hear some of my brand

wandered over this way.

- Mind if we look your herd over?

- I do mind.

- You'd stop us?

- Yeah, we would.

Can't you hold that horse still?

Well?

- Shall we take that look around?

- You must be new around here.

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