Red River Page #6

to be buried. I'll--

I'll read over them

in the morning.

Planting and reading.

Planting and reading.

Fill a man full of lead, stick him in

the ground and then read words at him.

Why when you kill a man, why try to read

the Lord in as a partner on the job?

Well?

You didn't have to do that

back there.

- You joined in.

- Yeah, and I thought you were wrong.

- Then why didn't you--

- Don't try and tell me what to think.

I'll take your orders about work

but not about what to think.

- You think I'm to blame for that?

- Just as sure as you're sitting there.

- And so?

- So I'll take your orders.

- Got you in the leg, huh?

- Yeah.

- Ain't bad.

- Went clean through.

Ain't as bad as it should be.

You too?

What do you got to say?

Nothing. If I did,

you wouldn't listen to it.

- You find them?

- No. They're gone, all right.

That's a pretty howdy-do.

You ought to--

No, I better tell him myself.

Tom. Tom.

Teeler, Laredo and Bill Kelsey

are gone.

- What?

- They up and left.

-How do you know?

-I went to wake them. They wasn't there.

- When did they go?

- During the night.

They was on second guard.

It could have happened anytime.

Anybody know anything about

Teeler, Kelsey or Laredo?

There ain't no doubt.

I checked the wagon.

We're shy some cartridges,

flour and a mite of salt.

- How many cartridges?

- This side of a hundred.

- Flour?

- One sack.

Sneaking yellow--

Well, they're not going to--

Matt, get--

No. Cherry, get mounted,

and take Grant here and Bill--

- Grant will be enough.

- They'll probably head straight south.

Find them, and bring them back.

- Supposing they won't come?

- Bring them!

We'll catch up with you.

From now on,

this outfit's going to move.

Get them going.

Matt? Keep your point moving.

The drag's catching up.

Sure.

The Red River ahead!

Hey, it's the Red River!

Red River ahead!

Red River ahead!

Hyah! Hi-yah! Hyah!

- Well, here's your Red.

- It's quite a river.

We sure had a lot smaller herd

the last time we crossed.

One bull and a cow.

Well, this looks like

as good a place as any.

This will take us the rest of the day

and part of the night.

- Why not cross fresh in the morning?

- We'll put them across now.

-You got a pretty tired bunch behind us.

-Tired men don't run away.

We can't keep them this wore out

the rest of the drive.

No, but we can keep them this wore out

until Cherry gets back.

Then nobody

will want to run away.

- Mark for us, will you, Leather?

- Sure enough.

Quicksand out in here!

Mark it!

More of it in here!

Mark it from the stump to the tree!

From the stump to the tree!

- How is it up there, Matt?

- Firm all the way!

Bring them on in!

Keep them downstream!

Bring them on!

- Matt, watch for strays!

- Right!

Come on, cattle!

Get in, cattle!

Come on, cattle.

Come on. Get going.

Hyah, cattle! Go!

Come on, cattle!

Hi-yah!

Get over there!

All right, giddap now!

Hyah! Giddap there now!

[ Dunson ]

Straighten out that line!

[ Dunson ]

Keep downstream!

Keep them coming!

Bedroll's right down there, Tom.

Have some coffee, Tom?

Picked up a few.

We just picked up

a few strays downstream.

All told,

we lost 30 to 40 head.

Better than 9,000 head across in less

than 4 hours. That's awful good, Tom.

- Boys did all right.

- Yep.

Why don't you tell them so?

That's their job.

They're awful tired.

We won't have to count noses

in the morning.

- That leg bothering you?

- Yeah.

I hooked it on a horn.

It opened up a little.

- I'll take a look at it.

- Wait till morning.

You need sleep, Tom.

You need it bad.

Some nights ago

we lost three men.

I haven't slept since,

and we haven't lost any more.

We're not gonna lose any tonight

nor from now on.

Why'd we have to cross today? Wouldn't

tomorrow have been just as good?

Dunson's orders. Ask him.

We could have waited till morning

instead of finishing after dark.

It don't make sense.

We got a long way to go yet.

He's getting worse every day.

Sometimes I think he's going

plumb out of his head.

Why tell me? If you feel that way,

what do you tell me for?

l-- I'm sorry. l--

Here.

You know, Matt,

things ain't right.

It's him. He's got to get some sleep.

If he don't, something's gonna happen.

All the sleep he's had in the last three

nights wouldn't fill a mouse's ear.

He won't sleep until--

Yeah.

When do you expect Cherry back,

if he comes?

Tomorrow sometime.

[ Cowboy Whooping ]

[ Irishman ]

Looks like Cherry.

Hyah! Hyah!

Get down off them horses. I don't

favor looking up to the likes of you.

That's better.

You should be crawling.

Cherry, I sent you out after

three of them. You brought back two.

Bill Kelsey figured he'd rather fight.

Made a good one of it for a while.

Hmm. Laredo, Teeler...

you signed on for the drive,

and you signed on to finish it.

- That's right--

- You stole beans, flour and cartridges.

Besides being deserters,

you're common thieves.

- The law might see it different.

- I'm the law. You're a thief!

You too, Teeler.

Anything more?

I know what you're gonna do to us,

but first I want to tell you something.

- Go ahead.

- You're crazy.

You've been drinking and not sleeping.

If you ain't crazy, you're close.

- You through?

- No.

You want to get this herd to market.

So do all of us!

There's a good way to Abilene,

but you won't listen to that.

You want to drive them to Missouri,

when you got everything against you.

I ain't through yet.

This herd don't belong to you.

It belongs to every poor, hoping

and praying cattleman in the state.

I shouldn't have run away. I should

have stayed and put a bullet in you.

I signed a pledge, sure,

but you ain't the man I signed it with.

- You finished?

- Yeah.

Now you can get your Bible

and read over us after you shoot us.

I'm gonna hang you.

No. No, you're not.

- What?

- You're not going to hang them.

Who'll stop me?

I will.

Give me that gun.

Somebody give me--

I'll kill him! Let me go!

He was gonna kill me.

He wasn't gonna give me a chance.

Turn him loose.

Cherry, give me that gun.

Here's what you've been crying for.

All right. Use it!

Go on.

You got what you wanted.

What are you waiting for? If you don't

want to live, all you have to do is--

You're a lucky man, Teeler.

That's how close it came.

Matt, we're getting

as crazy as he is.

Keep it.

You want to finish the drive?

- Where we going?

- Abilene.

- Who's heading it?

- [ Matt ] I am.

What about Dunson?

He stays here.

We're taking the herd.

- That's good enough for me.

- I'm with you, Matt.

I'll go along.

[ Matt ]

Groot? How about you?

You was wrong, Mr. Dunson.

I've been with you a lot of years.

Up till now, right or wrong,

I always done like you said.

Got to be a habit with me, I guess,

'cause that's why I'm staying with you.

- Go on with them!

- Thanks.

Thanks for making it easy on me.

All right. I'll be coming with you.

Throw them on the trail.

Start driving.

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