San Antonio Page #4

[CROWD CHATTERING]

MAN 1:

Why, it's Hardin.

MAN 2:

It's Clay Hardin.

MAN 3:

Clay! Clay Hardin!

[CROWD CHATTERING]

MAN:

Get back there. Get back.

- Better stay back, out of the line of fire.

- This can be anything.

- Here it comes.

- Don't make any play unless Roy does.

You'd better go inside.

How are you, Roy? Why, you look

a little surprised to see me.

So? Why should I be?

I thought maybe

you might have heard something.

There was some talk of you

coming back.

And vice versa too, I'll bet.

Did you bet on it, Roy?

It don't mean a thing to me.

I've handled you before, remember?

That's why I've come back.

They don't want any more shooting

in San Antone.

Colonel Johnson and the cavalry

will grab you inside of 15 minutes.

Unless you get smart

and save them the trouble.

Roy, that's just what I'm gonna do.

You're gonna do what?

Save them the trouble.

[SIGHS]

They eased past the killing point.

For this one minute, they have.

Colonel Johnson left town

about an hour ago on Army business.

And he won't be back until tomorrow.

But he told me to tell you, if you

showed up in San Antonio, he'd run...

Wait a minute, captain.

I haven't come on any personal business.

I came because I've got the evidence...

...on what and who started

the whole Beyar County cattle war.

Here it is.

I brought it straight to the colonel.

And give it to him yourself tomorrow.

I don't want it on my hands overnight.

- Who was it?

- Roy Stuart.

I can show what brands were raided,

where cattle went, and what Stuart got.

That's no good

until it's shown in court.

I know that. All I want is three days.

Give me two days, and I'll prove

every charge I ever made against Stuart.

I can't promise you anything, Hardin.

I only work here.

The colonel told me,

the first man who starts shooting...

...during their nesting season, we're

gonna grab him and jump all over him.

And abuse him

in every way we can think of.

Uh...

Who is "we"?

Well, that's what the colonel says.

I'll be back in the morning.

Come on, Charlie.

We'II, uh, be glad to see you, Hardin.

It looks like

we got the Army against us too.

He wasn't much help.

I'll tell you what you do.

Get a hold of Tip Brice,

Ricardo Torreon...

...and Cleve Andrews too,

if you can find him.

- Bring them up to the hotel.

- Pronto.

[MEN CHATTERING OUTSIDE]

CLEVE:

Should've bribed him, Charlie.

- Reach for the sky, you!

- Oh, cut it out, Clay, will you?

Clay, I'm glad to see you.

- How are you?

- I'm glad to see you.

[BOTH SPEAKING IN SPANISH]

Clay, Texas ought

to make this a holiday.

Horsefeathers.

Come on, light and squat, you Indians.

I got something to say to you.

I want you to listen and listen fast.

What's on your mind?

I sent for you because you were always

too dumb to know when you were licked.

All right. Now I want you

to back my play just once more.

We're in awful poor shape

for any more fighting, Clay.

Cleve, you stand up to Roy Stuart

just one more day...

...and I guarantee you by tomorrow night

we'll have the state of Texas on our side.

- One day can be a long, long time.

- Show them the tally book, Clay.

Is that what you were after in Mexico?

What did you think he was doing?

Picking flowers?

Just a minute, 500 head of Bar nine.

That's my brand.

I didn't sell those cattle.

It's signed by Roy Stuart.

How did you hook onto this, Clay?

Well, one night we saw a whole herd

of cattle stampeding through the Rio.

We tied into them

and stampeded them back.

Get any of the rustlers?

Uh-huh. One only,

one of Roy Stuart's men.

We found his body in the brush

by the river.

He had this tally book inside his shirt.

You caught them

running my cattle into Mexico?

What do you mean, your cattle?

Everyone had cattle in that herd.

You see how he's worked?

He'd drive those stolen cattle

down into Mexico.

Then he'd sell them back into Texas

across a thousand miles of border.

Now, get Stuart

and Beyar County will come back.

It's no use unless you all

get on the witness stand...

...and swear

that you never sold these cattle.

I might as well tell you that witness

stand's the hottest seat in Texas.

So all the boys should come in.

Notes, notes, music.

If you're gonna rehearse that orchestra,

don't you think you'd...?

No!

JEANNE:

What on earth is that?

- Something usual.

- You never looked like that before.

I want to surprise you.

Oh, Bozie, this is no time for jokes.

[BAND TUNING INSTRUMENTS]

This is legal evidence

which we never had before.

It amounts to yes or no

for southwest Texas.

As long as we've got

these bills of sale on our cattle...

...signed by Stuart, we've got him.

- It's about time, Clay.

- All right, now here's our...

[BAND PLAYING

SLOW WALTZ MUSIC]

Here's our first move.

Wait, wait, wait a minute.

You must not go:

"Doodle, doodle, deedle. "

You must go:

"Deedle, deedle, doodle. "

Always the opposite.

I have never seen in my...

Look, look. Upside down, he's got it.

You think the audience

is sitting on its head? Turn it.

Now, here it is.

[BAND PLAYING

SLOW WALTZ MUSIC]

Stop it, stop it, stop it!

Am I supposed to sing to that?

It is a nice arrangement.

I think of it myself.

It will tear down the dump. You will see.

Oh! I don't suppose

it makes any difference...

...whether anybody hears me or not.

Probably some professional

horseback rider will come in...

...and everybody

will turn their backs on me.

Hey, how about a little quiet in here?

JEANNE:
Are you always every place?

- Just keep it quiet, will you, please?

- Oh!

- Better run for it, young man.

Never touched me.

You're getting closer, but I can't wait.

I'll see you tonight in the saloon.

If you had common sense, you'd stay

out of that bear's nest tonight.

What are you talking about?

The more lights, the more people,

the more peace, you know that.

- I don't know anything of the kind.

- Ahh.

Can you imagine a man

wanting to miss that Jeanne Starr? Oh.

Sometimes I worry about you. Come on.

CHARLIE:

Oh, shut up.

[BAND PLAYING UPBEAT MUSIC]

[SPEAKING IN SPANISH]

- Waiter.

- Yes, sir.

- Take these in to Ms. Starr, will you?

- Right away.

- Here.

- Thank you.

Not for me. I'll be at the bar.

We can keep an eye on everybody

that way.

Hello, Ed. Where did you get the parrot?

It's a southern parrot.

It came from Mississippi.

Ha, ha. Parrots don't come

from the South.

Oh, they don't, eh?

How y'all? Awk!

[PARROTT LAUGHS]

Fine, thanks.

- You sent for me, Mr. Stuart?

- Oh, not sent, Miss Starr.

I just said whenever it was convenient.

Oh.

- Well, I haven't much time to change.

- Oh, there's no hurry.

They'll hold the curtain for me.

- Shall we have a little drink for luck?

- No, thank you.

I hope you're going to enjoy San Antone.

I'm sure we're going to enjoy you.

After the show, if you'd like...

...I thought we might have

a little dinner up here.

It's more private, nobody will disturb us.

[CLAY CLEARS THROAT]

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