Support Your Local Sheriff! Page #7

You didn't say whether it was day or night.

But the point is, didn't it sound

a little cowardly to you?

No, I told you, it sounds mature.

It sounded cowardly to me

just now when I said it.

It isn't, it's mature.

I know it's cowardly.

I have never done a cowardly thing.

No matter what you

or anybody else thinks.

- I didn't say I thought...

- It isn't mature. It is cowardly.

Let's just call things

by their right name from now on.

What is the matter with you?

I'm surprised at a girl who throws herself

at a man when she thinks he's a coward.

But...

What do you mean, throwing myself?

Did you think that I was gonna turn tail

and run at the first sight of trouble?

- Why shouldn't I? That's what you said.

- Well, I'm not, so you just forget about it.

All right! Order! Order!

You all heard the motion.

Those in favour, raise your hands.

- Count them, Henry.

- One, two, three, four, five.

Now, those in favour

of not getting involved

in the crisis which is

about to befall our fair community,

keepin' the hell off the streets and out of

the way of the shooting, raise your hands.

- Count 'em, Henry.

- Five, ten, fifteen.

I think we've passed that motion.

Order, order!

Be it so entered in the books

of the town council

that the majority has ruled,

and as your mayor...

- I object.

- Get that gun away from her.

- Oh! You can't do this.

- You just shut up and sit down, Prudy.

This is a meeting of the town council

and certain citizens of this community.

You can't just walk in off the street

and insult everyone.

Just one question. How many of you

will help the sheriff against the Danbys?

- It's not as simple as that, Prudy.

- Why not?

There are other factors.

Economic factors.

It could affect the wellbeing

of everyone in this town.

I heard that the sheriff was leaving town.

At the time I heard it, I said to myself

"That sheriff has his head

set squarely on his shoulders."

Now he's not gonna leave town.

I'd like to get my hands on whoever

caused him to change his mind.

Me too. A man with that good an idea

oughta be encouraged to hold onto it.

What is the matter with you?

Remember how long we waited for a man

who would stand up to the Danbys?

Remember what this town

was like before? Murderin'. Lynchin'.

Miners shootin' up the town

day and night.

Aside from those few things,

it wasn't a bad place at all.

Sure, we had a little misunderstanding

with the Danbys at times.

- They could all be worked out in time.

- Joe Danby's in jail for murder.

That would've solved itself too if the

sheriff had left town like he promised to.

I said it before and I'll say it again.

The men in this town are nothing but

a bunch of low-down, cowardly curs.

As your father,

I may have to take that talk from you,

but as the mayor of this town,

I sure as hell don't.

Throw her out, boys.

And don't be too gentle with her.

Don't let her tie herself to that post.

It's a trick of hers, tying herself to things

when she doesn't want to do something.

- Death to all tyrants.

- What did she say?

Death to somebody. She's always saying

death to somebody she's mad at.

Order!

Forget about gettin' help

from anybody in this town.

- Or from anybody for 100 miles around.

- That takes care of just about everybody.

They can throw a girl out of a meeting,

but they can't defend their town against

a bunch of cutthroats like the Danbys.

What are we gonna do now?

- We?

- Don't turn down any help you can get.

- How's Joe?

- He figures we'll be dead tomorrow.

Did he seem to feel any sorrow

over the fact that we might all be killed?

No, it's more like he planned to dance

and spit all over our graves.

- Sounds like Joe.

- Sure was a good idea, leavin' town.

- You don't have to stay.

- Yes, I do. I gotta stay if you do.

- I took the job.

- So did I.

I'll tell you what. I'll even go to Australia

with you if we leave right now.

We'll go to Australia, but first we got

a few things to do. It's time we got started.

- Prudy, do you really wanna help?

- Sure.

First, get Joe outta here.

- Then what?

- I got a couple of ideas.

If things work out right,

we might live through this thing.

I sure liked his idea about leaving.

Prudy, you go in the courthouse.

Do you know how to use this?

Here, you'll need these.

- Jake, are you there?

- Yeah.

- You know what to do?

- Oh, yeah.

Keep out of the line of fire

whenever I can.

- Mayor.

- Can't talk. Emergency council meeting.

- What's that all about?

- I'm not gonna shoot through the window.

Here. Take care of these.

My eating teeth.

I don't wanna get them all shot up.

Get Joe.

- He ain't in there, Pa.

- Hold it. You're under arrest.

Throw down your guns,

I'll accept your surrender.

Take cover!

- Haven't you heard of just wounding?

- I only know one way to shoot.

That's to kill.

We don't want a massacre on our hands,

so just watch it.

Hold it! Hold it! Settle down out there.

Just hold it.

OK, go ahead.

- Jake, where'd you put Joe?

- Upstairs.

Go get him.

Pa, look. Your teeth.

- They saved my life.

- Always worryin' about your life.

What am I supposed to jaw with

from now on?

Pa, look.

I want all you people to unstrap your

gun belts and throw your rifles down.

Or I'm gonna have to set this thing off.

You don't think you're gonna bluff me

with that cannon?

Why, it ain't even loaded.

- Well, shall we see?

- Believe him, Pa.

You stay outta this,

you miserable coward.

What's it gonna be, Danby?

Jake, let Joe loose.

- Throw the rest of that bunch in jail.

- By myself?

I'll be right behind you.

You weren't gonna really

blow him up, were you?

Of course not. That thing isn't loaded.

I just stuck that fake fuse in there.

See?

Wow!

My business!

I'll find out who's responsible for this

outrage if it's the last thing I ever do.

Disturbin' the peace, that's what it is.

I don't care if you are

cleanin' up this town.

That was a terrible thing to do

to them unfortunate girls.

I didn't know it was loaded.

I never done anything

to an unfortunate girl in my life.

Some of those girls

are the closest friends I got.

Well, well, who have we here?

It's the sheriff.

- It's the sheriff, boys.

- We know who it is.

Everybody knows

who our sheriff is these days.

Devery's right. You're the most popular

and respected citizen we've got here.

That's nice to hear.

We're sendin' a delegation to Washington

about turning this territory into a state.

- We'd be proud if you'd head it.

- No, no.

You want somebody who will be here.

Now, Jason, if you're upset with us

about that Danby business...

- We were behind you all the way.

- It might not have looked that way.

No, that's not it. It's just that...

I've never made any secret of the fact

that I'm on my way to Australia.

Which reminds me, I'm gonna have

to think about getting started again.

Would you excuse me, gentlemen?

A small crisis needs to be handled.

Jump, Miss Prudy. Jump.

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