The Westerner Page #2

the sober judgment of the jury.

- Certainly not.

- There you are.

- Compliments of the prisoner.

- Jury to the rear!

Bull's-eye.

- Join me, Your Honor?

- Don't mind if I do.

Don't spill none of that liquor,

son. It eats right into the bar.

To the unfortunate lady

with the bullet in her face.

The man that fired that bullet

was hauled out of here feet first.

And he ought to be.

Any man that'd shoot at a picture

of Lily Langtry ought to be killed.

It's just retribution.

It's justifiable homicide,

that was my ruling.

Right.

You an admirer of Miss Lily's, too?

Well, that's putting it mildly.

She's the most beautiful woman I ever met.

Met?

You mean to tell me you met Lily

Langtry, the real her, in the flesh?

Oh, many times.

What an actress.

How'd you get to know her?

Well, that's a long story, Judge.

Bart, you and Blackjack

get yourself a drink, huh?

Mighty fine liquor. What do you call it?

- Rub of the brush. Go on.

- Rub of the brush?

- Did you get to know her real well?

- It's got character.

I said, did you get to know her real well?

Now, Judge, you forget a gentleman

never discusses a lady in a barroom.

Who said it's a barroom? This is a courtroom.

Say, tell me, is she as

pretty as them pictures?

Why, the picture's never been made

that can do justice to Lily Langtry.

Is she good-natured?

An angel.

- I'll never forget the night we met.

- Yeah?

I'll never forget it as long as I live.

Who was that?

Oh, that's Mort Borrow.

He cleans up around here.

Go on about Lily.

Oh, yeah, Lily.

How about a verdict?

Can't you see we're still

considering the evidence?

Two aces. COWBOY

Bet a dollar and a half.

Stay once.

Get away from here. You

smell of formaldehyde!

I'll call that.

You been down around Lanno Bay, ain't you?

Sure.

Well, you know how it is at sunset.

You can look out and that water ain't

exactly blue, and it ain't exactly purple.

It's a kind of color a man can

feel, but he can't put a name to.

Yeah.

Well, that's Lily's eyes.

By gobs!

I'm out. COWBOY

I'll stay out. Here we go.

Got 10. Got a nine.

You know how bright and

coppery and gold-like

a young chestnut horse is

running in the bright sun?

- Yeah.

- Well, her hair is something like that.

In the daytime.

You mean it's different at night?

Well, not different,

but just sort of more so.

- How so?

- Well...

Well, you know how it is at dusk when you

see a prairie fire reflected in the sky.

A sort of a deep... A

beautiful kind of blushing...

- Red?

- Red.

- Well, that'll give you a rough idea.

- By gobs.

I got a lock of her hair.

You mean to tell me you actually

got the real... From her head?

I don't suppose you'd ever

part with that lock of hair,

no matter what a man was willing to give?

A man don't trade things like that.

You see that sword up there?

I wore it in the civil war.

Always meant to be buried with it.

Now, if you was willing to swap, why...

Would you really like to have it?

I'd rather own it than the state

of Texas. Let's have a look at it.

I haven't got it with me.

Where's it at?

It's with my stuff in El Paso.

So, you was in the civil war, huh, Judge?

- El Paso, huh?

- Yeah.

- Cavalry, huh?

- I suppose you could write for it.

Yeah.

Wouldn't take long to get here by mail coach.

Oh, two, three weeks.

- Two or three weeks, huh?

- Yeah, about.

But I wouldn't part with that lock

of hair for anything in the world.

The jury's ready, Judge.

That bottle

of whiskey gone already?

Yeah, and if he ain't paid for it,

you better start collecting now.

- What's the verdict?

- You know what the verdict is. Guilty.

There's only one thing I can do.

You're sentenced to hang, that's my ruling.

Turn loose the prisoner's hands.

- But, Judge, you just ruled...

- I didn't finish my ruling.

The court sentenced the prisoner to hang,

but the court didn't say when. So

long as there's reasonable doubt...

What reasonable doubt, Judge?

We just caught him with Chickenfoot's horse.

- Ain't any room for doubt.

- Order!

I been talking to the prisoner.

He's a friend of Lily Langtry's.

Stands to reason no friend of Lily

Langtry goes around stealing horses.

Leastways, there's a reasonable doubt.

You mean, you're setting

aside your own ruling?

That ain't what I said. When

I make a ruling, it stands.

But, Judge, you just sentenced the man.

His sentence is suspended

for a couple weeks until I can

look into the matter further.

That's my ruling.

- Hi, Mort. How's business?

- Just lost a customer.

Well, I'll be down for a shave in a minute.

All right, you're next.

- Howdy, Judge.

- Hello, Evans.

Jersey Lily special.

Pardon me, you don't happen

to have a twin brother, do you?

No, not me.

Well, you'd better pay

me that money you owe me.

You're loco, brother.

I don't owe you nothing.

You owe me $60.

$60.

If you're interested, that's the

man that sold me the roan horse.

Then, he's the man that stole...

$84 and 6 bits.

Fined $80 for disorderly conduct,

and $4 and 6 bits for

carrying concealed weapons.

Now, you men get some rope and string him up.

String him up? Why, he's dead already.

We hang horse thieves,

don't we? String him up!

Come inside, son.

You can have his horse and outfit.

- Rub of the brush?

- Rub of the brush.

- El Paso.

- El Paso.

Good morning, Judge.

Who are you?

Who are you? What are you doing here?

Stranger. Stranger, come here.

Straighten out my neck, would

you? Grab a hold of my head.

Now, jerk it quick.

Thank you. It's my neck.

You see I was hung once, but

my friends cut me down in time.

Now when I don't live right,

why, the crick comes back on me.

Now, who are you, anyhow?

And what are you doing here?

Why, don't you remember?

Why, I'm the fellow that

filled the inside straight,

and won Chickenfoot's horse.

So long, Judge.

Hey, Pete, are you glad I

won you from Chickenfoot?

Well, that makes it nice.

Here.

Wait!

Wait!

That lock of hair, Lily's hair,

you promised to write to El Paso for

it. Don't you remember? We drank on it.

When are you going to do it?

Huh?

- You ain't going to crawfish?

- No, the first post office I come to.

Straighten her out, would you, son?

Thank you.

You mangy old scorpion, you

might have got us both killed.

- What you want to go to California for?

- See the Pacific Ocean.

It's just like the gulf down at Lanno Bay.

It's bigger.

Why don't you stay around Vinegarroon awhile?

We could have a lot of fun together.

We could talk about Lily and...

No, I'm on my way.

Listen,

it's a great country here, west of the Pecos.

A fellow could really

make something of himself.

Why, when I first come

here, I didn't have nothing.

Now, I'm boss of the whole section.

Well, that's mighty fine, Judge.

You know, I cottoned to you

the first time I seen you.

Why don't you put in with me?

Well, I tell you, Judge,

it's nice of you to ask me,

but I'm heading for California, and

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