Virginia City

- Halt.

- Whoa.

- Have a pass?

- Yes, sir, captain.

Sam Moore.

What's your business, Sam?

Going to visit your wife?

No, sir.

I was going away from her, and fast too.

- All right. Let him through.

- Giddap, Dolly.

Step aside for the stagecoach.

Hello, Ted. How many you got?

Three, sergeant, and a lady.

Your passes, please.

Mr. Colburn, Army sutler.

Judge Hatfield.

Oh, good morning, Your Honor.

John Goodrich, merchant of Richmond.

And the lady...

...Julia Hayne, Virginia City, Nevada.

And what is your business in Richmond,

Miss Hayne?

To visit the commanding officer

at Libby Prison.

You got folks in there?

I'm a Southerner.

- The commander's my friend.

- Sorry, ma'am.

All right, gentlemen.

Thank you very much.

Go ahead, Ted. Let them through.

Let them up.

That last shift didn't do so badly.

Forty-four, 45...

...46, 47...

...48.

That means we've passed

the powder magazine.

Yeah, and it lays rights over here.

- How much further we got to dig, captain?

- Oh, about five more feet.

Only eight more hours till we're free.

Gosh, my pa must have been a beaver.

He probably was.

- Guard.

- Yes, sir?

Open up.

Captain Irby, you ain't going

in that lower-west alone.

Them Union prisoners sure is savage.

Do as I tell you

and lock the door behind me.

Yes, sir.

You. You, up.

Okay.

You, on your feet.

You too.

And you.

All right, you four men, move it.

Come on, move the stove.

- Yes, sir.

- Yes, sir.

- Heave.

- Heave.

- Heave.

- Heave.

Now, clear out.

No, no. It's no use.

He wouldn't dare come alone

if they didn't know he was coming.

Now, get back

and look out for yourselves.

Hey.

What are you doing?

All right, you men. Come on out.

You hear me? Come on out of there.

You made quite a bit of the headway with

your system of operation, Captain Bradford.

That tunnel wasn't a bad idea.

But I happened to learn you were digging it

three days after you started last spring.

Three months and almost 13 days.

And you let us go on working, did you?

All that time, killing ourselves,

trying to get out of that rat-hole?

You've led two other attempts

to break out of prison, Bradford...

...one of which cost the lives

of some of my men.

Since solitary confinement means nothing to

men like you, except to make you worse...

...I thought this time

I'd let you work out your own punishment.

That was a very amusing idea, captain.

I see you've quite a sense of humor.

This time, it's final.

You and these two

know the penalty for third-escape try.

You think that'd be any worse

than rotting in this fever-hole?

If you'd like to dig further, you're welcome.

Only no matter where you come up...

...under that shed

across the vacant ground as you planned...

...or where the sewer comes into the canal,

you'll find a few bayonets waiting for you.

- That's all.

- No, no.

That's not quite all, captain.

You must allow me to thank you

for the timely warning.

And it was very gallant of you

letting us amuse ourselves in there.

And believe me,

if ever the opportunity arises...

...I'll repay you

for every foot of this tunnel, with interest.

I'll be at your service

and it'll be a pleasure.

Captain, there's a lady waiting inside.

Julia.

Julia.

I wondered if I'd ever see you again.

Haven't you forgotten?

Forgotten? How could I?

But I've changed.

Not to me.

And you, Vance.

What's been happening to you?

Of course, I knew you were here.

Certain people in Virginia City told me that.

That's simple enough. Here, sit down.

Thank you.

They gave me this job while

I was convalescing from Chancellorsville.

Thank heaven I'm fit and ready for service

as soon as they can find some use for me.

Vance,

the war's going badly for us, isn't it?

Very badly, Julia.

The South hasn't anything left

to fight with except the will.

Wars are won with gold nowadays,

not with men.

And the North has the gold.

That's why Sherman's in Atlanta.

But if the South had the gold

to buy supplies, arms, powder...

Who's going to stake us?

Jeff Davis is bankrupt.

There's hardly a dime

in the Confederate treasury.

Even England has stopped her credits.

We're lucky if we last another six months.

I'm not thinking about credits, Vance.

I'm thinking about a gift to the South

of $5 million in gold bullion.

- Julia, you're crazy. Where in the world...?

- Virginia City.

Impossible.

That's a Yank stronghold and...

You're familiar with Virginia City.

Have you forgotten?

It's one of the richest mining centers in the

world. And the biggest mine owners there...

Of course.

Dr. Cameron, Armistead, Marshall,

all Southerners.

Whose loyalty adds up to the $5 million

which they're giving to the Confederacy.

But they can't move it out

for fear of stirring up a suspicion.

They need a leader,

someone strong, resourceful...

...who knows all the country between.

- That's why I've come straight to you.

- To me?

Yes, you're the only one who could do it.

Is that the only reason

you came straight to me?

Oh, I...

I don't know, Vance.

I still don't know.

But you're my oldest

and my dearest friend.

I knew I could trust you.

Tell me, why did you leave

your home here and go north?

Was it because of me?

Well, partly that then,

because I wasn't sure.

I wanted to sing.

Father was so furious.

A Hayne on the public stage.

You gave a recital in Boston, I heard.

Only one.

Then the war.

Oh, it was a long jump, Vance,

from Boston to Virginia City...

...singing in the Sazerac Saloon.

But why?

Virginia City is a loyal Yankee nest.

Drunken Union soldiers talk and I listen.

I'm a very good listener, Vance.

And what I hear, I pass on.

And that's why you were chosen

to come here.

Yes. To get your help.

Oh, so much depends in you, Vance.

You must go and see the president.

Mr. President, we must face the facts.

The Army's half starved,

therefore is only at half its strength.

Each week,

thousands of our boys are dying...

...for lack of proper equipment

and medical supplies.

What the captain suggests

is dangerous and difficult...

...but the $5 million these people

are willing to sacrifice may save the South.

How do you propose to bring the gold

to Richmond, Captain Irby?

Between Nevada and the Mississippi

there are 17 Union forts...

...guarding the roads

and every inch of the river.

Quite true, but I have planned

a route by which I hope to dodge them...

...but it's a great deal harder

and longer than the old immigrant trail.

If you'll permit me

to demonstrate on your map.

Go right ahead, sir.

I'd head due south through lower Nevada

and the territory of New Mexico to Texas.

A convoy could meet us

at our Amarillo outpost...

...rush the gold to Galveston,

then by a blockade runner...

...all the way around to Wilmington,

then here.

- How long would it take to reach Amarillo?

- About four weeks.

It makes sense to me, Mr. President.

How well do you know

that southwest country, captain?

I've hunted, scouted

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes