"As far as I'm concerned," "This town deserves what it's getting." "But kellaway paid me to do a job," "And that's what I intend to do." "With your help, if you'll give it," "Alone if I must." "Good morning, mr." "Paladin." "Good morning, hey boy." "Much mail today." "The jeweler..." "The caterer..." "The gunsmith..." "The hotel..." "The boot maker." "Hey boy, I'd hoped in today's mail," "There would be something of profit for me." "Those the latest editions?" "Yeah." "I'm sorry." "Send this wire out right away." "Yes, sir." "And have the clerk make up my bill, I'm checking out." "Your name, please?" "Oaklin, arnold oaklin." "I'll be leaving in ten minutes." ""oaklin-trask connection charged." "Colton, wyoming." ""up for re-election as mayor of colton," ""ben trask has been accused of merely being" ""a figurehead controlled by arnold oaklin." ""the only opposing candidate, john kellaway," ""has promised to prove this charge" ""in his final campaign meeting" ""at town hall, later this week."" "Excuse me, mr." "Paladin..." "Cannot read this gentleman handwriting." "What's this last word?" "Hey boy, that wire is personal." "Now take it to the telegraph office." "But let me read anyway." "Return immediately." "Stop kill." "It don't make sense, 'stop kill'." "See?" "Hey boy, that's an 'e', not an 'I'." "Stop kell." "Still, that make no sense." "Well, take it to the telegraph office." "And hey boy, let me have an envelope." "You find client?" "Well, I'm not sure, but it does look promising." "Thank you, clay." "Harriet." "You sure you don't want me to stay with you, lucy?" "I'll be all right." "I have a lot of personal things to attend to." "You know I'd be more than happy to..." "You heard her, harriet." "Keeping busy, that's the secret." "Can I see you in, lucy?" "Lucy, if you need any help..." "No..." "Thank you, clay." "I'm quite capable of managing things myself." "This store is not open for business." "I'm looking for mr." "Kellaway." "I buried my husband this morning." "Oh..." "Please accept my deepest sympathy." "Can you tell me sir, what happened here?" "Well..." "Some citizen..." "Accidentally threw dynamite in the window." "John kellaway was killed." "Now may I ask," "What business you had with my husband?" "Well, mr." "Kellaway hired me to help him." "I'm terribly sorry I didn't get here in time" "To prevent what happened." "You're a liar." "John wouldn't have had anything to do with you." "You represent everything he wanted to fight," "Everything he hated most." "A cheap gunman, and a killer." "This town is full of men like you." "Mrs. Kellaway, your husband did send me a telegram." "I have heard all I care to, now get out of here." "Mrs. Kellaway, your husband..." "I said get out, mr." "Paladin!" "Or mr." "Morrow will show you out." "Mrs. Kellaway," "If I lived in a town like this," "I'd be a little less proud, I'd ask for help." "Like your husband did." "If I were going to live in this town," "I would also." "But I'm not." "I'm going east tomorrow." "On the stage." "Good day, sir." "Afternoon." "Afternoon." "Mr. Morrow, I'd like answers to some questions," "If you don't mind." "Well, yes." "Certainly." "Clay, are you gonna drive me home or not?" "In a moment, dear." "I'm busy." "All right, you can walk." "Mr. Morrow, I'm very sorry about that." "Now, just what did john kellaway" "Know about oaklin and trask," "That he was gonna tell at this meeting tonight?" "Oh, I know what john was going to tell everybody." "It wasn't as serious as he tried to make out." "Trask was..." "Trask was practically in oaklin's pocket," "You know, on his payroll." "Why?" "Well, oaklin owns the harness store" "And a couple of other businesses." "He's got his hand in every shady deal in town." "He needs help." "You know, the official kind of help." "Can't do better than the mayor." "You don't think that's a serious charge?" "Oh, of course." "But what can we do?" "Oaklin owns the mayor and the sheriff..." "Well, the rest of us just stay out of trouble," "That way, nobody gets hurt." "That's right, they just get killed out right," "Like john kellaway." "I think I'd like to meet mr." "Oaklin." "Oh, well..." "Will you do the honors?" "You see, mr." "Paladin..." "Now!" "All right." "Gentlemen, what can I do for you?" "Mr. Oaklin, my name is paladin." "John kellaway hired me to help him with his campaign." "Terrible thing, the way john died." "This is mr." "Trask." "The honorable ben trask, mayor of colton." "I've seen you somewhere before, haven't I?" "We bumped into each other in the carlton," "In san francisco." "Carlton?" "San francisco..." "You're a long way from home." "Your campaigns are rather noisy up here," "Especially when you campaign with dynamite." "When I...?" "You're confused, mr." "Paladin." "I'm not a candidate." "Aren't you?" "I'm not sure what you mean." "But kellaway's death was an accident," "Everybody knows that." "Right, ben?" "Oh yeah, sure." "Everybody knows that." "Well, I'm sure not everybody knows that." "Mrs. Kellaway has a different opinion." "And I have a different opinion." "What's your opinion?" "I think he was murdered." "We have a peaceful little town here." "No trouble, no troublemakers." "I must warn you, mr." "Paladin..." "The sheriff here doesn't like troublemakers." "Especially strangers." "I'm sure he doesn't." "Kellaway's dead." "Leave town and forget the whole business." "No, mr." "Oaklin, I'm not leaving." "I was paid in advance to do a certain job," "And when that job is done to my satisfaction," "Then I'll ride out of town." "We're gentle people here in colton, mr." "Paladin." "We just don't like hired gunmen." "Now take my advice and get out of town," "Before you get in serious trouble." "I'll put it on the line a lot cleaner than that." "You try using that gun around here," "And you'll end up in jail, or dangling' from a rope." "All the sheriff needs is an excuse," "Or us to say the word." "You brought him here, now take him out." "It wasn't my fault, oaklin." "He made me." "I suppose you know that oaklin will probably" "Hold it against me for taking you over there." "Mr. Morrow..." "You and the others in this town," "Deserve whatever you're getting." "When an honest, courageous man like john kellaway" "Gives his life for you, you haven't the courage to..." "All right, mr." "Paladin." "I admit I'm afraid." "But look what he did to you..." "What do you expect me to do?" "Well, you could run for mayor." "You could put trask out of business." "I'm no politician..." "Look, mr." "Paladin," "I don't want to get mixed up in things." "I just want to stay out of trouble." "You're gonna have trouble as long as you live." "Everything you do begs for it." "I told you once..." "I know what you told me, mrs." "Kellaway." "Now I'm gonna tell you a few things." "This is the telegram" "Your husband sent me in san francisco." "He also deposited a draft in a bank" "In my name, in san francisco." "Now I don't know whether you're like the rest" "Of the people in this town, I hope you're not." "What do you mean?" "I think this town is getting exactly what it deserves." "But your husband hoped for something better." "He hired me for a specific job," "To stop trask and oaklin." "And that's exactly what I'm going to do." "Alone if I must," "With your help if you'll give it." "And what do you expect me to do?" "Get a gun and help you shoot it out with them?" "If it were that simple, I wouldn't need any help." "The only way to beat those men," "Is to get that office." "Now the wyoming territorial legislature" "Granted woman suffrage several years ago." "There is no reason why you shouldn't" "Replace your husband on that ballot." "I can't run for mayor, I'm not a resident here." "Someone who is a resident, and who has the courage" "Must oppose trask on that ballot." "But..." "It's absurd." "A woman mayor." "It's not as absurd or as tragic" "As a man giving his life for a cause" "No one else is willing to fight for." "But I don't know anything about politics." "That's a man's game." "A game, mrs." "Kellaway?" "That what you call it?" "You think oaklin was playing a game" "When he had me beaten up to run me out of town?" "Well, I'll tell you" "He wasn't playing any game when he killed your husband." "All right, mr." "Paladin..." "Tell me what to do." "Hey fellas!" "Come on out here!" "Come on!" "There!" "A lady mayor!" "Come on over here!" "All of you!" "Are you people really interested" "In having an honest mayor in this town?" "If you are, you're gonna have a chance to get one tomorrow." "Just mark your ballots for lucy kellaway." "Now her husband, john kellaway," "Has already given his life for you." "Tomorrow you'll have a chance to do your part." "Mr. Paladin, what's the meaning of this?" "It's not fit and proper for a woman..." "A widow..." "I'm sure lucy kellaway would be very happy to take" "Her name off this ballot in exchange for yours." "Mr. Morrow, you step right up here and tell these people" "What you'd do if you were mayor." "Right up here, sir." "There's gonna be a meeting in that town hall tonight." "Just like john kellaway said there'd be." "Only his wife lucy is going to be doing the talking." "You wanna find out what's wrong with oaklin?" "What's wrong with trask, what's wrong with your town?" "You be in that meeting hall tonight." "He sure did anything but take your advice" "About getting out of town." "I didn't think he would." "What's so funny?" "He gets everybody riled up enough," "Not telling what may happen." "If need be, we'll take care" "Of mr." "Paladin and his mrs." "Kellaway." "The gals are louder and funnier over at the saloon." "Paladin, come over to the wagon wheel," "We'll listen to her over there." "We'll put it to music." "You should have known, lucy." "They won't listen to a woman." "Not one, not even one." "Well, perhaps it's just as well." "Come, I'll see you home." "Pretty rough on a woman." "Wanting to talk, and nobody listening to her." "That certainly didn't work out very well, did it?" "We'll have to figure out what to do now." "It's no use, paladin." "I can't fight them, it's just no use." "You wanna quit?" "All right, you quit." "You go out to the cemetery, take fresh flowers." "Go out there everyday." "Put those fresh flowers on your husband's grave," "But don't you do anything about the men that killed him." "Now what else do you expect me to do?" "We tried your little scheme and it didn't work." "You saw what happened." "There's not a man" "In this town who'd vote for me." "Now I just don't care, do you understand that?" "I just don't care." "I don't want to be a mayor," "I don't want to be elected to anything." "I..." "I just..." "What time are the polls open?" "They open at noon, and they close at three." "Get a good night's sleep." "I'll pick you up at six o'clock in the morning," "And be ready to do some traveling." "Hey billy!" "Come here and have a drink on the house, come on." "Good afternoon, mr." "Morrow." "I trust you voted, clay." "I might have saved myself the trouble." "There aren't many voting, but you can bet they're all trask votes." "He's been feeding them free whiskey." "By the way, where have you been?" "That's my wife and..." "Mrs. Ford, mrs..." "What are they doing here?" "Exercising their rights as american citizens." "You mean they're gonna vote?" "Certainly." "They've had that privilege for several years now." "We've been out all morning reminding them of that fact." "All right, but whoever heard of them doing it?" "Mr. Oaklin!" "Obviously not mayor trask." "Now if you'll excuse me gentlemen," "I think I'll join the ladies and vote." "Evening, mr." "Oaklin." "I was wondering where I might find mayor trask." "I haven't seen him all night." "They did it!" "We got us a lady mayor!" "Would you like to go and congratulate her?" "Congratulate her?" "It's the polite thing to do." "So oaklin..." "This way." "Paladin..." "Inside!" "What's he doing here?" "He wanted to congratulate mrs." "Kellaway first, didn't you?" "Congratulate?" "I know we've had our differences, but..." "I'm sure they can be resolved." "I'm sure you'll..." "Do an excellent job, ... And congratulations." "Paladin, I can't..." "Now..." "Yesterday, I spent some time" "In your harness shop, against my will." "Let's just say I'm gonna repay you for that, huh?" "I'm sorry about that, truly sorry." "If you just let me go..." "When trask gets here." "Trask?" "That's right, he'll be here, won't he?" "No, he left town." "How do you know?" "You said you hadn't seen him all night." "He told me..." "You know what, you don't look well." "Well..." "Morrow, put that chair over there by the door," "Under that open transom, and lock the door." "We'll put you over there for some fresh air," "And you'll feel better." "I feel perfectly fine, just let me go..." "By the door!" "No, I won't!" "Get out of there, morrow!" "Come on!" "No, trask!" "Wait!" "I'm in here!" "Too bad trask didn't leave town." "Lucy, where are you going?" "Clay, I want you to sell this store." "I'll wire you my address in philadelphia, when I get settled." "What are you talking about?" "Why lucy, you can't leave now." "You're gonna be sworn in as mayor day after tomorrow." "No, I'm not." "I'm leaving." "I'm leaving for good." "But lucy, you were elected..." "Don't you owe a debt to the people who voted for you?" "I owed a sacred debt to my husband," "And every woman who voted for me knows that." "This town let oaklin kill my husband," "And then they did nothing about it." "The only help I received," "Was from a total stranger." "I ran for office for one reason," "And that was to tear down the men" "Who murdered john kellaway." "And that's done now." "I can't do anymore." "But colton needs a mayor." "Well, clay..." "How about you?" "Good luck, morrow." "¶ have gun will travel reads the card of a man ¶" "¶ a knight without armor in a savage land ¶" "¶ his fast gun for hire heeds the calling wind ¶" "¶ a soldier of fortune is the man called paladin ¶" "¶ paladin, paladin where do you roam?" "¶"