"Whoa." "I'll get this ear and you get on." "Whoa." "Let me get my seat, now." "Whoa, now." " You got him?" " Yeah." "You got him, you got him?" "All right." "Go!" "You let him know who you are, boy!" "Yeah, boy!" "You got him, Joe." "You got him!" " That's it, Joe." " Whoa." "Kid looks pretty good." "Well, hell." "Yeah, I taught him everything he knows." "How was the war?" "Well, it was all right." "How was prison?" "Glad to be out." "I'll bet." "Dock still in?" "They might let him out of jail someday if he'd stop trying to escape." "You'd have done pretty good if you hadn't pulled leather!" "Like hell I did." "I ain't never touched a saddle horn in my life." "Howdy, Willis." "Little brother Joe done went and shot up like a weed." "Happens that way." "Hey, you want to try a ride?" "Hell, no, I don't." "I leave that to you and big brother Jess here." "Say, what is the going rate these days to get your brains beat out on a saddle?" "Same as always." "Dollar a day, beans, and hay." " How long you been out?" " About a year." " Doing what?" " White boy picking cotton." "Ma's gonna be happy to see you." "Hey, ma!" "Will's home!" " Pa around?" " Oh, no." "I ain't seen him in weeks." "He's off chasing honey ponds and fritter trees as always." "That'd be James w." "Newton, all right." "Everybody says he's a good man." "Just can't nobody figure out what he's good for." "Ma, I've been dreaming about your squirrel dumplings for four years." "And that's the last one, son." "Almost finished breaking the ferguson Colt?" "Yes, ma'am." "He ain't that tough." "I reckon we'll have about $10 by the end of the week." "Yeah, he still owes us four from last week." " You gonna go get it?" " Yeah." "I will." "Willis, are you gonna stay on?" "You can help us break some horses." "No, you let Willis finish his dinner." "No, little brother." "I'm just staying a bit." "Besides, I ain't horse-crazy like you boys." "Well, it's nice to see you ain't changed, Willis." "Well, you should have seen her, ma." "We was all set up." "Talking about getting married, living on the 40 acres, the whole bit." "And then some old jealous rat went and told her old man that I'd been in the penitentiary, and that was it." "Cut me off, couldn't see her no more." "He still wanted me to stay on and work his crop." "Hell, I was the best cotton picker he ever had." "Just didn't want his beautiful daughter hooked up with an ex-con, was all." "A man gonna tell me that i ain't good enough for his daughter, but I'm good enough to work his crop?" "I said, "to hell with you."" "I know it ain't fair, son." "But maybe you should've stayed and tried to work it out." "How?" "How, ma?" "Like I tried to work it out up in cottonwood?" "When folks that knew me all my life stood up, testified against me in a court of law and I ain't done nothing?" "I'm gonna work some things out, all right, ma." "You just watch me." "If it ain't fair when it's all said and done, it's gonna be unfair on my side of the fence." "Guide us to thy side, lord guide us to thy side the pathway of the lord's angels can have no earthly goal but good are cold and silver win the devil wins your soul guide us to thy side, lord" "guide us to thy side take wish god will pave, his hour is now known" "but he helps those that help themselves and protects the weak from strong." "So where do you know this fella from?" "We were in the pen together." "His brother stole some cotton, drug him down with him." "He didn't do nothing." "Kid's green, but he's got guts." "This here's my business associate." "How do you do?" "Brentwood glasscock." " Willie Reed." " Nice to meet you." "You as well." "There's been a slight change in plans, fellas." "I went out there and got it set up." "We're going in at 12 noon instead of 12 midnight." "Slim, I didn't travel 300 miles to stick a gun in someone's face." "Then you can hold the horses." "Night jobs is too much work anyhow." " Well, I ain't afraid of hard work." " This'll be a milk run." "Mr. glasscock?" "The chief wanted y'all to have a drink on him." " It's Napoleon Brandy." " Thanks." "Heard they hit another pool south of town." " Yes, sir." "They sure did." " Who's "they"?" "Chief baconrind, one of the osage millionaires." "Last year, they wouldn't let him in here, but the policy's changed." "Yeah?" "Why's that?" "He bought the place." " Oil, huh?" " Mm-hmm." "To Oklahoma, gentlemen." "The sooner state." "The sooner we get out of here, the richer we're gonna be." " You ain't gonna drink that?" " No." "Lordy, Indians drink anything." "I prefer to go in at night." "There's more time to do your work, and there's a lot less people." "Look, there's an easy way to do this and a hard way." "As long as I'm leader of this outfit, we're gonna do it my way." "Which way is that, slim?" "Why don't y'all relax?" "I got this sheriff's pecker in my pocket." "We just cut him in on the take, that's all." "I still prefer nights." "Thanks a lot, Alvin." "See you next year." "Thank you, Mr. Williams." " Howdy." " Howdy." "Can I help you, sir?" "This here's a bank robbery and I want all your money." "Hands up, everybody." "Come on." "Howdy." "Do us both a favor and just keep walking." "Come on." "Lock him in that vault and get that boy out of there." "Come on!" "Let's go!" "They're leaving!" "Why is this happening, slim?" "Jesus!" "Double-crossing bastard." " Yeah?" " Glass, open up." "It's me, Willis." " You all right?" " Yeah." "Anybody see you come up here?" "No, I come up the back." "That's avis, my wife." "Avis, this is will Reed." " Howdy." " Hello." " Pleased to meet you, ma'am." " Charmed." "Sorry to wake you tonight." "Well, they got slim." "I know." "Newspaper didn't say nothing about him being dead, though." " What did we get?" " What did you get?" "Nothing." "I got out alive." "Well, if all we got's mine, it's not a hell of a lot." "Just some damn victory bonds." "If we got expenses for slim, there's not more than a few thousand there." "It's not worth all that aggravation." "I'm with you on the idea of these night jobs, glass." "Yeah, now, I figure that damn Jesse James routine we pulled..." "Hell, that was over at the turn of the century." "I tried to tell that idiot there's less risk in night jobs." "Especially if you work the smaller banks." "But we're gonna get the big banks because that's where the money's at." "The difference is, we got to do it right." "Yeah, yeah, we got to scout our locations." "We got to get the best cars, gotta keep new tires on them, and plan our routes." "I can take care of the getting in and getting out..." "And you got the Nitroglycerin, right?" "Oh, yeah." "So that's where you keep that stuff." "Yeah." "Avis is rather fond of keeping it under the bed." "Aren't you?" "These look promising." "None of those are traceable." "I suppose I could give you 70 cents on the dollar." "Ninety." "Eighty, and I promise never to tell anybody where they came from." "Eighty would be good." "Eighty-five would be better." "And we promise never to rob your little bank." " Deal." " Deal." "You know, I'm retiring next month and I've got some information here that might be valuable to boys in your line of work." "It's a few square-door safes i know about in this part of the country." "'Course, it'll mean a little investment on your part." "Can I help you?" " I like that red cross pin, avis." " Thanks." " You a nurse?" " I was." "That's how I met Brent." "One day he was just another patient and then I ran off with him, and, well, here we are, casing a bank." "He takes all them powders and stuff." "He ain't sick or nothing, is he?" "No, it's just him." "I wear this for luck." "How's she look, glass?" "That list is genuine." "I knew that old man was an honest criminal." "We can punch through the drum." "The box is an old rotten packer." "You can blow her with the grease, yeah?" "Oh, yeah." "Anything with a square door." " It'll take it off there in one pop." " All right." "What else is on that list?" "Well, we got 41 banks here." "I figure we wait till these marks are flush with that harvest money..." "And then we take them..." "One by one." "That's good." "Very good." "Who's gonna handle security?" "Now we need security?" "While we're in the bank, someone's gotta be outside and watch our backs." "We'll find somebody." "I reckon I know some fellas we can count on." " What?" " I want a soda pop." "We'll get a soda pop." "Would you look at this?" "My goodness." "Welcome to Omaha, boys." " Howdy, Willis." " What do you say, little brother?" " You look good." " Yeah?" "I feel good." " Jess." " Look at Willis, the city slicker." " You like that, boy?" "Like that?" " Well, yeah." " Why'd you bring all that horse stuff?" " You said you had a job for us." "Well, I do have a job for you." "Just not that type of job." "What do you think of Omaha, boys?" "Looks good." "Everything looks good from the seat of a studebaker." "Oh, my." "Oh, my." "Hello, darling." "Say good-bye to daddy there." "Say hello to me." "Oh, my goodness." "I like this town." "Look out!" "Yep, it cost $1,900 off the showroom floor, but this one's an even two on account of these custom disks." " Can you handle a car like this, Joe?" " Couldn't do no worse." "Good." "That'll be part of your job." "Let's get you boys dressed." "I don't know about this, Jess." "Well, let's string him along for a little while." "Yeah, you're looking sharp." "Look at him." "Look at him." "Look at him!" " What do you do for a living?" " What do you do?" " I'm a manicurist." " You are?" "A manicurist." "All right." "What do you think of these nails here?" " You need to come in." " They need some help, don't they?" "Hey, don't you look all spiffed up!" "I was gonna say the same thing about you." "Fellas, let me introduce y'all to these two fine ladies." "This here is Catherine and this is Madeline." " Howdy, ma'am." " Joe and Willis." " Hi." " So what business are you boys in?" "Well, that's a mighty fine question." "Exactly what kind of businessman are you, Willie?" "A damn successful one." "Now, are you all coming?" "Would you like to join us for dinner?" " Sure." " Okay." "Well, all right." "Now, I don't tell a lot of people this, but I am good friends with pancho villa." "No, it's the truth." "That's true." "He comes to Texas all the time, i go to Mexico, we drink together." "He's always catching hell in the papers." "I'm telling you, he's a great man." "A great man, pancho villa." "A friend of mine." "You ever had a steak so thick?" "Mm-mm." "No way, Willis." "I ain't never broke the law in my life." "The saddle's hard, but at least it's honest." "I ain't never broke the law in my life neither, little brother." "And they gave me three years for it." "What about them watermelons and chickens?" "That hog?" "I ain't talking about that." "You're talking about taking people's money." "Not people's money." "The bank's money." "Banks have been dealing dirt to our people since before we was born, little brother." "It's time we dealt some back." "Farmers got their money in them banks." "Insurance companies." "See, all the banks is insured now, and that's who takes the loss." "Hell, they are the biggest crooks of them all." "We are just little thieves stealing from the big thieves." "That's all." "Have you turned the little baptist yet?" "We've got two pieces of cake over there, and they do have a friend." "It just don't figure up to me, that's all." "Pa's been doing his clean-living routine." " It's rubbing off on the kid." " Yeah." "Well, if the kid ain't up for it..." "Well, it ain't like I'm afraid or nothing." " How's it look?" " Pretty dead." "Yeah?" "Only an idiot would be out on a night like this." "I don't know, Jess." "If somebody comes, i don't think I can pull this trigger." "Listen, Joe, we're gonna do what we talked about." "We're not gonna kill anybody." "That's why we got these loaded up with bird shot." "Just gonna get this over with, and then we're gonna get back to that cake." "All right?" " All right." " All right." "You light the fuse right after you pour it, and you've got to pour it very steady." "Because if you get a gap in that liquid..." "It's gonna blow off crooked and jam up." "See, dynamite blows out in all directions, but nitro shoots straight out." "Anything that's not nailed down in here is going right out that door over there." "How long you been doing this?" "Too damn long." "According to the odds and the gods..." "You only get to make one mistake with this." "Then they walk around the edge of the crater..." "And if they find a finger or toe..." "Well, that's what they bury." "We should probably leave now." "What if they blow themselves up in there?" "Well, I reckon you'll be the first to know." "Whoo!" "Stop that noise!" "Who are you and what are you doing down there?" "Go back to bed, lady." "I got a fire siren up here." "Do you hear me?" "Yeah, well, there ain't no fire." "And if you don't tell me what you're doing," "I'm gonna crank it up." "You touch the damn siren, woman, I'm gonna blow-- sorry to wake you, ma'am." "We're repairmen." "We're down here trying to fix a lock." "Oh, no, you're not." "Not at 2:00 in the morning." "Look, you touch the damn siren," "I'm gonna blow your whole building to kingdom come!" "Hey, I said turn that off!" "You're bank robbers, that's what you are!" "You're bank robbers!" "Somebody catch these men." "They robbed the bank!" " Don't make me come up there!" " You're mean, you know that?" " Somebody stop these men!" " Whole damn town's gonna be here in a minute." " Jess!" " What?" "Get in there and carry that silver." "We're getting it all." "Whoo!" " Where?" " Behind the smoke!" "Catch them!" "They robbed the bank!" "That's my money in that bank!" " Well, it's our money now." " No!" "Go back to bed!" "All y'all!" "All is well." "All is well." "Let's go!" "Pick your feet up, boy!" " It's like lead shot, Willis." " Hell, when I was your age," "I could've passed you running backwards with that load, Joe." " Get it all?" " Still a calendar in there." "Look at them idiots shooting at each other!" "It's a hell of a way to make a living." "Whoo!" "I wanna ship this back to Texas, miss." "Well, whatever you say, Tex." "Ain't you a little young to be running a hotel?" "Well, ain't you a little young to be staying here all by yourself?" "Yeah." "Good evening, ma'am." "What can I get for you?" "You got any out-of-town papers?" "No, sorry." "You might want to try the depot." "I tell you what." "How about that one right there?" " "The police gazette"?" " Yeah." "Sounds good." "Let me get that for you." "I was gonna say only criminals read the tabloids, but you don't look like any criminal I ever met." "Well, you'd be right about that." " Nickel for the paper?" " Yes, please." "So, what's fun to do in Omaha?" "Well, you could chew gum." "It's been nice chatting with you, but I have to close up now." "Looks like we're going to the same place." "Piece of wrigley's?" " Hey, Louise." " Hey, Kat." "How are you doing?" "Howdy." "Will Reed." "Old friend of Louise's here." " Hi there." " So how do you two know each other?" "Well, that is a wild story." "I'll let you tell it." "Boy, that is a wild story, isn't it?" "Matter of fact, it was 16 years ago to the week." "I was frog-gigging right down in gracey creek." "I come around the corner and who do I see bogged down to her knees in mud with a frog stuck on the end of her gig but miss Louise here." "Boy, we got a lot of catching up to do." "Yeah, I guess we do." "We do." "Louise, frog-gigging" "two on a match?" "No, thank you." "I make it a habit to stay too busy." "Busy doing what?" "Gigging frogs?" "No, I'm an oilman." "Really?" "You have oil Wells and all that?" "Yep." "Working on one right now." "She's a real wildcat." "You have quite a line, Mr. Reed." "Well, my friends call me Willis, Louise." "Say, you ever heard of this place called the argosy ballroom?" "Yeah." "What do you say you and I get on over there on Saturday night?" " I have to tell you something." " What's that?" "I have a son." " Really?" " Yeah." " What's his name?" " His name is Lewis." "He's 10 years old." "His father died in the war." "I love kids." "Why don't you bring him along?" "We'll go to the picture show instead." "Well, I think he would like that very much." "And you?" "There you are." "Sorry I'm late." " Arthur, this is Mr. Reed." " Will Reed." "Pleased to meet you." "Arthur Adams." "Arthur owns the cigar stand where I work." "You ready to go?" "There's more money in that pile than pa made in his whole life." "You got that right." "As long as you're telling this here Louise you're an oilman, why don't you just be an oilman?" "Hell, I will be soon." "If you boys are smart, you're gonna invest with me." "Oil, huh?" "Well, good luck to the both of you." "Any money I make I'm putting straight into stocks and bonds." "You're what?" "Silk stockings and bonded whiskey." "At least till I get myself killed." " You want avis to carry your share?" " No." "Put that thing away, Jess." "Nobody knows us around here." "Yeah, who's that?" "The law." "Looking for a bunch of no-good Newtons." "So you finally wore them tracking dogs down." "God almighty!" "Dock, you son of a bitch!" " They finally let you out?" " "Let"?" " Well, hell, I escaped." " Hot damn good to see you, hoss." "It's good to see you, brother." "Well, who's this?" "Joe." " Your brother." " Joe!" "Joe, I haven't seen you in a long time." "Well, damn if this don't call for a celebration." "Willis, you weren't lying in that letter you sent me?" "Hell, no." "Got 5,000 in cash and 3,000 in bonds on this mark here." "Well, to hell with picking cotton." "God damn it, Willis." "Joseph,joseph." "You got my hair, you" "what about Willie hart?" "William hart's good, but I like tom mix better." "Tom mix?" "Yeah, but them outfits he wears is kind of fruity, don't you think?" "He can rope and ride better than any of them." "I want to be a cowboy when I grow up, but mother says i have to stay in school." "Well, your ma's right about that." "You don't stay in school, you're gonna end up picking cotton all your life." "That don't sound like too much fun, does it?" "No." " What's next?" " Could we get a chocolate soda?" "Lewis!" "How about a triple chocolate soda with a big scoop of ice cream?" " Okay." " That sound good?" "I'll race you for it." "Ready, set, go." "Watch it." "There's your ma." "I got him, Joe." "I got him." "It's like a six-pointer." "Yeah." "Some hunting season this turned out to be." "I tell you what, boys." "We hit every bank on this list and I guarantee we gonna make enough money to retire." "Then y'all get to do all the hunting you want." "What do we need that glasscock fella around for?" "There's enough of us." "Well, I'll tell you why, hoss." "'Cause he knows his grease and every damn criminal between Canada and Mexico." "While you two are back there drinking and farting around, him and avis are off scouting the marks." "I think we should get in the booze business." "Everybody knows that all the big money's in bootlegging now." "Yup, and where's all that money gonna end up, Jess?" " I don't know." " In a bank, that's where." "Willis thinks it ain't wrong because all them banks is insured." "To hear him tell it, you'd think we were doing them a favor." "See, if nobody ever robbed a bank, then all them insurance companies would go broke" " because nobody would need them." " That's right." "I take it you ain't working today, Jess?" "What's she read, Joe?" "Fourteen-six, since the last time." "All right." "This getaway map's got to be perfect, Joe." "We oughta be able to drive this route with the headlamps off." "When do we get out, Willis?" "Where's it end?" "When we're millionaires, that's when." "How much is a million dollars, exactly?" "A million, hoss, is a one and that many zeros." "...you got more guns and running, you got more crime, and it just ain't worth it." "You done yet?" "I'm just giving this fella my opinion of this new prohibition." "You ain't any less of a drunk now than was when hooch was legal." "That's exactly my point." "That particular law ain't really doing its job, is it?" "Let's go, Jess." " You got a wife?" " Mm-hmm." " You got kids?" " Mm-hmm." "All right." "Here you go." "Now, if I get arrested, you've got to bail me out." " Mm-hmm." " All right, all right." "Have a good night." "Who knew making money the easy way would be so damn much trouble?" "It's colder than a bull's balls in a blue norther." "It's colder than a day-old dumpling." "Colder than pa's ass at plowing time." "Well, I guess this may encourage folks to write more often." " Well, boys, it's our lucky night." " Oh, yeah?" "Yeah." "I was up on that pole and I was thinking." "I done decided we're gonna get that other bank, too." "Hell, Willis." "I'm tired already." "What are you talking about?" "Both banks?" "Hell, yeah, both banks, and at the same time." "It's so cold out here, there won't even be a dog barking." "Jess, go with glass, dock, you come on with me, and, Joe, you soldiering the whole damn street." "All right?" " Two banks?" " Yeah." "What do you say?" " Okay." " All right." "Glass, what's your watch say?" "Willis, are you positive you can blow that safe?" "Sure, he can." "Why you got to be questioning every damn thing?" "When the 2:40 freight whistle blows, you light your fuse and let's get the hell out of here to someplace a little bit warmer." "Well, let's go, boys." " Willis?" " Yeah?" " Do you know the money's in there?" " It's a bank, ain't it?" "What?" "Stand back and let me show you the two-step method." "What the hell are you talking about?" "Step one." "Step two." "That's an awful big shot you're pouring." "Yep." "Like ma always said..." "God hates a coward." "Whoa, mister." "Whoa, now." "Whoa." " You're gonna have to go another way." " There ain't no other way." "Well, turn around, then." "It ain't safe." "I'm too tired for your nonsense." "Get out of my way, boy." "Giddap there!" "You are a real desperado, Joe." "I told him it wasn't safe." "But you said he..." "He threatened to-- what was it?" "Blow up your entire family with dynamite?" "Well, now, that was just at first." "I can't remember too much, but he was friendly." "Kind of funny." "You know we sent out a posse and that airplane, too." "Oh, yeah." "I know." "Believe me, these fellas are long gone." " Thank you." " Thank you, Mr. aldrich." "I'll buy all of that gum." " Well, hello, stranger." " Hello, Lou." "Matter of fact, I'll buy the whole damn cigar stand." "One of my Wells just come in." " Congratulations." " Thank you." "I was figuring, that bigheaded boss of yours isn't here," "I slip one of these hundreds in the till for the daily profits, sneak you out of here, we take a slow drive in the country." "What do you say?" "Willis, I don't know." " Two hundred." "Three hundred" " Will Reed?" "That's him." "He's one of them." "I'll be back in just a second, love." "Ma'am, gentlemen." "Can I help you with something?" "Come upstairs with us and explain what we found in your room." "Well, I don't see how that's any of your business." "But come to think of it, shouldn't be a problem." "What did they do?" "They just searched me, made me put this on." "Well, get it off." " What for?" " Because you got a-- that's them, all right." "I know them voices anywhere." "Had on that same red sweater." " Thank you very much, sir." " That's what for." "Take him on back down." "Lying son of a bitch!" "I ain't never seen that old man in my life." "Tomorrow morning, you boys are gonna be indicted for robbing the motion picture theater." "If you got a statement you care to make, I'll be down the hall." "Oh, I got a statement for you!" " That old man can't even see!" " Settle down, Joe." "We didn't rob no damn picture show and you know it." "Yelling ain't gonna do us no good at this point." "They got us here." "We got to figure out how to get the hell out of here." "We wasn't within five hundred miles of here that night." "They can't prove we robbed nothing." "Hell, boy, they just did." "Hey, don't you get it?" "This here's a shakedown." "Congratulations on your first one." "They already got that 2,000 from our room." "Which is, I'm sure, three times the amount that was stole from the picture show." "Willis." "All the time I was growing up, you and dock, you was off in the penitentiary and god knows where else." "I never knew it was like this." "Lord help me, I never knew." "Well, it is, little brother." "It is." "But don't you worry, though, because we're gonna get more." "Now, I'm about to show you why we wear our savings account." "Jailer!" "Let me out of here." "I've got a confession." "Sweet boy syncopate your mama all night long with that dixieland strain" "play it down then do it again" "every time I hear that tune good luck says, "I'll be with you soon"" "that's just why I've got the milenberg joys." "Take it, boys." "Oh, oh, I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "I think you're very attractive." "So you're not an oilman, are you?" "What do you mean by that?" "Well, you know, there's talk around the hotel..." "And all that money they found in your room." "All that money?" "Me and my brothers made that money gambling." "You're a gambler?" "No, I am no such thing." "I'm just making money right now playing high-stakes poker and such so I can be that oilman." "You two look like fine young gentlemen." "Why don't you come out here for a second?" "Hey, little darling." "Now, I have a question for you." "What I am is a businessman, like a lawyer or someone playing the stock market." "I'm just making a living." "Do you follow me?" "Yeah, okay." "All right." "I thought you boys said you were oil men." "Oh!" "That's a lie!" "You hear about those two banks 'm Honda, Texas'?" "We did that." "He robbed one, I robbed the other." "We went in there and I said, "let's get them both."" " We're rich." " Yeah, and goddamn you, uncle Sam." "I am a veteran." "I fought the kaiser near single-handed." " My brother, the war hero." " Hell, yeah." "Never got out of camp." " Don't interrupt!" " Just New Jersey." "I can outdrink, outride, and outrope any member of this congregation." "And I will lick any man that says different." "And I will lick you if you say different." "Ninety-four, ninety-five." "Well, hell, yeah, there's a pattern." "One, they've all been robbed." "And two, my company had to pay out." "And now it's up to the federal government to bail you out, right?" "Square-door safes blown with precision, no rough stuff, couple of men outside for security, and the few watchmen they've taken say they're just a bunch of" ""please" and "thank you" country boys." "If I got that much money in two years," "I believe I'd say "thank you," too." "Half the banks are clipping the association for a hell of a lot more than was stolen." "Damn bankers think it's a license to steal now that they're all insured." "You oughta just double the premiums on any bank that won't spring for a round safe." "That's just fine." "In the meantime, what is my government gonna do about this bunch?" "We're after them." "And when we catch them, we're gonna put them away." " Are we there yet?" " Get back to sleep." "You're next." " So how'd we do, anyway?" " I don't know." "We've done better." " We'll do the count in the morning." " All right." "Get some sleep." "'Night, boys." "Willis Newton." "If it ain't my old partner." "Seems you done all right for yourself after we parted company." "Get yourself a top-notch crew and all." "Well, slim, the only crew I got's drilling for oil." " So how the hell are you?" " Can't complain." "Thought we might talk a little business." "So where you working these days?" "Chicago." "Things are hopping there." "Big fix is in." "Cops, politicians, judges." "Hell, they even bought the world series." " Boy, you must be in heaven." " Yeah." "Put you onto some sweet business opportunities." "We even have a mutual friend." "Murray, one of your laundry fellas." "I tell ya, slim, those days are pretty much over for me." "But I do appreciate the offer." "Yeah." "If for any reason things don't turn out how you figured..." "Look me up in Chicago." "There was some creep outside earlier who wanted to talk to you." "It was just some old guy I knew way back when." "What are you doing sitting in the dark?" "Hey, what's the matter?" "What's wrong, baby?" "Willis, do you trust me?" "Whoa, whoa." "Tell me what happened." "Did he say something to upset you?" "No." "I went to the bank today to put your business things in the deposit box." "I didn't want to fold up the oil lease papers, but the box was too small, so I opened it." "Willis, there was so much money in there." "I know you haven't made any money in oil yet and you can't be winning that kind of money gambling." "And I've seen you sign in at hotels under all these different names." "Reed, Rogers..." "I found something in yourjacket that said your name was Newton." "Reed isn't your name, is it?" "Why, Lou?" "I don't even know your real name." "I don't see how that matter much." "You know that's just a part of my business." " Am I just a part of your business?" " No, I didn't say that." "What is your business?" "You know what my business is." "I don't think I do." "Anyway, I put all that money in a savings account." "You what?" "It's too much money to just be put in a box." "Oh, no." "No." "No, no." "You really shouldn't have done that, honey." "Why not?" "The deposit box is in my name." "You put the car in my name." "When it comes to money, you do what I tell you." "But if it's going to be in my name, i think I have a right." "Listen, I got that money from a bank robbery." "From robbing a bank!" "Are you happy now?" "A savings account?" "!" "Are you trying to get me thrown in the pen?" " They can track that stuff, Lou." " You're a bank robber?" "My god, I'm in love with you." "A bank robber?" "And a big liar!" "Don't go acting like I'm the only one that's been telling stories around here." "Don't do it." " What?" " What?" "Like Lewis' daddy being killed in the war." "Oh, yeah." "Well, in fact, he's still kicking around somewhere" " and you're still married to him." " You don't know anything about my life." "You have no idea." "No, I don't, and you sure as hell weren't gonna tell me, were you?" "At least I'm not stealing from anyone or almost getting myself killed." "God damn it, Lou." "I was born into nothing." "Nobody ever gave me nothing, neither." "So it's real simple." "You do what you got to do to get through this world and I do what I got to do." "But you're a bank robber." "Yeah." "I rob banks." "That is what I do." "It's what I'll keep doing until I make enough money from my oil business." "Louise," "I love you." "I want to be together all the time." "When I think about us, I'm thinking about forever." "Then why didn't you tell me?" "I was afraid you'd leave me if you found out." "I wouldn't have left you." "See, no matter how much money you have, you've got nothing if you can't trust someone as close to you as I am." "Do you understand that?" "Yeah." "I tell you what." "This next trip, we're going up to Toronto and I want you to come with me." "What?" "I'm in love with a man and I don't know even know his name." " You do, too." " No, I don't." "Name is Mr. Newton and you are my Mrs. Newton." "The guns go down under here." "You put 'em under a douche bag and the customs man won't touch it." "What about the Nitroglycerin, do you carry that, too?" "No." "Do you ever get afraid?" "I mean, what if they get caught?" "That's not a lucky question." "Evening, ma'am." "Mary had a little lamb her daddy killed it dead now it goes to school with her between two chunks of bread" "Mary, Mary, Mary..." "What?" "Mosler, son of a bitch, is 11 inches thick." "She's shabby, shot, and short and too, too, too..." "When I started out, you could punch through a vault door with a Jimmy bar." "Could they not sing?" "It's gonna take a hell of a lot of explosives to blow that." "That's all right." "We got a hell of a lot of explosives." "Can I be brutally honest with you, Willis?" "Shoot, glass." "Never mind." "Damn." "Son of a bitch looks 11 inches thick to me." "What the hell have we got here?" " How do you get that open?" " You don't." "A month ago, they didn't have a round safe." "These are worthless." "Damn it, glass." "Don't tell me we come all the way to Canada for this." "You blink your eyes and everything changes." "Registered goddamn bonds, controls on explosives, round-door safes, cannonball safes, goddamn bureau of investigation chasing you across state lines!" "Oh, god, what did I do?" "I thought you said you didn't smoke." "I didn't say I didn't smoke." "I said it was a waste of time." "Just like this whole damn trip to Canada." "Well, what about our vacation?" "Hey, come on, let's get off here." "Come on." "I'm glad they're changing the safes." "I mean, you said you were done with all that anyway." "You mean to tell me it's right out there on the street?" "It's the dumbest thing you've ever seen." "These canucks take all the currency to one place, right?" "They count it out, they swap it out, and then walk the shit right back out in the street." " What about guards, Willis?" " There ain't no guards!" " Hey, no guards?" " Just two canucks and a bag of money." " Just stick a gun in their face." " Boom, they drop the bags." " Simple snatch and run." " It'll be just like stealing old tobe Roberts' watermelons." " Hey there, Louise." " Hey, Lou." "Just talking to the boys about a little business." " How are you, beautiful?" " Howdy, ma'am." "I never thought we'd go back to this broad-daylight," "Dalton boys kind of thing, Willis." "What's the matter?" "Your stomach bothering you, glass?" "Ooh, ooh, ooh." "This is gonna be a lead-pipe cinch, boys." "Everybody know what to do?" "I think I know the plan." "You grab the bag and we'll protect you." " So is this the spot?" " Yeah." "Little bit more, Joe, little bit more." "I thought it was right back there." "Little bit more." "We ain't gonna get that one bag." "We're getting all them bags." "Go to hell." "That ain't the plan." "Well, the plan just changed, god damn it." "We're getting it all." "Oh, shit." "Here they all come." "Dock, get that one there, glass and Jess, you take them two, and I got this one coming right at us." "Well, come on, you sons of bitches." "You want to live forever?" "Drop the bag or I'll blow you straight to hell." "Drop it!" "Drop the bag and get your hands up." "Let's go." "Excuse me." "Excuse me." "Give me the bag." "Give me the bag!" " It's a holdup!" " Shit." "Drop it." "I said drop it, god damn it." "You stupid sons of bitches." "Get him!" "Don't move." "Call the police." " Police!" " They've got guns!" "Hold it right there!" "What are you doing with that damn gun?" "Shit!" "God damn it!" "God!" "Get off me, you ignorant canuck bastard!" "Get off my leg." "Get the hell out of here, you son of a bitch." "Get out of here!" "Get off my leg." "God damn it." "Shit!" "Stop them!" "Stop them!" "Jesus!" "Let 'em go." "Get out of here!" " Hold it right there." " Drop the goddamn gun." "Let's go, let's go, let's go!" "Joe." " Come on." "Go." " Drive." " Drive, drive!" " Get dock on the way." "Let's go, let's go, let's go!" " Let's go." " Come on." "Get down, Jess!" "Where the hell were you?" " Jesus." " Damn it." " Oh, gosh." " What the hell was that back there?" "You trying to kill us all, huh?" "What a fiasco." "Everybody in Toronto saw us, Willis." "Well, we sure didn't see you!" "Where the hell were you, you yellow bastard?" "Didn't fire a shot." "Listen to me, you idiot." "I'm not supposed to fire a shot." "You're not supposed to fire a shot." "We're supposed to be backup, Willis!" "You back up any further, you'd be in Chicago." "I'm a professional, Jess!" " I stick to the plan." " Plan?" "What plan?" "Everybody, shut up." "It ain't over yet." "Got it?" "We're gonna see you two back in the states." "Why didn't you just call the radio and tell 'em we were coming, Jess?" " Stupid." " There's some windows" " you haven't shot out yet!" " He had no idea what was going on." " Where the hell was he?" " I know." "I thought you were dead." "They made an announcement at the track." "Everybody's talking about it." " I'm fine." " They said one of the gang was dead." "Nobody was hurt." "We got away." "Willis, we've got to get out of here." "I was so stupid today, Lou." "I wanted it all." "I almost got my brothers killed." "I don't know" "I don't know how we got out alive, Lou." "Hey, I know that gal." "Went to Sunday school with her." "In Parsons." "How much you think was in those bags?" "Whatever it is, it ain't worth it." ""All four wounded bank employees have been treated."" "Bunch of stupid, thickheaded canucks." ""Six bandits got away with an estimated $200,000."" "Hell, maybe 80." "Them damn canucks are pencil-whipping the insurance companies just like back home." "You tell me, Lou, who's the criminals here?" ""They are believed to be American citizens, one of which is thought to be critically wounded." "Police are combing hospitals and doctors' offices, hoping to find a trail of blood that will lead them to the perpetrators of this shocking crime."" "Wouldn't have been no shocking crime if they just would've just dropped them bags like a regular person." "Lou, you coming at me, right?" "You got a bag-- out of nowhere comes a gun." "What do you do?" "Boom, drop the bag." "I pick it up, I'm gone." "How hard is that?" "Goddamn." " Willis?" " Mm-hmm." "You have to promise me this was the last bank robbery." "Damn right it was the last bank robbery." "Because from now on, it's the oil business, and that's it." "You're crazy." "Why don't you tell me about this oil well?" " This oil well?" " Yeah." " It's out in west Texas." " Yeah?" " I even got a name for it." " What is it?" "I'll give you one guess." "Them big outfits been using them high-dollar rotary rigs." "I don't care about none of that." "I put everything I got into this here rig." "Where's my oil?" "Hell, Mr. Wilson, they done stuck too many straws in this soda." "There ain't no pressure left." "Let me see if I got this straight." "I put your ass in charge." "I've been paying you top dollar for over a year now." "I show up today and you tell me i got a chickenshit rig," "I'm getting outdrilled by the bigwigs, and you got nothing to show me for it but a goddamn dry hole?" "No, there was oil down there." "They got it all!" "Ain't a damn thing I can do about it." "Let me just put it to you simple." "Just like an old sow's belly:" "Six tits, seven pigs." "Looks like you're number seven." "Well, so who do we go after?" "Every one of them carpetbagging sons of bitches." "Go ahead!" "That's standard oil over there." "John d." "Rockefeller from New York City." "Right there is Gulf oil, Mr. mellon." "He's a northerner too." "Go on, get him while you're at it." "Big city boys with deep pockets." "Hell, boy, you ain't gonna get enough oil out of that hole to part your hair." "That goes for all of you." "Every one of you lazy sons of bitches is fired!" "Come on, Joe." "Willis, I wish you'd have let me do that." "What the hell you looking at, Betty Crocker peckerhead?" "Either one of you two know where Jess run off to?" "I got a good idea." "Why?" "Let's go get him." "Ladies and gentlemen, it's booger red's wild west show." "It's entertainment for the entire family and education for the children." "You'll see the star-spangled pig..." " First place." " He can't read." "First place." "Three times this week." "Looks good, big snakes, but we got a real job for you." " Are you ready to go?" " Well, I got a job doing what I like." "What, this?" "This ain't real, Jess." "It's a damn zoo." "It is real." "It is real fun." "We're broke, Jess." "Yeah." "What are we gonna do?" "We're gonna rob something." "Yeah, all right." "That well was a duster." " Well, that explains it." " Come on." "You run out of money and you need me, Willis?" "Look at the big oilman go." "Get off me." "What you doing with my bag?" "So you boys lost all your money?" "Well, at least i know where mine went." "There's something i want to ask you boys." "Well, you never ask us anything, Willis." "Why don't you just tell us what you decided?" "Now, settle down." "All right." "All right, it's this." "Banks are pretty much over for us." "They've all gone to cannonball safes." "There's hardly any victory bonds left." "Most folks are putting their money in the stock market these days." "Or oil Wells." "What are we gonna do, Willis?" "I got something in Chicago and, boys, this is the big one." "I still got to check it out closer, but I got fellas working on the inside." " I don't know, Willis." " Yeah." "Hell, Chicago?" " What's wrong with Chicago?" " I don't know." ""Hell, Chicago," since when you been gun-shy about traveling, Jess?" " I don't like the white sox." " Yeah." "Boys, I'm talking about getting out of this game." " We are out of the game." " I'm talking about a couple of million." " A couple of million dollars?" " Well, now that's interesting." " That's a lot of money." " That is a lot of money." "Yeah." "I'm talking about our children and grandchildren" " not growing up on dirt." " We won't have no kids we get killed." "Ain't nobody gonna get killed." "So banks are over for us." "So what?" "What are we doing but getting desperate?" "That's when it gets dangerous." "You know that, Willis." "This ain't gonna be no Toronto, Joe." "I promise you that." " Well, I only got one question." " What's that, hoss?" "Boys, do you know the money's there?" " Aw, Joe." " Joe!" "I can't believe you lied to me again!" "That's before I got swindled out of my oil and lost $100,000." "Besides, Lou, I said no more bank robberies, didn't I?" "This here's a train." "It's safer." " Oh, god!" " I can't quit while we're busted." "You promised me no more jobs." "You said you were finished with that." "Well, I wanted to be and I should have been." "Hell, I lost almost everything we had trying to be legitimate." "God don't want me to be legal, Lou." "I've tried and tried my whole life." "My whole life and I keep getting pulled back in." "But we still have more money than most people do." "You know we ain't most people." "Besides, I owe the boys something." "They're not the ones who want the money, Willis, you are." "Yeah, I am, but I'm the one who's got to take care of everyone." "Will you forget everyone else and think about yourself?" "What's wrong with you?" "Do you think you're the only man who got a raw deal in this world?" "No, but I'm the one who's not gonna take it lying down." "You see?" "You're never gonna get out of this." "Go on." "You go get your million dollars, but someday you are gonna be alone, Willis Newton," " starting in about 10 seconds." " Lou, stop, stop." "Get out of the car." "Get out of the car, Lou." "We're going to mother's." "Don't you bother us." "I want to stay with Willis." "See?" "See?" " What do you want?" " Name's Willie rice." " Friend of Murray's." " Come on in." " Hey, Willie." " Murray." "Glad you could make it." "Any trouble finding the place?" " None at all." " Good." "Come on." "Wait'll you hear about this setup." "It's the sweetest deal i have ever stumbled over." "I grew up with this bird." "Bill fahy's the name." "Little punk kid out back of the stockyards." "Puny little bastard." "Saved his bacon more than once." "Anyway, he goes legit and becomes a postal inspector, of all things." "Then two months ago, they transfer him from D.C." "Back to his old neighborhood." "He likes the girls and he likes the ponies." "Now, with the girls, you pay them enough, they always finish in the money." "But the ponies..." "He's in deep with some serious people." "More than a postal inspector makes in a lifetime." "Anyway, he comes to me, and he says" "Jimmy, I get the picture." "Let me introduce you." "I want you to meet somebody." "Don't tell me your name." "It doesn't matter." "You're a friend of his or he wouldn't even buy the first round, chiseling bastard." "Nice girls, huh?" "Hey." "It's the man i was telling you about." "The one that's gonna help us out." "Details, details." "Hey,buddy." "Details is my middle name, all right?" "That's why I want to know everything there is to know about this mail train that I've been hearing about." "I'll supply the guys, the gas, the guns, the guts." "You boys can sit back and split even with everybody on the ground." "Can you handle that?" "Yes, sir." "Good." "The consignments come down every Thursday on the 57 train." "The Milwaukee registers are the pay dirt." "Last week, it was 63 bags..." "Insured for three million." "And sometimes the federal reserve loads extra bags at the last minute." "I'm gonna check all this out, then do some planning on this train." "Afterwards, any laundry work needs doing on the bonds or the new mint money, you take it at five percent, Murray." " Ten." " Seven and a half." "Done." "It's gonna be dark out there tonight." "So I think it's a good idea if we wear these light hats so we can identify one another." "How do we know we're not being set up?" "Shit, Joe." "Wait." "We're from Texas, and these fellas must know plenty of thieves in Chicago." " Yep, and the thieves know them." " Chicago's run by the mob, Joe." "Irish, Italian, whatever." "Someone makes a score, they got to fork a big chunk of it over." "A bunch of country boys like us ride in there, do the job, and we're gone." " They get no tax from the big boys." " Gone." "Mail train's a federal offense, Willis." "Federal." "Joe, breaking the law's breaking the law." "We ain't talking no little robbery here." "No, we sure as hell ain't talking no little robbery here." "And when the heat's on, we got our friend on the inside who's gonna be running the investigation." "I just got one question." "Hell, yeah, the money's there." "Three million dollars' worth." "I just seen it through a little peephole downtown." "God damn it, boys." "This is everything we've been working towards." "We got a job to do here and if we do it right, it's the last one." "It's too much money, Willis." "How do we get away with that?" "It's like killing someone." "They ain't just gonna let it go." " We'll be in Mexico." " You ain't up for it today, Joe?" " I ain't saying that, it's just" " Joe, here's your chance." "You want out?" "That ain't it and you know it." "I'm in." "I'm just asking, are you sure?" "All right." "Boys..." "We're fixing to make history." "All right." "Get up and get off, boys." "This here is my train." "Scram, boys." "The bulls!" "Thought we was the law." "How about that?" "Ten-twenty." "Get your hands up or I'll blow your head off!" "Get them up." "Keep your hands up." "We're stopping this train at the two-mile crossing." "Mister, don't make me blow your guts out because I will." "Now flash it." " Get your mitts on that throttle." " Do what he says, Steve." "What's wrong with you?" "You been kicked in the head by a mule?" "Hold on." "It's going too far." "Damn." "God damn it." "Now look at where we are." "Back it up to where I said in the first place." "Now!" " Sir, it's gonna take a minute." " It better take a quick minute." "Ain't this a hell of a way to make a living?" "Everybody in there, come on out." "What in the hell is going on?" "Keep them hands up." "We're robbing this train." "I was wondering if we'd hit something." " Anybody in there?" " No, just me." "All them postal turkeys is up front." "I'm gonna go see what the hell's going on up there." "Get down off of there." "We're going up to the crossing." " Where is everybody?" " I don't know." "Something ain't right." "That big son of a bitch must have run off." "What the hell's going on with this train?" "Hey." "Hey, drop that goddamn gun!" "At the crossing." "You probably parked on it, you stupid rat bastard." "Coming down with two!" "Coming up with one." "Slowly." " Remember, they got guns in there." " Yeah, so do we." " I got him." "I got him, Joe." " Got him?" "Mail car 2105." "All right, everybody outside now." "Let's go!" "Watch the window." "Damn, don't shoot." "We're out here too." "Jackson, get that poison gas." "All right, you silly bastards." "You're about to wish to god you had come out." "Mister, don't let him kill them in there." "Oh, it's all right." "Nobody ever died from a stink bomb." "Drop them guns, now!" "Come on." " Get over there." " Hurry up." "Let's go." "Let's go!" " You, drop it." " Who's the head honcho here?" "All right, move it, y'all." "In here." "Come on, now." "I'm only after the registered mail and I want every sack of it." " You understand me?" " Yes, sir." "Good." "Let's go." "Talk to me." "Milwaukee registers are all up here," "St. Paul goes back this way, and this section's going to Minneapolis." "There it is." "All right." "Start helping me toss these out and get Milwaukee first." " Every single bit of it, honcho." " Yes, sir." "Coming down." "Where the hell have you been?" "Jesus!" "Some hoosier was trying to sneak off the other side." "Had a shotgun." "God damn it." "I had to shoot the son of a bitch." "Y'all got anybody over there on the other side?" "You've got us all here, mister." " Joe, you got all of them." " All right." "I got him." "Hell, I shot him five times, Jess." "No, no, no." "He's further down the line." "Every one of you will pick up a bag and lug it over to them two cars." " Get going." " Let's go." " Grab two." " Throw it down here." "Put them in the backseat of that car." "Some of you come here and start loading in the back of this car." "Oh, my god." "You idiot!" "You shot dock!" "No, no, I didn't." "That's a hoosier, Jess." "Oh, Jesus." "You shot my brother." "God damn it, Willis!" "Willis!" "Get over here." "It's dock!" " Jackson?" " Yeah." "Go." "I think we can take this guy." "Yeah, you might all could take me, but two or three of you are gonna die doing it." "Now, get back to work." "Easy, dock." "Dock, come on." "Oh, shit." "No, no." "Shit." " God damn it." " He's bleeding to death." "Oh, shit." "We got to get him to a doctor." "You hold it." "We're gonna get you out of here, hoss." "Damn it." "You just hang in there." "You hold on, hoss." "Come on, dock." "Come on, now." "Come on." "Did you get it?" "Come on." "Easy." "Come on, come on." "Get that on there." "Get the hell out of here." "Now!" "Jesus, Willis, i don't think he's gonna make it." "Yes, he is and you're gonna get us a doctor, Murray." "Out here?" "Forget it." "Chicago maybe." "Then we'll bring him to Chicago." "They'll tear the town apart in a couple of hours." "A doctor sees him, he'll call the cops." "Let's keep our heads about this, Willis." "This could blow the whole damn deal." "We'll split the money and cut our losses." "This job ain't finished till dock's taken care of, you son of a bitch." " Bad idea, bad idea." " Take it easy, fellas." "Goddamn you, Murray, you know people." "That's why you're in this deal." "I don't give a goddamn how, but find someplace and you dig somebody up and if you don't," "I swear, you're not gonna make it." "Calm down, Willis." "Calm down." "I know a guy." "Let's go, then, god damn it." "Joe, take dock with Murray and slim." "We'll stash the money." " Eight shares, eight different places." " All right!" "We're gonna trust you with our shares?" "We're trusting you with our brother." "Damn!" "Jesus, Murray, I don't like this." "Somebody had to see us drag this bloody son of a bitch up here." "How is it he's not dead yet, doc?" "I don't know." "Chest wound alone should have killed him." "Went in between his heart and his lungs." "I'll be back tomorrow to work on the fractures in his arms." "Keep your mouth shut and don't get seen." "He wants to win a fiddling contest, that's his problem." "It'd be a good idea if we got the hell out of here, too." "Joe?" "Get." "Hey." "We ain't leaving you, dock." "When you wake up, I'll be sitting right here." "Don't pass nothing till you get to Texas." "Remember, no contact for a year." "He didn't have a hat on, Willis." "God almighty." "Joe." "Visiting hours is over, pal." "Fan him." "Just like the kid." " He's got an anchor on it." " What the hell is this about, fellas?" " What are you doing up here?" " They told me I could buy beer up here." "Come a long way for a drink, Tex." " You got a name, candy boy?" " Yeah, I got a name." "Name's will Reed." "I'm an oilman, god damn it." "I'm throwing a party." "I came here-- party's all over, pal." "We got your buddies two hours ago." "That was an awful big score you guys made last night." "It's too bad half the world saw you guys coming up here." "I'm just a messenger boy in this scheme, all right?" "You two seem like good old boys." "We can work something out here, can't we?" "Is that so?" "I ain't got none of that money, but I can get my hands on a nice chunk of it if you're interested." "They say the value of money is all relative." "This, for instance, is only 10 smackers." "It's nothing compared to the millions you crooks pinched." "But..." "It can pack a pretty hefty wallop." "Time's relative." "You're what, 22, 23?" "You'll be 50 years old before you get out of prison if I don't get some answers." "We got plenty of time." "Because." "I need you, Lou." "Come on." "You can tell me, can't you?" "I know this hurts." "I hope I die first." "Chief schoemaker?" "There's a message for you." " They say it's urgent." " Thanks." "We'll talk later." "Time is running out, pal." "Looks like you've been jobbed." " She'll be here." " She?" "Yup." "She's a business associate." "She doesn't know what this is about." "She's just bringing the money." "Ain't a skirt in the world I'd trust with 20 gs." "I'd be worrying about every time I let her down." "Every time she caught me hanging a story on her." "Women never really forgive you for that stuff." "We've waited a half hour." "She ain't gonna show." "There she is." "I've got the money." " Yeah." "You saw the papers?" " Yeah." "We're just business associates, Lou." "You don't know nothing." " Okay." " I'm getting out of this, Lou." "When the time's right, we're busting Joe and dock out." "All right?" "Hey, Lou." "This one's pretty." "You say you two are just business associates?" "Back off, flatfoot." " It's all here." "Let him go." " Yeah." "Get lost." "Nice doing business with you, candy boy." "Let's have it." "You're in a lot of trouble." "You're coming with me." " Take her down to the precinct house." " Yes, sir." "God damn it." "Backstabbing yankee bastards!" "Couldn't you have counted it a little faster?" "So you're the smart one, right?" "I take a bird like you downtown, you get a lawyer, you post bail." "I never see you again." "No, my friend." "I'm taking you to rockford..." "Where my cousin's the sheriff." "He's got a nice little solitary box up on the third floor." "I think you'll like it." "Unless, of course, you want to tell me where that post office loot is hidden." "So you can go tell the feds about it?" "Most of it." "I'm real sorry to disappoint you, chief, but I ain't talking, unless it's to the man in charge and you ain't him." "Yup, biggest one ever." "Makes quite a splash, this kind of thing." "Well, nobody got hurt but one of their own." "But all them zeroes..." "Yeah." "The public's gonna want to see blood on this one." "What we got to do here is put our heads together and try to figure out who the inside man was." "I'm sorry." "Inside?" "They knew every consignment on that train." "Somebody pretty high up on the inside must have tipped them." "And I'll bet you my paycheck it was someone right in your department." "Huh." "Okay." "Thanks for coming, Lou." "I would've come sooner, but they wouldn't let me." "I know." "Schoemaker give you the list of bad things that'll happen to me if I don't tell him what he wants?" "He said you could go in for life, Willis." "Could." "I mean, if I don't play my cards right." "They said you were in solitary." "Yeah." "How can you bear it?" "I just sit there thinking." "About you, mostly." "I swear, it's like you're there with me, Lou." "I can look into your eyes." "I hear your voice." "I even smell your hair." "I just think about being in the same room with you, Lou." "Not talking or nothing." "Just knowing you're there." "You have got quite a line, Mr. Newton." "I suppose I do." "Lou." "You know all them things i used to tell you I wanted?" "All I want now is to be with you." "Mr. aldrich, i hope this doesn't take too long." "I told my wife that I would try to make it home for dinner." "No, no, it won't take but a minute." "In fact, it's right in here." "Go ahead." "Take a peek." "Son of a gun." "That's strange, isn't it?" "A peephole looking into the sorting room." "Son of a gun." "Anybody could have made this." "Anybody exactly..." "Your height." "Yeah!" "Come on, now." "What did I tell you?" "I ain't never been throwed." "Perfect record." "You owe me 50 yankee dollars." "Hell of a ride, son." "You win." "Well, that horse wasn't near as mean as you said." "I come all the way from Mexico for that?" "Not just that, Jess." "I'm frank hamer, Texas rangers." "Folks up in Chicago would like to have a little word with you." "Hell." "Frank hamer." "Well, frank, how about you let me go," "I'll let you keep that 50?" "I guess not." "You guess not." "Howdy." "Take a good look." " That light's bugging me." " Look familiar?" " Yeah, I know them." " Identify them." "Well, let's see." "This is rube waddell." "That's 'his speaker, Rogers homsby." " Isn't that Ty Cobb?" " Yeah, that's Ty Cobb." "You know this bird?" "Well, looks like he was weaned on a pickle, don't it?" "Shut up." "Do you know him?" "No, I don't, and I wouldn't care to, neither." "You know, Jess, your brothers have spilled the whole deal." "Well, great." "Then you don't need me, do you?" "Sit down." "Look, chief, you are doing a hell of a job on this case." "I want to congratulate you on pulling us all in, but you could squeeze me and my brothers from now until judgment day and you ain't gonna get word number one out of us." "Get out of here." "We got you, we got your brothers, we got Murray, we got slim." "We even tracked down your old pal glasscock at a health spa in battle creek." "Still can't help you, sir." "I'm getting sick and tired of you stupid, closed-mouthed country-- go easy on that stuff, chief." "You're either the smartest or dumbest son of a bitch I ever dealt with." "We've tried it your way for three months and haven't found a nickel." "Let's try it mine." " Hey, Willis." "K.P. Aldrich." " Howdy." "Feel like I know you already." "You met chief schoemaker." " Oh, yeah." " Well, sit, sit." "So you from the federal government?" "That's right." "It's about time." " Uvalde, right?" " Yep." " I'm from Austin myself." " That's pretty country." "That it is." "Look, Willis, I'm gonna put it to you square." "We got to figure some way out of this." "Yeah." "I figure since it's Joe's first offense" "Willis, I got a file as thick as your arm there on jobs you fellas pulled all across the country." "I've been following you boys for a while now." "And I got to hand it to you, Willis." "You sure as hell had yourself one hell of a gang." "But I'm sure some people in the justice department might be interested in digging up some old business." "If I deal, do we walk?" "No, not right away." "Not on this one." "But I could be very, very influential with the judge who is going to do the sentencing." "Give me details." "You and dock won't get more than 12." "Should be out in four." "Murray and slim, they'll probably-- no, them bastards got their own money." "They can make their own damn deal." "What about Joe?" "If Joe and Jess make a good impression in court-- no, no." "See, now, Jess didn't have nothing to do with this." "Hell, he was off running horses" "Willis, we got Jess when he came across the border to ride a pony on a bet." "So don't bullshit me, son." "I'm being straight with you here." "All right." "How much?" "They could get off with a year or so, but for that," "I need all the money back and I need you to hand me that little weasel bill fahy." "You know us Newtons do a lot of things, Mr. aldrich, but there are a few things we don't do." "We don't kill nobody, we don't steal from women and children, and we don't rat." "Somebody's got to, Willis, or we don't have a deal." "May I approach the witness, your honor?" "You may." "Could you identify for the jurors the person in this courtroom who actually masterminded the robbery?" "It's the gentleman sitting there in the brown suit," "William fahy." "He's a liar." "I've never seen this guy in my life!" "I'm being railroaded." "It's not me." "It's them." "It's Willis Newton." "He planned the whole thing with his brothers." "It's him!" "Order in the court." "Sit down, Mr. fahy, or I'll have you removed from this courtroom." "The Newtons will be dealt with soon enough, but since this is your trial," "I suggest you concern yourself with the business at hand." "Willis." "I think this is gonna work." "Well, when it does, you're gonna be talking to an ex-millionaire." "Do you understand the meaning of a guilty plea, Mr. Newton?" "Yes, sir, your honor." "It means we're guilty." "You caught us with the wet finger in the sugar sack, sir." "We're guilty, guilty, guilty, and we're awful sorry we put everybody through this trouble." "See, we're simple cowboys and we don't know much about guns and, you know, train robbing." "It just sort of come along on a lark, if you know what I mean." "Is it true you turned to the fireman and said:" ""Ain't this a hell of a way to make a living?"" "I guess, I guess." "But a fella has to ask himself what's right and what's wrong." "And what we did was wrong." "I suppose we messed up that train robbery about as much as any outfit could." "Even managed to shoot our own brother." "No..." "Your honor, i figure that the Newton boys was never cut out for the wrong side of the law." " You may sit down, Mr. Newton." " Thank you very much, your honor." "Counselor, approach the bench." " Hell of a performance, Jess." " Folks seemed to appreciate it." "Yeah, damn right." "Tell you what, it's a good thing we still got that 35,000." "Actually, we don't have that 35,000." " Did you spend it?" " No, I didn't spend it." "I buried it." "I went out one night with this cabdriver." "He was a great guy." "We found a perfect spot, we covered it up and I come back a couple of days later." "It's daylight, and the whole damn place looks exactly the same." "I can't tell one rock from another." "What you're saying is you got drunk and you lost that money." "I probably had a couple, but that wasn't the thing." "The trouble was, this cabdriver was on a serious drunk." "This son of a bitch-- he didn't even know what road we was on." "He was no help at all." "God damn it, Willis," "I'd been looking for that money every day until they come and drag my ass up here." "Would the defendants please rise?" "I guess you're right, brother Jess." "Us Newtons ain't cut out for the wrong side of the law." "Here they come, here they come!" "Back up." "My first guest is a gentleman who was one of the Newton brothers." "Would you welcome Joe Newton." "Joe?" " How are you, sir?" " Fine, fine." " It's nice to meet you." " Nice to meet you." "I think people thought i was really joking and this was kind of a put-on." " That we were gonna have-- - nothing put-on about this." " This was in 1924?" " 1924." "That you robbed a train." "What train was that, now?" "Now, I wasn't around in 1924." "It's rondout of Chicago, right out of rondout, Illinois." " About 30 miles out of Chicago." " Right." "It was a little station called rondout." "That's where they got the name, and it was a mail train, going west." "Right." "Now, it says you-- in four years, you robbed 80 banks." "Well, we robbed a lot of them." "No, we didn't rob all the banks in Texas." "We robbed 30, 40, but we robbed plenty of them in other states like Illinois, Arkansas, Missouri," "Kansas, Wisconsin, north and south Dakota, and several other states." "We were just like doctors, lawyers, and everybody else." "It was our business to do that." "We never killed anybody and we never wanted to." "All we wanted was the money, to make money." "You lived pretty well, I suppose, when you were..." "Oh, yeah, yeah." "Yeah, we stayed at the best hotels, ate at the best cafes, drove the best cars there was in them days." " Yeah." "A lot of women?" " Well, there's always-- if you got a good car and a pocketful of money and you're a young man..." "That'll help you quick with that." "Nobody never give me anything but hell in my life and I never done anything i been ashamed of doing, either." "I've done some things i was sorry of." "One thing I was sorry of, we robbed a bank up in Kansas and ole boy inside got scared and ran off and left $200,000 laying there." "All he had to do was put it in the handbag." "When I bawled him out, we said, "we got enough."" "I said, "we never get enough."" "I said, "when I go in to get anything, i want to get it all."" "From then on, I went inside." "They was cleaned out when I come out." "When did they catch you?" "Right after the 1924-- right after that-- one of our men-- it wasn't one of us-- but it was one of the men that was working with us." "He got excited, and he-- it had to be excitement." "He went up and across on the other side where he wasn't supposed to be and shot my brother, one of my brothers." " Killed him?" " No, no." "He shot him five or six times with a .45." "It should have killed him." " A .45 is a big-bore weapon." " Yeah." "That should have pretty well-- your brother recovered from that?" "Yeah, recovered and lived to be 83 years old." "Yeah?" "My mother was over in cottonwood one day, and she met my schoolteacher." "I had quit, and she asked her why." "My mother said, "his clothes got so bad, he was ashamed to go."" "She said, "he's the smartest pupil I ever had." "If you send him for an education, there's no telling what he'll make out of himself." "If he don't get his education, there's no telling what he'll do."" "How old were you when you started this?" "Nineteen years old." "Nineteen years old." "When was the first time you went to jail?" "That rondout train robbery." " Yeah?" " Yeah." "I thought you were gonna put that on and stick me up." "You thought I was gonna-- you thought i" "I thought you were." "I thought you were putting your mask on and were gonna sort of-- old habits die hard, don't they, Joe?" "Let me ask you something now." "Looking back on this, if you had to do it over, you wouldn't recommend-- no!" "We was crazy for doing it." "I look back and see then, but you're young then." "Then somebody said," ""why didn't you invest that money into something?"" "I said, "who wants a better job than what we already got?"" "That's what we thought then." "Need money, go rob another bank." " But you wouldn't recommend that-- - no, I wouldn't." "That'd be crazy." "Yeah." "When I first begin to think of robbing banks," "I never thought of hurting anybody." "I knew all of them bankers was rich, and they didn't care about hurting-- they didn't care about hurting us poor farmers." "So why should I care about hurting them?" "Why shouldn't I steal from them?" "It's just one thief stealing from another."