"Ronson, you're a bushwhacker." "My back's not turned." "I'm not asleep." "I know both ends of the gun," "And that's not the way you like it." "Hey boy." "I come back, help you get ready." "I'm not going anyplace, hey boy." "Oh, yes, you are." "Good-bye, hey boy." ""general crommer, not expected to live," ""suggests, to your financial benefit," ""to attend him immediately." "Beauregard crommer."" "Huh." "Want some more caviar?" "It's the greatest thing to come out of russia" "Since the news of the death of ivan the terrible." "Later, thank you." "Bad news?" "Well..." "A man is dying." "I'm afraid I'll have to excuse myself." "But I thought..." ""the feast of the rose" ""is in the eyes and the nose" "And not in the lips."" "Soon?" "Hey boy." "I'm looking for beauregard crommer." "You have that pleasure." "My name is paladin." "I'd like to freshen up." "Of course." "Grandfather's sleeping." "Show mr." "Paladin to the stable." "This way, please." "Eavesdropping?" "Well, that's hardly necessary." "What's all that?" "Cousins, nephews, grandchildren." "They're rather festive" "For a house of death, aren't they?" "Grief, mr." "Paladin." "That's a bourgeois notion." "Only the poor are to be pitied in death" "Because they fail to inherit." "Sir, the general has asked for you." "It's the door on the right." "Thank you." "Paladin?" "That's right." "Sit down." "I suppose you met" "That bunch of swaggering, posturing box of relatives." "Now I doubt there's much point" "In our discussing that herd of swine." "You hate me, don't you, paladin?" "I dislike you." "That's more like it." "Mine ain't loaded." "You really don't like me, huh?" "No." "Paladin, you're about as charitable as a water moccasin." "General, I saved your life under fire." "I had to employ a loose interpretation of orders" "To do so, and you had me court-martialed for it." "I don't like to owe a debt I can't pay." "Well, you chose a peculiar way" "To try and cancel it." "I don't know why you're mad." "You handled your own defense." "You did it so well, you not only got off," "But you got me court-martialed and cashiered." "You almost put me in jail." "I still don't understand how you managed to avoid it." "Old now, paladin." "Old." "Not much time left." "The other day," "Reading the dedication to "la saisiaz..."" ""best to forget, good to forgive." "Living we fret, dying we live."" "Years ago, antebellum," "Had a partner named caterall in a gold mine deal." "I decided to kill him." "To make a long story short," "I missed him." "That horn toad plugged me right in the stomach." "Left me for dead." "That sounds fair to me." "I mentioned you in my will." "Caterall, too." "Will you ride over and tell him?" "Why don't you wire him?" "He lives in san anoi." "No telegraph." "Well, write him a letter." "Wrote three, no answer." "Probably tore them up, unopened." "I'm mentioned in your will?" "In black and white." "Why me?" "Why anybody?" "As long as I'm buying your forgiveness," "Might as well get something for it." "I'll go up and tell him on one condition." "What condition?" "That I be disinherited" "And instead given $5,000 in cash." "Bad deal." "I considered you for much more." "Give the rest to charity." "You!" "Skinny one!" "Get in here!" "His name is beauregard." "'gard!" "Get in here!" "Yes, grandpa?" "Give paladin $5,000." "I'm sure you know where the strongbox is," "And stay away from my door," "You nauseating castoff." "Howdy." "I'll have a whiskey." "A man named caterall ever come in here?" "Oh, from time to time." "He lives in this county." "How do I find him?" "Why don't you just sit here?" "He'll probably come in, by and by." "Thank you." "Seat open?" "Help yourself." "Thank you." "He's here." "Waiting for you." "Where?" "The saloon." "Dig up ronson." "Tell him I'll see him tonight." "You looking for caterall?" "Mm-hmm." "What's your business?" "Why do you want him?" "You caterall?" "I, uh, I'm his foreman." "Will you take me to him?" "I'll tell him you want to see him." "Might not be back off the range for a couple of days." "Thanks." "I'll be here." "You wanted to see me?" "He sent up another one," "Just like his telegram said." "Another one?" "Don't he ever get tired?" "Evidently not." "Have any idea who this one is?" "His name is paladin." "Paladin?" "Never heard of him." "Look mean?" "More so than the others." "Hundred dollars?" "$150." "Why the jump?" "Well, the general seen what happened" "To the other three." "This is like to be a cut above 'em." "How do you want to handle him?" "Just like I did the other three." "I know how to handle these youngsters." "How do you want your money?" "I want a half of it right now," "And the other half when he's laid out on the bar" "Looking up at a roulette cover..." "And not seeing it." "What's this fellow look like?" "If you ain't gone in a half hour," "I'm gonna kill you." "Well, I don't think I ever heard it put more succinctly." "Well, I mean it." "Why?" "Because..." "I'm in the same business you are." "I'm not mad at anybody." "I just have a message to deliver to a man." "Well, I made a better deal than you did." "All I got to do is to get rid of you." "You've got to get me out of the way" "And then get rid of caterall to get paid." "I don't want to get rid of caterall." "Well, I want to get rid of you." "Well, I guess you'd better get at it." "Go for your gun." "Nope, not till you holster yours." "Now?" "Nope." "Now how about it?" "No, I'm not going to provide your defense on a murder charge." "No, you ain't gonna do nothing." "Then get out of town." "Half hour, you hear?" "I'll take ronson $85 to $100." "Give 2-to-1 odds." "3-to-1 odds." "I'll take the man in the fancy jacket." "Any amount, one... 3-to-1." "Well, dealer, I do appreciate your faith" "And confidence in me at odds of 3-to-1," "But you might as well give that money back." "There isn't gonna be any fight." "You're gonna cut and run?" "Nope." "Well, then the next time you see ronson," "You better be ready." "Otherwise you'll be dead." "That old man really dangerous?" "Like a rattlesnake in your vest pocket." "And you bet on me?" "Because I'm going to tell you how he operates." "That's something the other three didn't know about." "What other three?" "What, did he tell you you were the first one?" "Did who tell me?" "The fella who hired ya." "The one that done cutting under caterall." "General crommer?" "Yeah, I think that's the name." "Who were the other three?" "Well, one was hargreaves;" "one was crandall;" "I forget the other one." "Those men weren't gunfighters." "They were businessmen." "Yeah, they sure looked like it when they tangled with ronson." "Look, when you meet him," "Don't let him get too close to you." "That old man won't get within a mile of me." "I'll convince him I don't want to kill caterall." "Well, that's gonna be kind of hard to do" "With a mouthful of buckshot." "Buckshot?" "He was wearing a gun belt just now," "But that's to throw you off." "Next time you see him, he'll be carrying" "A double-barreled shotgun, sawed off." "Mighty effective at close range." "Now the thing for you to do is to get into an alley" "And get behind him." "Friend, you stick to your gambling." "I'll stick to my business." "Excuse me." "Here's the best gun we have." "Won't do." "I want the longest barrel you've got." "That second gun's all right." "This here's a fine gun." "$20." "I don't want to buy it." "I just want to rent it." "For how long?" "15 minutes?" "A dollar sound all right?" "Any shells?" "A dollar a box." "How much apiece?" "A nickel." "I'll take two." "All right, paladin!" "Time's up!" "Come on out." "Take care of this for me, will you?" "Where do you want it sent?" "If I don't claim it, frame it." "I didn't know you was a bird gun man." "I heard you were one." "I hate to kill ya." "You won't have to." "Just hold it right there." "We ain't in fighting range." "You're not, but I am." "Now hold it there!" "You see the length of this barrel?" "That's the first thing I seen." "Well, why don't you just forget about it." "I don't want to kill you." "Well, I don't aim to let ya!" "No whippersnapper pushes me." "Ronson, you're a bushwhacker." "You'd shoot a man in the back of the head or an elbow." "I'm not asleep and my back's not turned." "You're out of your element." "I know both ends of this gun, and you don't like it that way." "Oh, paladin," "That's all in the past." "Last three men I faced head on" "And you're gonna be the fourth." "Now hold it right there!" "You make one more move and I'll blow you in two." "I ain't a-scared of you, paladin." "I ain't a-scared of you." "The whole town knows I ain't a-scared of ya." "Idiot." "Ronson was a frightened fool." "Oh?" "You have to be frightened to show courage." "You have to be a fool not to run." "Perhaps we're all frightened fools." "Perhaps." "What kind of man is caterall to hire ronson?" "The kind that's going to make sure he's not going to die." "Well, mr." "Caterall," "You become brave very conveniently." "I'm not a brave man, mr." "Paladin." "I'm not very fast with a gun." "But I intend to be very slow to die." "It didn't ever occur to you" "That I might have come here" "For some other reason than to kill you?" "No." "Didn't crommer hire you?" "He did." "That's like the general." "Always gives fair warning." "He telegraphed he was sending you up to get me." "He always did." "He telegraphed?" "Four times." "Doc, let's get this finished up." "Caterall, you and I may have some information to exchange." "Welcome back, sir." "Thank you." "You're back?" "Somehow you seem less fierce without your gun, mr." "Paladin." "It's dangerous to wear a gun if you can't use it." "I resent your effrontery of three days ago." "I demand satisfaction." "When I give a man satisfaction," "He's seldom satisfied." "When that idiot comes to," "Tell him I'm at the carlton hotel in san francisco." "I'll give him his choice of weapons." "We'll make a side bet of $10,000." "I have a price for swatting flies." "Who is it?" "Paladin." "Then caterall must be dead." "Sit down, paladin." "Caterall's not dead." "He's forgiven." "Forgiven?" "Forgiveness isn't involved, is it, general?" "Caterall and I won over you." "Hargreaves took you in a railroad stock deal." "Johnson got the best of you" "In those land right-aways, didn't he?" "You were pitting your victors against one another." "Being forgiven is probably the worst curse of all." "The damning evidence," "The final admission that you've been wrong," "Must be forgiven your weakness." "And you're the one that has to be forgiven." "You're pitiful, pathetic, wrong." "You tried to get me killed, and I forgive you that." "You're old." "You're twisted by old hates." "I won, paladin." "I won." "You won what?" "That sorry crew downstairs" "Counting the seconds you have left?" "Honor?" "Reverence?" "What did you win?" "The right to die in undisputed arrogance?" "You didn't even win vengeance." "Paladin, you..." "General, I forgive you." "From my heart, I forgive you." "I can forgive, general." "You've lost again." "Now you know, general." "Now you know."