"Go on, breck." "Start." "You've got two hands, one of them holding a gun" "And you're standing on your own two feet." "What do you want?" "An edge?" "That'll be $16.22." "I wonder if I could interest you in a new product that just came in." "It's called "soap"." "You tryin' to make me look the fool, mr." "Caldwell?" "Why no, mr." "Weaver." "I just thought you might find a use for it." "Those ignorant fools." "What can I do for you?" "I want some breakfast." "And a box of.45's." "Yes, sir." "You visiting around here?" "Just passing through on my way home." "I have some business up north." "Must've been pretty noisy business." "Wasn't that a school bell, miss?" "Becky ain't going to that school." "Not 'til that schoolteacher gets out." "Oh?" "What'd she do?" "Have you heard of a man called jackson breck?" "Texas?" "Trying to beat the feds down there after the war?" "That's the one." "He was driving his herd up to wichita," "Passing through here." "He heard what marlee stanton was teaching about the war." "How did she put it?" "Quantrill and his guerrillas," "Miss stanton says they were little more than thieves and murderers." "So?" "Breck rode with quantrill." "He wanted her to retract that." "Said he'd be back, burn down the school" "And ride her right out of town if she didn't." "He'll be passing through here any day." "I take it she hasn't retracted." "Why does she have to stir up a fuss like that?" "She's obviously just teaching history." "Mr. Breck's the one who's stirring up the fuss." "But she had to go around teaching things that cause trouble." "One and one make two." "Do you believe that?" "Sure, sure." "One and one make five." "Wanna argue it?" "No, not that way." "You can say it if you want." "But we both know better." "Yes, we do." "Don't we?" "We also both know that quantrill and his men did some bloody work." "It's history." "Why shouldn't it be taught?" "She don't have to lie about it." "All she has to do is say nothing at all about it." "I don't like the number two." "I want your teacher to leave it out." "She's got 1, 3, 4, 5, 6..." "All the other numbers." "But I want her to leave out two and quantrill" "And any other fact that some people may not like." "Breck and his men mean trouble." "And miss stanton..." "She's the one causing it." "Other than that, it's a lot of talk." "Yes, it is." "Isn't it?" "It's all just talk." "Now where is this school?" "Just past the end of the street." "The flagpole..." "You baiting' me, mister?" "Did breck send you?" "You think I'd ride a thousand miles to burn down a schoolhouse?" "Run a woman over the line?" "Becky, that's a very good job." "I really can't see where you've mended it." "Wasn't that a school bell?" "You'll be late." "Yep." "Did you have to ride far to get here?" "About ten miles." "What do you expect to meet on the trail that you carry a rifle?" "Indians." "Rabbits." "Get over." "'morning." "Where's miss stanton?" "Thank you." "You wish to see me?" "I'd like to speak to you alone." "Miss grubb, kindly copy this lesson on the blackboard." "And the rest of you, read page 18 in mcduffy." "I'll come straight to the point, miss stanton." "I don't like what you've been teaching about the jayhawkers." "The jayhawkers?" "The kansas and missouri patriots" "Who organized to fight for the union along the border." "I understand you've been teaching that they committed" "Many revengeful, vicious, unprincipled acts." "Is that true?" "There's a man who doesn't want me to teach about quantrill and his atrocities." "Now you don't want me to teach about the jayhawker's atrocities" "Merely because they were on the union side." "I will teach the truth as it is." "Not as anyone would like it to be." "Hm." "Good for you." "What?" "I was merely trying to be certain you were telling both sides of the story." "Who are you?" "Here's my card." "Who has hired you?" "And for what?" "No one's hired me." "I thought I'd help you." "Help..." "You." "I'm terribly sorry." "I've been very frightened." "Jackson breck and all his gunmen," "And no one here brave enough to stop him." "Hasn't anyone in this town tried to support you?" "There used to be 18 pupils in there." "I'll rest your mind to this extent." "If this matter is to be settled by guns," "You'll have at least one on your side." "I can't pay you." "We'll call this a civic duty." "As I take the time to vote or sit on a jury." "I think I'd best stay here until we've settled this." "Do you have a cot I could set up in the school room?" "Of course." "You look very tired." "Make yourself at home here." "Thank you." "I must get back to my class." "... Three make nine." "Three times four makes twelve." "Three times..." "Don't stop all this educating' on account of me." "What do you want?" "Mister breck and his party..." "They're coming through here tomorrow." "I rode on ahead to see where they're gonna make that camp fire." "Get out of here." "This here teacher of yours..." "Did she tell you how she lied about quantrill?" "Leave the children alone." "I have not changed history for you." "Haven't you?" "Now look what I went and done." "I made a mess." "But you'll clean it up." "Well, now." "And who are you?" "My name is paladin." "What do they call you when they're being polite?" "Cooley." "That's a name you remember." "I doubt it." "Will you pick up that desk?" "I'm going now." "In your place I'd take back what I've been saying about quantrill." "Pick up the desk." "You wanna try again with that other gun?" "I'm gonna bring back mr." "Breck and a couple of men to finish this job." "Pick up the desk." "I got a bullet in my arm!" "Pick it up!" "Pick the papers up." "All right." "I'm looking forward to our next meeting." "Miss stanton..." "I think you understand the necessity for this." "I hope you can explain it to them." "I believe we were up to three times five." "Three times five makes fifteen." "] three times five makes fifteen." "Three times six makes eighteen." "] three times six makes eighteen." "Three times seven makes twenty-one." "Three times seven makes twenty-one." "Three times eight makes twenty-four." "Three times nine..." "And so ends perhaps my last day in this school." "Tomorrow may bring surprises." "Tomorrow will bring jackson breck and more of his gunmen." "Men like breck." "They always run in packs." "You break any piece off that pack and pure yellow shows through." "You can't fight them all alone." "I expect to have help." "From whom?" "I want you to give me a list of all your students" "And where they live." "Oh." "You think the men in the families will help us." "Well, you're wrong." "You see how they've behaved so far." "They'll have to defend you." "Really?" "Why?" "I'm just a stubborn old schoolteacher." "It's right that you're a teacher." "And a teacher is something very special." "Without teachers, every generation would have to start" "By discovering fire and inventing the wheel." "It's my daughter." "I'll tell her what's right for her." "Why do you let breck tell her what's right for her?" "That's what he does when he says what she shall" "Or shall not be permitted to learn." "I'll do as I see fit." "And I don't see that this is anything for anyone to fight over." "Jason, adults forget that children are learning all the time." "Becky learns not only from what you tell her," "But from the way she sees you behave." "What do you think she's learning right now?" "I've got a lot of people to see tonight." "Becky?" "Good night." "Good night." "Good evening, son." "Is your father home?" "Pa, the man wants you." "He's the one who went to school today." "He won the fight." "May I come in, mr." "Weaver?" "Come along." "My name is paladin." "I'm daniel weaver." "Morris here you know." "My boy, joel." "Frank over there. ] frank." "Since morris told you what happened at school today," "I won't have to fill in on the details." "You want help tomorrow." "That's right." "I'm asking the people this concerns to help." "So how have you been doing?" "Poorly." "I've been riding for six hours tonight." "Talking, arguing, begging." "It's no use, they're all afraid." "You're the furthest south and the last one on my list." "Will you help?" "Sit down." "Sure." "If I was to say no, would you figure" "It was because I was scared of breck?" "Why else would you say no?" "It might be because I figure he's right." "He isn't." "This fight's about quantrill." "What he was and what he done." "Joe there left that arm in chickamauga." "Frank got shot up in gettysburg." "] there was one error in your statement." "This fight isn't about quantrill." "This is about whether a man named jackson breck" "Is gonna burn down a schoolhouse" "And drive a woman out of the county for teaching." "We had a little farm down in georgia before the war." "Then sherman and his army marched through." "And when they'd gone, there wasn't nothing left." "Nothing." "The only difference I can see 'twixt sherman and quantrill" "Is that one did it to the yankees" "And the other did it to us." "Morris." "Morris, did miss stanton discuss sherman's March through georgia with the class?" "Did she tell about the devastation that army caused?" "What did she say?" "Did she say it was a good thing or a bad thing?" "Well..." "She did say it was something terrible." "Then she said the whole war was terrible." "There you are, mr." "Weaver." "Some yankees would think that was sufficient grounds" "For burning down the schoolhouse." "All right, don't rattle me." "I still don't see it's my fight." "If everybody else was to take a stand" "I'd feel obliged to go along," "But I don't see doing their fighting for them." "It's for yourself." "Mr. Paladin, you've had your say and you've got your answer." "You've found a lot of reasons why you shouldn't stand up to jackson breck." "None of them are the real reason, are they?" "Why, what do you mean?" "You're like all the rest." "You're afraid." "Only the rest of them admit it." "You can't call me a coward and just walk away." "Don't tell me you'll fight me." "Tomorrow's my day for fighting." "You see me at the schoolhouse if you want to finish this." "Unless you'd rather shoot me in the back tonight." "No students." "No parents." "There's our support." "Then we'll meet breck alone." "] miss stanton!" "Miss stanton!" "I'm sorry I'm late." "You certainly have been a stranger, miss caldwell." "Get to your desk." "You have two weeks work to catch up on." "Yes, ma'am." "I'll wait out here." "Good luck." "Becky!" "You're jackson breck." "That's him all right!" "I told you we'd bring along enough men to finish the job." "So you're gonna stop me?" "That's the idea." "leave him alone!" "Leave him alone!" "Now see all the trouble you went and caused." "You animal!" "Too bad you didn't pack your clothes when I asked you." "Now they'll just have to go up with the schoolhouse." "Becky!" "Becky!" "Get out, you." "Don't do it, breck!" "Don't do it!" "You leave her alone!" "Git." "Put that thing up." "Look, boys." "We got us here another one." "Turn that man loose." "He's mine." "So you came to fight?" "That's why the uniforms." "We like to dress up for a fight." "All right." "But you'll have to wait your turn." "Mr. Breck got here first." "You others, stay out of this." "Five to one I can't stomach." "All right, breck." "Start." "What are you waiting for?" "You got a gun in that holster." "You got two good hands, you're standing on your own two feet." "What more do you want?" "Want an edge?" "Here, is that better?" "No?" "What's it take to make you fight, breck?" "You only draw on women and children?" "Or are schoolteachers your specialty?" "How about the rest of you?" "Anybody else?" "Do you want to try it again?" "I only got one good arm." "Man wants to make it even, joe." "Accommodate him." "I'm at your disposal, sir." "You get out of here." "Let's go, boys." "No sense all this fuss over a dirt splinter shack" "And an old maid schoolteacher." "Breck." "Would you like to apologize for that?" "All right." "I'm sorry." "Breck." "Let it end here." "Today." "A big man like you shouldn't be hard to spot at all." "Shouldn't be nothin' to it." "Finished." "Not quite." "You called me a coward." "You know why." "You wanted me" "To give you an excuse to come here today." "You're gonna have to take it back just the same." "I never meant it." "I know what you were afraid of." "You were afraid you'd fight for caldwell and his friends." "And they just laugh at you for being a fool." "I'm afraid you're right." "Miss stanton?" "Recess has been long enough." "Miss caldwell, mr." "Weaver, back to your desks." "Go on, son." "It's a fearful waste of time." "You go learn and be a better man than your pa." "Dinner will be at six o'clock." "I expect you all." "Thank you." "Miss stanton, we thank you." "Well, ain't no sense you and your boys riding" "All the way home then back again." "Why don't you set over at my house 'til dinner?" "Come on, daniel." "Well, I don't wanna be unneighborly." "Paladin." "I'll join you." "]..." "Who had joined the host of the crusaders in palestine," "And was pacing slowly along the sandy deserts" "Which lie in the vicinity of the dead sea." "His sircoat born in several places," "The arms of the owner, although much defaced," "These seemed to be a sleeping leopard..." "¶ have gun will travel reads the card of a man ¶" "¶ a knight without armor in a savage land ¶" "¶ his fast gun for hire he's the calling wind ¶" "¶ a soldier of fortune is the man called... ¶" "¶ paladin ¶" "¶ paladin, paladin where do you roam ¶"