""The mustang, symbol of wild courage and independence," ""is still with us on Walton's Mountain."" "Drink it in." "You won't see sights like that, one day soon." "I have not taken advantage of anybody because I have not been on anybody's side, let's get that straight." "If you print this, you are going to lose the election for a very good man." "Well, I think Ep Bridges is a very good man." "They got a mustang." "They caught it." "According to my grandfather, legendary creatures once lived and some still existed on Walton's Mountain." "There were tales of a bear so huge he had no fear of anything, a snake as big as a railroad tie, and a mythical white deer which could be spotted at the edge of the wood on a snowy evening." "One creature we thought was legendary we went searching for one day and found." "There." "Come here." "It's hard to believe, isn't it?" "I'm sure that's a wild mustang." "I can't see making much fuss over a wild horse." "Jim-Bob, a mustang is a breed all its own." "You don't see too many of them around here." "You are looking at a part of history, James Robert." "That's a descendant of the Spanish horses that Cortez brought to this continent." "There weren't any horses here when the Spaniards came." "The Indians learned how to ride them, the settlers learned how to use them." "They helped make this country." "I didn't know there was any more left." "Not even out west." "It's rare." "During the war between the states, some of the cavalry units from the Southwest came up here with some of these horses and they cut loose, run wild up in these mountains." "Just like this." "This one must be the last of his breed." "Well, look who we got here." "That's Ep." "Ep." "What on earth brings you here to these parts?" "Just stopping by for a visit." "I've been trying to call you all over the place." "You've been out shaking hands and kissing babies?" "Well, I guess I am campaigning a little." "Yes." " No need to do that in this house, Ep." " Thank you." "No need." "You've been wearing the county's badge so long that you're a shoe-in." "Well, thank you for the kind words, but this time there's a new wrinkle." "That Glen Oldfield is real competition." "You think so, huh?" "Oldfield." "Been educated up north." "Nothing but a carpetbagger." "He's learned how to charm the fleas off a hound dog." "Well, I wouldn't care to admit it outside this company, but the man does have personality." "He's yummy." "There, you see?" "I'm already in trouble with the ladies' vote." "Yeah, well, not where this lady's concerned, you're not." "Thank you, Esther." "Sheriff, I really could use an interview." "You wanna step into my office for a minute?" "Why, sure thing." "John-Boy, let the man have his lemonade." "We got business to do here..." "All right, let him have his lemonade." "Go on." "I hope you can drink and talk at the same time." " I can do anything." " We'll see you all later." "Come on, Sheriff." " You want some?" " No, thanks, Ma." "I'll have a cookie." ""The mustang," ""thought to have vanished long ago," ""is the ghost of those who opened up this continent." ""The mustang, symbol of wild courage and independence," ""is still with us on Walton's Mountain," ""the last of its kind."" "That's very well said, John-Boy." "Thank you, Grandpa." "I was just using your words." "You put a few of your own words in there." " It's a nice piece of writing, Son." " Thank you." "Takes more than just putting down words." "It's the understanding, the good that's in behind that." "Oh dear, things change so fast nowadays." "Here, look at your headline here." ""Candidates for sheriff."" "There's Ep Bridges, one of the last of his breed." "Old Sheriff Ep Bridges is the kind of man, there's a dispute about a property line, he'd walk over to 'em and say," ""Don't make the lawyers rich." "Just use your common sense."" "Run across a man coming home a little drunk, why, he'd walk him away, maybe give him a new, clean white shirt so he could go home to his family with some dignity." "These new young fellas, they wouldn't do things like that nowadays." "I wouldn't sell Ep Bridges short, Grandpa." "He's got a lot of friends around here." "Yeah, people know what he's like." "Raising those two boys all on his own after Luella died." "Being Mama and Papa and Sheriff." "I don't think any outsider can beat him." "I don't understand what Glen Oldfield is doing here in Jefferson County." "Why did he leave a good law practice in the city to come here?" "Yeah." "What's all this about little people?" "When I hear that kind of talk, something tells me to watch out." "Well, maybe you ought to throw your own hat in the ring." "Nobody'd dare run against her." "Well, if women said what was on their mind more often, things would be better." "You ought to put some of the things your grandparents have been saying in your article, John-Boy." "Mama, I wasn't writing an editorial." "I was putting down the statements of these two men using their own words." "Well, it just seems that Glen Oldfield comes across kind of impressive." "Well, he is impressive." "And Ep Bridges comes across as kind of plain." "He is that." "Well, Son, maybe what your ma is trying to say is if you could find a way to perk up Ep's speeches, you know, and tone down Oldfield's we might have a race here." "Well, just to be fair to Ep." "He's always been nice and helpful to us." "You know what you're asking me to do?" "You're asking me to slant the news." "I can't slant the news, Mama." "It was just a thought." "That's Glen Oldfield." "It is." "Hello, John." "Well, certainly a pleasure to see you again." "Came to thank you for the article in your paper." "Well, it's not really necessary." "I did the same thing for Ep Bridges." "You remember my aide, Arlo Jessup?" " Yes." " Pleasure to meet you." " How are you?" " I'll tell you the honest truth, John." "I had expected to find your paper favoring Ep Bridges." "Guess I stayed in the city too long." "It's good to be home." "Well, that's good to hear." "This is my family." "This is my mother and my grandmother." " Nice to meet you, Mr. Oldfield." " Ma'am." "This is my father here and my grandfather." "My three brothers, Jim-Bob, Jason and Ben." "And my sisters Mary Ellen and Erin and Elizabeth." "There's a whole pack of us." "Well, I hope in time we'll all be on a first name basis." "But meanwhile, I'm not gonna try to fake it." "Ma, maybe these gentlemen could use some coffee." "Be ready in a minute." "That'd be most welcome." "Thank you." "I was told that you actually printed your newspaper out here." "Yes, that's true." "See that shed over there, that's it." " That's The Chronicle." " I'd like to see it." "Sure, come on." "I'll show you around." "He really is something." "What do you think of him, Mama?" "He'll sure enough please the ladies." "Come on." "She's a real old-timer." "Chandler  Price from 1912." " They call her The Snapper." " Why is that?" "Well, to tell you the truth, I don't know." "That's what the man said when I bought her." "How old are you, John?" "20." "Quite an accomplishment for a young fellow." "Well, I'm still paying for it." "I'll be paying for it for a long time." "I think Grandma's probably got that coffee ready by now." "Just a minute." "The profile that John printed up on you." "I think we ought to have some run off as handouts." "Can't think of anyone better to do the job." "I don't mean as a political contribution." "We'd pay you your regular fees." "No." "That's not what I mean." "You don't understand." "I think Mr. Walton would be uncomfortable working on our side." "Having known Ep Bridges for so long." "No offense, we can certainly have it done someplace else." "I don't know about it." "I just..." "We're not asking you to campaign against Ep Bridges, John." "It's a simple business deal." "Just business?" "Well, then..." "I mean, looking at it from the practical point of view, it'd probably be stupid just to turn down business." "Yeah, I'll do it for you." "Sure." "All right." " Good evening, Son." " Hi." "I don't think it's fair, John-Boy." "Ep Bridges doesn't have money for printing handouts." "Mama, I wish you wouldn't jump on me about that." "It's a job." "What difference does it make who does it?" "It makes a difference to the Oldfield fellow." "We got a whole stack of mail." "Most of it is for you, John-Boy." " Letters or bills?" " I didn't open 'em." "Big one's for you, Daddy." "Looks like a whole month's worth all at once." "Well, they can't all be bills." "Can't all be bad news." "Well, wait a minute." "What is this?" "This is good news." "This is an order for advertising." "This is an order for advertising for Miller's Bootery in Rockfish." "You know anyone out there?" "No, I don't know anyone over there." "What is this one?" "This is from Scottsville." "This is an order for advertising from the Paulette Lumber Company in Scottsville." "I can't believe it." "This is a wonder." "From Hastings Saw Works, Richmond, Virginia." "Where have I heard that name before?" "You know what?" "You know where you've heard that name before?" "That is the name on the desks down at the schoolhouse." " That's what that is." " That's right." "Hastings." "It's a contract asking me to build 62 park benches." "From the specifications here, it's an easy profit." "$2 a bench." "I never even bid on this job." "You didn't bid on it, how come they sending you all that?" "Don't you all know who old man Hastings is?" "He is the biggest political wheel in the whole of the State of Virginia." "People we never even heard of doing us these favors." "I can't believe they're doing all this without some reason." "They are not, daughter." "You can be sure they are not." "Maybe Hastings and the others heard what good work we do up here and decided to give us a try." "I don't think so, Jason." "More than likely someone's put 'em up to it." "Look, if all this happened because of the article in The Chronicle," "I'd say, "Yes, maybe that's the truth."" "But it come after the article in The Chronicle." "I didn't do anything to get those orders." "It's just the way they do it." "First they give you a favor, then they give you another favor, and then they ask for one." "And you're beholden to 'em." "Well, I draw the line at that." "We've never been beholden to anybody." "I'm not beholden to anybody." "I don't owe him anything." "John-Boy, if you were a rich man, would you be doing favors for Glen Oldfield?" "I'm not doing him any favors!" "I just happen to print advertising and he happened to send some my way." "Well, I'd send it back to him." "I'm not gonna do that, Grandma." "And neither am I." "Can you two do this with a clear conscience?" "As long as all they want is park benches, I can make park benches." "And we sure can use the money." "I expect they knew that." "In fact," "I think I'll go over to the forge right now and order some strap iron and rods and begin work." "I gotta be someplace." "Where are you going?" "The Baldwin ladies are giving a tea for Glen Oldfield and Ep Bridges, and I gotta cover it for The Chronicle." "Excuse me." "Tea at the Baldwins?" "Sit down." "Mr. Ainsley." "You're a hard man to find, John." "What brings you out this way?" "You do." "Or at least your article does." "I'm very anxious to find out more about that mustang you saw." "The mustang." "Well, that's good to hear." "Actually, I'll tell you, I'm not the one to talk to about that." "My grandpa's the one you ought to talk to." "He knows about the animals around here and everything." "Well, is he around here?" "Sure." "I'm on my way into town." "Let me call him, all right?" "And you could talk to him about it." "Grandpa!" "Grandpa!" "Grandpa's been telling us for years about this wild mustang." "John-Boy, I'm glad you waited for me." "Grandpa, this is Professor Ainsley." " This is my grandpa, Zebulon Walton." " Hi, Mr. Walton." "You're the man I wanna see." "Professor Ainsley is a naturalist over at Boatwright." "I was hoping to come out here and get a look at that mustang." "How so?" "Well, there's a great scientific interest." "I was hoping eventually that we could get him over to the college and there, do a really detailed study on him." "Professor, the Walton family has always had a high regard for learning and I am particularly interested in animal husbandry." "And you, more than anybody else, should know that to take an animal like that from the mountains who lived up there lonely and free, bring him down to college, he'll most surely die." "I think, Professor, we'd best let him be." "I'm sorry." "Well, I wish you'd reconsider, Mr. Walton..." "Grandpa, they got a mustang." " They caught it." " What?" "Carl Muntner in Rockfish." "He hired a whole bunch of guys and they got him all penned up." " John-Boy..." " I'll take you there." "Come on, Grandpa." "Ben, you ride with the professor." "Okay, we'll see you there." "Yeah, I caught him over there next to Green Creek." "Took six of us to lasso him and haul him on that old truck of mine." "It was a regular Wild West show." "Where is he?" "Where is that man?" "Let me at him." "I want that animal returned to my land now." "Now take your hands off me, Zeb." "Who do you think you are, coming around here, telling me what to do?" "That animal is my property, if it belongs to anyone, and I want him turned loose." "Who says it's yours?" "You got a bill of sales?" "He grew up on Walton's Mountain and he was taken from there." "Well, that's where you're wrong." "I got him a long way from Walton land, down by Green Creek." "And you chased him off over there." "I want him back home." "I'm not talking to you, Zeb." "Hey, Mark, go get Sheriff Bridges." "He'll settle this." "What are you planning to do with him anyway, mister?" "Well, you notice all them people coming to see the horse?" "Business is booming, John." "Not just in my store, but the whole town." "Is that what you're aiming to do?" "Show him off just for business?" "I got the idea from a filling station I stopped at once." "Now this fella had a wild cat and a bunch of monkeys in a cage." "You couldn't even go past that place without stopping." "It was a gold mine!" "What do you mean, talking about monkeys?" "This is a wild mustang." "I never had it so good, Zeb." "Now soon as he settles down, I'll call the vet, and I'll see that he's all right." "You do that, you pen that animal up, that wild animal, when you come here in the morning, you'll find him laying there dead." "Mr. Walton's right." "That mustang stallion's been running wild all his life." "He's gonna kill himself tied up like that." "Ep." "Ep, you gotta stop this." "That horse in there is gonna kill himself if somebody doesn't get him out." "He's our horse taken from our land, Ep." "Well, Zeb, I've already looked into this." "And Carl here says that he caught that animal down by Green Creek." "Well, he did so." "He run him off from Walton's Mountain," "I'll wager that." "Well, it don't really matter none where he caught him." "The point is you don't have proof of ownership." "Now if you'd just tagged him in some way to show that you laid claim to him," "I could back you up." "But this way, there's not a thing I can do." "It ain't right." "It ain't right." "Well, what's right and what's the law ain't always the same, you know." "I'll tell you one thing." "Any of this bunch as much as throws a candy wrapper on the sidewalk," "I'm gonna start writing tickets." "Well, you just lost my vote, Ep." "And I got a bushel of relatives." "I can handle that." "But what I can't stomach is what you're doing in there." "Yes, here's the ones I like." "They're good." "Thank you very much." " They're good." " They sure are." "I hope you're having a good time, Sheriff." "You're having a real wing-dang-do here." "That's very good." "Do play another." " All right." " Yes, please." "What a charming and talented man." "He's so like Ashley Longworth." "Ashley would've made a splendid politician." "He had such a way with people, and of course, he was just wonderfully handsome." "Yeah, so is this one." "Mary-Ellen." "Yes, ma'am?" "Well, you are a married lady now, don't you know?" "I'm just looking." "How is that nice David Spencer?" "Miss Emily, I married Curt Willard." "Well, they were both doctors, weren't they?" "Hello, John." "Hello." "Came off rather well for Glen, I think." "Well, yeah." "Yeah." "Yeah, Mr. Jessup, I wanna ask you about something." "I wanna ask you about some advertising orders and a mill contract for my father." "Don't worry about that." "It was nothing." "Phone call." "Well, it may be nothing to you, but it stirred up some pretty strong feelings at home." "Why should it?" "Forgive me for saying this, but are you sure there's no strings attached?" "Bye-bye." "Thank you for coming." "John, why don't you follow us on over to campaign headquarters." "There's a couple things I'd like to talk over with you." " Goodbye." " So nice of you to come." "It was lovely having you here." "Well, ladies, we are most certainly in your debt." "Not at all." "It's been a lovely afternoon." "So informative." "I just hope I can remember it all." "Don't worry about that, Miss Emily." "I got it all right here, and you can read about it in The Chronicle." "You, you've been very gracious." "And I can't say enough, really." "And for a politician, now that's going some." "Enjoyed meeting you, Sheriff." "Now that's off the record." "For the record, he's a rascal." "Well." " Bye-bye." "Thanks very much." " You're very welcome." " Goodbye." " Goodbye." " Goodbye." "It was nice to meet you." " Miss Emily." "Goodbye, John-Boy." "John, I don't understand what you're so concerned about." "That new business you got?" "Of course it came from our people." "Now what's wrong with that?" "I didn't say anything was wrong with it." "I just said I wanted to talk about it." "I'd be delighted to speak at the chamber of commerce meeting." " Excuse me." "Mr. Jessup." " I'll be right with you." "Mr. Jessup, the radio announcements are finished." " Will you look at them?" " Yeah." "It's gonna be close." "Bridges is very popular." "We'll win but we'll squeak it out." "I'll have to get to that later." "Thank you." " Come on in here." " You're really going all out, aren't you?" "It's the only way to do it." "Sorry about that madhouse out there, John." " It's all right." " Have a chair." "Thank you, I'd just as soon stand." "Please, sit down." "Sit down." "All right." "Now about those orders you've received." "The folks buying advertising from you are Oldfield supporters showing their appreciation." "The people who read your newspaper shop in Rockfish and Scottsville, don't they?" "Yes." "So the advertising pays for itself." "There's no harm there." "It's the same with the mill contract." "Now somebody has to build those park benches." "Mr. Hastings has the inside track on government work like that, and he just included the Waltons in." "It just seems like there's a little bit of favoritism involved." "Well, who are we supposed to favor, John, our enemies?" "No." "No." "Now, I'm gonna tell you honestly," "Glen is impressed with you." "Both of us feel you have a very promising future." "Well, I appreciate that." "There's an old saying in politics, John." "Go with the winner." "Glen Oldfield's a winner." "You go with us and I promise you, and in a very short time you will be writing your own ticket." "For a young man with your abilities, the sky's the limit." "I'm just not too sure about what you mean when you say," ""Go with us."" "Join the team, John." "This little job as sheriff is just the first step for Glen Oldfield." "It's a foot in the door." "You know as well as I do that he's not gonna stay here." "In eight months, there is a seat opening up in the state assembly." "Mr. Hastings is grooming Glen for that job." "Within the year," "Glen Oldfield will be a state assemblyman." "And you know what that means for those of us on the team." "Yeah." "And, what would I do on the team?" "Well, with your writing ability and that little newspaper of yours you could do Glen a lot of good in this county." "As he goes up the ladder, you go with him." "Mr. Jessup, I don't think you know very much about people around here." "People are people, John." "They're the same everywhere." "I think you could be mistaken about that." "I don't think the people around here are gonna take too kindly to Glen Oldfield's political ambitions." "I think if they feel like they've been taken advantage of, then they'll resent that." "Well, we won't make a point of talking it up." " There's no need to." " Well, I think there is." "You see, I think the people have a right to know if Glen Oldfield is not planning to stay here as Sheriff." "I think they have a right to know if he's planning to use the county as a stepping stone." "Now, wait just a minute, John." "Now this little conversation we just had is off the record." "No, it's not." "I beg your pardon." "You never said anything about being off the record." "I have a right to print material like this and I intend to print..." "You have taken advantage of me, John." "You are on our side." "Now just wait a minute." "Let me tell you something." "I have not taken advantage of anybody because I have not been on anybody's side, let's get that straight." "If you print this, you are going to lose the election for a very good man." "Well, I think Ep Bridges is a very good man." "Excuse me." "All right, now, wait, wait, wait, John." "John..." "Let's be practical, all right?" "No." "Now these are hard times, John." "Your father's just been given a contract to build 60 park benches." "Now who knows?" "He could end up with a contract to build 60 benches every month." "On the other hand, something could happen." "Hastings may have to cut back." "And there'd be no contract at all." "Now, it says in the Bible, something to the effect about what the good Lord giveth, he can also take away." "I think that says it all right there, doesn't it?" "Think it over, son." "Ep, I hear you been over to the ladies for tea." "I tell you, John, that was..." "That was a real fancy affair." "And that Oldfield, boy, he really..." "He really had them going in circles." "Yeah, he's a sweet talker from way back." "I never could do that." "Never could." "It's a gift, huh?" "Yeah, but it takes more than pretty words to keep the law in this county." "Yeah, but a lot of them are gonna vote for him." "Maybe, maybe too many." "It's tough to know how to fight him, isn't it?" "It beats me." "You know, it's a funny thing but I," "I just never thought about ever losing this job." "For 15 years, I tried to do my best, 24 hours a day, seven days a week." "I was delivering babies or putting out fires, chasing burglars, pulling people out of the river." "Well, I know most of the people around here by their first name." "But along comes a man with with a big smile and a way with words and" "folks just plain forget." "Not all of us forget, Ep." "Makes you think, John." "Makes you think." "I wonder what a 46-year-old ex-sheriff could do for a living in times like these." "I wish I could tell you." " John, you seen that mustang?" " Why?" "He broke out, busted his halter, kicked the fence down." "He's a wild one." "Why don't you just leave him that way, Carl?" "I'm gonna break him in yet." "I'm gonna make a saddle horse out of him." "You sure you didn't see him?" "I'm afraid if I had, I wouldn't tell you." " Good evening." " Hey, John-Boy." "Where is everybody?" "Bed." "It's late." "Daddy, too, huh?" "As soon as he got that iron, he set out to make a lot of benches." "He's a day and a half ahead of himself already." " Well, I guess it can wait till morning." " What's that?" "Grandpa, coming in, I saw that horse of yours." "He was out on the road." "Must've busted loose from Muntner's." "God bless America." "Yeah, but I went on farther down the road," "I run into Carl." "He was in his truck." "Had a bunch of boys with him." "They were looking for the horse and Carl said he planned to break him to saddle." "I'll tell you one thing." "If that Carl Muntner sets foot on Walton land," "I'll ride him off of it." "See how it feels to have a saddle on his back and a spur on his rump." "Now you watch your language." "I'm going to bed, think it over." "I'll come up with something." "There is a way." "And dry your feet." "That old man, he's gonna twist and turn all night worrying about that horse." "I got some work to do at the paper." "I'll see you later." "John-Boy, something's troubling you." "It's written all over your face." "You're as close-mouthed as your father." "Well, you'll find out about it soon enough." " I thought you were asleep." " Your grandma woke me up." "She shouldn't have done that." "What's wrong, Son?" "Daddy, I got a hold of something today." "You know how people have been suspicious of Glen Oldfield?" "They call him an outsider?" "They say he's got no stake here?" "Well, they're right." "I found out today that Glen Oldfield is planning to use the sheriff's job as a stepping stone to get him into the state assembly." "I'm not too surprised about that." "He's a carpetbagger for sure." "I feel like a fool." "But a story like that's got to go into my newspaper." "And the minute it does, he can't win the election." "His friends aren't gonna like that, Son." "Well, I don't care about his friends." "The thing is, if I print that story we can forget about any future business with those people." "I don't much like doing business with them anyways, Son." "I think it's only fair to tell you that" "I found out today you probably could've counted on an order for 60 park benches every month from that Hastings fellow." " Well, we sure could've used that." " Yeah." "What are you gonna do about the order you got working?" "I'm gonna finish it, fast as I can." "Good." "Daddy, sometimes I wonder what we did for trouble around here before I got this newspaper started." "We managed, Son." "We managed." "Of course, the only convention we ever attended was the one when Papa cast the vote for the Virginia delegation." ""Fellow delegates," ""the great and historic Commonwealth of Virginia," ""mother of presidents," ""a sweet land whose beauty extends from the Blue Ridge" ""to the shores of the mighty Atlantic."" "He was magnificent." "He surely could've been president if he'd wanted to be." "Mr. Woodrow Wilson himself frequently urged Papa to run." "But Papa preferred to stay home and make the Recipe." "Will there be anything else, ladies?" "How many papers would you like, Ike?" "Let's see." "Give me 25." "You only gave me 22." "Three more." "James Robert." "You can call me Jim." "Have you changed your name again, Jim-Bob?" "Well, Jim-Bob sounds like a baby and James Robert is kind of stuffy." "So you can call me Jim from now on." " All right, Jim." " I'll be darned." "Why, Mr. Godsey, you seem alarmed." "I'm not alarmed, Miss Mamie." "Mad is what I am." "Listen to this." ""Oldfield ambitions revealed." ""This newspaper has learned from a reliable source" ""that if Glen Oldfield is elected sheriff of Jefferson County," ""he intends to use that position as a stepping stone" ""to achieve his eventual ambition as a member of the state senate."" "You have such a pleasant reading voice, Mr. Godsey." "You must come to our poetry society and read for us sometime." "Sister, this is not time to be talking about poetry." "This is shocking and distressing news." "Indeed, yes." "What does it mean, Sister?" "What it means is we could've been hoodwinked by that slick-talking Glen Oldfield into tossing Ep Bridges right out of his job." "That won't happen, I trust." "Well, it won't happen once the folks read this issue of The Chronicle." "Jim-Bob..." "I mean, Jim, will you deliver the papers?" "Get goin'." "Deliver the newspapers." " Thank you, Miss Emily." " Sure." "John-Boy said for me to give you one of these special." "Thank you, Jim-Bob." "That's enough." " Looks like a branding iron." " Yeah, it is." "You know that mustang will never know any peace till it belongs to somebody." "Yes, but I didn't think that you wanted anybody to own it." "Goes against everything you've been saying, Grandpa." "Yes, according to law, he'll be ours." "He'll have our mark on him for the rest of his days." "But he'll run wild and free until the end of his days." "Isn't there any other way, Grandpa?" "I don't know of any, son." "You reckon it'll hurt him much, Doc?" "No, no." "That whole thing looks a lot worse than it is." "It don't hurt him any too much, I don't think." "Well, we never branded Blue or Chance." "Well, if it does hurt, gonna have to be a case of being cruel only to be kind." "You remember last spring when you hurt your leg?" "You remember how Dr. Vance asked your daddy to hold on to you while he was fixing you up?" "Well, I held on to your own daddy, many a time, in just the same way." "Only he yelled a lot louder than you did." "But it had to be done." "Sometimes in this life we have to go through a little discomfort to arrive at some lasting good." "And that mustang's gonna have to learn things the same way." " Hey, Ike." " Hey, John." "A telegram come in for you this morning." "I thought I'd better bring it by to you." "Well, that's nice of you, Ike." "Want to come in for some coffee?" "No, I got a lot of things to do." "I better get going." " All right." " Thanks anyways." "Thank you." "See you later." "What is it?" "It's a telegram from Hastings." "They've cancelled everything." "They can't do that." "You've got a contract." "In so many words they say, "If you don't like it, sue us."" "It's an awful letdown." "I'm sorry." "I guess I should've known better." "What are you gonna do with all that?" "Sell it for scrap." "If nobody'll buy it, I'll see if there are any openings at the poor house." "I'm sure they'd like that." "All 11 of us trooping in with everything we own tied up in a bundle." "What do you say 11 for?" "I count 15." "Is there somebody in the family I've missed?" "Well, there's Reckless, there's Blue, there's Myrtle and there's Chance." "What about Rover?" "I am not going to any poor house with a peacock." "Good." "Then let's just stay home." "Look at this." "I guess what disturbed me more than anything, more than allowing myself to be taken in, was what they did to my father." "I was truly angry, not just at Glen Oldfield and his team, but with myself for being so gullible." " Hello." " Hello." "You got the telegram." "Yeah." "Yeah, your people are very efficient." "I'll be leaving today." "I want you to know that I had nothing to do with the cancellation of your mill contract." "Those details are handled by other people." "You call that a detail?" "I know your family got hurt and I'm sorry." "That's the way politics works." "I won't ask you to shake hands, but I wanted to come here in person and offer you my apologies because it all happened in my name." "Good luck to you, John." "My respects to your family." "One more thing." "That headline in your paper." ""Oldfield ambitions revealed."" "Well, it revealed something to me." "I learned how not to run a campaign." "I guess I just assumed that people like you could be bought with political favors." "Obviously, I was wrong." "And I feel pretty embarrassed about it." "I just hope that next time I come through here campaigning," "I can earn your support." "Come along, boys." "Come along." "We are going to the mustang." "I'll tell Mama." "Don't forget to bring along the pickax and spade so we can build the branding pen." "Okay, Grandpa." "Easy now." "Easy, easy." "Come on." "Come on." "They got him, Grandpa." "They got the mustang." " Grandpa, you're all ready?" " Yeah, we're ready for him." "I don't believe it." "I'm gonna go see him." "Go get it." "Sure is." "Easy, easy." "Come on, come on, come on." "Easy." "Use the blanket over his eyes, Ben." "That'll settle him down." "Easy, easy." "Easy." "Easy, easy." "Come on." "Take the blanket and put it over his eyes." "Almost time." "Put it over him, Ben." " Easy now, easy now." " Careful." "I think you can do it now, Grandpa." "It's already done." " Already?" " Let him go." "Halfway across the county." "Hey!" "Look at him go." "How about that tender beef?" "We did real good." "Don't that look pretty?" "Look up there." " Well, now." " Isn't that something?" "You won't see sights like that, one day soon." "When that day comes, there'll be a lot more than horses gone." "The mustang remained free after that." "We would see it from time to time and it always brought a rush of excitement and the feeling of being in touch with something primitive and rare and very special." "Ep Bridges continued on as sheriff for more years than anyone could remember." "And Glen Oldfield, to no one's surprise, became a member of the state assembly." " John-Boy?" " Yes, Elizabeth." "If you ran for something, I'd vote for you." "Well, thank you, honey, but I'm not planning on it right now." "If everyone in the family voted for you, you could be president." "Elizabeth, you know how many votes it takes to be president?" "Millions." "I guess we'll need a bigger family." " Mama?" " Good night, Elizabeth." " Good night, everybody." " Good night, Elizabeth." "Good night." "English"