( theme song )
What you starin' at, Faraway?
That moon up there.
Look at it good, Hank.
Go on, look at it.
Hangin' in the sky like a fly dancin' on the tip of a needle.
Looks like a plain ol' moon to me.
That's a white winter's moon,
and comin' this late in the season...
it's a bad omen the Indians say.
A moon like that this time of the year,
it's a bad omen indeed.
You stayed up with them Indians too long.
Made you believe in anything.
Well, it's better to believe too much than nothin' at all.
That moon's a bad omen, yes, siree, a bad omen.
( footsteps )
( knock at door )
Hi, Faraway.
Here's the medicine you wanted.
Thank you, Miss Betsy.
Though it does seem the thought
of that race between Steve and Trampas
has put new life into me.
Don't hurt like I used to.
You've been waitin' for this for a long time, and I'm gonna...
Hello, Betsy.
Oh, hi, Betsy.
Well, he just an overgrown,
heavy, muscle-bound piece of glue bait
that's gonna cost you next month's wages.
That's what Red Wing is.
And what about that Thunder of yours?
He's low on the rump, big in the head.
He can roll faster than he can run.
Oh, yeah? Yeah!
Then let's see the color of your money.
Yeah.
Boss Man, let me borrow that.
"I owe you next month's wages."
Which I won't.
"To Trampas."
Now let me see the color of your money.
"Same. Steve."
Suppose you boys want me to hold on to that.
Sure, I don't trust him.
Remember, tomorrow morning at sun up,
we race from the main corral to the cedar grove and back.
I'll be waitin' for you when you get back.
You'll be eatin' my dust.
Hey, I wanna make a bet too on that race tomorrow.
I wanna bet 50 cents on Trampas' Red Wing.
Good girl!
Oh, foolish child.
A lady, if you please.
What would the Judge say if he knew you were bettin' on a horserace?
Well, depends on whether I win or not.
( all laugh )
I'll hold the money.
Betting is not a private affair. Everybody's got an opinion.
All you gotta do is put your money up.
Right, right!
( all clamoring )
( whinnies )
( all clamoring )
Hold it down. Hold it down, boys.
Quiet down just a minute!
( whinnies )
Trampas, did you lock that stable up good on Red Wing and those mares?
Sure.
( whinnies )
( growls )
( whinnies )
Open it.
( whinnies )
Red Wing!
How's your mare?
Go back to the bunk house and get your rifles.
We'll go all the way around the barn real slow and real careful.
Whatever it is might still be out there.
Is he dead?
His neck.
It's broke.
Look at that.
Look at the size of that.
It's Moses. No other bear near that size.
Come back down off the mountain.
All that snow up high, he's probably near half-starved.
That's more than a half-starved bear.
That Moses is a demon plain and sure.
How does he know? Every hear at round up, he comes back.
Demons know. Demons know everything.
Where you goin'?
Trampas!
You go trackin' that old beast alone in the dark,
and all you'll get is killed.
Come on.
Steve.
Better go warn the other ranchers.
I'm gonna find him.
I'm gonna find him,
and I'm gonna tear his heart out with my bare hands.
( gunshots )
He's back.
The old devil's back.
Moses?
It's like he's got a calendar in that evil brain.
Where are you going, John?
I'll sleep tonight in the barn.
After this round up,
we stand to come off this season with a little hard money.
I ain't gonna lose any of our string to old Moses.
Maybe you'd like to go?
But you know I can't shoot good.
What good would I be?
Well, that's what we're gonna find out.
It could be dangerous!
He's goin'.
Because of you, he does all too little man's work as it is.
Well, go on. What are you waitin' for?
He might be out there right now.
I'm gonna pass the word along.
He's out there somewhere.
You can almost feel the old devil--
like ice right over your neck.
Whoa, son. Where you goin'?
Dr. Charlie Norms' this mornin'.
Saw signs of the old bear just north of his place.
Plan to go after him?
Yep.
Now? Uh-huh.
What am I supposed to do about the work you're supposed to do?
I'll only be gone a couple days.
I'm shorthanded as it is.
That round up won't take care of itself.
Old Moses killed Red Wing, and I'm gonna get him.
You'll get him, but it'll have to be after the round up.
All I ask is a couple of days.
I'm sorry, Trampas.
I'd let you go if I could, but I just can't.
Well, I still say we should have started spring round up two weeks ago.
Maybe that old devil bear would have stayed asleep in his den till we finished.
My foreman said he found tracks just outside the corral this morning.
Moses is gonna give us trouble for sure.
Well, it can't be helped.
If we'd started any earlier,
we would have had snow in the high pastures to contend with.
Even now, I'm afraid we're gonna run into some foul weather.
Enough about the weather and old Moses.
Let's just get on with it.
Well, first off, there's where you ranch owners
want to headquarter for the round up.
Before the Judge left, he said it would be all right if you wanted to use Shiloh.
This place is best situated to the open range all right.
There'll be a lot of men to house and feed.
Well, we can turn the barn into the sleeping quarters,
and the bunk house can act as a mess kitchen.
That sounds good. All right, Shiloh it is.
Now all we gotta do is pick a round up foreman.
I say the Virginian here.
Judge Garth's got the biggest stake in this.
All right, I second that.
Hold on, hold on. Wait a minute.
How come somebody from the Garth place has always gotta run things?
Maybe because we feel they're the most fit.
Well, do the ayes have it?
All: Aye.
All right, we'll hold an open range round up like always.
Build our branding corral somewhere down by the creek,
and we can close the milling range at the Buttes.
Trent, you can handle the tallying and the branding.
We'll alternate two riders on flanker duty.
I'll take charge of the range riders myself.
All right, all agreed. We'll meet here first thing Monday morning.
You got a big mouth, Trent.
So don't try to be spokesman for other decisions that have to be made,
or I'll cut you down to size.
I'll tell you what you do, Belden.
You just mind your own business.
I'll do the same with mine.
Maybe this is just as good a place as any
to have our little get together.
I don't wanna have trouble with you, John.
Well, that's just too bad.
'Cause I can give it to you by the yard.
Leave him alone, John.
Everybody knows you've never been licked.
Come on. Look.
It's community round up.
We're all gonna be workin' together.
This any way to get us started?
Pa, don't.
What's there to prove?
Ha!
You're right, Martin. You're right. What's there to prove?
Take a look at my boy Martin.
Broad of shoulder, deep of chest.
Just like his pa he's gonna be.
Come next Saturday, he's gonna have the age to go along with it--
21 years old he's gonna be.
Say, tell you what? Let's celebrate tomorrow night.
We'll throw a wingding, huh?
Pa, I don't want any party.
Why not? How often do we get a chance
to celebrate a new Belden into the clan?
We'll throw a wingding, and you're all invited!
Just what we need for what's ahead.
And sure count me in. I'm with you.
How 'bout the rest of you?
All: Yeah. That a boy.
Pa? Huh?
We better go on into town, or I'll be late meetin' Alice.
Oh, yeah.
Well, we're all done here anyway.
We don't wanna keep your gal waitin' at the station.
I meant that about the party, and bring yourself a thirst!
Trent, you be guest of honor.
A party and all that talk about being a man...
Why do you have to talk like that in front of others?
'Cause I want them to believe it.
Because I wanna believe it.
( brakes squeal )
Hi.
Oh, a whole year.
It seemed like ten.
Oh, Alice.
You're twice as beautiful as when you left.
Oh, Martin.
Oh.
We're the center of attention.
Well, come on.
Pardon us.
Tell me all about it.
Oh, it was a wonderful school, Martin.
I learned so much, and I met so many interesting people.
Glad to see nobody was interesting enough to remove this.
I was only looking for friends.
I promised to marry you.
Your folks must have been delayed.
I haven't seen them.
They didn't know I was arriving today.
I only wrote to you.
I wanted a chance to talk to you...
by ourselves.
I've got the perfect place.
Pa's pickin' up some supplies,
and we can wait for him by the schoolhouse.
That is perfect.
One little room with books and desks and paper.
Still all the time I was in finishing school,
I couldn't forget... because of you.
I was sitting at this desk,
and I was only eight years old when I first fell in love with you.
The day I stuck taffy in your braids.
I didn't tell you, Martin,
but my parents sent me away to that school because of you.
They wanted me to forget you.
Oh, I didn't.
But the year helped me.
I know who I am and what I want now.
I wasn't sure then.
It's a wonderful thing to know where you belong
and what you want to do with your life.
Do you know, Martin?
I know I love you,
and I want you to marry me.
You have to be sure for both of us.
Do you know yourself what you want to do with your life?
My dad's taking me on the round up this year.
I'm gonna be somebody, Alice.
Somebody like him.
Oh, I know he brags and talks big,
but he backs it up.
He's a man.
And that's the kind of man you want to be?
Can you think of a better kind?
Martin, what I want is only for you to be yourself.
( door opens )
Alice! Alice Lawford!
Here, let me look at you.
My goodness, you've grown ten pounds
and all in the right places.
If I were 20 years younger, I'd beat my own son's time.
Hello, Mr. Belden.
What have you two been talking about?
Did you tell her about the party?
No, I hadn't.
Well, he's gonna be 21 tomorrow.
Tomorrow night, we're having a celebration.
We're gonna throw a real jig out at our place.
Tear the rafters down!
Martin, will pick you up about seven.
I'll be ready.
Well, what are we waitin' for?
We gotta get this gal home!
**
I tell you the truth--
one more swig of this here tarantula juice,
and I'll tell you right to the head
just how many beeves we're gonna bring in.
( laughs )
( gulps )
Let that old tarantula bite me again.
Yeah, all right.
( chuckles ) You know, that Faraway,
He can sure hold his liquor!
Yes, sir, he can sure hold his--
Oh.
There.
( chuckles ) He can sure hold his tarantula juice.
( music stops )
Well, I tell you, you can't describe it.
You just gotta live it.
Ah, thanks.
Seein' a thousand pounds of bear flesh roarin' down on you,
all you got is a puny revolver to fight with.
Please, John, they've all heard about it.
( chuckles ) Many times, Misses Belden, but it's all right.
John's fight with old Moses is the kind of story you can hear many times.
( laughs )
Well, like I was sayin', that old Moses he found out
while this old bull is gettin' along in years,
nobody's sawed off his horns yet.
( chuckles ) Face to face I fought him.
Face to face.
( chuckles ) All he could give me was this.
Uh, let me have my drink here.
That old devil Moses, huh?
( inaudible whisper )
**
Hi.
Since I requested this tune, sweet Betsy from Pike...
for you, would the princess permit me the honor of this dance?
Steve, if you just dare treat me like a child tonight in front of all--
Who's treating you like a child?
Oh, well, that's a relief.
Hey, Travis, come on now!
This ain't no party with you all brooded up.
Come on!
Howdy.
See old Maggie standin' in line over there.
Uh-huh.
Old Moses took her place, huh?
Yeah.
How you figure on catchin' him?
I don't know.
Must be some place he holes up all the time though,
if I can just figure out where it is.
You know, one time, I went huntin' bear.
Did you catch cold?
No, I caught the bear.
( laughs ) You're all right.
Come on, it's a party.
Hi, Martin, happy birthday!
Thank you very much.
Happy birthday, Martin. Thank you.
Evenin', Martin. Evenin'.
This is about the finest birthday party I've ever got invited to.
Well, I sure hope you have a good time.
I, uh, I guess that depends on you.
I'd sure like to dance with this pretty stranger.
Sure.
Here, give me this.
Let me give you a hand.
Just who you calling a stranger?
Now you can't tell me this is that same stringy-haired little gal
that went away to finishing school a year ago.
The same. In person.
Well, you sure look different, and you talk different.
Talk different? Uh-huh.
I do not.
You don't sound like Medicine Bow.
That's not true.
Oh, they gave us diction lessons, but I wouldn't go along with that.
I decided to fight them every step, and I did.
Oh, well, Alice, I gotta tell you something.
You ain't much of a fighter then
'cause you sure lost.
( laughs )
If I met up with old Moses this round up--
I mean face-to-face, the way you did, John--
I don't likely know what my reaction would be.
I know what I'll do the next time I meet up with him.
I'll do just like I did the last.
I'll face up to that old bear.
This time I'll kill him dead.
Still relivin' your moment of courage, Belden?
You know anybody else who's done as much?
I guess I know somebody who might.
Yeah? That boy of yours.
What is it they say? Like father, like son.
He'll do it. Martin will stand up to him just like I did.
On second thought, I'm not so sure. Huh?
Well, I mean, when a man won't even stand up for the girl he's gonna marry,
well, facin' old Moses-- What are you talkin' about?
Saw Trampas take Alice the minute she hit the door.
Took her right away from your boy.
'Course we all know what a shine Trampas always took to Alice.
John.
Go get her.
What?
Alice. I said go get her.
But why? She's having a good time.
You fool!
Everybody's laughing at you.
Engaged to her like you are,
and you let Trampas steal her away from you.
But they're only dancing.
You're my son. You're the son of John Belden.
Nobody walks over us--
not the Garth crowd, nobody!
Well, if you won't go get her, I will.
All right, Trampas.
My boy won't do it, so I'll do it for him.
He don't want you to dance with Alice no more.
All he's gotta do is tell me.
I'm tellin' you.
( chuckles ) Well, that ain't enough.
Come on, Alice.
I don't wanna fight you, Mr. Belden.
Now hold on a minute.
Just let me get my hat, and I'll be on my way.
All right, Mr. Belden.
Now let's quit, huh?
Rah! Hey!
Come on, let's go.
( all clamoring )
Why, John? Why'd you have to make fools of us?
The party's ruined.
Hey, Trampas.
Twenty years ago you couldn't have done that.
Now let's see what else you got.
I'll see you outside...
and bring your gun.
Now look, Mr. Belden--
Outside.
Trampas, this has gone far enough.
It's gone too far, but it wasn't my doing.
Now look, Trampas-- I'm not sneakin' out the back way.
I won't kill him.
I won't even fight him unless I have to.
Trampas, talk him out of it.
Mr. Belden, Don't make me do this.
What's the matter, Trampas, you afraid of John Belden too?
Don't do it!
Ugh!
That's Doc's buggy, isn't it?
Yeah.
Afternoon, gentlemen.
Doctor. Mrs. Belden.
Came over to see how Mr. Belden was feeling.
Why don't you ask the doctor.
It was an injury of a freakish nature.
The bullet was deflected by a bone in his leg.
It lodged in the spine.
I'm afraid Mr. Belden will never walk again.
I'll be back to see him in just a few days.
Good day.
Now, Mrs. Belden, I, well, I...
I didn't start that fight.
When I shot him the second time,
I only tried to knick him in the leg
to keep him from getting that gun.
Well, even so--
Well, I can't tell you how sorry I am that it turned out this way.
I know.
You're gonna be shorthanded gathering your beef,
I, uh, I'd like to help out if I can.
I'll tell John you offered.
Come on.
Stocks all fed.
Got the brood mare back in her stall.
How do you feel?
Do you have to ask that?
Sorry.
Sarah, leave us alone for a minute.
Sit down, son.
Here. Sit down.
Well, the Belden's are all gone now, except you and me.
( chuckles ) You and me.
Man and a half.
Pa, don't talk that way.
Look, two arms, a body, nothing more.
Don't you call that a half a man?
I'm sorry, Pa.
I can't tell you how sorry I am.
That fight at the dance...
I did it for you.
I know.
It's always been a proud family that you are a member of, boy.
Always.
The Belden's stood head and shoulder's above the common man.
We were always there to take care of the others' needs.
I don't expect you to break the chain.
Well, I'll take care of the round up, Pa.
You can depend on me.
There's more to it than that.
Martin, if a man was to put you
in an open grave to live the rest of your life,
what do you think I'd do about it?
I don't understand.
You don't understand?
Do you understand this?
Man having to crawl the rest of his life on his belly.
Trampas smashed my back with a bullet.
If you just didn't start anything.
He started it, I didn't.
Trampas took away your girl.
I was fighting for you.
Right or wrong, what I did--what I am-- I was thinking of my son.
Trampas has gotta pay for this.
He's gotta pay.
I was fighting for you.
Now you've gotta fight for yourself and for me.
You've gotta be a man.
You've gotta finish this fight.
Well, Martin, is it gonna be done,
or do I crawl out there on my hands and do it myself?
Aah! Ugh!
Pa!
Pa?
I'll finish it.
All right, Jawser will take care of the skirmish line.
Norton will handle the circle riders.
And remember, walk them in easy.
I don't wanna run the fat off them.
I'll give you the rest of your assignments up at the branding area.
All right, let's go.
Uh, put me up in the highlands.
Why?
Well, I was talkin' to Charlie Norms again last night,
and he said that there's signs old Moses is still around his place.
Trampas, you're here to round up cattle,
not fight a private war with old Moses.
Well, I got a dead horse says you're wrong.
All right, take the highlands.
Mornin', Martin.
Sorry I'm late.
It's all right.
You'll ride circle this mornin' with Norton's crew.
All right. What do I do with my string?
Give them to me. I'll give them to the wrangler, and he'll put them in with the remuda.
You can recognize them, can't you?
Martin, I'm sorry about what happened.
Yeah, I'm sorry about your pa, Martin.
That won't help him to walk again.
I didn't ask him to start it.
You knew he had too much to drink.
Could have walked out the back way.
I don't walk out the back way for anybody.
Just understand this--
Before this round up is over,
I'm gonna ask you to finish that fight...
with me.
I got no fight with you.
Well, you better find one, and you better find it quick.
Martin.
This here's a round up, not a battleground.
You start anything, I'm gonna have to have you thrown out.
You'll never get your heard gathered that way.
Think it over.
He's just a big mouth. Did you ever see him shoot?
Couldn't hit the ground in three tries.
He's just a bluff.
I don't know.
Keep him away from me.
I won't start anything but if he does,
I'll sure up and finish it.
Well, what are you all standing around here for? Let's get to work!
Give these to the wrangler.
Come on.
( all yelping )
( whistles ) Hiya!
Joe, close in that flank.
Willie, haze in those sleepers.
I said walk them.
Walk them. You're losing 100 pounds a minute at that pace.
**
That's mighty pretty, Faraway,
but don't you know something that's not so mournful?
Man plays the way he feels.
**
( horse approaching )
Well, I guess I better go relieve Ross on the night herd.
I wouldn't mind none about the men.
I don't mind.
Just curious. What have I done to them?
I don't think they've thought it out that clear.
Most likely couldn't even tell you what it is themselves.
Just maybe it's part--
They feel you let your pa fight your fight for you.
Partly, now you're plannin' on finishin' it yourself.
And part, they just don't like your pa anyway.
Sorta mixed up, ain't it?
Aren't you afraid some of that dirt on me
might rub off on you where they're concerned?
I never did care what men thought about me.
**
Trampas! Hey, Trampas!
Trampas! Trampas!
Trampas! I seen it!
I seen him! He must be five stories high!
Seen who?
Old Moses, that's who.
I was ridin' up to the herd, and he jumped out on the trail.
Hold it, Trampas. He's gone.
He went lickity split right up that mountain.
Trampas, Hank's right.
There ain't no sense chasing a ghost in the dark.
That bear's no ghost.
He's just a killer, no more.
I've been thinkin' about that.
Something that stalks and kills and disappears
and gets shot and never dies.
The Bannock Indians up in Idaho,
they got a saying about an animal like that.
They say it's something that a man hates and he fears even more.
It's a part of him that he doesn't know about
and is afraid to know about.
Them Bannocks felt in every man there was that part of him
which spelled his makin' or his defeat.
And he'd wanna fight it and wanna kill it
'cause he was afraid to find out what it was.
The Bannocks said that kind of an animal was part of a man's soul.
Put away your black magic, Faraway.
That bear's real enough.
When I get him in the sights of my rifle, you'll find out.
Don't be too sure.
One calf. Trent Triangle T.
Called that one wrong, Trent.
I called it Triangle T. That's what it is.
This here's a Belden calf, and that's the brand it'll get.
You the tally man or me?
This is my calf, and it goes under my brand.
Trent Triangle T. Brand him.
Look, let the calf go.
I said let him go!
( mooing )
I guess there's no mistakin' the brand on the mother.
Circle B. That's the brand it'll get--Belden B.
Sorry. My mistake.
About the brand, I mean.
Come to think of it, I'm sorry for both of us.
I just don't want my brand on a man like you.
Come and get it!
All right, you saddle tramps, let's get up.
Come on, let's saddle up.
We got a lot of beef to bring down off the mountain today
and put a brand on them.
What are you doing up?
I wanna get to the front of the chow line before Steve gets there.
( laughs ) Come on. Come on.
Hop up, hop up. Come on.
Pull them out of there, will you?
Come on, we got a long way to go.
Where's Martin? He didn't sleep in his bunk last night.
He got up before light. Went up the north fork.
Said he'd be back in time to ride out.
( gunshots )
You lookin' for me?
Yeah.
It's about that fight you had in the brandin' area yesterday.
I came to tell you the men feel you didn't have that comin'.
I feel the same way.
Compassion for the weak, that it, Trampas?
I'm tryin' to tell you something.
Out here, a man gets to be a pretty good smeller of death.
I wouldn't wanna see that happen.
Why?
You're a fighter, Trampas,
and fighters die hard.
Couldn't be because you're worried about yourself.
Everybody knows how you make a six gun jump like a fistful of diamonds.
Don't you wanna live, Martin?
Pa always said people like us had to learn to live with the wolves.
Yesterday, I found out he was right.
I wanna do two things with my life--
gather in my cattle... and the other has to do
with my father sittin' in a wheelchair the rest of his days.
I came to reason with you,
and I guess it was a waste of time.
And time never passes so quickly
as when it's runnin' out.
Hey, female brigade!
Here comes the female brigade!
Yeehaw! Home cookin' at last! Ah ha ha!
Yeehaw!
Hi, how are you? Hi!
Oh, it's so wonderful to see you!
Oh, I know Martin will be glad to see you.
Come on in! Yeah.
( all clamoring )
It needs more chili pepper!
( sniffs ) Ah, son of a gun!
( sniffs )
County attorney and Charlie Taylor.
What are you talkin' about?
Well, I'll show you.
Boy, you're just so green, you're still growin'.
Son of a gun-- that's a Mexican kidney stew,
and county attorney-- that's a veal stew,
and Charlie Taylor-- that's a butter that's made with sorghum and bacon grease.
And I made it.
Betsy, when you get a little older, I'm gonna marry you.
Sorry, Steve, Faraway's already proposed.
Well, that proposal only stands
just as long as this sorghum and bacon grease is real tender.
Thank you very much. End of the line.
Get out of here.
Martin, I've been looking all over for you.
Why didn't you come inside with the others?
Just wasn't hungry.
Oh, Martin, why?
Why did you have to do that?
What was there to prove?
I had reasons.
Everyone's talking about that ridiculous threat you made to Trampas,
what you plan to do.
I don't wanna talk about it.
Martin, to die for a reason, I can understand that,
but to die trying to be a copy of John Belden--
I said I didn't wanna talk about it.
Martin, think for yourself. Be yourself. Alice.
Look, as soon as the round up's over, you'll have done all you can.
Let's go away somewhere. Let's find our own lives.
I'm sorry, Alice.
I gotta see this thing through.
Then you'll have to see it through alone.
( growls )
( whinnies )
( growls )
All right, take Crighton's body home.
The rest of you, spread out. We'll try to run that bear down!
By the size of that print,
that old devil must be more than nine feet tall.
No matter what they say about John Belden,
they can't take that away from him.
He faced up to it. He faced up and won.
You talkin' about that bear, or is there something else you got in mind?
You spent all your life in the woods.
You got any idea where he went?
An animal like that-- not afraid of anybody or anything--
well, he wouldn't have his den way up in the high country.
More than likely, he'd be down close to the thing he hates most.
Somewhere up in those rocks. That'd be my guess.
Find anything?
Nothin'. You? Nope.
Let's keep movin'.
Well, one thing about an old bear like Moses--
no imagination.
They find a trail, and they stick to it.
He's right up in those rocks. He must live up there somewhere.
Martin!
That trail's steep!
And it's iced up further up to boot!
It takes the claws of a bear to hold on!
( rustling )
Found the trail, huh?
Well, I should have known to ask you.
Fool kiddy, he's gone up there after him.
Get a hold of it!
Ugh.
( breathing heavily )
That was a fool thing to do.
Thanks anyway.
Next time Moses hits, I'll know where to cut him off.
And I said I'll cut him off, Martin.
That bear belongs to me.
Now go on down before you break your neck.
Funny thing about the human creature--
goes along livin' like there was no reason for it all.
Then one day, he finds his reason.
He finds it, and it starts to burn him up inside.
What are you talkin' about?
The boy.
I seen it in his eyes.
The way he went after that bear,
like he was makin' a run for a grand look at his fate.
Come on.
Whoa.
Martin.
Over here, Martin!
( chuckles ) Martin, it's good to see you.
Pa, how do you feel?
Fine, fine.
Heard they were crowdin' you a little
so I thought you might need some help.
Round up boss, over here.
Martin, take that thing off the back for me, will you?
Yeah, put it right down there.
Sure.
Howdy. Howdy.
I was hearing that the men were leanin' on Martin
so I thought I'd come down and lend him a hand.
No, he's been learnin' to take care of himself just fine.
Well, that's a lot for any man, no matter how you look at it.
Pa, you don't have to stay here. I can--
Ah, no, you just listen to me.
I'm stayin', you hear? I'm stayin'.
( grunts )
I can make it myself!
( grunting )
All right.
Just go on. Get back to your work.
I'll be here if you need me.
Go on! You hear me.
Is it help you're offering, Mr. Belden?
Or you just wanna make sure he settles your fight for you?
I'll tell you what you do, round up boss.
You just tend to the beef.
I'll look out for my boy. I know how to take care of my son.
Well, that's what's botherin' me, you see.
I'm afraid that with your tender and lovin' care,
the Belden name may wind up as nothing more
than something carved on a headstone somewhere.
You think that over.
Think it over real good.
( wind blowing )
Well, it's a norther out, all right.
It's below freezing already.
Well, how's the herd doin'?
Well, it's still up, but I don't know for how long.
All right, everybody up.
Gotta keep that herd movin' and millin'
otherwise they'll freeze to death.
Come on.
How's the coffee, Steve?
Don't let that bunch stand!
Keep them movin'! They'll freeze to death!
Circle them!
Keep them movin'! Haze them up!
How bad?
Just too darn cold.
I got the circulation goin', but she just won't get up.
Get a hold of her tail. Give me a hand.
All right now. Come on, girl!
Come on! Come on!
Come on, girl! Come on!
You must not have looked at the brand.
That was a Belden cow.
I guess I didn't.
Where are your gloves?
I guess I lost them sometime back.
Well, you better get back to the bunk house before you get frostbite.
I gotta keep workin' this section.
I'll take it for you.
Thanks.
Hello, son. Hi, Pa.
How's the weather out there?
Wind seems to be dyin' down a little.
Oh, here. Let me pour you a cup of coffee.
Pa, hold it for me. I'll be right back.
You tryin' to be funny, Belden?
Sorry, it fell.
Did it just fall, or are you just a big sneak?
What do you mean by that?
You get yourself ridden, and this is your way of gettin' even.
You're a yellow belly.
All right, we're all tired and cold to boot,
but that's no reason to lose your head.
Now go on and get some sleep.
Rick's a good man.
Been workin' at Shiloh for years.
You got them reachin'.
You made them stand up and give you some respect.
We need a lot of that, don't we, Pa? What?
Belden's not exactly a name that brings friendly expressions to people's faces.
You can't care about that, boy.
I came out to this country to make something of my life and yours.
If the way I did it didn't make me
the most popular thing since the wheel, so be it.
Hmm. Yes, sir, that was a real show.
You let them know what you had inside.
They may not like you, but they couldn't help but admire you.
Fear you as well.
Is that important?
Important?
Trampas there, he couldn't hide it.
Down deep inside, he's scared of you.
Hmm.
Now you're actin' like a man.
Boy, I'm proud of you.
You're everything John Belden could want in a son.
Whoa.
( gunshot )
You know that's against the rules.
I haven't read them lately.
Martin Belden?
He's one for you.
I feel bad about Martin.
Old Trampas carin' that much about a stupid kid.
Doesn't surprise me.
He's out there every day practicin' with his gun.
You know, he's gettin' accurate?
His draw is slower than the comin' of a kids Christmas,
but he's gettin' accurate.
I'm gonna have to kill him.
For what?
You better take the rest of the day off.
( gunshots )
Both: Moses!
It's Moses! He hit our beef!
Anybody hurt?
No, but he got a yearling, and then he headed off.
He's probably headed for the cliffs.
Hey, Look! Up there!
You ain't goin' in there?
I was thinkin' about it.
How about you?
It's all right.
Like I said, because of Red Wing,
he belongs to me.
Besides...
this rifle's the only thing that'll bring him down.
Trampas, don't-- don't go in there!
He'll just tear you to pieces.
Look, I'll tell you what we do.
We can build a fire, and then we'll smoke him out.
These cliffs are probably honeycombed with caves.
More than likely, there's a way out of this one.
I can't take the chance on losin' him.
Trampas!
Trampas, you fool!
About that animal-- what is it the Indians say?
Feels like cold air blowin' out of here.
They say it's part of a man he never knows about--
his weakness and his strength.
Bannocks say it's a certain part of a man's soul.
Martin! Martin!
( growls )
Aah!
( growls )
Run, Martin!
( growls )
( clicks )
He just kept firin' with that pea-shooter.
( chuckles ) We never will know which one of you killed him.
Does that matter?
Does that matter now?
Well, we're just a couple hundred short of 10,000,
and in less than three weeks.
( chuckles ) We sure had good luck!
Count wouldn't have been half that good
if that norther had really broke.
You and me, we got some fixin' to do.
You mean the celebration party?
That's right.
Right here at Shiloh, tonight, you're all invited.
( all cheer )
One thing--
this matter between Martin Belden and Trampas--
it's a waste.
Martin or Trampas?
Take your pick.
I had a different impression of your feelin' for Martin.
I was wrong.
I'm not the only one that feels that way now.
I just hope it isn't too late.
**
( all chatting and laughing )
( chuckling ) I tell you, when that bear came out of the cave,
he threw his shadow so big it looked like the sun
had gone down behind the mountain!
( all laugh )
I'll talk to you later, Rick.
Got something to attend to.
Another one?
( chuckling ) And one thing about old Faraway--
he can sure hold his tarantula juice.
Yeah.
Faraway can sure hold his tarantula juice.
Fill it up, Cook.
Take it easy, Trampas.
I want another one. Come on!
That won't help much.
I don't know...
well, it isn't every night you get to kill a man.
Isn't that right, Steve?
Well, there it is.
We've all been talkin' about it for years.
Not many men have seen it and lived to tell about it.
Nine feet tall, over a thousand pounds!
Who'd it take to bring it down? It took a man.
Martin Belden.
Trampas, there's something you don't know about me.
Nobody's big enough to wear my boots,
unless I let them.
and I'm lettin' Martin, starting right now.
I've never seen you lookin' so good.
Maybe it's because death's all around...
like air.
You can smell it, fresh and clean.
All right, get on with it. Get on with it!
With what? The execution?
Your face is like a pane of glass.
It's all there.
Kill or be killed.
Be a Belden or die in glory.
Isn't that it?
You're a coward. I still got a coward for a son.
Coward, yes.
That's what I've been.
It's not that I'm afraid to face up to Trampas.
It's just that I've been afraid to face up to you.
Well, I'm tellin' you right now--
I've got no quarrel with Trampas and I'm not gonna fight him.
( gun cocks )
I'm a half a man, but I'm a better man than you.
Trampas!
Get out of my way or I'll shoot right through you.
You're not gonna shoot anybody.
Because you stood up to that bear...
you think you're big enough to stand up to me?
It wasn't a bear I faced. It was John Belden.
It was something that kept on saying...
"be more than you are, be something people fear,
be me." Kept on saying "be me."
"Be John Belden."
Well, I'm not John Belden.
Good or bad, I'm me,
and nobody's gonna take that away from me.
From now on, Pa...
you're only gonna be my father.
That'll be enough...
if you let it.
I hope you know it wasn't on account of you.
I know.
Martin.
Well, we all came here for a party.
Let's get on with it! Crank up the music!
Cook, I'll buy you a drink.
Drink it up over there!
**
( theme song )