At Double Cross Ranch (1910)
As he read his uncle's letter, Archibald Willard merely shrugged his shoulders and heaved a sigh of bored resignation. Truly it was the master stroke of what he termed "Uncle Joe's tedious eccentricities," this offer of $50,000 if he would wed the daughter of his uncle's comrade, Col. Redmond. This meant a tedious trip to the Colonel's ranch, and even then Miss Moinai might prove entirely impossible. Still, as his fond mother argued, it was distinctly worth a trial. Then, too, mingling with hundreds of swaggering cowboys and riding bucking bronchos would be rare sport. Accordingly, armed to the teeth with guns and knives, he set forth, accompanied by the haughty Mrs. Willard. Major Joe Buford's kind offer, however, was not received at the ranch with such complacent resignation. Moinai indignantly declared that she had already bestowed her heart upon her father's junior partner, Lewis Shelby, at which the sly old Colonel pretended to be greatly surprised; but, in truth, seeing which way the wind blew, it was this fact which caused him to make the young cowboy his partner. Lewis' suggestion, therefore, that they give the Willards a reception they would long remember, met with hearty approval from all sides. He and Moinai would meet the mother and son at the station, and escort the stagecoach home on horseback in truly western fashion. At a given signal, a band of Indians, in warpaint and feathers, would surround the coach. They were to be led by Sour Bill, for whom the cowboys borrowed Kid Eagle's headdress, and with the aid of some brown house paint, which they assured the enraged Bill would surely wear off inside of a couple of months, he might well have been the proud possessor of the title they bestowed upon him, "Chief Pain-in-the-Face." The hold-up was to be followed by a thrilling rescue by the cowboys stationed in the distance, and the day's sport wound up by giving young Archibald an opportunity to ride the bucking broncho he had written he intended doing. The entire program worked like a charm. At the first sight of the savage Indians, Mrs. Willard fainted, while Archibald got to his knees and implored the redskins with such earnestness to spare his life, that it was only with the greatest difficulty they kept from laughing in his face. The cowboys then made their heroic rescue, and the Indians, selecting a soft spot, fell in a heap at the first sound of the rescuer's guns. Mrs. Willard still remained unconscious, so Moinai, giving her horse in charge of one of the "dead" Indians, clambered into the coach to revive the poor lady. The girl thought the sport had gone far enough, but not so Lewis; for the instant they reached the ranch, while father and daughter were taking care of Mrs. Willard, he led Archibald to the barn, and putting him aboard "Peanuts" started him down the road at a sharp clip, amid the shouts of the pursuing cowboys. "Peanuts" was the gentlest of the bronchos, so, at the most, the young man would only get a severe shaking up. This shaking up, however, together with a slight sprain and several bruises, which he received in falling, so cooled the tenderfoot's ardor for anything western, that he remained up half the night in his fear that they might miss the first eastern-bound train.
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GenresShort
Western
IMDbPro
See more details at IMDbPro
| Filmmakers | Role |
|---|---|
| Milton J. Fahrney | Director |
| David Horsley | Producer |
