The Quiet Gun

Soon after a menacing stranger named Doug Sadler arrives in the town of Rock River, city attorney Stephen Hardy demands that the sheriff, Carl Brandon, confront his old friend, rancher Ralph Carpenter, about cohabiting with a young Indian girl. Although Carl reassures Hardy that the girl, Irene, is simply Ralph's servant, he rides out to the ranch to speak to Ralph. Carl, who was once in love with Ralph's estranged wife Teresa, asks Ralph if he is aware that Teresa is to return to town on the next stage. After replying that Teresa left him because of their incompatibility, Ralph asks Carl if he is still in love with her. In town, meanwhile, Sadler meets with Sean Reilly, the owner of the local saloon, with whom he is plotting to seize Ralph's ranch and use it as an outpost for Sadler's rustled cattle. When Carl returns to Rock River, Hardy informs him that the town council, headed by Harold Lesser, has issued a complaint against Ralph for being a moral threat to the community. After refusing to serve Ralph with the papers, Carl warns that such an action will only cause trouble. Hardy then hires Sampson, the village simpleton, to accompany him to Ralph's ranch while he delivers the complaint. After Ralph orders Hardy off his property, Hardy reaches for Sampson's rifle and Ralph shoots and kills the attorney. When Sampson rides back to town with the news of Hardy's death, Reilly, who sent Irene to Ralph's ranch to stir up trouble, is ecstatic. Soon after, Teresa arrives and Carl tells her about the shooting and the town's moral indignation over her husband's behavior. Teresa then agrees to stay at Mrs. Merric's boardinghouse until the incident is settled. When Lesser informs Carl that the town council wants Ralph arrested for Hardy's murder, Carl replies that council is responsible for his killing. Nevertheless, Carl rides out to the ranch and discovers that Ralph and Irene have fled. Upon tracking them down in the hills, Carl tries to arrest Ralph, but Irene jumps the sheriff and allows her lover to escape. After Irene defiantly declares that she and Ralph are in love, Carl continues his pursuit. Carl finally corners the exhausted Ralph, and asks Irene to convince him to surrender. When Irene tells Ralph that Reilly sent her to live with him to cause trouble, Ralph is about to give himself up when a lynch mob arrives. Carl tries to reason with the blood-thirsty crowd, but they overpower him and knock him out. Upon regaining consciousness, Carl sees his friend's body hanging lifelessly from a tree. After bringing Ralph's body back to town, Carl marches into the saloon and arrests three of the men who hanged him. When one refuses to give up his gun, Carl shoots him and then jails the others. Carl then deputizes Sampson and leaves him in charge of the prisoners while he goes to arrest the rest of the mob. Lesser informs Carl that the town has voted to release the prisoners, so Carl asks him to convene the council at his office. Once the members of the council arrive, Carl tricks them by deputizing them and ordering them to uphold the law. Meanwhile, Reilly and Sadler ride out to Ralph's ranch and find Irene there. After informing Irene of Ralph's death, Reilly beats her with his whip for not following his orders. Sadler then assaults her, but Irene resists and grabs his gun from its holster. In the ensuing struggle, the weapon fires, wounding Irene. In town, a group of irate citizens pounds on the door of the sheriff's office and demands the prisoners be freed. When Carl tells them that the entire town council has been deputized and is waiting to arrest them, the crowd disperses. Teresa, meanwhile, goes back to her late husband's ranch and finds the gravely wounded Irene, who, with her dying breath, gasps Reilly's name. The trial commences, and after finding Ralph's killers guilty of murder, the judge lectures the town for creating an atmosphere that fosters hate and lawlessness. Just then, Teresa enters the courtroom and whispers something to Carl, and their exchange is witnessed by Reilly and Sadler. When court is dismissed, Carl loads his gun and walks out to the street. After calling to him from the shadows, Reilly and Sadler fire at the sheriff. Although he is wounded in the ensuing hail of bullets, Carl guns down both Sadler and Reilly. The town then gathers around their wounded sheriff.