Boothill Brigade

Small rancher Lon Cardigan returns home after a six-day trip rounding up his cattle and is dismayed to find that influential cattleman Jeff Reynolds, the father of Lon's girl friend Bobbie, has fired all his regular hands and replaced them with tough gunmen. Bobbie confides in Lon that she is especially worried about the new foreman, Bull Berke, and to comfort her, Lon hires her friendly cook, Calico Haynes, after Bull fires him. Reynolds evades Lon's questions and insists that he no longer see Bobbie. Lon refuses, saying that Bobbie can make up her own mind, and Reynolds offers him a job as his wagon boss with a chance to increase his own herd. Lon accepts, but grows suspicious when Calico points out that surveyors have been at work in the valley. Lon visits with his neighbors, the Murdocks, who have worked the land long enough to have squatter's rights to it, and finds out that Reynolds has bought the entire valley and is evicting them and the other squatters. Healy, one of Reynolds' new men, explains to Lon that the land was offered for legal sale by the state and Reynolds bought it, but Lon realizes that it was still a trick, as the sale was only advertised in Lordsburg, a far away town. Healy warns Lon not to stir up trouble, while Murdock demands that they lynch Reynolds. Lon goes to the Reynolds ranch, where he quits after Reynolds refuses to return the land to the squatters. He meets Bobbie later, and she is mystified as to how Reynolds could buy all the land, as his own ranch is heavily mortgaged. She resents Lon's insinuations about her father's integrity and tells him that she hates him. After Bobbie storms out, Lon discusses the matter with Holbrook, another small rancher, and Holbrook volunteers to go to Lordsburg to investigate. Holbrook returns in two days and tells the disgruntled squatters that the sale was legal. Lon insists that they should hire a lawyer to straighten out the mess, but the others vote to fight, and so Lon states that he will back them. Meanwhile, Calico spots John Porter, a local bigwig, leaving Reynolds' house and follows him. Calico holds up Porter and takes his papers to Lon. Among them is a deed, signed by Reynolds, giving Porter all the land that Reynolds purchased. They show the deed to Bobbie, who is also upset that Porter is making her father do his dirty work, and the trio confronts Reynolds and Porter. Reynolds confesses that Porter owns the mortgage on his ranch and is threatening to foreclose on it if he does not cooperate with Porter's greedy scheme. They convince Reynolds to sign the land back over to the rightful owners, and a war starts between Porter gang and the squatters and ranchers. Porter's men lay siege to Reynolds' house, but reinforcements arrive, and while the others chase away the gang, Lon captures Porter. The sheriff arrests Porter and assures everyone that their land will be returned, and Lon and Bobbie make up.