Dead or Alive

To infiltrate a gang of outlaws led by Clint Yackey, the owner of the Half Way House saloon, Texas Rangers Panhandle Perkins and Dave White decide to work undercover, with Panhandle posing as a sheriff and Dave as his prisoner, an inveterate bank robber. Pretending to have escaped from the sheriff, Dave seeks refuge at the Half Way House but is soon apprehended by Panhandle. When Yackey discovers that Dave has stashed the proceeds from a recent bank robbery nearby, he convinces the sheriff to spend the night in town. Meanwhile, Henry Wright, the head of a citizen's committee for law and order in the neighboring town of Delano, hires Tex Haines, an attorney and champion of the law known as "The Idaho Kid," to bring Yackey and his gang to justice. Tex agrees to represent Arline Arthur, who has just inherited a half-interest in the Half Way House from her late uncle, in claiming her share of the saloon. At the Half Way House, meanwhile, Panhandle pretends to gamble and lose the money stolen by Dave. Threatening to have Panhandle arrested for taking his money, Dave demands his freedom and Panhandle reluctantly removes his handcuffs. Soon after, Tex arrives at the saloon and introduces Arline as Yackey's new partner. After Tex and Arline leave, Yackey warns the bank president, with whom he is league, that Arline also owns a share of the bank. To insure that Arline has no assets to claim, Yackey arranges for a bank robbery the following day. Early the next morning, Arline and Tex visit the bank and demand to examine the records. As they scrutinize the books, Yackey's henchman, Red Avery, and the gang gallop into town, guns blazing. After snatching a bag of cash, Red shoots the president and rides off with Tex in pursuit. Tex catches up to Red and shoots the money bag from his hand, but Red escapes. Upon returning to town with the money, Tex convenes a meeting of the committee and proposes setting a trap for Yackey by spreading the rumor that the safe at the Wells Fargo office contains $250,000. Hearing the rumor, Dave joins the gang for their raid on the express office. Meanwhile, Tex and the committee members have surrounded the office, and when the robbers attack, Dave is apprehended while Tex pursues Red and his gang. Although Dave claims that he is a Texas Ranger, Wright and the others refuse to believe him without proper identification. Tex, meanwhile, is lassoed and taken captive by Yackey. As Red advocates hanging Tex, Panhandle bursts into the saloon with news that Dave has been arrested, prompting Yackey to offer to exchange Dave for Tex. In town, the committee votes to hang Dave just as Panhandle returns with Yackey's message. When Panhandle is unable to locate Dave's ranger credentials, the committee refuses to release him. As the committee readies for the hanging, Panhandle remembers that he has stashed their credentials in his boot, and the committee then frees Dave who rides to rescue Tex. At the Half Way House, Tex overpowers his captors and gallops off with Yackey and the gang in pursuit. Tex meets Dave on the trail, then they both drive Yackey and the others back to the Half Way House. After a grueling fistfight, they apprehend the gang. Their mission accomplished, the three lawmen mount their horses and ride off.