The Red Rope

In a lawless part of the West, notorious outlaw Rattler Hayne tries to stop the wedding of ranch foreman Tom Shaw and his bride Betty, who is the daughter of Tom's boss, Pop Duncan, by waylaying their parson. When the still unmarried Tom and Betty open their wedding presents, Tom finds three bullets and a red rope from Rattler, which means that Rattler and his henchmen, Red Mike and Buck Fendy, are out to get him. While Pop questions Tom about his mysterious past, Parson Pete bluffs his way through Rattler's blockade and reaches the ranch. Tom and Pop plan to spread the story that Pop has fired Tom, which will allow Tom greater leeway to pursue his persecutors. Before Tom leaves, he and Betty are married. A week later, Tom posts signs challenging Fendy to meet him face to face, and while the outlaws plan their strategy, Pop is confronted by neighboring rancher Grant Brade. Brade owes Pop a great deal of money and apparently hopes to ease the debt by marrying Betty himself. Pop warns Brade that Betty is already married to Tom, then confides in Betty his suspicion that Brade hired Rattler to kill Tom, thereby reducing the competition for her affections. Meanwhile, Fendy approaches Tom and prepares for the duel, but he is accidentally shot by Rattler, who intended to shoot Tom in the back. The next day, Brade's henchman, Logan, tells Rattler and Mike that they will not be receiving all their money from Brade because Tom is still alive. While Rattler is plotting to kill Tom and Parson Pete, Betty's little brother Jimmy looks for Tom, whom he idolizes. Tom follows Logan and one of Rattler's gang to Brade's ranch, where he comes to the same conclusion about Rattler and Brade that Pop did. Tom then meets up with the parson, and they intercept a rider carrying a message from Brade to Rattler. Tom alters the message so it seems that Brade will not be paying Rattler at all, then he and the parson split up. Jimmy spots Mike and helps Tom capture him. They take Mike to Parson Pete, who has requested and received an appointment as a deputy marshal. Tom attempts to send Jimmy home, but the willful youngster follows him and is kidnapped by the gang. Tom is captured while trying to rescue Jimmy, but the pair escape together, then watch as Rattler and Brade's men have a shootout at the command of their bosses, who both think they are being double-crossed. Brade shoots Rattler, after which Tom apprehends Brade and turns him over to Parson Pete. The rest of the men are rounded up, and Tom happily tells Betty what a great help his new brother-in-law has been.