Wells Fargo has begun to have doubts about one of their recently hired employees - Charley Mason - riding shotgun for the stage line. When the station manager who hired Mason - John Curtis - recalled he was wearing a distinctive belt buckle associated with a family of outlaws, Jim Hardie is sent to look into the situation.
But now Curtis believes Mason is one of the Bostwick family and wants him fired. Hardie disagrees, but he decides to pay a visit to Mason's wife to get more information. After the visit, Hardie is more convinced than ever that Mason isn't working with the Bostwicks, despite seeing the distinctive belt buckle the Bostwicks wear on the mantle over the fireplace.
This episode doesn't really contain a lot of action, it's more of a character driven story. As a result there just isn't a whole lot to discuss in this one, but as I've mentioned Dale Robertson is always a likeable actor and this holds true. John Curtis didn't do a lot of checking up on Mason when he hired him, he actually hired Mason based on his wife, who came along when he applied for the job. Apparently having a pretty wife stands for something in Wells Fargo, the company feels that a man married to a pretty woman would be less likely to be an outlaw.
Hardie and Curtis know the stage will likely be held up by the Bostwicks, and although Curtis is convinced Mason is in on it, Hardie disagrees and convinces Curtis to leave Mason on the run, and he joins the stage as a passenger to see what happens in the final confrontation.
The cast has a several prolific members whose names would be quite familiar to fans of the era. John Anderson appears as Charley Mason in one of his rare good guy roles. Anderson was very prolific during the era, but he was mostly cast in villainous roles as his voice and demeanor worked well in them. Nestor Paiva appears as Old Man Bostwick. Piava was unreal prolific with 318 credits in so many notable productions it's hard to choose a couple to mention, across the spectrum of characters from comedic to villainous. John Doucette appeared as Shorty Bostwick, and was almost as busy as Paiva with 289 credits. He was cast typically in villainous roles, but he also had a ton of appearance as policemen or soldiers, and he was also quite adept in comedy. Frank Gerstle appeared as station manager John Curtis, and was fairly prolific with 203 credits, but none particularly noteworthy. He played villains and lawmen equally well. Joyce Meadows appeared as Mrs. Mason, but she never really made a mark. Interestingly, Meadows and Gerstle would appear together 3 years later on Cheyenne: Cross Purpose.
I'll have to admit that I don't hold this episode in the higher echelons of the series. Nevertheless, Jim Hardie is always a good watch and this one is no exception. EWIBIG y'know.
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