Tales of the Texas Rangers: Apache Peak

Wheaties presents Joel McCray in Tales of the Texas Rangers. On stage tonight transcribed from Hollywood, another in the Wheaties big parade of exciting half hour presentations. Tales of the Texas Rangers starring Joel McCray as Ranger Pearson.

Texas more than 260,000 square miles. And 50 men who make up the most famous and oldest law enforcement body in North America. Filed to the Texas Rangers come these stories based on fact. Only name, states and places are fictitious for obvious reasons.

The events themselves are a matter of record. Case for tonight? Apache Peak. Shortly after midnight on October 4, last, a late model blucidang came to a stop at a traffic light on the highway leading southwest out of Wichita Falls, Texas.

While the driver waited for the light to change your figure moved out from the shadows and tapped on the window of a sedan I didn't hear you with the window up said you're going near Haskell. I don't know where is it?

I'm headed for El Paso. That's my direction now about a ride. All right. Hop in. Thanks Money hard getting a ride As you like How far is Haskell? About 80 miles, but I'm going past there up near Apache Peak.

How far from El Paso? Oh good. Keep me from falling asleep at the wheel. I gotta be in El Paso in the morning. Business appointment. You've nieced? New York. You've just the accent sticks out, huh?

Right in the snow. What kind of business you in? Salesmen. Airplane parts. You get tired. I can drive a spell. Hey, that's a thought. Soon as I start to feel sleepy sure any chance to rest up good It's almost 4 a.m. Being Odessa in 20 minutes you want to take over yeah Guess I can stop anyplace on this highway

Haven't seen another car in an hour now slide over you get out and come around no you get out Well, it's just as easy for you Hey Hey, what are you doing with that gun? I need money mister and you got it Sure, sure, I'll give it to you. I won't report it or anything, I'll give it to you.

I know you won't, Mr. Fills of the Texas Rangers will continue in just a moment. Tonight, as special guest, we he's champion Robert Feller. Oh, by golly, it's always fun, the meat of Wheaties Champion.

Especially when he's as nice a guy as Bob Feller at the Cleveland Indians. Hello, Bob. Hi, Ed. Are you seeing many baseball games these days? Oh, you bet, Robert. You hitting many Wheaties these days?

What a question. Well, I've been eating gweeds for breakfast almost every morning for pretty close to twenty years. And still going strong, eh? We'd either mind, tough to get tired of. I guess gweeds in milk and fruit will still be my favorite breakfast when I'm too old to climb out of the dugout.

Well, that won't be happening for a lot of years yet. Thanks for stopping in, Bob Feller. Our real gweeds champ. You know, gentlemen of the audience, this man feller has a wife and youngsters even as you and I.

His paycheck depends in part on healthy energy, just as ours does. Got my point? We need them too. Weedies. Breakfast of champions. Get yours. And now, back to our story with Joel McCray as Ranger Pearson.

The body was discovered at 8.15 in the morning of October 4, when a fence ride up Morans bordering the highway found it in the brush at the side of the road. He reported the discovery to the nearest sheriff and the sheriff relayed the report to the Texas Rangers.

Ranger Jason Pearson was assigned to the case. Here's the body, Jase. Under that sheet. Where was he found, Sheriff? Old Bartlett mile east. Must have been dumped out of a car. Shot three times. One through the neck and two through the chest.

38-calorie? Yeah. Carner got two of the slugs. Any identification on him? Oh, anything, Jase? We ever done it, even stole the clothes off. Except in his shirt and shorts, necktie and the pack of cigarettes from his shirt pocket.

It's all there on the table. on the shirt that might help. Corner say how long he's been dead. Since four or five o'clock this morning. These cigarettes. Were they on him? Yeah. Why? They helped any?

Maybe a whole lot. Look at this. New York State tax stamp. Can you make something out of that? Only the one pack of cigarettes wouldn't have lasted him from New York to Texas. Probably bought a carton or two, start out on the trip. So his home might be in New York. We're making an awful lot of folks by our car in the smokes of New York,

geez. Yeah, but it's a place to start checking that laundry mark on the shirt. It'll be a help we know who this man is. I'll send these things into the lab and they can send a wire photo of the mark to New York. And the car now has some pictures of the body. We'll put

them on the wire, too. You've got a deputy to get the stuff to my headquarters? Sure thing, I'll call him. Good. And we can get out and check the scene. And this little piece of road here blocked off so new cars could wipe out anything.

Good. Yeah, body was found right in here. Yeah. Ragged in from the road. Back of the heel script along there. Clothing caught on the ski gear. And what you picking off there? A little fiber's a cloth snagged on here.

Lab men get through with ease and may be able to tell us what kind of duds they came from. Let's take a look at the road. Fresh set of tire tracks here on the shoulder, James.

Yeah, I noticed them. Impressions deeper here. That's where they stopped. Look at the marks around it. Body was dragged out of the driver's side. That made you different? Means the dead man must have been driving.

So it was a good chance it was his own car. I reckon it is, huh? But how about the other pillar? Could be the same old story, Sheriff. A hitchhiker. Man had to be a fool to take a hitchhiker through this country, ain't it?

Yeah, a fool. The trouble with fools is most of them are nice people. They don't rate being killed. I'm gonna play a hunch. Make some work for the highway patrol. Captain Stimson's out on investigation.

I may be able to reach him in his car. Unit 10, the unit three. Unit 10, the unit three. Unit 10 requests all points, bullet and alerting highway patrol and ranger units to stop and check all cars carrying New York state plates.

No, Captain. Murder scene check indicates victim was driving car he was dumped from. Might have been his own. How soon can we expect report from New York police on Laundry Mark? We'll keep Unit 3 informed if I move from this location.

Unit 10, 10-4. Ten-4 sign off. I took the sheriff back to his office. That's when the hardest part of all hunting began. The waiting. The only thing we knew for certain about the murder car was that it was heading west on the road to Pecosnell Passo.

I headed the same way, stopping to ask questions to all the smaller towns that could face in service stations, wherever a man on the run might risk stopping. But all the answers were the same.

New York car, you say? No, no, I don't think so. I only saw one out of state all day from Oklahoma. Well, thanks anyhow, ma'am. Well, sit down, have some coffee and pie, Ranger. Oh, no, thanks.

I got to find a problem. No. I sure remember it if a New York car stopped here for gas. Ain't she one of the weak? Well, thanks. Uh, Ranger. Yeah. The kid runs the pumps a little while I'm eating.

Maybe he saw something. I'll call him out if you want to wait till I catch his fellas winch. I'll wait. Oh. Well, she, I just remembered. The kid didn't sell nothing today. Well, thanks anyhow.

We've been working on the road all day soon, you're. But we don't know this nobody. Eh, I guess not. They deep to her past your 50 yards away. Only the one who might see his wand.

He hoars the red flag when cars come down there. Bob, he don't even look up. He just hears the car and waves the flag. He took busy looking in the movie magazine at very growl.

Well, thanks. While I was just outside of Pecas, I pulled into a grove near an auto-court, a place I'd stomp before. Let my horse charcoal get down from the trailer. Barely got him unloaded when another Ranger car pulled in.

Yeah, Kurtz. What are you doing down here? I've got a teletype toy from headquarters. Murdered man's name was Roger Bradley, New York City. Salesman from airplane pods outfit. Nenification positive? Yeah, pictures, laundry mock everything.

Police up there trace the laundry mock. Bradley's wife identified the pictures. Was married now? Yeah, three kids. Kyle, you're looking for us a 49 blue sedan. Here's the make and license number. Highway patrol hasn't spotted it anyplace.

Nope, but here's a list of all the closed of all the closed-barrely was carrying on a trip pretty complete description can't understand why nobody's seen that car I kill him I'd have gotten out of the state had a good start I hope that isn't it Kurtz three kids have to grow up without their father because of a gun crazy hitchhiker I know what you mean

let's hope he's still in Texas if he is we're gonna find him in just a moment we continue with tales of the Texas Rangers starring Joel McCray as Ranger Jase Pearson. Next time you bounce out of bed in the morning, well you do bounce don't you? Okay let's say next time you get out of bed head for the Wheaties. Sure

enough head for the Wheaties at 7 a.m. and see how they help at 11 a.m. As they can make a difference at 11 and they can make a difference at the breakfast table. It's likely to be a pleasanter place with a bowl full of crisp little old Wheaties next to your spoon and napkin.

The reason is, of course, the whole-hearted whole wheat taste of Wheaties. You're getting all that sweet as a nut-whole wheat flavor in every Wheaties' flake, or on the milk, but on the fruit and dig right in to one of the finest openings any morning ever had.

And then, see how much finer the morning itself goes when you've started with breakfast of champions. That whole wheat really gives with vitality, you know. There's a whole kernel of wheat in every flake of Wheaties. Now see if you don't notice the difference all morning long. Less of the mid-morning slump, more of the up and atom punch. Know what I

mean? Alright then, you try it. Tomorrow, next day, for a good breakfast, for a good morning start with Wheaties. See yourself how Wheaties at seven can help at eleven. And now back to Joel McCray as Ranger Jason Pearson in Tales of the Texas Rangers.

For the next five days Ranger Kurtz and I worked our way west we couldn't get a lead then on the afternoon of October 10th six days after the killing we stopped and unloaded our horses at Eagle Flat in Huddspeth County.

Blacksmith's place is open? Yeah, horses can drink from his trough. Look at that pug leaning against the fence there. They sure do get dudied up with Saturday night Eagle Flat. Yeah, first, let it jace.

That's suit. No pogordered that through a male cantaloung. Eh, it looks like one of the soups described on the teletype. Yeah, let's find out. Howdy. Well, how dare you, Ranger? You live around here, worked a long-boar ranch up near Tappanacum Mountain.

Why didn't I suit you, got there? Kind of fancy. Yeah, he did the thing from New York, label says. New York, huh? Where'd you get that suit? Well, I bought off... Now, wait a minute, Ranger.

This ain't stolen, is it? Yeah. The man it was stolen from is dead. Oh, man, I just bought off in a fella come by the bunkhouse. When? Oh, rekking it was about five days ago.

He'd drive up with a bunch of stuff. Gove up? What kind of car? New C. Dan. Blue. Notice the license plates on the car? No, no. What do you think, Kurtz? He's seen our men, or he is our men.

Were you on the ranch October 4th? Well, this is the first time I've been offering it in two weeks. I bought the suit, I'm telling you. You buy anything else? Yeah, this. Watch your hands.

I'm just going to show you a wallet to fella through in with a suit. Alright, get it out. Ah. Hey, you paid him $10 for the suit and this. Mmm. Dendification cards and everything stripped.

You take anything out of here? Well, nothing to take. Just like I got it, zapped for my $5 in the money pocket. Killer took all identification out of these celluloid card holders. Might have left some prints.

Oh, to get it to the lab. Yeah. Alright, you better come with us. Now look, I didn't do nothing. Why are you taking me? To the sheriff. You can give us a description of the man who sold you the duds.

If your story checks out clean, you've got nothing to worry about. Oh, it's clean. Alright. Let's go. The Pope's story at the Longbow Ranch. He was telling the truth, alright. At least we had a description of the man we were after now.

About 20 years old, dark. Five foot seven, about 140 pounds. Kurtz and I unloaded our horses. Which way we riding, Jace? Come on, boys. Head north. Into the hills. The road peters are past this ranch, though.

Nothing but a trail. They might have turned back to the highway. Uh-uh. The alarm was out for the time he passed here. If he went back to a main highway, the car would have been spotted.

He's ditched it up here someplace. Well, that's right. Get up there, charcoal. Yes, that boy. The mesquite and seat of the flank of the road. It got thinner and more difficult. Just when I thought we might have come too far.

far. We spotted a car. Second, that's it? Let's see. It would go in and cover it with dirt and grass. Nobody would ever spot it unless they were looking for it. Let's get back and report it.

The KTXP, Unit 10, the KTXP, 10 located Blous-A-Dan registered to Roger Bradley, New York City, Nate Tripper. Any line on him? Apache peaks about 10 miles further in. We'll investigate. We got started. The country we had to go through is tough enough by daylight.

It was after midnight when we sighted a patchy peak. But there was still a light on it and a cabin nested down on the foothills. The towers up here don't they? Too late. Better tie the horses to that mesquite.

And slip up and look in. Yeah. Come on boy. Chase. Something moving over there. See it? Looks like a couple of burrows. Let's take a look at them. You boys are past your bedtime, ain't you?

Both in a sweat all kicked up. Been packing, too. Yeah, the hairs matted down where they've been cinched. Funny time to do work on the burrs. Yeah. Come on. Let's see the house. Look through the window.

Van Eaton. Not our boy, though. Too old. On the back way, now I'll go in through the front. Wait, do you hear me not? Get in. Right. Who's there? Texas Ranger.

Lenny Tripper. In here. Mind if I come in and make sure? I'm in. No. Just another Ranger at the back, Mrs. Tripper. You want to let him in, too? Go ahead, when he's cheating. I'll go right ahead.

This your regular meal time? I ain't going to want him. Nothing on back, Chase. Where's your boy, Mr. Tripper? You're the Ranger. You fired him. We ain't seen him in a year since he joined the Army.

You haven't seen him in the last three months, either. Since he deserted from the Army. You heard what you said. Get me a smoke mow. I want to help your boy. You better help us.

Been there more than a month. Mexico, huh? Mine if I have one of those cigarettes, Mr. Tripper? Yeah. My mind. Rip, and you can buy you. I just got a hankering for one of those.

Can't always get a cigarette like that. What do you mean, wouldn't you? A New York tax stamp on the Pac Tripper. Those cigarettes were stolen from a murdered man six days ago. Murdered man! Shut up!

What were you doing to those burrows outside? They've been packing. I was bringing some stuff down. Been brush picked up to pee. A van with silver mines up there, Chase. Is your son hiding out one of those mines, Tripper?

Were you packing supplies to him? I told you when I was doing them. That boy's wanted for murder, and if you're smart, you'll take us to him and tell him to surrender. Do what they say, Pa.

Do what they say! Shut up! They were long enough. No, about the murder. He just said the army was after him. Come on, Kurtz. We better go up that way. Oh, don't hack! Go ahead, Ranger. Go ahead, Bob!

Go after him! He'll kill you next one he'll do! He'll- We had to go up on foot. It was two treacherous for the horses and trailing over that rocky ground in the darkness, slowed us to the crawling speed of an overfed snake.

They got to be less earth and more rock and the burrow tracks grew fainter, as we tried to pick them up by moonlight and flashlight. There could have gone in any direction from here, a chase can't pick up a mark seems to level off a bit on that shelf ahead might be a narrow trailer hope so getting steeper

too steep for burrows Kurt's dwarf oak here flash your light That's it hold it anything Yeah, look here been nibbled a bit too recent Torn leaves are still fresh. We're headed right then must have gone straight ahead between those big rocks This is it, alright, look at the side of the rock.

Flex the mic appealed off. Little fiber stuff. Where are the pack ropes most discreeted? Let's keep going. Reach the summit where the oaks and cedars fought for whatever slight brick their roots could get on the earth between the rocks.

Dawn found us on a high shelf facing a rise that led to the open mouth of a abandoned silver mine. Trail lead straight enough now. Yeah. He's there, Chase. Yeah, but 20 feet back in.

He could pick us off and we'd never even get to see him. Stay down and keep the whole cover. What are you gonna do? Just call him out. Tripper! Lanny Tripper! He ain't gonna answer, Chase.

You can't get out, Tripper! Stay down, Chase! Now he's got a rifle as well as that 30-80 killed Bradley with. You're gonna come out, Tripper! If we'd only packed a sticker down about it, Come out soon enough, we'll be buried in there.

Maybe the idea of dynamite would be enough. Go over down the shelf and let him see you just once on the way. Not long enough to draw a bead. Maybe we can bluff him. Why don't you go down and let me...

It's my idea. I'll stay. Go ahead. Be careful, Jason. You missed him, tripper. You're not gonna get another shot. He went down to our birds to get some dynamite. We're gonna seal you in there, tripper.

You better come out. I won't if you do what I tell you. Leave your rifle in there. Come out with your hands clasped behind your head. All right, stripper, now come out. He first a blur, then into the light with his hands behind his head.

I got up and he walked toward me. He wasn't wearing a gun belt, but there was something in the way he moved that made me keep my hands close to my holster. Then he made a quick side step and his hands came from behind his head and I caught the glint of a 38.

I'm all right. Get him in. He's gone hand on arm. Put a tourniquet on and we'll take him down. What's the matter with you, Jace? You look kind of funny. Just thinking of his folks down there.

His mother and even the old man. Just trying to help him because he belongs to them in spite of everything he's done. Folks are like that. We gotta bring him in and break their hearts.

Makes you wonder why you ever wanted a weird badge. Until you remember the man he killed and the three kids who left to grow up without him. That makes you know you couldn't ever want to do anything but wear a badge.

There's a tourniquet. That'll hold him. Alright, Trevor, on your feet. Let's go. The ballistic check of the 38th at Lenny Tripper Carried showed it to be the murder weapon used in the slaying of Roger Bradley.

With that and other evidence accumulated by Ranger Pearson and the department, Tripper was convicted and sentenced to death in the electric chair. Well Joel, you did a fine job of clearing up that case. Frank, I've got a little mystery at home.

Maybe you can help me. Glad to try, Joel. Well, it's the case of the disappearing Wheaties. Every once in a while, when I'm all set for a breakfast bowl of Wheaties, my cook says, sorry, we're fresh out.

Why, that's no mystery. Wheaties are so good, so crisp, so loaded with natural, sunny, whole wheat flavor they just don't last long. I know, but what can I do? Well, you can get up early before anyone else gets at the Wheaties or buy two or three boxes at a time.

I think you hit it, Frank. Many thanks. and thank you Joel McCray. Next week Joel McCray and another authentic reenactment of a case from the files of the Texas Rangers. Joel McCray will soon be seen in the MGM production stars in my crown.

Tonight's cast included Tony Barrett, Bill Johnstone, Sam Edwards, Paul Duboff, Byron Kane and Virginia Grade. And with the Wheaties man Frank Martin inviting you to listen on Monday to Frank LaJoy and night beat on the Wheaties Big Braid. See you then.

Tomorrow listen for Dorothy Mayner, now it's Basin Street on NBC.