Jack Natteford

The H&L Lumber Company headed by Henry Lorimer and his daughter "Perry", receives a huge national defense order, and prepares to cut the dangerous Antler Valley tract. Eastern dude John Gordon applies for a lumberjack's job and Lorimer hires him. Soon, a series of accidents occur, topped by a forest fire of unknown origin, in which Lorimer is killed. Perry decides to carry on in her father's place, despite the objections of camp manager Barnes, who covets the company. The storehouse, where the dynamite needed to clear an avalanche is stored, explodes and Barnes blames Gordon. The latter has some cartridge cases used by the rifleman to explode the storehouse, and Barnes instructs his henchman Hodge Mason to get the evidence and kill Gordon. Perry overhears and attempts to stop them, but Barnes knocks her unconscious and puts her in the cab of a runaway train. Unable to keep Mason from reaching the plunger to set off an explosion to wreck the train, Gordon boards the speeding engine and races it over the danger spot ahead of the explosion. The engine and a few cars of lumber get through, and Perry is able to deliver the lumber order on schedule. Mason and Barnes are apprehended and Perry learns that Gordon is really John Gordon Hamilton, son of her late father's partner. —Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Lamont Cranston (Rod La Rocque), amateur criminologist and detective, with a daily radio program, sponsored by the Daily Classic newspaper, has developed a friendly feud that sometimes passes the friendly stage with Police Commissioner Weston (Thomas E. Jackson). He complains to his managing editor, Edward Heath (Oscar O'Shea), over the problems that have developed in his department since Phoebe Lane (Astrid Allwyn) has been hired as his assistant. He is advised to forget it since she is the publisher's niece. During his broadcast about Honest John (William Pawley), a famous safe cracker who has served his time, Phoebe gives him a note that the Metropolitan Theatre is to be robbed at eight o'clock and she is so insistent that he adds it as his closing note. Off the air, he learns she got the information from a man she met in a café who had an honest face. Cranston goes to the theatre where Weston and his men have gathered and, of course, nothing happens but, across town, a safe is blown at the home of international banker Gerald Morton (John St. Polis) and the banker is killed. Cranston arrives there ahead of the police and discovers enough evidence to show him that it wasn't just a simple robbery with the banker accidentally killed. The irate Weston has him jailed as a material witness, but Phoebe comes through with a habeas corpus in time for him to make his broadcast. Honest John crashes into the studio with a gun and demands that Cranston exonerates him over the air from the police suspicion that he committed the robbery. Weston rushes to the studio but Honest John has escaped. Cranston takes Phoebe on a tour of night clubs hoping she will spot the man who gave her the robbery message. She does and Cranston poses as a new arrival from Europe and learns that the man is Flotow (Wilhelm von Brincken) and his companion is Starkov (Tenen Holtz'). They make a date for lunch the next day. While they are waiting for him to join them for lunch, Cranston breaks into Flathow's apartment where he meets Phoebe who also has had the same idea. A phone call is answered and Morton's butler says there is a meeting at the Morton home that afternoon. —Les Adams <longhorn1939@suddenlink.net>

Flagg is relocating flood victims to Gunsmoke Ranch. The Three Mesquiteers know Flagg to be a crook and try to warn them. They ignore the warning and improve the land only to find that it has been condemned for a new dam. During the Great Depression, when natural catastrophes including floods destroy the homes of thousands,.crooked, con man Phineas Flagg buys up all the ranches in Arizona's Gunsmoke Valley at the bargain price of $2 per acre. The displaced families are only too happy to buy what Flagg misrepresents as 40 acres of prime farmland per family at the bargain price of $50 an acre. What he doesn't tell the migrants is that the entire area has been condemned under the law of eminent domain and will soon be flooded for the construction of a new dam. The group's leader, Judge Warren, initially disregards the Mesquiteers' warnings that they're being conned,, but Stony' romances his beautiful granddaughter Marion,, and the settlers accept the Mesquiteers' help,, but is it too late? —duke1029

Though he fought for the North in the Civil War, John is asked by the Governor of Texas to get rid of some troublesome carpetbaggers. He enlists the help of Holden before learning that Holden too is plundering the local folk. Ex-Union officer John Ashley returns to his hometown in Texas and finds law and order being maintained by northerner Benedict Holden's armed troopers. Initially taken in by Holden's smooth talk, Ashley soon discovers Holden is a carpetbagger who, unbeknownst by the governor, is killing and stealing from the locals under cover of state authority. Hoping to thwart Holden's ongoing attacks against the citizens, Ashley enlists in Holden's troops. —Doug Sederberg <vornoff@sonic.net>

A down-on-his luck newspaperman finds himself the center of an experiment being conducted by two daffy millionaires--to see if someone can spend $1000 a minute, every minute, for 12 solid hours. If he can do it, he gets $10,000. If he can't do it, he gets nothing. —frankfob2@yahoo.com