But peace is the last thing the residents of his home town want for Cole Prescott. The job Cheyenne Bodie is in White River to do is unpleasant, but the reception he gets makes it much worse. He's there to deliver the flag-draped coffin of a decorated Army soldier to his home town for burial, but he's met with hostility from one person after another, first the sheriff, then the bank president, his scar-faced henchman, and even the bartender. The dead man's own father doesn't seem to remember, much less care, that his son has been killed. The banker, John Thompson (John Howard), appears to have a more personal grievance than most, jealousy involving his wife's long-ago relationship with Cole Prescott. Only kindly Dr. Malcomb (Regis Toomey) shows signs of resisting the town's collective bitterness.
Cole's heartbroken wife Maria (Donna Martell) gives Cheyenne some background, how her husband had tried to make a good life for them but how the town never really gave him a chance. Their unrelenting hostility was, not because Cole was a bad man but because he was a "half-breed." Sired by an alcoholic, ne'er-do-well father and a Sioux mother, he was so mercilessly tormented by a hate-filled town that he eventually ran away to join the Army. That's where Cheyenne met him when they were assigned to the same regiment. Cole Prescott had given his life in defense of his comrades, including Cheyenne, and had been decorated for bravery. But none of that mattered to the "good people" of White River. Their hatred for the Sioux was set in stone. It took the last-minute arrival of the Army to resolve the issue of where to bury Cole Prescott. It would be in Arlington Cemetery with full military honors.
This is another episode that addresses prejudice in the Old West. It's sometimes painful to watch, especially since 150 years later there are still diehard racists like the citizens of White River. But as long as people like Cheyenne Bodie insist on seeing that justice is done, there's hope that a few lessons can be learned along the modern-day trail of tears.
Cole's heartbroken wife Maria (Donna Martell) gives Cheyenne some background, how her husband had tried to make a good life for them but how the town never really gave him a chance. Their unrelenting hostility was, not because Cole was a bad man but because he was a "half-breed." Sired by an alcoholic, ne'er-do-well father and a Sioux mother, he was so mercilessly tormented by a hate-filled town that he eventually ran away to join the Army. That's where Cheyenne met him when they were assigned to the same regiment. Cole Prescott had given his life in defense of his comrades, including Cheyenne, and had been decorated for bravery. But none of that mattered to the "good people" of White River. Their hatred for the Sioux was set in stone. It took the last-minute arrival of the Army to resolve the issue of where to bury Cole Prescott. It would be in Arlington Cemetery with full military honors.
This is another episode that addresses prejudice in the Old West. It's sometimes painful to watch, especially since 150 years later there are still diehard racists like the citizens of White River. But as long as people like Cheyenne Bodie insist on seeing that justice is done, there's hope that a few lessons can be learned along the modern-day trail of tears.
