- Bart chases a can-can girl who stole $20,000 from him - and insists she had a good reason to do so.
- Bart's about to go into the casino business with a shady partner when his twenty thousand contribution is stolen by a beautiful Norweigan dance hall girl. Bart's partner agrees to put up $10,000 to hold their option open for three days and Bart must retrieve his cash from the woman before she disappears into Mexico.—Anonymous
- In Silver City, New Mexico, at the Bella Union saloon, casino, and concert hall, Bart is playing poker in a back room and winning. When he tries to leave, the other players object since they want a chance to win back their money even though he's on a winning streak. Can-can girl Karen Gustvson is watching them from the side, and goes to the bar. A waiter, Willy, walks by her and Karen tells him to do it right away.
Willy tells her not to be so loud, and calls her over to side. Karen tells him that Bart has stopped playing, and pays Willy the $10 he agreed to earlier. He refuses the money, saying that he's changed his mind, and now wants $20. Karen pays Willy the extra and he goes upstairs. Meanwhile, Bart leaves the poker table and talks to Walter Osbourne. Walter asks if anything has gone wrong, and Bart confirms that they're meeting at noon the next day. Bart assures Walter that nothing could change his mind, and Walter says goodbye to his "partner".
Bart goes up to his room and undresses, taking the $20,400 out of his wallet and counting it. He only needs $20,000 to buy a 50/50 partnership in the Bella Union with Walter. Karen is hiding behind a chair, and once Bart goes to sleep Karen emerges from hiding and takes the money from Bart's gun belt where he's keeping it and slips out.
The next day, Bart discovers that the money is gone, and realizes that someone was in his room when he came in and they must have had a key. He goes downstairs and confirms that Willy, the night bellhop, had keys to all the rooms. Bart questions Willy and demands answers, drawing a gun on Willy. Willy quickly says that Karen took the key and gives Bart his address. Bart goes to Karen's boarding house and knocks on her door, ignoring the protesting landlady.
A man. Elliott Larkin, comes out from the room across the hall and says that Karen isn't in there. He says that he waited up all night for her and she didn't come home. Bart recognizes Elliott as a faro dealer at the Bella Union, and Elliott says that he's only working there temporarily. The door to Karen's room is unlocked, and there's no sign of Karen inside. Bart searches the room and finds a handkerchief, gives it to Elliott, and says that he needs a drink.
Bart talks to the ticket seller at the stagecoach office, and discovers that the only woman who has bought tickets out of town is Mrs. Murphy, a seamstress who takes care of the can-can girls at the Bella Union. Going over to Murphy's shop, he discovers that she's there and she admits that she bought tickets to El Paso. Once Bart leaves, a nervous Murphy looks around.
Going to the Bella Union to meet with Walter, Bart tells him about the theft and assures him that it only means a delay in buying his share. Walter says that the current owner, Mitchell, will shop around for a deal.., and says that he can delay Mitchell five days to for a $5,000 deposit. Bart promises that he'll get the money and leaves.
Bart goes to the El Paso stage. Walter tells him that Mitchell will give him only three days, and demanded $10,000. Walter makes it clear that Bart had better return from El Paso with the $20,000. When Bart gets in, he discovers that Elliott is there as well. Elliott tells Bart that he's been following him, and insists that Karen is honest and good. He insists on them looking for Karen together, and doesn't want anything to happen to her.
For the next three hours, Elliott tells Bart how Karen showed him to make a new life for himself. The coach arrives in El Paso, and Bart asks around about Karen with Elliott in tow. Bart manages to slip away from Elliott, and he rides to Las Cruces and discovers that Karen rented a stage there and was going to Mexico. Her next stop had to be the village of San Miguel, the only stop across the border.
Bart rides to San Miguel and spots Elliott in the distance behind him, following him. In San Miguel, Bart tracks Karen down to a room in a hotel. The proprietor, Carlos, visits her and tells her that an American man and woman have checked into the hotel. She confirms that they're an older customer and tells Carlos that she doesn't want to be disturbed. He assures her that she won't and that she should be well-rested for the village's celebration the next day of Sabado de Gloria. It marks the death of the betrayer, Judas, and everyone will have Judas masks and firecrackers. At night they will burn the big statue of Judas. Carlos invites Karen to the celebration, and she cheerfully accepts.
Once Carlos leaves, Karen goes to the window where a man-Enrico--is waiting outside He nods to her and walks away,.
The celebration begins and the villagers take the statue of Judas through the streets. Karen is in the crowd, watching, and Enrico watches her. When Karen walks off to do some shopping for Mexican clothes, and Enrico follows her. Carlos sees her and is glad to hear she will be joining the celebration. When Karen goes into her room, she finds Bart waiting for her. He demands his $20,000, and Karen says that she took his money to keep him from buying the Bella Union with Walter, because Walter is an evil man.
Karen insists that Walter is a devil among mean, but Bart doesn't care and grabs her until she says that it's in her wardrobe. Bart goes to get it, and Karen hits him over the head with a vase. She then runs out and Elliott finds her and tells him that Bart is trying to kill her. She runs off, and Bart wakes up and comes out. Elliott grabs him and tries to punch him, and Bart knocks him out and leaves him in Carlo's arms.
Karen runs through the streets, and Bart chases her. He soon corners her, and she says that the money is back in Silver City at a Wells Fargo office in Bart's name. Karen insists that Walter is a pig, and tells Bart that a can-can girl took her life because of Walter. The girl was terrified of Walter, but he wouldn't let her get away. The girl was Karen's sister Anna, and Bart asks why Karen doesn't go right after Walter.
Elliott enters the courtyard where Bart has corner Karen. She says that she'd be satisfied if she could stop Bart from getting the money to help Walter. Karen admits that she likes Bart, and she wrote him a letter that she was going to mail, explaining why she took his money and where he can find it. The letter is in her room, and Bart demands to see it. He insists on going to her room to see the letter, and explains that Walter got a three-day delay.
Elliot steps forward and asks Karen if she stole the money to hurt Walter or help Bart. Karen admits that it might have been both, and Elliott walks away in disgust. Karen admits that she expected Elliott to do something, and Bart says that Elliott might not be up to it. She explains that Elliott was a POW in Andersonville, and Bart apologizes for speaking out of turn but still wants to see the letter.
At the hotel, Karen tells Bart that there is no letter. He figures the money is in Karen's room and searches for it. He doesn't find it, and Karen asks him if he believes her. Bart doesn't and says that they're going to send a telegram to Wells Fargo and confirm if his money is there. Karen points out that he won't have an answer until the next morning, and she doesn't mind being out of Bart's sight until then. Bart ignores her flirting and takes her with him to the telegram office.
Once Bart sends the telegram, he takes Karen out. Elliott follows them, and goes to the telegram office and sends a telegram of his own. It's to Walter, saying that Bart is there with Karen and has a new "investment plan". Elliott signs it anonymously and tells the operator to send it as fast as he can.
That night, Elliott is drinking at a cantina. The celebration continues, and Bart and Karen watch it from the street. Enrico is watching them, and Bart takes Karen back to her hotel room. As they walk through the streets, Carlos approaches Karen and invites her and Bart to dance with them. Bart tries to demur, one woman putting a mask on his head and leading him on while Carlos put a mask on Karen and dances with her.
A woman cuts in on Carlos, and Karen runs off. Bart finally breaks away and notices that Karen is gone, and searches for her without success. Carlos notices Bart run off, while Bart yanks the mask off of women but doesn't find Karen. Meanwhile, Karen gets into a carriage and leaves, and Bart and Carlos talk to the carriage driver. He confirms that his carriage was stolen by Enrico, and Carlos tells Bart that Enrico is a local bandit.
Enrico pulls over and Karen offers to pay him if he takes her away from the man chasing her. The bandit says that they're at the home of a friend of his, Manuel. Manuel is there, and he and Enrico take Karen in and tie her up. Enrico tells Karen that the people he kidnaps are never harmed, and sometime they enjoy it. He's going to have Manuel collect a ransom of $500.
Bart knocks out Manuel and dresses as him to get close enough to knock out Enrico. He then frees Karen, but says that she'd better give him the money or he'll hand her back over to Enrico. Karen explains that she ran so that Bart would believe she had the money, and she hoped he'd follow her deep into Mexico away from telegraph wires and Walter. She runs away, but stops when Bart's foot goes through a floorboard. She refuses to abandon Bart, comes back, and helps him get free.
Once he's free, Bart tells Caren that he's confused about her true motives. They leave and go back to the celebration, and find a passed-out Carlos but decide not to wake him. Back in Karen's room, Bart wonders how a nice girl could be a thief. He admits that he's starting to like her, and Karen says that she could love Elliott if she was sure he was a "man". Karen shows Bart the letter she wrote him, and figures Bart won't go back to Silver City. Bart admits that he won't, and if Walter is half as bad as Karen says, Bart is going to look for a new partner.
Walter opens the wardrobe door, revealing that he's been hiding behind it. He aims his gun at Bart, and says that he got a telegram saying Bart wasn't coming back with the $20,000. Karen figures that Elliott sent the telegram, and Walter has Bart remove his gun belt and hand over the money. Bart has Karen tell Walter that the movie is at the Wells Fargo office in Silver City. Bart refuses to go through with the deal, and Walter says that he'll hold Karen hostage until Bart gives the money to Mitchell.
Walter says that he figures Karen won't give up , and whether he kills Karen is up to Bart. Bart isn't convinced, but has no choice. Walter leads Bart and Karen to the horses he has out back, and Elliott shows up and exchanges shots with Walter. Walter is killed each other, and Karen goes to Elliott as Carlos wakes up and asks what is going on. Bart sends him to get a doctor, and Karen confirms that Elliott is still alive. She says that she and Elliott will both be all right.
Elliott wakes up and apologizes to Bart for bringing Walter there. Bart tells him that he made up for it just fine, and walks away to watch the Judas statue burn.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content