Child Labor - Gunsmoke | 09/15/1957 (Ep284)
Summary
In this Old Time Radio western, U.S. Marshal Matt Dillon encounters two orphaned boys, the Cheney brothers, who are hired by the unscrupulous rancher Orrin Sibert to break wild horses. When the older brother, Howie, is fatally injured after being spooked by a stallion, his younger brother Bus confronts Dillon with a gun, believing the Marshal caused the accident. Dillon reveals that Sibert actually shot at Bus, and the boy's grief and fear led to the fatal mishap. The episode concludes with the tragic death of Sibert and the emotional release of the surviving boy.
Topics discussed
Introduction: Work in California
Episode opening and character introduction
Marshal Dillon's monologue on duty
Confrontation with Orrin Sibert at the bar
Discovering two lost boys on the street
Boys' backstory and Chester's offer
Sibert hires the boys to break horses
The boys vanish during the night
Bus breaks horses and injures his leg
Howie defies orders to ride the stallion
Reunion with the boys and news of injury
Treating Howie and preparing to leave
The ride back and Howie's death
Bus's grief and departure
Bus returns to the stable with a gun
Confrontation and Sibert's death
Bus breaks down and confesses
Closing credits
Sponsor segment: California manufacturing
Sponsor segment: California agriculture
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