"Pa, Pa," yelled Mark.  "Pa, Pa."  As he entered the barn, Artemus grabbed him. "Now what's all the fuss, Sonny, I didn't mean to scare you," said Artemus.  Mark was surprised, he didn't know who Artemus was or that he was even in the barn. I was in the house when I heard Mark and came running into the barn. "What is it Mark?" I asked.  He had hurried home to tell me that he found a man's body laying in a gulley near the cut off at the springs.  He told me there was a calf stuck in some bushes and after he had left him loose he stumbled onto the grave.  I then ask Artemus if he would stay with the boy.  He agreed.  "Who is he?" ask Mark.  I told Mark that Artemus was our cousin through marriage.  He was patching our roof.   We went to hitch up the team and I told them to tend to supper if I didn't get back in time.  I told Artemus to tell Mark how he fought off the pirates.  Mark liked that.  "Pirates, golly, did you really fight pirates?" ask Mark.   Mark loved stories. Artemus told Mark how he sailed the seven seas and fought pirates in Trinidad and Madagascar.  He sure won over Mark. 

I brought the body back to the house before I headed into town.  "Why ya'd bring him back here?" Ask Mark.  I wanted to ask Mark a question before takin' the body to Micah.  I asked him if he picked up anything while he was out there.  Some kind of clue, anything?  He assured me he hadn't picked up anything.  "A bullet doesn't leave a clue Lucas," said Artemus.  I told him that the dead man wasn't shot; he was killed with a knife.  Artemus felt the Marshal would want to know he was.  Him being a stranger in the area, but I assured him I could vouch for him.  He thought if I didn't vouch for him it might be good for business.  He was somewhat of a peddler.  I told him Micah wasn't into that kind of business.  I grabbed a bite to eat and headed on into town.

I went and got Micah.  I told him about Mark stumbling across the body and that he was killed with a knife. Micah never saw him before.  He wanted to know where Mark was.  I told him he didn't know anything more, that I left him at the ranch with Artemus Quarles.  I mentioned Artemus was a cousin thru marriage.  There was little identification on the man.  I did find a belt with the initials RM on it.  "RM," said Micah.  He saw those same initials earlier today on a saddle in town.  He had the man locked up for getting liquored up at the Last Chance Saloon.  His name was Joe Carson.  We took the body over to the parlor and went to talk to the prisoner. 

Carson told us he didn't kill anybody.  That he made a killing at cards and bought the horse and saddle off the stranger.  He won $65 and he paid $50 dollars for the horse and saddle.  He said he spent the rest of the money here in town.  He didn't know the man. He told us he was a drifter and broke just like him.  When Carson offered to buy his goods off of him he sold it to him.  He wanted to buy his gun, but he wouldn't sell that.  It was a pearl handle Russian 44.  He had no bill of sale.  They made the deal outside of Willow Springs and no one saw them make the transaction.  Micah told him he'd get a trial.  He kept insisting he didn't do it.  For some reason I didn't know what to believe.

I was on the porch cleaning my rifle.  Artemus just finished up fixing the roof.  "Pa, ya' figure they'll hang that man in town?" Ask Mark.  He wondered if I thought he did it.  Artemus ask me to.  I told them it looked that way.  Artemus told us he never used guns, he preferred swords.  "Swords, don't you like guns?" Ask Mark.  Artemus told us how much he liked guns and what beautiful things they were.  "Guns are like a beautiful woman.  To me using a gun is like putting rouge on a women's face," he said. He thought my rifle was a beauty and offered to buy it.  I didn't have to refuse his offer; Mark told him I'd never sell it.  He asked what kind of shells I used.  I told him 44/40's.  He said he had some he'd sell me cheap.  I told him I didn't need any shell, but thanks anyway.  While I was putting my shells in my saddle bags, something made me wonder what for shells Carson has in his saddle bags.  I told them that I was going into town.

  I went over to get Micah and we went to look at Carson's saddle bags.  He had 44's in his saddle bag.  He wasn't lying.  But where was the dead man's gun?   Micah asked Sweeny if he took anything out of the saddle bags.  He swore he didn't.  Micah knew I didn't think Carson killed anyone.  He was curious to who I thought might have killed that stranger.  There haven't been any strangers in town for five days.  Except for Artemus Quarles, my distant cousin.  If Carson did buy that horse and saddle from the stranger and left the stranger on foot, who did pick up that stranger? Micah wanted to go out and talk to Quarles, just to ease my mind. 

Mark had gone to put Artemus' tools away in his wagon. When he opened the wooden box, he saw several pistols in the box. Mark took out the pearl handled Russian 44.  He was admiring it when Artemus yelled "What are you doing boy? Why are you going thru my things?"  Mark told him he didn't mean any harm and that he was putting his tools away when he came across the guns.  He thought that anyone that had guns like that, well, they would show them around.  Mark didn't want him to be mad.  He couldn't wait to show me, he knew how much I loved fancy firearms.  Artemus tried to smooth things over.  That way Mark wouldn't think he was still upset with him.  He even told Mark he'd be glad to show me all the things he owns when he returns.  He told Mark he had to go to the valley to do another roof job that I had told him about.  He asks Mark if he'd like to ride along with him.  He told Mark he'd tell him all about where he got the guns.  They got the horses hitched up and Mark went in the house and grabbed them both a piece of bread and decided to leave me a note so I would know where they went.  When he told Artemus that, he stops abruptly.  Mark ask him what was wrong, he said that he had forgot some tools. Artemus went in the house and grabbed the note and tore it up.  Just then Mark came in for some more bread, he thought Artemus had gone to the barn.  Mark noticed he tore up his note.  "Why did you do that Mr. Quarles?" Ask Mark.  He knew Mark would tell me about that pearl handled gun.  "What about it?" Ask Mark.  With that Quarles grabbed Mark but he broke loose and ran out the side door.  Artemus rushed out to cut him off.  Mark went back into the house and locked the side door.  He ran to lock the front door but couldn't, so he propped a chair in front of it.  As he looked out the window he saw Artemus heading towards his wagon.  He reached into the wagon and grabbed a sword.  He then broke thru the door as Mark ran out the other door.  Just then Micah and I rode up and Mark comes running over to me saying "Why'd he wanna hurt me because I wanted to tell you about that gun of his?"  I ask him "what gun?"  "That pearl handled gun in his wagon," said Mark.  I grabbed my rifle and headed into the house calling his name.  He throws the sword at me and runs out to the wagon.  He got a pistol and some shells out and started to load the pistol when I yelled for him to come out.  He came out pistol in hand and I told him to drop the gun, that I didn't want to hurt him.  He aimed the pistol at me.  "Your not gonna pull that trigger Artemus.  I know how you feel about guns, I told him.  "Your right, I can't fire it, they never should be marred, never," he said.

Micah released Carson.  Carson told Micah to tell them at the saloon that he would be back for his saddlebags just as soon as he could raise $10.  Micah told him to be careful how he raised it.  He thanked me for having trust in him.  Mark had really enjoyed Artemus' stories and wanted to know if he really did those things.  I told him to just remember the good things he told him. That made Mark think of some of the great stories Artemus had told him.  "Let me tell you about the time he was sailing off the cast of Chili," said Mark.  "Tell me on the way home," I said. 

---

piddlin' stuff.....Thomas Gomez played Artemus Quarles, Lucas' cousin thru marriage.  Gomez got starred in show biz by
answering a help wanted ad.
He played in Beneath the Planet of the Apes as the Minister.  He was considered as a character actor in films, he was considered a star on Broadway.

Jack Hogan played Joe Carson, the man accused of killing the cowboy with the initials R. M.  He also appeared in 'The Man from Salinas' as Rudy Gray.  He's the guy who persuaded John Hamilton [owner of the bank] to stay open for one more transaction, he wanted to rob the bank.  He was a regular on "Combat" and "Jake and the Fat Man."

Paul Fix as Marshal Micah Torrance.

Bill Quinn as Sweeney the bartender.

'Stranger at Night'—Very Obvious painted background scenery at the McCain Ranch.
Thanks Rob!

*If anybody has any information on any of the stars, and would like to share it, please get in touch with

Trivia—'Stranger at Night'

The Rifleman Trivia Index

The Raid

Blood Brothers

Site Map
around the McCain Ranch
updated 4/4/08