Mark and I were in town one evening.  Mark and Micah had been playing checkers.  We were headin' towards our horses when I heard a noise.  It was comin' from the livery stable.  I saw a man on Mr. Harris's buckskin stallion.  I then sent Mark for Micah.  Just then another man came out of the stable.  The one on top of Mr. Harris's horse noticed me and shot at me, missing me.  I aimed and shot back.  Hitting the man on the horse and knocking him to the ground.  The other guy ran over to him.  When he saw he was dead, he ran off.  Just then Micah ran out.  I told him what happened.  He checked the man I had just shot.  "I think we're in for some trouble," said Micah.  "You ever hear of Ma Boyle?"  I had heard of her.  She was a mountain woman.  "There's a whole clan up there. They make their own laws and do their own judging.  This is Hoyt, Ma Boyle's son.  Won't be before long, things will be stirring around here," said Micah.

It didn't take them long to get into town.  They were here bright and early.  They even brought their own noose.  They planned on hanging the man who shot Hoyt.  Micah came out of his office and walked up to Ma Boyle.  "We've come to help you with the hangin' Marshal," said Ma Boyle.  "Mrs. Boyle, we're not having a hanging," said Micah.  "Marshal, a little while ago we buried my son's body.  That you so kindly sent up.  Now all we wanna know is have you got that town fella who done the killing or ain't cha'?"  You could hear the anger in her voice.  "I'm trying to explain to you Mrs. Boyle, it's not a question of hanging anybody, no law has been broken"  "You mean a mountain man gettin' himself killed ain't no call for excitement in these part?" asked Martin, one of Ma's sons.  "When a man gets caught in the act of stealing horses and throwing lead around, well there's certainly no blame if that man gets himself killed,"  said Micah.  Ma didn't know anything about horse stealing.  Johnny was with Hoyt when I caught them stealing the horse.  She wanted to see him.  Johnny told Ma that Hoyt wasn't stealing the horse, he just wanted to sit on it.  He then said that somebody hollered for him to get off the horse and he then shot Hoyt.  It was too dark for him to see who it was.  They wanted Micah to tell them who had killed Hoyt.  Micah turned and walked away from them.  As he turned, he saw me in the crowd.  He went back to Ma Boyle and told her he considered the matter closed.  They sure had a chip on their shoulders.  They felt that we treated them like dirt,  just because they were mountain folks.  He told them they could stay as long as they wanted to as long as they leave quietly.  Ma said they would stay a while.  Maybe Micah would give them a look a Hoyt's murderer. 

I went over to her and introduced myself.  I asked her if she considered Johnny was mistaken about last night.  "Mr. McCain, you askin' me if I don't think my one son's a liar and the other dead son's a horse thief."  "If you wanna put it that way," I said.  "I'll answer you this way. When we bury one of our own we only got two things to say, there's been no reason for him not talkin' straight, and he never took nothin' that don't belong to him. I feel that the man who shot him saw a mountain boy and figured it don't much matter whether he lived or died."   They got Ma a chair and set themselves up on the street.

Mark was uneasy about the way the mountain folks had been talkin'.  I gave him some money and told him to go get some candy.  I went to talk to Micah.  I told him I didn't know what he had in mind, but what I did last night I wasn't ashamed of.  Every man has a right to defend himself and I wasn't hiding behind that badge of his. I was headed out to tell that woman the truth.  He told me that when he was sheriff at Willow Springs, Ma Boyle's husband and two of the boys came ridin' into town.  They got themselves all liquored up.  The ole' man drew down on a cowhand in the saloon and got himself killed.  The next day Ma and the rest of her brood had blood in their eyes.  Before you could count to three they had bullets flying all over the place.  He didn't want that to happen again.  I agreed to wait, but not too long.

 Mark was outside of Hattie's waiting on me.  Johnny walked by and noticed Mark's books.  "I can read too. I learnt myself. I don't care for it to be known tho, they don't like me none as it is." said Johnny.  "They don't like you because you can read?" Asked Mark.  "Oh maybe it ain't just that. Guess it's always cause I'm doing things. I mean like studying things. I like to learn things. You ever been anywhere? I mean away from this here town."  "Yeah, I've been lots of places with my Pa," said Mark.  "I ain't never been no where.  Except for those hills and North Fork. Ain't even see a picture until a few years ago. The others, they don't care, but me and Hoyt.....we were"  He stopped talking.  That got Mark's attention.  Mark asked him if that was why they stole those horses.  He looked at Mark and walked away.

 Martin and Sylvester started to sportin' a town lady.  Anyway, that's what they called it.  I went to break it up.  "Alright, that's enough!  Is this the way you treat your mountain woman?"  Suddenly there was rifles all over Micah and I.  They started punching and hitting me.  Sylvester held me while Martin punched me.  Ma stopped the fight.  She wanted to know what was going on.  I told her that Micah and I owed her an apology.  I told her I was the one who shot her son. It wasn't because he was stealing horses but because he was shooting at me. Now it was Johnny's word against mind.  She wanted us to settle this personal like.  She figured on a gun duel between Johnny and me to see who was lying.  I made her quite aware that I wasn't interested.  She had Johnny give me a demonstration.  I told her I still wasn't going to duel it out with Johnny.  She wanted Johnny to shoot me in the foot.  He took aim.  I took aim.  "Johnny, don't pull that trigger.  Now I know you don't want to shoot me any more then I wanna shoot you.  I can't gamble on you standin' up against your Ma any longer. Now put that rifle down."  Johnny looked at his Ma.  He lowered the rifle.  "Pick it up boy," she said.  Mark was taking this all in.  He pushed his way over to her and said angrily, "Wicked woman! You're a very wicked woman Mrs. Boyle! Such a wicked thing, to hate. You don't even know us and you hate us."   "I don't hate nobody," said Ma Boyle.  "You do too. I don't know why, but you hate us. Maybe because were different.  Dress different, talk different," said Mark.  She turned to Johnny and said, "you gonna shoot that gun boy?"  "Why your even hate him, your own son."   "I don't know what nonsense your talkin'," she said.  "You must hate him, you want to see him killed. Maybe because he's different too. Maybe that's why you hate him."  "Well, it just ain't true. It ain't true.  None of what cha' sayin'." she said.  "Most of all to know he lied. To know your own son was never tellin' you the truth."  "And who would know who's lying?" She asked.  "Why you would know. You'd have to know, your his mother. My mother's dead but.....but if she were alive she'd know. Mothers always know.  Martin and Sylvester were ready to pick up where Johnny left off.  All she had to do was give the word.  She told them to get the mule.  They were going home.  She and Mark just stood there looking at each other.  "It weren't hate, boy. I mean at least wise I don't think it was. Pride maybe. Sometimes a body's got nothing left except pride and they fight unfair to keep it. But I'd like to think it was pride, not just hatin' people."

Mark broke down.  He was so relieved.  He came running to my side. 

Ma grabbed Johnny by the arm.  She told him they were going home, but he wasn't.  Johnny told her he wouldn't like anymore.  It was because he was different.  She felt he would be better off if he stayed behind.  "Ma, I wanna come home."  "Well ya' ain't comin'! And I don't want to see you there again, exceptin' if you in trouble. If your in trouble you know where to come."  She kissed him and then left.

Mark and I was just getting in the buckboard to head out to the ranch when Johnny came over to us.  He wanted me to know that he wasn't lying for himself, but for Hoyt. They wanted to leave their Ma and amount to something.  He just couldn't bring himself to tell his Ma that Hoyt was a horse thief.  He said that Hoyt was only shooting at me because he was scared for Johnny.  I told him it was alright and that I was sure he was a good brother.  He told us he'd like to get some book Learnin'.  He said he heard of a school in Santa Fe where he can work for his room and board.  As he was leaving I told him good luck.  "You know Mark, darn gone if your not a psychologist."
"What's that?" Asked Mark.  "Well it's a new kind of doctrine, where they talk to people, where they try and straighten out there thinkin'. You know, if it's wrong.  Like you talked to Ma Boyle."  "Psy-clo--g-psy.....I may be one, but I'll never be able to pronounce it." 

piddlin' stuff.....Dee J. Thompson played the mountain woman, Ma Boyle.
She had appeared in "Dragnet" ~ "Gunsmoke" ~ "Rawhide" ~ "The Big Valley." to name a few.
She also appeared with Chuck in the movie "The Lady Takes a Flyer."  The same year as "The Rifleman." 

Jan Stine appeared as Johnny.  He was the son Ma Boyle turned away.  He was different from them the rest of the clan.  He also played in another episode of "The Rifleman" ~ 'The High Country' as Gorwin.  He was the mountain boy who was shot by accident.
 He was Eddie the ranch hand for one season of "The Virginian."  He appeared in "The Horse Soldiers" and "The Meanest Men in the West."  He appeared in "Lawman" ~ "Wanted Dead or Alive" ~ "Black Saddle" and "The Real McCoy's" to name a few.

Lane Bradford played Martin in this episode.  He was one of the brothers.
He appeared in many of  "The Lone Ranger" episodes. I don't think there's anything he did play in the 40's ~ 50's ~ and 60's.  He played in "The Untouchables." He appeared with Chuck in "Branded" in 'Barbed Wire.'

Robert F. Hoy appeared in two episodes of "The Rifleman."   'Woman from Hog Ridge' as Lester Boyle and 'The Promoter' as Dabbs.  He also appeared with Chuck in "Branded" in the episodes 'The Vindicator' & 'Seward's Folly.'
He was a regular on "The High Chaparral" as Joe Butler. He played in "The Untouchables."  He did a lot of stunt work.  He doubled for Charles Bronson, Audie Murphy, Tony Curtis, Tyrone Power, and Robert Vaughn.  This man has credit forever long!  Great work cowboy!

Charles Tannen played the storekeeper in this episode of  'Woman From Hog Ridge.'  Charles Tannen played Jack Carson, in 'The Actress'.  He's one of the men who Elizabeth Garrett Black was entertaining in the hotel bar, the man with the cigar. Mr. Penn in 'Miss Millie,' the customer who Marty Ryan had ruffed up trying to get money on his bill owed to Millie and He played Josh Moore in 'The Jailbird,' he's  the storekeeper at the Hardware Store.  He also was in another episode but went unaccredited.  'Sins of the Father.'  He played the bartender in the saloon where Andy Moon shot Shep Coleman. 
He also was a writer for "Petticoat Junction" - "Valentine's Day" - "Gilligan's Island" - "I Dream of Jeannie."

Jim Hurst played Sylvester.  He was the tall son in the black jacket. He and Martin are the ones who was sportin' the town lady.  Nothing on this dude, only this episode?

Bill Quinn as Sweeney