Incident of the Devil and The Deep Blue
Gil Favor proves that a trail boss stands up for his profession even if it means his herd is beaten to market by a competitor. Two beeves with the Texas tick are discovered in the herd being driven to Abilene by trail boss Ben Wade, a competitor of Gil Favor. Wade, an honest man, wants his herd inspected by a veterinarian before driving it to market, but his ramrod, Reagan, and one of his drovers, Holt, have different ideas. They conspire to put the two infected beeves with Gil's herd and to silence Wade by having him killed by a stampede of his own herd. This accomplished, they are stunned when Helen Wade, wife of the dead trail boss, asks Gil to take over the leadership of her husband's herd. In true trail boss tradition, Gil agrees and is, in turn, stunned when the two steers with the Texas tick are found among his beeves. Now he must drive Wade's herd to Abilene first, meaning less money for his herd and for his drovers. (TV-PG)