The Cult Collection Inspired by the Vision of Devil's Canyon: Cult ...

Dir: Clifford Smith

Jim Walton, the sheriff of El Dorado, orders Joe Malone to stop working an abandoned mine that he has uncovered. Later, Malone recognizes Edith Strang, the dancing girl who is passing through town with the quack Doc Hamilton, as the rightful heir to the abandoned mine. Malone informs the doctor of the fabulous riches within their grasp, and the doctor departs for the East to interest capital in the property. While he is away, Malone tries to double-cross the doctor by marrying Edith, but Walton discovers his plan and offers the girl protection. Upon his return, the doctor reclaims Edith from the sheriff, and that night, sensing wrongdoing, Walton goes to the doctor's cabin. There he finds that Edith is being forced to sign away her rights to the mine. Walton forces Malone to confess that the mine belonged to Edith's dead parents, and thus restores the girl to her birthright. Edith then prepares to go to school in the East, but at the last minute decides to remain and marry the sheriff.

Dir: Clifford Smith

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The Boss of the Lazy Y perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

After a serious argument with his father, Calumet Marston drifts around the west for several years. He returns to his home, the Lazy Y Ranch, after his parents are killed by a pair of vicious brothers, Tom and Neal Taggart. Before his death Marston's father had appointed pretty young Betty Clayton as ranch manager, and now the Taggart brothers are determined to take over the ranch, no matter who they have to kill to get it.

Dir: Clifford Smith

"Cactus" Bob Crandall wakes up to find his cattle and his ranch foreman gone, he journeys across the Mexican border to investigate. There he discovers that an American girl, Helen Ware, and her father are being held prisoner by Mendoza, leader of a group of bandits. Cactus and his friend Carter rescue Helen and her father and ride back to the Crandall ranch with the bandits in close pursuit. While the cowboys and bandits are fighting, Mendoza enters the house and carries Helen off, but Cactus overtakes them and kills Mendoza. Soon after, the foreman and missing cattle, who had been delayed on the road by a stampede, arrive.

Dir: Clifford Smith

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Cactus Crandall perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Old-fashioned rancher Joe Warner is suspicious of the modern methods employed by his new neighbor, George Merritt, but when Joe's villainous foreman, Pete Wright, suggests that George is a thief, Joe's dislike turns to hostility. Furious over pretty Ruth Warner's love for George, the jealous Pete joins forces with a bandit named José Mardones to run cattle off of Joe's ranch while blaming George for the thefts. Finally, Pete and José stage a major raid on Joe's ranch, and Joe's cowboys, imagining that they are fighting George's men, are losing the battle until George arrives to help drive off the real bandits. During the shootout, Pete kidnaps Ruth, but George pursues them and rescues her. Joe then happily accepts George as a son-in-law and as his new partner.

Dir: Clifford Smith

The heroine of "The She Wolf" walks into "The Last Hope" saloon in "Mad Dog" one night, and discovers the Chinese owner and a crooked sheriff cheating a stranger at a game of cards. Drawing her shooting irons she starts to take a hand in the game herself. During the fighting that follows, the stranger is wounded, and the heroine carries him off to her shack and takes care of him. Several days later, the sheriff, who is the head of a band of outlaws, robs the mail coach and leaves a number of letters scattered on the road. The two-gun young woman picks up one of the letters and learns that it was written by Sallie Bigby to her sweetheart, John Williams. It tells him that Sallie's father is in the power of the Chinese saloon keeper, and that she will be compelled to marry him unless she is rescued. "The She Wolf" goes to the place, starts a lively scrap for the second time, and carries Sallie off to her cabin. Here matters are arranged properly. Sallie and her sweetheart meet and the stranger lets it be known that he intends to make the girl who nursed him back to health his wife.

Dir: Clifford Smith

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of Wolves of the Border perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Charles Easton returns to his ranch to find his property in a shambles and his chances of marrying politician Oscar Davison's daughter Rose extremely slim, after losing the election for sheriff of Pyramid County to Ethan Ransford. However, Rose appears and begs him to find the man who robbed and beat her father. Charles rides into the desert with Ethan but quarrels with his rival and shoots him. With a price on his head, Charles takes refuge at Hawk's Nest, a seemingly invulnerable retreat for bandits, and soon gains the outlaws' respect and confidence. Later he rides into town leading the two guilty men in handcuffs and explains that Ethan's shooting was merely a ploy to gain entrance into the outlaws' stronghold. Ethan appears, confirming the story, and turns his office over to Charles, while Rose gladly accepts the new sheriff's proposal of marriage.

Dir: Clifford Smith

Unhappy with William "Red" Saunders, the foreman of the Chanta Seechee Ranch in Oklahoma, its Eastern owners send a Boston tenderfoot named Albert Jones to manage the ranch with "Eastern business methods." Red prevents the angry cowboys from quitting, but they insist on making Jones the butt of their jokes and tricks. Upon learning that Jones's niece, Loys Andres, is planning a visit, the boys plan a rowdy reception for the woman, whom they expect will be an old maid. Loys's beauty, however, surprises them all, and Red's bunk-mate, Kyle Lambert, falls in love with her, and he soon proposes. When Jones tries to break up the romance, Red arranges for an elopement, but as the lovers reach the ford, a rustler called "Squint-Eye" Lucas fires at them, slightly wounding Kyle. Loys returns to the ranch for help, Red shoots Lucas, and Kyle is rescued, after which Loys and Kyle marry. Beaten, Jones gives the couple his blessing.

Dir: Clifford Smith

A visual fragment from the archive: The thematic resonance of The She Wolf perfectly mirrors the editorial trajectory of our deep dive.

Jim Benton has been too busy making money to learn to read and write, but he persuades Evelyn Hastings to open school on his ranch and he is her most devoted pupil. The sheepmen carry out their threat to cut off Benton's water supply and Evelyn makes him promise to shoot only in self-defense. He keeps his promise, but still he has to kill, and a packed jury of sheepmen bring in a death verdict. The cattlemen attempt a rescue, but it is Evelyn who saves the day.

Dir: Clifford Smith

After Bob Baldwin is fired for playing too many jokes on the tenderfoot owner of the Diamond K Ranch, he sets out for the nearby town of Freloe Beanos and meets Percival Longstreet on the way. Percival has been seriously injured in an accident and is therefore unable to assume his duties as the town's new schoolmaster. Distressed, Percival confesses that he and his sister Dolly, who is en route to the town, are doomed to starve, which so moves Bob that he agrees to serve as the schoolmaster during Percival's convalescence. Although the uneducated cowboy suffers great discomfort in the classroom, he pleases the town authorities and charms Dolly, who soon falls in love with her supposed brother. Actor Otheloe Actwell becomes jealous of Dolly's affections for Bob, and upon discovering that the cowboy is an impostor, he has Bob fired. Soon afterwards, Bob prevents Actwell from robbing the box office, whereupon the townspeople elect him the new sheriff.

Dir: Clifford Smith

On the Mexican border, Jim Jason forms a partnership with Don Felipe Arrello although he is troubled by a clause in their contract which states that if one of the partners dies, the other will inherit their ranch. When the ranch begins to prove profitable, Felipe hires an assassin to kill Jim, but the cowboy discovers the plan and gives the killer a sound beating. Jim's sweetheart, Ruth Allen, who has come to the area with her father to restore the old Spanish architecture, sees the fight and assumes that he is mistreating his men, but his concern for little Carmelita, who is suffering from typhoid fever, convinces Ruth of Jim's kindness. Felipe tries once again to kill Jim, who leads his cowboys in pursuit of the villain, but upon reaching Felipe's hideout, they learn that Dolores, his betrayed lover, has already killed him.