The Young Englishman

"The Young Englishman" is the 13th episode of The Rifleman Season One and the 13th episode overall. Directed by Arnold Laven and written by Arthur Weiss, it aired on December 23, 1958.
==Synopsis==
Lucas gets in trouble when he accuses the foreman of a neighboring ranch of rustling some of his cattle.
==Watch==
==Plot==
The episode opens with Norv Waggoner and a cattle rangler named Parker riding on the Crown Ranch neighboring Lucas's ranch with Jeremy Ashford, an Englishman who is the brother of the ranch owner. The three see a cow and her bull calf that they don't recognize. Waggoner and Parker like the look of the calf and decide to take it for themselves despite Ashford's protests, even though the cow has Lucas's brand on it.
Lucas and Mark ride on their ranch and find the cow in distress. They examine her and realize she calved recently but her calf is missing, so they try following the tracks. When they notice the tracks seem to be heading south toward Cottonwood Ravine, they decide to go to the Crown Ranch to seek an explanation.
At the Crown Ranch, Lucas asks Parker to see the boss, and Parker explains that the owner is in England but points in the direction of Norv Waggoner, the foreman. Lucas says he understands there's a young Ashford that runs this place for his brother Lord Ashford. Parker says he's not here at the moment, and Lucas goes inside the ranch house to wait for him.
Parker goes and tells Ashford that Lucas wants to talk to him; Ashford says Waggoner is the one who should face him since he's the one who stole the calf, and Parker goes and gets Waggoner while Ashford goes and talks to Lucas.
Lucas confronts Ashford that he thinks one of his calves was rustled off his ranch, but Ashford denies it. Lucas then tells Ashford that he hears that Waggoner's herd that he keeps at Cottonwood Ravine has multiplied "a little too fast." Lucas asks Ashford to come help him check up on Waggoner but Ashford defensively denies the possibility of Waggoner being a rustler. Lucas and Mark leave.
On Norv Waggoner's ranch, Waggoner and some cattle wranglers brand the stolen calf when Lucas and Mark arrive. Lucas introduces himself to Waggoner, and explains that a calf of his was taken and he suspects it's at Cottonwood Ravine. When Lucas calls Waggoner a rustler, Waggoner whips him across the face.
The next day, Lucas brings the cow to Cottonwood Ravine and brings her near each calf to identify which is hers. Waggoner arrives with Parker and another wrangler, and tells him that every calf has his brand on it, and if Lucas throws a rope on any of them they'll shoot him. They finally find the right calf, and Lucas starts leading the cow away without ever touching the calf, as the calf instinctively follows his mother. Waggoner and the two others start shooting him anyway, resulting in one of the wranglers getting shot down. Ashford arrives and yells to Waggoner to stop, but Waggoner responds by shooting Ashford in the shoulder. Lucas shoots and kills Parker, and just as Waggoner is about to get Lucas, Ashford shoots him down, saving Lucas.
Lucas and Ashford make amends and Ashford apologizes for Waggoner's behavior, and promises to get the cattle back to where they belong. Lucas and Mark take the cow and calf back to their ranch as the episode closes.
==Cast==
===Main===
*Lucas McCain - Chuck Connors
*Mark McCain - Johnny Crawford
===Guests===
*Norv Waggoner - Ted de Corsia
*Jeremy Ashford - Allen Case
*Wrangler Parker - Jim Coburn
*Line Boss - Dick Rich
Category:Episodes
Category:Season One episodes
Category:Episode pages with completed plot sections
Category:Episodes where Lucas kills someone
Category:Episode pages with overly long plot summaries