John Dehner, perhaps the most ubiquitous character actor in radio and television history, is Caleb Marr in this episode of Gunsmoke. Caleb is a very poor, timid dirt farmer who has aspirations of a more meaningful existence. He lives on a farm near Dodge City with his wife Dorcas. Dorcas is resigned to a hard life of mere existence. She has no love for Caleb and sees him as a hopeless loser, but she cannot imagine anything different.
Chad Follet has been convicted of murder and sentenced to hang. Matt Dillon is responsible for transporting Chad to Hays City to be executed. Chad's brother Lige is determined to prevent the execution, and he has threatened to kill the Marshal. When Lige confronts Matt as he and Chad prepare to leave for Hays City, Matt arrests Lige and has Quint lock him in a cell until the next day. Caleb witnesses this confrontation, and develops a deep admiration for Matt's integrity and purpose in life.
After returning to the farm, Caleb has an existential crisis where he faces what he considers a lack of any purpose or meaning to his life. All the while, Dorcas only offers words of discouragement. Caleb decides to leave the farm and explore opportunities in Dodge.
Caleb visits the Long Branch Saloon and becomes engaged in a conversation with one of the saloon girls named Julie. When Lige Follet interrupts their conversation, Caleb stands his ground with the bully, much to the surprise of other saloon patrons. This seemingly minor confrontation sets a series of events in motion that lead to tragedy, heroism, and -- arguably -- triumph.
Dehner, who was a veteran Gunsmoke contributor going back to the days of the radio show, is at his best here. (Incidentally, Dehner was the original Paladin on the radio version of Have Gun - Will Travel.) Caleb's dog, whose name is Dog in the story, was a veteran television animal who appeared in many different shows around the time this episode was made. He also appeared in an earlier Season 9 episode titled "No Hands." He has a small, but important part here.
This episode was written by Paul Savage, who was responsible for several Gunsmoke episodes, as well as many other television scripts over the years. This story is among his best.