Silver Mine Surprise

Originally Aired: January 24, 1938The Lone Ranger #779, "Silver Mine Surprise," the masked rider and Tonto face off against Ben Bush, the wealthiest and most ruthless man in Wells City. Bush controls the town through his iron grip on the bank, vast rangeland holdings, and his puppet sheriff, Pete Crowley. When honest ranchers like Lem Frisbee, Slade, and Steve Larson deposit their life savings in Bush's bank, they soon find themselves framed for murder by paid witnesses and facing the hangman's noose. The Lone Ranger has already rescued Frisbee and Slade from execution, and now he daringly snatches Larson from jail right under Bush and Crowley's noses.Back at his camp, the Lone Ranger reveals Bush's sinister scheme to the confused Larson, who worries that his jailbreak makes him look guilty and keeps him from his wife Mary and young son Jerry. The masked man explains that Bush systematically steals depositors' money, then eliminates them through false murder charges before they can discover their funds are missing. Now the Lone Ranger must expose Bush's corruption and clear the names of three innocent men before the crooked banker can strike again.