On his way to the western settlement of Silver City, Texas, an earnest and optimistic young traveler named Cass Bunning shoots a rattlesnake so that its rabbit prey can run free. He attracts the notice of a passing trio of riders, who warn him about Silver City’s less-than-friendly inhabitants and decadent saloons. Upon his arrival, Cass pushes through a crowd of drunken men hollering at the women employed at Mamie’s, the local brothel. The bartender reveals that one of the strangers Cass met in the desert is an outlaw known as Billy Pimple, wanted for terrorizing the town. Although Silver City has laws against carrying firearms, Cass whips out his pistol to demonstrate his superior shooting skills by firing holes into a poster of Billy’s face. Outside, Mamie’s newest employee, the innocent, twenty-year-old Nellie Winters, arrives by stagecoach, naively believing that she applied to work at the saloon as a waitress. Determined to save the girl from the increasingly rowdy mob, Cass mounts his horse and pulls Nellie up beside him. As they escape to the outskirts of town, she bemoans the difficulty of finding a decent job. After aimlessly wandering through the desert all night, the pair rents a room at a hotel in Vinegaroon, where they are arrested for sharing a bed while unmarried, thus breaking the law against “indecent cohabitation.” When brought before the drunken and unforgiving Judge Roy Bean, he forces them to marry on the spot, offering a complimentary “honeymoon suite” at the hotel. Later, the newlyweds encounter the judge while walking in the hills, and the older man shares his personal ambition to establish his own town in Texas named after his favorite actress, Lilly Langtry. They then return to their hotel room, which has been booby-trapped with a bucket of water propped over the door, forcing Nellie to remove her soaking wet dress. Once they make love, Cass and Nellie attend a town wedding ceremony held in their honor, dancing and watching the guests play games. The next day, they ride out of Vinegaroon toward Cass’s father’s farm, where he plans to leave his bride while he goes in search of Billy Pimple. Cass describes his father as an honorable man who taught him the gunfighting skills he will use to become a bounty hunter. Although Nellie grows angry that is he willing to risk his life hunting outlaws instead of staying with her, they declare their mutual love. They are interrupted by the infamous outlaw, Jesse James, who is impressed by Cass’s shooting and offers him tips to improve his confidence, suggesting that the young man has enough talent to someday join his posse. When Nellie gets pricked by cactus needles, the two stop to rest, and Cass enthusiastically tells her stories about Jesse’s past bank robberies. Later, a group of Jesse’s violent followers kidnap Nellie and drag her along as they wreak havoc in Silver City. Cass kills two of the men to save his wife, prompting the town mayor to name him a hero, but a local man warns him that Billy Pimple, enraged by his earlier poster shooting, has challenged him to a fight. Unsure what else to do, Cass wipes his sweaty palms and enters the darkened street. Although Nellie hides in the shadows with a rifle aimed at the enemy, one of Billy’s men injures Cass first, and he collapses. Mounting his horse, Billy fatally shoots Cass at point-blank range before riding out of town. Mamie guides the sobbing widow Nellie inside and promises to send her back to Cass’s father’s farm. Later that night, another fresh-faced girl arrives in Silver City and enters Mamie’s brothel, attracting the interest of many local men.