On Saturday, the Cartwrights rode into town, Hoss and Joe on horseback, and Adam and Ben on the buckboard. They all wanted to be present for the verdict immediately following the meeting of the committee that was hearing Joshua Whitaker's grievances. The younger Cartwrights proceeded to the general store to drop off a list of items that Hop Sing needed before heading over to the town hall.
The store clerk started gathering the items together so that the order would be ready by the time the Cartwrights wanted to leave town. Hoss and Joe briefly examined some boots and then headed for the door. The clerk looked up when he heard the jingle of the door. He suddenly remembered an event from the previous day. "Oh, I almost forgot. Did you want the rest of that case of dynamite? I haven't had time to arrange delivery out to the timber camp."
Joe looked at his brother. "Dynamite?"
"Yeah, a new man from your camp came in yesterday and took three sticks of dynamite", the shopkeeper responded, "and he said to send the rest of it up to the camp."
Perplexed, Hoss pressed for more information. "Do ya happen ta remember the fella's name?"
"Well I've got the bill right here. Porter, Jack Porter." The clerk handed Hoss the paper verifying the sale.
Hoss scrutinized the slip of paper and showed it to Joe. "Jack Porter? We ain't got no Jack Porter at any of our camps, do we Joe?"
"Not that I recall." Joe replied.
"Sorry about that." The clerk was embarrassed for not being more careful. "Now if he'd have took any more than three sticks of dynamite, I'd have made real sure he was working for you. When he said to ship the rest of it out to the timber camp - well - now why would anyone want to go to all that trouble just to steal three sticks of dynamite?"
Hoss scrunched up his face. "That's what I'd sure like ta know. Is there anythin' else ya kin tell me?"
"Excuse me, Mr. Cartwright." Davy, the storekeeper's helper, had been waiting and finally felt that he must enter into the discussion.
"Yeah, Davy." Hoss looked down at the dark-haired lad.
"I know the man who bought the dynamite."
Joe gave Davy a curious look. "What was his name?"
"I don't know that, but a few days ago he gave my brother a dollar to hand out some papers for him. They said some bad things about your father." Davy looked a little sheepish having admit his family's association with something negative about the Cartwrights.
A frightening realization of who the culprit could be came to Hoss. He placed a large hand on the boy's shoulder. "Thank ya, Davy. Come on Joe. We gotta get over ta the hall real quick. Hoss and Joe left the store and took off jogging down the boardwalk toward the Town Hall.
Inside the hall, Adam and Ben sat on a bench in an alcove adjacent to the front door. In the main hall, Joshua Whitaker was stalling for time. The members of the committee were getting tired of being put off. Whitaker had refused to begin presenting his evidence until his campaign manager, Wesley Price was present. When the head of the committee said they would wait no longer, Whitaker feigned accidentally knocking a large book on the floor and left the room to go look for his manager. Sitting in the basement of the town hall, Daniel Whitaker heard a loud thud. It was the predetermined signal from his brother to light the sticks of dynamite that the brothers had planted just below the floorboards the night before and then make a quick getaway.
When Joshua Whitaker burst out the door to hall and headed for the back door of the building, Adam called after him. "Just where do you think you're going, Whitaker?"
"Sitting here like a bunch of vultures, are you? Well I'm getting out of here. No justice will be served in that meeting."
Just then, Hoss and Joe came bounding through the front entrance. "Whitaker! Where's that little man that works for ya?" Hoss called out.
Ben jumped to his feet. "Hoss, what's going on?"
Whitaker kept moving toward the back door until he heard the click of Joe's revolver. A second later, Adam's pistol was out as well. Having contemplated pulling a derringer, Whitaker changed his mind when he heard the hammer of Adam's gun being cocked.
Panic took hold of Whitaker and he began to shout. "Get out! We've got to get out of here! There's dynamite in the basement that's about to go off!"
Adam and Joe grabbed Whitaker while Hoss crashed through the door to the meeting hall. Ben and his big son helped to rush the committee members out of the building. Moments later an explosion rocked the onlookers standing on the other side of the street as the windows of the town hall were all blown out and the front wall of the building came tumbling down. Daniel Whitaker came running from the back side of the building, frightened that his brother had not met him before the explosion.
As if the charge of plotting the potential murder of several people was not bad enough for the Whitaker brothers, the body of Wesley Price was uncovered in the basement of the Virginia CIty Town Hall. It came out in the trial, that Price happened upon the brothers as they were planting the dynamite in the cover of darkness. Rather than risk Price going to the authorities, Daniel stabbed the manager in the chest with the full knowledge and encouragement of his brother. Paul Martin had confirmed Price's death was due to the knife wound despite the fact that the manager's body had been crushed by debris from the explosion.
Joshua and Daniel Whitaker were sentenced to hang for the death of Wesley Price. Never would Ben Cartwright or his sons have believed that their dealings with Joshua Whitaker would end in such a way. The contract with Carson and Tahoe was finalized shortly after the truth about Whitaker came out. Being so quick to jump on the band wagon of Joshua Whitaker, some folks around town found it difficult to look the Cartwrights in the eye when they met them on the street.
So it was with mixed feelings that the Cartwright family celebrated the signing of the timber contract with the Carson and Tahoe Lumber Company. It never ceased to amaze Ben how far one man would go to gain retribution for an unacknowledged slight. Three men had died in Virginia City because of Joshua Whitaker's warped mind. Ben feared that there may have been others whose names might never be known who were sacrificed in Whitaker's quest for power. As Ben looked around the table at his sons, he thanked God. Imperfect though they were, each had a sense of the value of a human life, and understood the need for truth and justice to be one's vindicator.