A young couple, Gerald and Sally Norton, own a piece of land that a local landowner, Ken Bascombe, wants to buy. The Nortons' do not want to sell because there is an old mine on the property that Gerald was told contained gold. However according to the local assayer, Crawford Wright, the mine contain little if any value.
After a nasty visit from Ken Bascombe, the Norton's were outside by a campfire when someone shoots up the fire. Plus like some situation out of 'Scooby-Doo'- we get this spooky voice say "GET OUT GET OUT". According to an old prospector named Amos Catledge, who has a burro named Sheba, told the Norton's that he saw Mr Bascombe riding away right after the shots were fired.
Perry is in town on business. He is looking for Amos Catledge on an old property dispute in another county. He meets the Norton's at a local bar where Mr Bascombe and Gerald get into an argument where Gerald threats Mr Bascombe.
The next evening more shots are fired at the Norton. Upset Gerald gets his rifle and goes out to investigate to see if he can find Mr Bascombe. Only this time he finds Mr Ken Bascombe dead, shot in the back. Of course, after the threats, Gerald Norton is charge with murder and Perry decides to help out the young couple.
There is no shortage of suspects in this episode. Ms.Bascombe is having an affair with the ranch foreman, Roy Dowson and both would not mind seeing Ken dead. Amos Catledge, the prospector, has some secrets that he may reveal and may cash in on the secrets if the right people will pay.
With some clever tactics, Perry, with the help of testimony from Sheba the burro, weaves his way through the mounds of testimony to find the true murderer. It may not be the most obvious person but a regular Mason fan can provide a good guess from the first few minutes of the show.
Maybe not the best show- but a good mystery.