Against the advice of Big John and Manolito, Buck decides to take a well deserved break over the Fourth of July at the mining town of Spokes which has a rugged reputation. He finds the people there unfriendly. In the saloon he witnesses an old hide skinner call out a young man for cheating at cards. The young man Bod Piece draws first but is killed as he severely wounds the old skinner. Buck finds cards hidden in Bod's sleeve proving he was cheating. With no one willing to help the old skinner, Buck takes him to the hotel and gets him medical care. One by one the residents tell Buck to turn the old skinner over to Bod's father China Pierce who they all fear. With China being a cattleman, Buck finds it hard to believe China would hurt the old man but soon realizes he is the only person willing to help the man who opened the west to rest of them. Buck confronts China who is surprised Buck is standing up to him. Buck is forced to shoot and wound China ending the conflict. Back home Big John and Manolito want to hear about Buck's "party time".
—Anonymous