Thousand Pieces of Gold

As Polly and her good friend Bertha prepare to go nurse a sick child, Mary Dawson, the two chat. Bertha encourages Polly to leave Warrens to buy a ranch that she can farm on since she’s so good at working with soil, but Polly insists that it’s too cold to farm and that Charlie likes Warrens too much.

At Mary Dawson’s home, Polly dotes on and encourages the girl to drink some herb tea she has concocted. As Mary goes to sleep, Polly reflects on how peaceful she finds the winter. She hears hoofbeats, and then Bertha comes in to tell her that Charlie has been shot.

Stunned by news of Charlie’s injury, Polly races to be with him. She learns that he was shot in his saloon by Johnny Cox. Johnny had lost money the night before, and Charlie refused to let him gamble more until he was more sober. Johnny shot Charlie while he was taking a nap. The sheriff goes after Johnny, but many people assume that Charlie’s injury will be fatal.

When Polly arrives at the saloon, she sees Charlie and assumes he’s dead, based on the amount of blood at the scene and his pallor. However, she hears him breathing and is relieved to see that he is still alive. Polly wants to move Charlie to their home, but he says he doesn’t have time and that he wants to marry her. Polly insists that Charlie will get better.

Realizing that the doctor who’s on the way will not arrive in time to save Charlie, Polly decides to attempt to remove the bullet in his head herself. After giving Charlie alcohol, she attempts to use a crochet needle to fish out the bullet. She’s unable to find the bullet, but she packs the wound with herbs and cloth.

The doctor finally arrives and gets the majority of the bullet out, but some fragments remain. He tells Polly that Charlie will most likely die of blood poisoning as a result of the leftover fragments. Polly begs him to continue searching for the bullet, but he refuses, saying that it is too dangerous. As he leaves, Polly insists that Charlie will survive.

Three weeks after the shooting, Charlie’s wound has not healed, and Polly smells the scent of death in the air. She learns that Johnny has been arrested for the shooting, but it does not alleviate her concern over Charlie’s health. Polly discusses what to do with Bertha, and Bertha reminds her that the bullet could have moved to a different part of Charlie’s body, and she encourages Polly to feel for it. She reminds Polly of her strength and the hardships she’s already overcome, encouraging her to fight with the same passion for Charlie’s life.

Bertha helps Polly turn Charlie over, and they feel around the back of Charlie’s head for a bullet. Polly feels a lump but is unsure if it is the bullet or a bone. She decides to cut into the lump to find out. Polly uses a razor to cut into Charlie’s head and fishes around with her hand, eventually pulling the bullet fragment out. Polly comforts Charlie, promising him that he will get better now.

Charlie has recovered from his injury, but he appears to be worrying about something. When Polly asks him what is wrong, he tells her he has not forgotten about asking her to marry him. He explains that if they get married, they can have children, which Polly scoffs at, saying she is too old. Polly explains that she doesn’t want children, which Charlie struggles to believe. Polly then argues that, if they marry, Charlie will be treated like a man with an Indigenous wife, and he will not be welcomed by white people or by Indigenous people. Charlie argues that Warrens is safe and that no Chinese person has been hurt by the white people in town. He reminds Polly that he will protect her and their children. Polly responds that, while she believes him, her father also tried to protect her but failed.

While taking pictures of Bertha’s young family, Li Dick, a Chinese healer in town, reminds Polly that she has broken the new law that requires Chinese workers to register or they will be deported. Polly explains that she hasn’t registered because she would have to admit she was smuggled in, which would result in her deportation. She has decided to continue living the way she’s been living because the chances of someone finding her are very slim. Li Dick encourages her to marry Charlie, so she’ll be protected from deportation.

Suddenly, Charlie comes knocking on the door to tell Li Dick that a Chinese man, who’s new in town, has been accused of stealing some boots from a white resident. The Chinese man is now missing from the jail after some white men took him out of jail to scare him. Everyone decides to go look for the missing Chinese man, and they eventually split up to cover more ground. As Polly walks alone, she eventually finds the missing Chinese man hanged in a tree.

Following her discovery of the missing Chinese man, Polly has nightmares about his dead body. Trying to make Polly feel better, Charlie takes her on a trip. He takes her to Salmon Canyon, which is 18 miles away from Warrens. She is impressed and besotted by the wildlife, nature, and river.

Charlie asks her to marry him again, citing the new law and how marriage could make Polly’s life in the United States more secure. He tells her that they could start a new life in Salmon Canyon. Polly insists that they cannot have children if they get married. Charlie acquiesces, and Polly happily agrees to marry him.