The Civil War isn't over -- not nearly -- for Judge Proctor, a respected Missouri man who was on the losing side and had his home devastated by a guerrilla band led by a Kansas man. Now the judge has formed a gang of his own and sweeps through Kansas seeking the guerrilla leader. A tip-off tells the group that the man is in or near Dodge, but the judge can't locate his exact whereabouts and sets fire to a wheat field as a warning to the local citizenry. When that fails to produce the man, the judge threatens to burn all of Dodge City.

A group of former slaves on their way to Oregon are temporarily halted to repair a broken wheel. They find Matt on the prairie, wounded by two outlaws trying to prevent his reaching Dodge City, and hide him until he can recover.