In 1849, Joaquin Murieta, son of a wealthy Spanish family, quarrels with three prospectors, Ike Mason, Black Kelly, and Al Goss. When Joaquin returns home, he finds that the house has been raided and his father is dying from wounds received during the raid. On his way to tell his brother Juan of the news, Joaquin meets Helen Lake and they begin a romance. Soon after Joaquin arrives at the camp, Mason and Goss kill Juan and knock Joaquin unconscious as they seize Juan’s claim. The trio does not become wealthy, however, as the mysterious “Black Shadow,” actually Joaquin in disguise, robs the stagecoach of their shipments. Although Helen’s father, Captain Lake of the U.S. Army, offers a reward of $5,000 for the Black Shadow, Joaquin’s disguise remains intact. After posting a notice at the saloon threatening Kelly, Mason and Goss with revenge, Joaquin arranges for their death by tricking the trio into shooting one another. Joaquin, however, is wounded in the process and seeks refuge with Helen, to whom he confesses the truth. Helen is unable to prevent his and Goss’s arrest, and as a mob threatens to storm the jail, Joaquin convinces Goss to dress as the Black Shadow in order to escape. Goss is shot while fleeing, thus completing Joaquin’s revenge. Helen tells her father the entire story, and he, convinced of the justice of Joaquin’s case, gives them permission to marry. More on Wikipedia
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