d6a2afd33b Hackett, the executive of the local Cattleman&#39;s association which also runs the local orphanage is using the Association police to rustle cattle and embezzle its funds. Hackett is out to take over the Cattlemen&#39;s Association by bankrupting them. His men rustle the cattle forcing the payouts to the ranchers. The Three Mesquiteers arrive and soon learn that the coward Canary is one of the gang. Stony has a plan that he hopes will get a confession from him. What got my attention right out of the gate was how young the principles were in this early Three Mesquiteers outing - Robert Livingston, Ray Corrigan and Max Terhune, the trio that participated in the most number of filmsthe title characters. &quot;Roarin&#39; Lead&quot; was only the third film in the series that eventually stretched to fifty one pictures, so it&#39;s not surprising that the boys still had that youthful appearance.<br/><br/>As for the story, and this is not meanta put down, but it&#39;s a largely forgettable one that once again explores a crooked town boss (Hooper Atchley) who&#39;s taking out local ranchers via the old rustlers stealing cattle gimmick, but with a bit of a twist. Hackett (Atchley),president of the Cattlemen&#39;s Protective Association, was paying out insurance claims on the stolen beef, but with funds running low, he intended to foreclose on the local orphanage, thereby adding a valuable piece of real estate to his holdings. Bad mistake - the Mesquiteers turn upthe trustees of the Clark Estate, majority stake holders in the company that owns the orphanage.<br/><br/>What&#39;s different about this early oater is the inclusion of a variety show put on by the orphans who try to save their home. I would never have thought about the possibility, but Miss Doris (Christine Maple) actually frowned on adoption if it meant that the children would go to parents whose only intent was to use the kids&#39;slave labor&#39; on their respective ranches. That term - &#39;slave labor&#39; - was used more than once, and really made me think about how kids might have been taken advantage of in a situation that presumably would have been for their benefit.<br/><br/>Hey, did you catch that cliff jump into the lake by Stony (Livingston) and Tucson (Corrigan) to escape the bad guy posse? And you thought that Butch and Sundance scene was entirely original!<br/><br/>I was surprised at the amount of screen time given to Yakima Canutthenchman Canary, since he wasn&#39;t Hatchett&#39;s top gun, but reporting to George Chesebro&#39;s Captain Gardner. But the Swami gimmick that exposes Yak with an injured wrist was pretty lame, with Hackett making his own matters worse by trying to gun the good guys in a crowded hall. There wasn&#39;t too much thought put into these stories when you come right down to it, but if you&#39;re a fan like me, you&#39;re willing to cut everyone involved a little slack.<br/><br/>Not too much more to add except for the puzzler ending - Did Lullaby (Max Terhune) really adopt Bobby???!!! This 3 Mesquiteer film finds our heroes trying to stop cattle rustling and save an orphanage at the same time. Inconceivable but the same villain wants to close down an orphanage is also behind a lot of cattle rustling and the dastardly deeds are connected.<br/><br/>Ray Corrigan, Robert Livingston, and Max Terhune happen to be the trustees of said orphanage and they put a stop to the closing temporarily. As it turns out the Cattleman&#39;s Association provides the funds, but they&#39;re going brokewell with all the rustling and the insurance payments going out. Cattle rustling had to be stopped to save the orphanage permanently.<br/><br/>Not one of the better plotted films of the series and I agree with the previous reviewer the gimmick where the beans are spilled is pretty lame.
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