Jim Benton (Dick Foran) as the head of a vigilante group, known as the Riders of Death Valley, organized to protect the miners from the take-over plots hatched by Joseph Kirby (James Blaine) and Rance Davis (Monte Blue.) They hire Wolf Reade (Charles Bickford) and his motley crew to do their dirty work, and spend most of their time lamenting their choice of sub-contractee as Reade deals his employees as much misery as he does the "Riders" and miners. Benton's "Riders" are Tombstone (Buck Jones), Pancho (Leo Carrillo), Smokey (Noah Beery, Jr, who is a no-show in most episodes), Borax Bill (Big Boy Williams) and Tex (Glenn Strange.