Randolph Scott plays Jim Cleve, one of several volunteers keeping the US-Mexican border safe on behalf of American settlers. Ostensibly the hero, Cleve is actually out-heroed by the film's nominal villain, outlaw leader Jack Kells (Monte Blue). It is Kells who brings about the story's happy ending, sacrificing his own life to ensure the blissful future of young lovers Cleve and Joan Randall (Barbara Fritchie).
After Sheriff Ken puts money in the safe, his brother Clem gives Rawhide the combination. With the money gone the disgruntled townsmen make Boots Sheriff and lock up Ken. Clem, now a prisoner of Rawhide, has a change of heart and sends Ken a message with the outlaw's location. Ken escapes by impersonating the saloon entertainer and rides for the hangout.
The famous western fiction writer Bob Morris arrives at the Henderson ranch. He quickly realizes the hanging, runaway horses, and the shootout are fakes for his benefit. But when a real robbery takes place he thinks it's another fake.
When attacked by two dogs, Joe Gilmore leaves them on the desert to die. Later one of the dogs saves John Blake from drowning. Men arrive claiming the dog is killing their chickens. They want to kill the dog but John convinces them the dog's fate should be determined by a trial.
A stray German shepherd, a runaway teenage boy, and a runaway teenage girl end up at her uncle's place in Oregon, where an epidemic of sheep rustling is under way.
Cattlemen use Alamo Pass in order to get their cattle to market. A gang has taken it over and charges a toll to go through it. When one rancher doesn't have enough money to pay the toll, he winds up dead. A local rancher, Bill Bowers, investigates the killing, but his neighbor and rival Molly Spellman decides to take her cattle around the pass instead of through it to avoid the toll. The gangsters kidnap her, and Bill gathers the other ranchers in the area for a final showdown with the gang.
Ranger Bill Williams goes to prison to get information on Chuck Adams. Then a fake posse chase gets him invited into Adams' gang. But just as he learns who Adams' boss is and is about to make his move, his cell mate who escaped from prison returns to identify him.
Twelve renegades dressed as Indians kill the parents of two brothers. The brothers who have similar birth marks then separate. Ten years later a man known as the Rawhide Terror is murdering the renegades who are now town citizens. Everyone is after the Rawhide Terror and the two brothers are destined to meet again.
The Buck Jones western The Fighting Ranger utilizes its familiar plotline with excellent results. When Jones' kid brother is killed by the villains, our hero quits the Texas Rangers and sets off to seek vengeance on his own. He ends up just below the Mexican border, where bandit leader Cougar (Bradley Page) lives high off the hog, knowing he can't be extradited.
Dad Brooks is in financial trouble and needs to sell a lot of horses. But they are being rustled and needing help, he sends for Tom. Tom looks for the rustlers but eventually realizes that someone is using a wild horse to do the rustling. He finds the secret entrance used by the rustlers to hide the horses but soon finds himself a prisoner.
Bill, who is about to lead a wagon train to California, has a map to a valuable gold field and Rocky is after the map. When Rocky and his men attack, Ken Manning breaks it up and later identifies Rocky and his men as the attackers. Expelled from the wagon train, they stampede a buffalo herd puting the Indians on the warpath. After the Indians attack the wagon train, Rocky thinks he can get the map.