Emperor of the North Pole

Shack (Ernest Borgnine) is a conductor on the Oregon, Pacific and Eastern Railroad, during the Great Depression. He zealously guards his freight train, the No. 19, against those trying to ride for free. Two hobos, A-No.-1 and Cigaret, hop the train but are seen by Shack, who locks them both inside the car. A-No.-1, the more experienced hobo, sets fire to the train to burn his way out, successfully completes his hitched ride, and escapes to the hobo jungle. However, the younger and less-experienced Cigaret is caught by railyard laborers who spread a rumor that A-No.-1 died in the fire and that Cigaret is the one who finally bested Shack. Indignant, A-No.-1 declares his intention to ride Shack's train all the way to Portland, and the other hobos agree that the first to accomplish this will have earned the title "Emperor of the North Pole" -- that is, the world's best hobo. Railroad workers place bets whether A-No.-1 can do it, spreading the news nationwide by telephone and telegraph, Shack being widely known and disliked. The next morning, A-No.-1 manages to board Shack's train and hides inside a hollow metal pipe on a flatcar, only to discover that Cigaret is hiding in the adjacent pipe. Alerted to their presence by Cigaret's carelessness, Shack stops the train to search for them, which forces them to deboard, then spots them when they get back on and fights them until they fall off. Not so easily defeated, A-No.-1 and Cigaret slow the train down so they can reboard and ride to the Salem railyard. Increasingly annoyed by Cigaret's antics, A-No.-1 tells Cigaret to listen and learn from him in order to become a successful hobo. The two get back on the train for a final, bloody confrontation with Shack. In the fight, A-No.-1 is injured and Cigaret refuses to help. A-No.-1 releases the pressure in the brake lines, causing the train to stop quickly. In the aftermath, he tells Cigaret that he lacks the strength and courage to go the distance. Cigaret still insists he will become an all-time great hobo. After this tirade, Cigaret reboards the train, but immediately retreats in fear from the hammer-wielding and very angry Shack. Just as Shack is about to deliver a fatal blow, A-No.-1 appears and begins battling Shack. A desperate struggle involving heavy chains, planks of wood, and a fire axe ensues (Cigaret watches from a safe distance, atop the caboose). A-No.-1 ultimately has the bloodied Shack at his mercy, but instead of killing him, throws him off the train. In defiance, Shack yells that A-No.-1 has not seen the last of him. A-No.-1 then tosses Cigaret off into a river, for bragging about how "they" defeated Shack, telling the kid he could have become a good bum but he's got no class. "You had the juice, kid, but not the heart", he yells, as the train rolls away to Portland, beyond the distant horizon.