| The Scapegoat | |
| Director: | Otis B. Thayer |
| Producer: | William Selig |
| Starring: | Tom Mix Myrtle Stedman William Duncan |
| Distributor: | Selig Polyscope Company |
| Runtime: | 10 min |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | Silent English intertitles |
The Scapegoat is a 1912 American short silent Western film directed by Otis B. Thayer and starring Tom Mix.[1]
After being wrongly accused of theft and ordered out of the family home by his irate father, Tom Mason goes west and settles in Colorado. He falls in love with Nellie and is later elected town sheriff. Nellie's brother Jack is a cowboy who gets involved with the wrong people and takes part in a bank robbery. Tom and Nellie are out of town and Nellie's horse bolts. Tom stops the horse and saves her life. On returning to town, Tom learns of the robbery and forms a posse. The outlaws split and Jack tries to swim across a river to evade his pursuers. He gets into difficulty and Tom ropes him to pull him out of the water. Nellie is astounded that her brother is a bank robber and pleads with Tom to release him. Tom reluctantly agrees but hands in his badge with the stolen money and rides away.