Lt. Edward Beale (Stanley Lachman) of the US Navy is in California when gold is discovered. Lt. Losier (Doug McClure) of the Army declares his intention to take a sample to Washington, DC, to let the country know of the find. Beale is determined that the navy will have that honor. As such, he buys a sample by selling a bottle of quinine from his medical kit. However, Losier has already left and the ship on which he served doesn't have enough sailors to leave port; they deserted to join the gold hunters! As such, he catches another ship and sails to the Mexican coast. He rides from San Blas to Mexico City to Vera Cruz, fighting ladrones (bandits) for the entire 800-mile trip. From Vera Cruz he sails aboard the USS Germantown. Still concerned that Lt. Losier is on his tail, he only pauses for the night in Mobile, Alabama, before racing on toward Washington. As luck would have it, Losier's ship had hit bad weather and he was delayed by months. So it was that the US Navy delivered the news to Washington that gold had been discovered in the newly annexed California.
The story is more exciting than the history. Indeed, Beale did cross Mexico, but the plentiful gunfights are fanciful addition. Beale spoke Spanish and posed as a Mexican rancher during his incognito crossing. However, this is a true story. Entertaining and worth watching.
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