diff --git a/mercurial/dispatch.py b/mercurial/dispatch.py
--- a/mercurial/dispatch.py
+++ b/mercurial/dispatch.py
@@ -230,7 +230,6 @@
         except IOError as inst:
             if inst.errno != errno.EPIPE:
                 raise
-        ret = -1
     finally:
         duration = util.timer() - starttime
         req.ui.flush()