Professional Documents
Culture Documents
# Weapon CI Rl R2 R3 Ld Pt Ml M2 Ck Bk
1 Saber 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
2 Tomahawk 2 2 3 0 42 +2 - 4 0 0
3 Knife 2 2 3 0 56 +2 - 4 0 0
4 Spear 2 1 2 4 0 85 +2 - 4 0 0
5 Bow and Arrows 3 3 6 12 30 70 +2 - 2 0
6 Derringer 4 0 1 2 2 28 +1 - 4
7 LSA Pistol 4 3 6 6 42 +2 - 3
8 MSA Pistol 4 1 3 7 6 85 +2 - 3
9 HSA Pistol 4 2 4 8 6 170 +2 - 3 1
10 LDA Pistol 4 2 5 6 56 +2 - 3 0
11 MDA Pistol 4 3 6 6 70 +2 - 3 0
12 HDA Pistol 4 3 7 6 155 +2 - 3 0
13 Shotgun 5 2 4 8 2 99 +3 - 5 0
14 S/O Shotgun 5 1 2 4 2 56 +5 - 7 0
15 Breechloader 5 7 15 30 212 +1 - 1
16 Rifle 5 5 10 20 16 155 +1 - 1 1 0
17 Repeater 5 3 6 12 12 141 +1 - 1 0 0
18 Carbine 5 6 12 25 184 +1 - 1 0
TERRAIN EFFECTS
TH MOVEMENT TH MOVEMENT
TYPE ALT PROT MOD EFFECT TYPE ALT PROT MOD EFFECT
Full Wall 11 255 NA Prohibited Covered Wagon 10 255 NA Prohibited
Half Wall 5 255 +1 Note 1 Open Wagon 4 255 +1 Note 1
Light Half Wall 4 127 +2 Note 1 Hitch 4 57 +2 Note 1
Ground 1 255 - 1 No Effect Trough/Tub 4 255 +1 Note 1
Planking 2 255 0 No Effect Barrel 4 198 +1 Note 1
Rough 4 255 -3 Note 1 Boxes 4 169 +2 Note 1
Mud 0 255 - 2 Note 2 Window 5 255 +3 Note 1
Tree 10 255 NA Prohibited Stove 5 255 +1 Note 1
Tall Brush 7 113 NA Prohibited Table 5 227 +1 Note 1
Low Brush 4 27 +2 Note 1 Desk 5 255 +1 Note 1
Cactus 4 142 +2 Note 1 Safe 5 255 +1 Note 1
Rocks 4 255 +1 Note 1 Chair 5 84 +2 Note 1
Bed 5 255 +1 Note 1
2 3
V. COMMAND SUMMARY the m ap so that th e terrain may be VI. TERRAIN, ALTITUDES,
viewed . TERRAIN EFFECTS
G eneral com ma nds and special co m mands V = Highlights the squares th at are in th e
AND LINE OF SIGHT
TH MOVEMENT
a re always ava il ab le. Ge n eral co m mands cha racter's line of sight. The co mputer A. Terrain effects TYPE ALT PROT MOD EFFECT
appea r o n th e com ma nd displays. Alth o ugh will pro mp t for a viewin g altitude See Figure VI.A for th e terra in effects.
special comm ands do not appea r o n the screen Full Wall 11 255 NA Prohibited
(look fo r sta nding enem ies, knee ling B. Character altitude and postures
menu s, th ey may be ente red fro m any co m- enemi es, or pro ne e nemies). If th e Half Wall 5 255 +1 Note 1
ma nd display. Norm ally, fo r sighting, a cha racter is co n-
character is looki ng at sta ndin g ene- sidered to be at a n altitud e eq ual to th e height U ht Half Wall 4 127 +2 Note 1
Movement comma nds are possible o nly mies, then all enem ies in LOS (wheth er
wh en a move ment com ma nds prompt is dis- of hi s head. Eac h body part is assigned a n 1 255 -1 No Effect
sta nd in g or not) will be highli ghted. altitude based o n th e ch aracter's posture and
played. Fire com mand s a re possible only when
To see if th e character has LOS to the terra in he occupies.
2 255 o No Effect
a fire comm ands promp t is displayed. kneelin g o r prone enemi es, choose th e 4 255 -3 Note 1
Since not all movement and fi re com ma nds See Figure VI.B for the altitudes and postu res.
ca n be used fo r a given ch aracter duri ng a
ap propriate viewi ng altitude (k neelin g o 255 -2 Note 2
enem ies o r prone e nemi es). C. Line of sight
pa rticul a r seg ment, o nl y th ose co mm ands SIX- G UN SHOOTOUT uses a lin e of sight Tree 10 255 NA Prohibited
displ ayed o n th e screen have any effect. For C. Movement commands check to ensure th at you o nl y see on th e scree n 7 113 NA Prohibited
exa mple, a ch aracter ca nn ot fire if he has no 1,2 ,3,4,5,6,7 or 8 = Move o ne space in th e what yo ur characters ca n see. Wh en line of 4 27 +2 Note 1
wea po n ready. indica ted di rectio n. A directional dis- sight is checked, th e altitude ass igned eac h 4 142 +2 Note 1
A. General commands play a ppea rs in the lower right-h and cha racter is the altitude of his head. Obvio usly,
Rocks 4 255 +1 Note 1
section of th e sc ree n. Also see Figure wa ll s block line of sight a nd, depending on th e
I = Identify phasi ng cha racter. D isp lay an
V.C. I. fo r explanation . Movem ent into altitude of th e cha racte rs in volved, so do oth er ----------------------~
Covered Wagon 10 255 NA Prohibited
abbrevi ated status report o n the phasi ng
an occupied space is always p rohi bited . objects. Use th e "V" co mm a nd to determine Open Wagon 4 255 + 1 Note 1
ch aracter: current HP, weapo n status
Ce rtain types of terrai n affect move- sighting of enemy characters. Hitch 4 57 +2 Note 1
and ammo statu s. Each weapon's
ment. See Figu re V1 A for te rra in
m axi m um and curre nt load are dis- Trough/Tub 4 255 +1 Note 1
effects chart.
played, and an asterisk marks the ____ 4 198 -
+~1-~N~o~
te~1-
weapon in ha nd. T he command also E = Change th e characte r's posture to erect. VII. WEAPONS
provides a simi lar status disp lay of K = Cha nge the character's postu re to Each character may ca rry a m aximum of three Boxes 4 169 +2 Note 1
th e target d uri ng targeting. kneeli ng. wea pons. Only a wea po n in h and may be Window _____5" --255 ..;.
+.;;3_.;.;
N;.;;
o.;,;
te;..1~
TM is the terrain modifier for the P = Change the character's posture to pro ne. loaded, fired or used in ha nd- to-ha nd co mb at. Stove 5 255 +1 Note 1
space occ upied by the ta rgeted charac- Wh ether a cowboy sta rts with a wea po n in
ter. A positive va lue indicates increased D , Fire commands ha nd o r not depend s o n th e sce nario being Table 5 227 +1'--o...N-=.o.;;...:.te=-..:..1--1
vulnera bility; a negative va lue ind icates R = Ready a weapo n or change a wea po n. played . Desk 5 255 +1 Note 1
increased protection. O nly weapons ava il ab le during th e Some weapons mu st be cocked befo re every Safe 5 255 +1 Note 1
X = Exit. End the character's activity for curre nt segme nt will be disp layed. shot a nd hence beco me unread ied when fired . Chair 5 84 +2 Note 1
the current segme nt. L = Load one round into th e weapo n in So me weapo ns have brea k-open loading a nd 5 255 +-1 -N
~o-t-
e -1-
Bed
hand. This comm and has no effect hence become unreadied wh en th ey run o ut of
B. Special commands upon a full y loaded weapon . am mo. T he differences betwee n single-acti on
and double-action pistols are exaggerated ALT = Altitude: PROT = Level of protection ;
T = Set reading loop for ga me messages. F = Fire a shot. Cu rsor and range fi nde r TH MOD = To hit modifier; NA = Not applicable
You a re promp ted to ente r a nu mber fo r effect, and single-actio n pistols are given
wi ll appear in the lower right ha nd of
from I to 10,000. Press RETURN. Th is slightly longe r ra nges to co mpensa te. Note I: Character must be erect to enter.
the sc ree n to aid in target selection.
number sets the delay all owed by the There are fi ve classes of wea po ns; the fol- Loses movement capability for the
Also see Figure V.C. I.
computer for the reading of messages lowing desc ribes the fun cti ons a nd limitatio ns following segment.
d uring play. The loop is automatically X = Exi t the fire ro utin e. Return to co m- of each class. Note 2: Character loses movement capability
set to 5000 at the start of the game . ma nd d isplay.
Class I weapo ns a re o nl y used in hand-to- for the following segment.
Entering I causes messages to fla sh E. Posture effects on phasing hand combat. T hey a re best wi elded by a
past with almost no delay. Entering When an erect charac ter moves o n to a c1ea r o r characte r with a goo d H -to- H rating. Figure VI.A
10,000 ca uses twiee the no rma l de lay. plank ing space. he is prompted to en ter a
D = Use dynamite. This com m and is ac- seco nd co mmand. When a kneeli ng charac ter
ce pted o nly during phasing for the beco mes erect, he is prompted to en ter a
cha racter previo usly des igna ted the seco nd command . Base +5
dynamite carrier. The computer prompts All other ac tio ns taken by a character end
for th e di rect ion of a n ad jacen t space hi s activi ty for the curren t segment. Base +4
into which the dynamite is to be thrown.
Dyna m ite may not be thrown into a se +3
squ a re co ntainin g another character. 812
+2
7~i~3
The indica ted space is turned into Base
a clear space for the remaind er of the
ga me. T his comma nd is to used on ly Base +1
once for each side d uring a ,"' nario. 6 5 4 654 Base = Height
M = C lea r map. Th is command rem oves a ll MOVEMENT DIRECTION FIRING DIRECTION of Terrain
of th e the character sil houettes from
Figure V.C. I Figure VI.B CHARACTER ALTITU DES AND POSTURES
4 5
See Figure VilLA for an example of a A line of fire check follows the selection of
Class 2 weapons are throwing weapons, but VIII. FIRE COMBAT status display of a character. the target. Since line of sight is always traced
they are also excellent for hand-to-hand com-
bat. Once thrown, they are gone forever. They A. Procedure If your phasing character is adjacent to the from head to head . the line of fire may well
are best used by a character with good ratings Whenever a character is phasing, has a weapon target character. you will be asked if you wish vary from the line of sight. This may mean that
in both H-to-H and handarm skills. speed equal to or higher than the segment num- to fight hand-to-hand . the shot will strike an intervening object even
ber, and has a weapon in hand, he may fire atan In the heat of battle. it is quite possible to though the line of sight is clear. Unless the shot
Class 3 weapons are bows and arrows. They eligible target. An eligible target is any oppos- fire an unloaded weapon . In such instances. penetrates the object. there can be no effect.
are less effective in hand-to-hand combat and ing cowboy who has been spotted and, therefore, the message "CLICK" will be displayed . The
C. Penetration
require a good handarm rating to be used most appears on the screen. The target must be within shot will have no effect and play will pass to
Each weapon in the game is assigned a penetra-
efficiently. the range of the firing character's weapon . the next character.
tion factor indicative of its ability to pass
After you indicate the desire to fire , the
Class 4 weapons are handguns. They are less B. Hit location and sharpshooting; through intervening objects. Each object in
targeting cursor appears over the firing char- line of sight vs. line of lire
effective in hand-to-hand combat and efficient the game is assigned a corresponding protec-
acter on the screen . Move and position the
use depends on a good sidearm rating. Ordinarily. after you select a target. the com- tion factor. When the line offire is intercepted
cursor over the desired target. To aid in target
puter determines the part of the target's body by an object. the shot will be blocked with no
Class 5 weapons are rifles and shotguns. They selection , the cursor while targeting gives a
to which the shot is directed. Under some effect if the protection factor of the object is
are less effective in hand-to-hand combat and brief status display of each character it passes circumstances. the computer allows you to greater than the penetration factor of the
require a good longarm rating to be used most over, whether a friend or an enemy. When the
sharpshoot. that is. to select the part of the weapon being used in the attack. No weapon
efficiently. cursor is positioned over the desired target and enemy's body to be targeted. (See explanation in the game will penetrate an object with a
the status display of the target figure appears. below for the conditions required .) protection factor of 213 or better.
The attributes of all weapons available in SIX- press9 or RETURN and then press9 to execute See Figure VLA for protection factors. See
GUN SHOOTOUT are given in Figure VII. th e shot. To exit without firing a shot. press X. Figure VII for penetration factors of weapon
MARSHALL DUKE PRONE MV-4 HH-4 types, and see Figure VIII.C for an example of
H/C/G/RA/ LA/ LURL - 3/2/6/6/6/9/9 TM = 0 penetration.
WEAPONS
* REPEATER 9/ 12 HDA PISTOL 6/6 The partofthe body struck by a shot which
S/ A (LSH) - 5/5 5/5 4/2
clears or penetrates all intervening cover de-
'iF Weapon CI R1 R2 R3 Ld Pt M1 M2 Ck Bk pends on the result of a simu lated throw of a
MARSHALL DUKE = Name die and the firing character's weapon accuracy.
1 Saber 0 0 0 0 0 0 PRONE = Pos ture Thecomputer randomly determines a number
2 Tomahawk 2 2 3 0 42 +2 -4 0 0 MV = Movement rating from 0 to 20. It subtracts 3 if the firer has an
-4 HH = Hand -to -hand comba t rating accuracy of 4 or subtracts 6 if the firer has an
3 Knife 2 2 3 0 56 +2 0 0
accuracy of5. If the result is less than I. the firer
H/C/G/RNLNLURL = Head/ chest/gut!
4 Spear 2 1 2 4 0 85 +2 -4 0 0 ri ght arm/ left arm/ left leg/ ri ght leg may sharpshoot.
5 Bow and Arrows 3 3 6 12 30 70 +2 -2 1 0 TM = Terrain modifier D. Hit determination
28 +1 - 4 HDA = Heavy doub le action The following factors affect the probability of
6 Derringer 4 0 1 2 2
S/A (LSH) = Speed/acc uracy a hit: firer accuracy, target posture, terrain
7 LSA Pistol 4 1 3 6 6 42 +2 -3 (long arms - side a rm s - hand arms) occupied by the target, range, whether the firer
8 MSA Pistol 4 1 3 7 6 85 +2 -3 is wounded in the right arm, and whether
9 HSAPistol 4 2 4 8 6 170 +2 -3 L= Light SA = Single action the firer is sharpshooting at certain areas of
2 5 6 56 +2 -3 0 M= Medi um DA = Double action the body.
10 LOA Pistol 4 The computer calculates the result accord-
4 3 6 6 70 +2 -3 0 H= Heavy S/O = Sawed-off shotgun
11 MDA Pistol ing to a formula in which the modifiers are
12 HDA Pistol 4 1 3 7 6 155 +2 -3 0 Exa mpl es: LSA = Light single ac tion added to a base:
13 Shotgun 5 2 4 8 2 99 +3 -5 0 HDA = Heavy double actio n Base + Posture + Terrain + Range + Wounds
14 S/O Shotgun 5 1 2 4 2 56 +5 -7 0 + Sharpshooting
+1 -1 Figure VilLA
15 Breechloaoer 5 7 15 30 212
16 Rifle 5 5 10 20 16 155 +1 -1 1 0 FIRING
CHARACTER
5 3 6 12 12 141 +1 -1 0 0 AlT - 6 - TARGET
CHARACTER
18 Carbine 5 6 12 25 184 +1 -1 0 LINE OF SIGHT
XI. EXITING THE BOARD ' il ' , '111111 ' 0 d ' , ' d ' their time. A long and bitter feud climaxed
A minor wound inflicts 1-3 points of damage.
A serious wound inflicts 5-11 points of damage.
IX. HAND-TO-HAND
Any phasing character with movement capa-
bility may move off the south edge (the bottom)
of the board from a board edge space. The
'''III ' iii
111111 '!!I ' , , ' ", ' !!I(ll
iii ' ) ' t1'TI"") 11 ~~IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
111111 "II Ililil 111111 111111"11
'* '*'
II~ '0 '0 . , . ,
...J
II~ , ,
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' 111111 111 111
on October 26, 1881 , as Wyatt, Virgil, and
Morgan Earp, along with Ooc Holliday,
confronted the Clantons and McLowerys
for the last time on a backlot in Tombstone,
COMBAT
character is permanently removed from the ilIlil ' 111111"""111111'' ' '111111 ' 1111 II!!! III • , ' ..'::--' !!' II' . . 1I111f Arizona.
I ;I I I;I I I;I I I;I I I;I I I;I I I;I I'I'I'I'I I~' ~;{·:· .'I'I)I
game. but no victory point is awarded to either
A. Similar ity to fire combat player for his removal. ilililili'
111'111111111111111111111111111111111111111111 III • ~ :::::' III
' I'@IIII I (1) Billy Claiborne
(2) Tom McLowery
(6) Morgan Earp
(7) Virgil Earp
The procedures for targeting and selecting the (3) Billy Clanton (8) Doc Holliday
, , , , , , , , , , " ®..:::·III III (4) Frank McLowery (9) Wyatt Earp
hit location are the same in hand-to-hand XII. VICTORY POINTS AND (5) Ike Clanton
combat as in fire combat. The sole exception is WINNING THE GAME
that the target character must be adjacent to • A victory that has been too costly: derives from Pyrrhus. kingofEpirus. who won the batlle of Asculum against
the attacker. The victory point value of a cl"laracter is the Romans in 279 B.C.. but sustained very heavy losses.
8 9
Scenario D - Tbe Good, Tbe Bad, Tbe Ugly Scenario G - Tbe Battle of Ingalls
In a movie starring Clint Eastwood as the man with no na me. called B10ndie in this game, two A lame horse had prevented Bill Doolin from joining the Daltons in the ill-fated Coffeyville raid.
gunmen search together for a cache of gold. They pause to rest in a tiny. war-torn town , unaware He later rode off to Oklahoma, where he formed a gang of his own and created a new legend. Bill
of the close pursuit of their arch-nemesis, Angel Eyes, and hi s band of cutthroats. In this scenario, Dalton , younger brother of the more famous trio, rode with the Doolin gang at times. But he was
one member of the evil band comes in on absent the September day in 1893 when a
11101 111111
, 111111 ' , , , , ' ilIlll ' , , . Tuco in the tub and prepares to repay a "'III ' wagonload of marshalls entered town for
A' past unkindn ess.
' II!III a showdown .
' i, iii' ' "'III Ililil ' t"'fI't"'fI
0 *t"'fI lI
111111111 lll ' , , ....., "'111111111
, !IIIIIIIIIII
* ' , III ' '111111' 1111 Ir"""""""""" 1111 11111 III ' Mii·.:::-· (1) Tuco Ramirez (3) One Arm (1) Marshall Blum (13) Little Dick West
Jt ~llliillllll
I
111 11I111II~-tIIiMI
'111 111 11111 , .@IIIIII
(2) Blondie (4) Big Ugly
(5) Pa Ugly
(6)Angel Eyes
'I ' (2)
(3)
(4)
Marshall
Marshall
Marshall
Dexter
Little
Hoss
(14) Arkansas Tom
Daugherty
(15) Dynamite Dick Clifton
"""'llIllr"'' '1I11II ' '111(11' ,
I II~'..)II '
(7) Hunc hback (5) Marshall King (16) Little Bill Raidler
, ,- , !!!IIIIIWii IWii (6) Marshall Josephs (17) Red BUCk Weightman
IllIIl
lit ' '111111'
, , 111111, , IIIIII 11"' 111111 III II"""
lit 111111
III III III ' ' 11111("'111111"
I ' , ' ti (7)
(8)
Marshall
Marshall
Ivy
Adamle
(18) Bitter Creek
Newcombe
1111 Ir""" 1111 II ' il III ' , ' mil ' il III ' ' 1II1110~ ' , , - , jjPll1"'fl ' (9) Marshall Goodeye (19) Tulsa Jack Blake
lIIiiliiil~liiill~~1I
, ' t'llIlll '
III
, III III ' 11 III ' tiill
guys should not fire first at the outlaws out-
side the jail. The prisoner may not carry
111111
' 1IIIIr'' ' '1II11I '111111 '111111 ' 1111 Ir""" 1111 II
(6) Charles Brown
(7) Carey Seaman
11111 , III " " '111(11' ' 111111 ' , ' 111111 ' (8) Charles Carpenter
J 111111 'AJ,llilil"",~111I '
dynamite. 'M " , (9) T. C. Babb
, 'III' II ' "II A-'lJ A-C!l l (10) John T. Kloehr
(11) Tom Ayers
1II'ilIlil II II J'; , J'; II II ' (1) Stumpy Brennan (5) Hulk Cooper
, , , , llllIlIiilif"""lliilii ' (12) Charles Ball
1II'ilIlil II~@ ~II
(2)
(3)
Marshall Duke
Colorado Kid
(6) Spider Landon
(7) Joe Scaggs II IIUlIIIIIIIIIUlmll~~"l~1'\ Q.l)
f,ll ' (13) Jeremy Clark
IIh~**1I
111111111111111111
(14) John Butcher
1 ' 111111 II , ,...,,)
!!II11 ' , , , , J'; W
(4) Dude Martin (8) Art Scaggs
II!!, ' 111111111111111111
111111
",,,,,,,,,,,1111 (9) Wheezy Smith
(15) Luis Mendez
(16) Marcos Mendez
' iI,'II'1'I11I1I11II1I1II1II1II11I1I
1'1'1111111111111111111111111111
(10) Lightning Evers
(17) Telly Graham
(11) Slim Vargas
(18) F. Lee Barrister
111I111111111.
:=::· 11,~11.n0 III nil 11111 111111
, t"'fI.n:!!I)(1I1II1 111111 11111 III ' (11) Eddie Vernon (18) Tito Ybarra
, iii , @ ,, " , (12) Lucky Harmon , ,10'11, 111111111111111111 ' 'II ~IIIIIII ' 111111
(19) Domasso Fernandez
(20) Emesto Chavez
'..l\II~ '
III II
' III lUI " ' 1,1,1' ' (21) Julio Trujillo
(22) Marcos Ruiz
(23) Samuel Rodriguez
' l). : !!\rlij ' (24) Roberto Guzman
(25) Benito Chicon
(26) Jorge Hemandez
(27) Slim Nunez
10 II
Scenario J - Northfield Nightmare
Jesse James. his brother Frank. a nd his cousin Cole Younger rode with the Missouri border raiders
THE AMERICAN GLADIATORS:
during the Civil War. From that bloody beginning. they rose to legendary statu s as robbers a nd Six-Gun Glory or Boot Hill Bound
murderers in the 1860's and 1870·s. On August 7th . 1876. th e gang rode on their last robbery to the
rich farming town of Northfield. Minnesota. Shooting up the town . they sent the citi zenry scur- by Robert S. Billings
rying. Unlike those in war-ravaged Missouri . however. the townfolk did not cower behind locked
doors. The men took up arms and rushed out to defend th eir community.
IS '
@~~
",
, II ' , iiill'llDriiiillllll'
11
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' ' ,"IIIII'
, , )1 ,~!!illl' ,
' !IIIII ' ,.- , !!III "III " 1 " )\~ @
'''-*J l
(1) J.A. Allen
(2) Joseph L. Heywood
(3) A. E. Bunker
(4) Nicholas Gustavson
(21) Bill Chadwell
(22) Jim Younger
(23) Frank James
(24) Jesse James
Henry McCarty, hardly more than a boy
and silky fuzz still clinging to his chin, stared
intently out through the chink in the wall of
Our forefathers, of course, were pioneers,
cattle barons, frontier marshals. Or at least
hard-working, straight-shooting cowpokes in
111111111111'' 111
1,111111111 II!!! III' ®fl ~ , )( " ' ~l "1111111111111
I! 1I11II11n1li1
(5) Henry Wheeler
(6) Hoss In go Is
(25~ Bob Younger
(26) Charlie Pitts the old stone house, his eyes hardened white (bad guys always wore black) ten-gallon
, I ~lllIIl" 1IIIIr'"II'IIIIIII ' ~lIllhI0 " lit-" ' , ' '" ~ "
beyond his years. Though New York-born, hats. Ask any Chamber of Commerce west
"1~~ '"~
(7) Elias Stacy (27) Clel Miller
~
", ' , , III
<!3f '"
~ ,III @ " , , '", , 1~iiillllllllllllllll
he would never have thought of himself as of the Mississippi. But then - little Joshua
(8) Hawk Manning (28) Cole Younger
(9) Joe Tenant an Easterner. He had been roaming the with the runny nose pops up to ask - how
1lIlIlIlIlIIiil\1I
1II\:g11111", III ' 1,1,1, IIII ' I111111111111111111111111111111
111111 111111 111111 111111 1I1I1',1111'
',',II\.Jr1. r'<9... ~ ~ (10) Rummy Binge
(11) Odell Clark New Mexico Territory - sitting his horse come granpappy stooped to robbing all
~ , , ~ , , ' @' , , , , " * @ (12) Legs Ruby easily, trusting only in the rifle in his saddle those trains and banks and shooting up the
(13) John U. Surre scabbard and the six-gun that rode the whorehouse on Saturday night? Give little
~1111111!!illh "" "~ " ' III'I"::'::':!!!II~ ' (14) Slick Swift
" )(~'nm'IiJIlIU::'::ll l mlll '" (15) Flash Lintz holster on his hip - too long for that He'd Joshua a high-five across his sassy, truth-
(16) Slim Barber known plenty of tight squeaks before. And speaking mouth. You won't find any other
111111111111" II " 1111 t!i ® '" 111111111111111
I
(17) Mississippi Baines he'd come out of them all alive and ready good answer. Little Joshua has to learn some
1II111111111111111@** ' , !!II* ' *11"11,111111111111111111 (18) Digger Graves
(19) Shoey Smith
for more. He didn't rightly see how he was questions are too good for polite people ever
(20) Wellsley Fargo going to get out of this one. But a man had to ask..
to be an optimist about these things. Some- For it does raise the larger question.
Scenario K - The Treeing of Placid
thing would tum up. It always had. He'd Back before Hollywood cowboys rode the
Justice on the frontier was a risky business. In many instances. after law and order were served. always maintained you only needed "a range and they all wore the same kind of
the community found itself disrupted once again as the criminal's mates sought revenge. In this chance in a million" if you were ready to hats - how do you tell the good guys from
scenario. a peaceful frontier town turns out to defend itself against the depredations of a mob of grab it when it came. the bad? Even a superficial reading of
vengeful cowhands out to even the score A rifle shot rang out and he ducked as western history can play havoc with the
.... ~ III '" llfofi'" !!i.tl )1 .t '" I I '" III for the prosecution of one of their own .
®i~IIfl.'!!! ~""l m llllll ' mll~' a sliver of stone struck loose by the bullet carefully nourished illusions of ancestor
III
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III 111111111 111111 ,III ' I111(11
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' III111111 ' I11111I
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(1) Hoss Morgan
(2) Old Man Morgan
(16) John Franklin
(17) Snake Oiler
stung his cheek. He raised his own rifle,
sighted quickly at the glimpse he had had of
worshipers and Stetson-wearing PR men.
For it turns out it's very hard to keep the
III "II III ' IIIIU ' (3) Jacob Tanner (18) Gummy Black a blue-jeaned leg sticking from behind a virtuous and the vice-ridden properly aligned
~" ""' IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII ' IIIIII ' III1il11llb@
'0 '
~~ , '@'
I
"'1'f.
' " M ' , , ' iii ' , ,
'@' , , , , , , , , , , , ' ~
, , ' !!! II~
(4) Whip Tanner
(5) F.S. Key
(6) Blackie Smith
(7) Daniel Webster
(19) Skinny Smith
(20) Cooky Tomane
(21) Crusher Plotz
(22) Hank Winchester
stone, and snapped of a quick shot. Sand
spurted up a fraction of an inch from the
leg, whic,h was jerked hastily out of sight
on separate sides of the street. They:re too
much alike, and they persist in shifting back
and forth like one of those diagrammed
1lIlIIllIlIIiiilll,.. , "'III"~IIIIIIIII""II"", III"~",,,, , 111"~ _ )I.t (8) Gunnar Holcolm
(9) Doc Barber
(23) Shotgun Folkes
(24) Gunner Dempsey
Damn. Too small a target But that would boxes that keeps turning inside-out on you
1II~IIIIII)~I'1'f. n:iiilli 111111 111111 IIIIII ....\!! "II{I~I (10) Olga Holcolm (25) Lefty Wright
teach him a little caution-put a little worry as you watch. Proper ancestor worship in
, ~ " @**~jg!I III' ' ''''''
(!J)",
' ' III111 111 ' ' 1I111i
III ~~-.tI ' M!!!JIIIIIIII
(y
(11) Wiley Sellers (26) Deadeye Davies in his mind next time he tried an aimed the great West requires a dim light and
, ,.-111"' , ' * 111,1I' ' ~~IIIIII III Wj;1II '--IIIIII@ ' * "'I'I[A.,, ® (12) Arthur Banks
(13) Marshall Withers
(27) John Doe
(28) Slim Sims
shot But there were too damn many out
there. Well, you had to play 'em as they lay.
a soft focus - and lots of cheesecloth over
the lens. Even then, one of those tight-lipped,
, , , ts!h*l!\Jli1"'!I ' ' ~!!!III ' ~!!!III ' , ' !!!II~ (14) Deputy Swift (29) Rufus Cryle
stony-faced, stringy-bodied little cusses will
(15) Lee Chee (30) Rowdy Heller
The scene was real and was to be repeated come to sudden life on you, released from
Scenario L - Indian Raid again and again over the next few decades his strait-jacket of pious respectabit"ity by
Although Indian uprisings were not as common as many believe. they did occur. At various times. all up and down the thousands of square some brief recorded word or deed that has
even as late as during the years of the Civil War, Indian war-parties attacked travellers a nd small miles of the "American West" They were a somehow escaped the cleansing agents of
settlements. On the trail. the cry arose. "Circle the wagons!" A desperate struggle ensued . strange lot, the men and women who peopled the PR treatment
that land. Scum and riff-raff, some say. The one thing ~hat won't shift on you is
(1) Bertha Butz (13) Wise Bird
(2) Bill Clark (14) Nine Fingers They certainly had their share. Giants in the the one major factor of all life in the West
(3) Buckskin Rollins (15) Proud William earth, others protest Stout-hearted men of - violence. Violence was an accepted part
(4) Viper Black (16) Standing Bear action, in close pursuit of a dream which of everyone's life - and those who stood out
(5) Colonel Dunlap (17) Eagle Claw
(6) Bond T. Hunter (18) Iron Kettle kept receding before them. That too - so above their fellow citizens were first of all
(7) Lil McGill (19) Tall Oak long as you' re not too fussy with your preeminent in their violence.
(8) Bull Stabler (20) Chief Blue Shirt terminology and too demanding on your Everyone was entitled to carry a gun. A
(9) Preacher Goode (21) Broken lance
(10) Bumpy Bender (22) large Elk
definitions. A lot seems to depend on your very few towns with very tough marshals
(11) Big Jake Decker (23) Red Sky angle of vision. Like a com puterized com- were able to require entering riders to check
(12) Alias Jones (24) Fast Water mercial trying to create three-dimensional their guns before proceeding to the nearest
(25) Running Buck effects on a flat TV screen, men swell to saloon. But these were minor exceptions.
(26) Straight Shaft
(27) Two Noses heroes, twist and turn to cruelly incongruous Manhood was defined by that gun riding
(28) Hungry Wolf shapes, and shrivel to pitiable (or contempt- the holster on the hip. (Gamblers and others
(29) Grey Cloud ible) caricatures of subhuman lusts and in the genteel trades might stash their wea-
(30) Dancing Brook
petty desires. pons away in other parts of their person -
12 13
Doc Holliday and fellow tradesmen often Even better, if you could get your hands to meet his peaceful end as a sportswriter It didn't provide much salary or public status,
had as many as seven weapons hidden away on a shotgun before the event (and if your for a New York newspaper at the hoary age but it did have its points. Among them was
when they were "dressed for work." opponent was stupid or negligent enough to of sixty-seven. And Lord knows what the privilege of working in a wealthy environ-
Thus nightlife in a roaring western town let you get in to close range with it). you drunken sot might have been picked up out ment - for those strong boxes in a silver-
had all the exhilarating suspense and lack could pepper both the landscape and your of the frontier gutter, dusted off and made strike area habitually carried right consider-
of boredom of a ride today on the New opponent with one shot. Let go with both center attraction for that TV show. able of that for which the Wyatt boys pined.
York subway. Opportunities for defending barrels and you'd not only get a lot more When it comes to attention from the movie- If CBS were preparing a Sixty Minutes
one's manhood appeared nightly. Despite landscape but quite probably cut your op- going, novel-reading, and PR-manipulated expose on the subject, they would have to be
the obvious tinge of adventure in such a life, ponent in two - neither resulting part likely public, the OK Corral shoot-out is right up wary of some smart mouthpiece pulling
it did have its disadvantages. If you just to do you much harm in return. there with General Custer's affair at Little a General Westmoreland on them, for there
wanted a peaceful drink before going home And best of all. if you could get a shot in Big Hom. At least three movies about is no smoking-gun evidence that Wyatt was
to a quiet evening, and a drunk from off the when he was not expecting it, you were really it have been made-and no doubt some putting family financial improvement above
range decided to use you to prove his man- in free. If your bullet happened to enter his adolescent rock-star is about to cut the video- liege loyalty to the estimable Wells, Fargo.
hood again, you didn't have a lot of choices. back, that might be momentarily looked disc any day now. But despite that attention But robbery attempts were frequent, and
And you weren't guaranteed one of those askance upon by some of the more petty- (or perhaps because of it) there is remarkably certain elements of the citizenry made a
elaborate ballet-gunfights popularized in so minded citizens. but you could pretty much little consistency about what actually point of noting that after the robberies one
many western movies. There was no necessity bank on the court taking the larger view. It happened there. And it wasn't for lack of of the Wyatt boys would often leave town
of a suspenseful facing-off, waiting with was an age that deplored nit-picking legal witnesses. Life in a small Arizona town not carrying a heavy suitcase. However, since
gentlemanly sportsmanship for the other to arguments. being that exciting, and the Saturday matinee these citizens were probably Democrats, and
make the first move. That was left for the So the carefully-programmed gun fight not having been invented yet. apparently the the Wyatt boys were playing footsie with the
PR men to fill in later. Most of the local was pretty much a creation of the motion whole town had been waiting for this event Grand Old Party, the accusations can't be
courts had a handy rule of thumb. If the picture industry in its earlier stages. The later with bated breath for some time and did all accepted as springing from motives pure as
party of the first part shot the party of the western sometimes reverted to it, but a much they could to get as good a view of it as the driven snow.
second part, there was only one pertinent more likely scenario was the gang-violence possible (while still keeping out of the line Meanwhile, positions on the sunny side
question. Did the party of the second part episode. Here the elaborate ethical considera- of fire). The trouble is there were too many of the law were opening up. When a group
have a gun? If he didn't, it might be murder. tions were less in evidence as the attention witnesses, all testifying to widely differing of cowboys got to acting up while overloaded
But if he did have, it was by definition a fair shifted to mass mayham, thundering volleys events. The Earps tended to eliminate the with liquor, the town marshall needed help
fight - and the court should not intervene in stereophonic sound, and gore splattered unbiased middle ground of a community, to deal with so many troublemakers. Virgil
in such personal non-governmental matters. about the landscape in action slowed enough and what a citizen saw was pretty much Earp was standing ready and jumped at the
It was a little hard on peaceful citizens, but to capture every technicolored splash. The governed by whose side he was on. chance. In the process of establishing
it certainly kept the government off their producers' intentions of course had little to decorum, a gun went off accidentally and
backs. do with historical accuracy - the cashing in The Earps (Wyatt, Virgil, and Morgan) had the town marshall was dead. Virgil, ever
This "code of the West" approach kept on a bored new generation's fascination with come to town some time before. looking for ready to don the badge of civil respect and
the legal cases simple and the court dockets violence being more their concern. And yet better pickings than they had been having authority, was appointed acting marshall
uncrowded. If a man didn't want to enter the surprising part of the matter is that they in Dodge City. The Earps. like many other until the next election - only two weeks off.
the lists at the option of whatever drunken were probably much closer to the original frontier lawmen, seem to have taken the large Things seemed to be going well.
cowpoke was feeling a sense of ego frustra- reality than the earlier, ethically cleaned-up view of their profession (i.e., there's money But, as all Americans and the Earps in
tion, he had his choice. He could refuse to versions. The famous shoot-out at the OK to be made in the law trade - if not inside particluar would affirm, politics is a dirty,
strap on a gun, and he would then be Corral stands as nearly incontrovertible it. then outside it, and the true professional uncertain business, and the body-politic is
immune from becoming a risk-free murder evidence of the point. works both sides of the street impartially). a beast to whom gratitude is a word un-
victim. He might have to bear with a few This much-publicized victory (if not of Anyway. Tombstone had been a typically known. Virgil's opponent - none other than
harmless insulting remarks, perhaps even be justice over villany, at least of the mangling dull and worthless part of Arizona landscape that same dastardly John Behan who had
pushed around a little. But everything has powers of lead over human flesh) was a - until some miscreant who couldn't have ousted Wyatt from his job - was chosen by
a price. If he refused to strap on his symbol veritable All-Star Game of the old west cared less about his environmental impact the electorate to separate the second Earp
of independent manhood, if he chose life Considering how many thousands of square went and discovered silver there. from his scepter of office. The Earps now
without risk and adventure, he couldn't miles of emptiness there were in that West, This tended to negate both the dullness had double reason to detest the man.
expect to associate on an equal basis with the chance of assembling such stars as the and the worthlessness at one fell swoop, and But all was not yet lost Cochise County
the big boys. Earp progeny (including the TV-enshrined frontier flotsam and jetsam poured in as had just been created to help contain the
The actual "code of the West," then, was Wyatt himself) and Doc Holliday on the thick as real estate entrepreneurs in a Florida burgeoning Tombstone, and a sheriff would
pretty much the code of the schoolyard same side of a shooting bee would seem to land boom. Among them came the Earps. have be appointed to serve until the next
bully. A gunfight was not intended as a be as minimal as that of two suns of dif- In the law trade (regardless of which side election. The appointment would be made
means for making fine ethical distinctions. ferent galaxies colliding like billiard balls. of the street one were currently planning to by the governor - none other than that
It was a matter of killing him before he But truth is indeed stranger than fiction, for work), the Earps had learned it was best to eminent Repbulican, John Charles Fremont
killed you. And men who lived floating in it really did happen. What is more, the establish a base on the respectable side, so Wyatt sensed the tide beginning to flow at
this cloudy suspension of primitive ethics improbability could have been much worse Wyatt got himself appointed a deputy sheriff. last in his direction. He would, he let it
soon learned a few basic principles. - for the estimable Bat Masterson (later the But apparently the sheriff wasn't as impressed be known. be willing to serve in the public
Drawing fast was least important among subject of a rival TV series) almost made the with his credentials as were the later TV interest
the requisites for a reasonably prolonged scene himself. He was asked to attend and scriptwriters. For he was shortly replaced by Alas. there are greater depths of perfidy
life. Shooting accurately was important If probably would have but for the more one John Behan. of whom we shall soon in the political arena than an honest man
you could get in one well-aimed shot while immediate need of his brother Jim. Perhaps hear more. Unemployment insurance not can fathom - and the Earps had not touched
your opponent was peppering the landscape it was just as well. If the Clantons had got having been invented yet. Wyatt was forced bottom yet That former founder of the
around you, you would prevail. in a lucky shot, Bat might not have gone on to take up riding shotgun for Wells. Fargo. Republican Party. Governor Fremont, ap-
14 15
pointed a Democrat And which Democrat? had told her he was at the hold-Up. The next day, the Democratic story goes, not disarmed, as the ordinance required,
None other than that same ubiquitous John Fortunately, that was before the federal Virgil and brother Morgan intercepted Ike and they definitely weren't leaving town.
Behan. The stars shivered in their orbits and laws protecting equal-rights whistle blowers again and charged him with violating the Virgil requested Sheriff Behan to help
the Earps pondered the paradoxes of living had been fine-tuned. Wyatt Earp immediately city ordinance against carrying weapons in disarm the troublemakers. Sheriff Behan
a life of principle. swore he had seen Doc in Tombstone when town. They took his weapon, gave him said no thanks, and if Virgil tried it the
What did all these events have to do the crime was being committed - further- a crack on the head, and took him off to be Clantons would kill him. Sheriff Behan then
with the shoot-out at the OK Corral? Maybe more, he affirmed that Doc had even joined fined $25 for the violation (the judge, it so headed back to the Clantons (Earp sup-
nothing. Then again, maybe a lot It all the possee looking for the kjJJers. That got happens, was a Republican). porters say to keep them informed of the
depended on which party you belonged to. Doc off the hook Then Virgil Earp (strangely Meanwhile, Wyatt stopped Tom McLow- Earps' intentions). Doc Holliday, meanwhile
The next episode in this saga of frontier enough appointed town marshall again by cry, found him carrying no weapon, but beat - center of much of the trouble the previous
justice was not long in coming. The Wells, the Republican mayor when another vacancy him up anyway, leaving him lying in the night - was blissfully sleeping away until
Fargo stage-coach out of Tombstone, carrying occured) arrested Big-Nosed Kate. The gutter. his past-noon waking hour.
a heavy load of silver in the strong-box, was charge was drunk and disorderly, the fine Next Bill Clanton and Frank McLowery Reports came to the Earps that the
attacked The driver and one passenger were wasn't much, but Big-Nosed Kate got the arrived. Wyatt caught the latter emerging Clantons and friends were waiting at the
killed, but the man riding shotgun grabbed idea. The equal rights movement hadn't got from a store and told him his horse was O.K Corral and had been joined by a sixth
the reins /lnd kept going. Upon receipt of to Tombstone yet She left town. parked in the wrong place. Frank. according man, Wes Fuller. Furthermore, the Clan tons
the news Sheriff Behan gathered a possee So until somebody caught Jim Crane, to this scenario. ever conscious of the de- had sent word that the Earps could come
for pursuit The three Earps, as pUblic- there was no way of proving or disproving mands of peaceful citizenship, obligingly shoot it out or not - but they'd end up with
spirited citizens, joined it Even Bat the Earps were involved in the crime. A took the horse down to the O.K Corral for bullets in them either way before night The
Masterson, apparently not wanting his dead-or-alive reward was out on him, and proper parking. Earps decided they'd made enough attempts
dossier to be found wanting by later script- Democrats were certain Wyatt would prefer at avoiding trouble - they might as well
writers, went along too. the culprit be captured in a non-talking Those of the Republican persuasion, how- have it out
The trail led to a ranch where one Luther condition - thus eliminating the last witness. ever, had seen a very different chain of Just then they were joined by Doc. Wyatt
King was found in hiding. Accounts don't It was now late October, 1881 , and the events. Accompanied by his friend, Ike told him he didn't have to involve himself
make mention of the questioning techniques climax so often celebrated on the silver Clanton had arrived in town the day before, in this law-and-order dispute. Doc was in-
employed, but they must have been eminently screen was at hand. Some members of the headed for a saloon and proceeded to make sulted that they might think he would run
effective, for he quickly confessed to holding Clanton gang had been arrested for another threats about what he was going to do to the out on a friend. So the four - Doc Holliday,
the horses for the murderers. He also gave stage robbery. Wyatt had played a role in Earps and Doc Holliday - lubricating him- Wyatt, Morgan and Virgil Earp - set out for
them the names of three men who were their arrest. The Clantons obviously weren't self with ample amounts of liquor in the the 0.1<. Corral.
responsible for the crime. Two of these were pleased with his conduct Wyatt himself, process. Doc Holliday arrived, said he had As strictly law-and-order enforcers,
very shortly killed in another extra-legal some thought, was worried the Clantons heard of their threats and they could com- Republicans maintained, they agreed not to
endeavor. That left only one, a Jim Crane, could provide evidence linking him with the mence with him. Ike backed off, saying he go with drawn weapons. Virgil handed his
who could speak of the crime with authority. earlier robbery. Neither the Earps nor the wasn't armed. Doc allowed as how he had sawed-off shotgun to Doc (who slipped it up
But there were those in the community who Clantons would therefore be adverse to the better be if he came in making those kinds one sleeve of his topcoat) and took in ex-
felt it was not as simple as that They had elimination with extreme prejudice of the of threats again. Morgan Earp showed up change Doc's cane. They also had holstered
some local people in mind to star as the other party. and cooled Doc down. Ike and Tom were six-guns all round. So, armed but with no
CUlprits - namely Wyatt Earp and friends. The showdown day was October 26, 1881 heard to remark that they would be armed weapon drawn, they marched two abreast
The man who had admitted he had held the - and the eventful occasion has been and furthermore would shoot Doc <]n sight down the street
horses wjisn't around to implicate any more documented more carefully than the Trojan Wyatt arrived and helped get Doc away Sheriff Behan now seemed to feel things
citizens, for he had promptly escaped and War. Unfortunately, there was not only one before more trouble started. weren't going to his liking. Earp supporters
left the area the day after being brought in. Homer present but at least two - and we Later that night Wyatt again met Ike, have said that his plan had been to en-
(Those western jails were strangely amenable have both Homeric versions, plus an infinite who was well tanked up now. The latter courage the showdown so he would have the
structures: the number of convenient number of minor variations. The days when announced his intention of going after Doc. Earps in a no-win situation. If they were
"escapes· was equalled only by the number one poet could clamp a monopoly on a Wyatt told him to sleep it off, or in his forced to back down, they would be through
of those "shot while attempting to escape." martial action and make posterity see it his present drunken state Doc would kill him . in Tombstone. [f they did not, the sheriff felt
And the latter often had a six-gun with way have apparently ended. Now we have Ike told Wyatt that Clanton reinforcements sure his friends at the O.K Corral would let
a couple of fired chambers placed by their either too few actions or too many poets. So would be in the next day, and the Earps had him disarm them - and make the Earps look
remains, just in case some picky citizen all we can do is present the two major views better get set for a showdown. like fools for trying to perpetrate violence
needed reassurance about the ethics of their and try not to prejudice the reader. The next morning Billy Clanton. Frank for something the sheriff had solved with
lawmen). The action had actually begun the day McLowery. and Billy Claiborne arrived. The ease. There was only one problem. When he
Then Big-Nosed Kate stuck her oar in. before when Ike Clanton and Tom McLow- mayor (Republican) later claimed to have asked for their guns, the Clantons and
She had come from Dodge City with Doc ery came into Tombstone (the Democrats seen Ike Clanton (whom other witnesses friends refused to give them up.
Holliday. Their relationship unfortunately claimed) for the sole purpose of getting sup- would later testify was "unarmed,") waiting His plans scattered like a fallen house of
preceded the work of Freud and Masters plies. This story insists that the Clantons on a corner with both a rine and revolver. cards, the sheriff rushed back to the Earps
and Johnson, so we don't have a good case and McLowerys. as law-abiding citizens, did The citizens of the town could feel the and Doc, who were still steadily advancing.
study of it - but it was apparently rather everything possible to avoid a fight. First, it imminent showdown coming. Sheriff John Everything was all right, he assured them.
comple~ Their undying devotion didn't is claimed, Doc Holliday tried to pick a fight Behan (that same despised Democrat) He had disarmed the whole crew. Asked if
prevent /ler enjoying her work in the better with Ike. Ike, model citizen, declined th e according to the RepUblican story kept run- he had put them under arrest, he said he
saloons. She also may have been a closet offer. In a poker game later on, th e act was ning to the Clantons to keep them informed hadn't, but would right away. Virgil. the
equal-rights advocate, for when she and repeated, this time with Virgil Earp as the about what the Earp side was doing. Other man with the town marshall's authority,
Doc had a fight, she immediately saw a way challenger. Honest Ike, his supporters insist, citizens informed the Earps that the then told him to come along and they'd do
to get even. She let it be known that Doc still resisted being provoked. Clantons were still making their threats. were it together. Sheriff Behan then proceeded to
16 17
head for the closest way out - specifically once. Tom (or what was left of Tom) jumped opportunity to kill him during the gun battle. were tracked by turn-of-the-century "up-to-
into C.S. Fly's nearby photographer's studio. and ran a few steps. They were his last Doc Yet Ike had been allowed to go free. date" prediction methods. The prediction
The fight was clearly on, and Sheriff Behan's dropped the shotgun and drew his Colt It was a hard argument to deny. The system said they would be likely to under~
careful plans for furthering his career were, Fly's studio suddenly came alive. Shots decision went in favor of the Earps. lustice take a job soon in their old hometpwn of
temporarily at least, derailed. came from the window, one hitting Morgan Spicer would seem to have been a man of Coffeyville, Kansas. No sure thing - just
The two-abreast parade changed to four- again. Doc fired at the window and the solid judgment and unfailing logic. a high probability factor. Guns were shipped
abreast as they neared the corral - Doc on shots stopped. Ike Clanton flew out the back On the other hand, as Clanton supporters in to Coffeyville, just to play the odds.
the right flank, Virgil, Wyatt and Morgan . door. Doc fired twice but missed. Then Ike were quick to point out, maybe it was just The odds were right Three Daltons and
Earp in line to his left Waiting were Billy was gone. that he was a strong Republican. two assistants tried to rob the two banks at
Claiborne and Ike Clanton in front of Virgil, But Billy Clanton and Frank McLowery. So the Earps won the battle. As for the the same time. It was the over-confidence of
Billy Clanton and Frank McLowery opposite both badly wounded , were now firing while war, that is less certain. Public se ntiment pioneers moving into Indian country. The
Wyatt, and Tom McLowery in front of Mor- moving along the wall toward shelter. Wyatt was suc h that not long after these events two smarter Daltons at first beat the odds
gan. Tom kept two horses close to screen snapped a shot at Billy, getting him through Doc and the Earps thought it better to strike anyhow, got their loot and got back to the
himself off from Doc. Wes Fuller. the late- the hips. But Frank had his gun dead on out for other territory. horses. But Grat Dalton, " not too brighl,"
comer, had apparently made another quick Doc as the latter turned toward him. Doc people said, let a smart young middle-
reversal and taken off. No gun had yet been had only one shot left in the gun. It went But the days of ambiguous virtue were num- management man talk him into standing
drawn. through Frank's heart - but not before bered. The country was beginning to fill up; around until a "time lock" opened the vault
Virgil announced they were under arrest. Frank had fired. Morgan. now on the ground. the big hauls were being made by "respectable" It was a phony story, but poor dumb Grat
"Throw up your hands," he told them. also fired at the same moment His shot men investing in railroads, bribing Congress- stood around patiently waiting while the
The stories seem to converge at this went into Frank's forehead. The one shot men, playing Monopoly games with real pre-imported guns were handed out to
point in that six men started firing. Doc was that Frank had got off at Doc was accurate money. Small-time independent operators, hotlest citizens. He never did get into the
momentarily screened off by the horses, and - but it hit Doc's holster and then stripped trading their couraage and ski ll with a six- vault But the honest citizens with the im-
Ike (for two vastly different interpretations) flesh from his back gun for position and public adulation, were ported guns got him and his two colleagues.
did not draw. The othe rs had at it. Billy At this juncture, Billy Claiborne went becoming a nuisance to corporation con-men Then, in symbolic confirmation of the
Claiborne cut loose with three shots (all out the rear door of Fly's studio. Doc aimed and legitimate swindlers. Money and power superiority of the "system" over private codes
misses) and then headed for Fly's photo- at him but found his gun empty. Billy had to be brought into play, for when they of honor, Emmett and Bob Dalton, who
graphy studio. Wyatt hit Frank McLowery in Clanton, still trying to raise his gun for one are allowed on the board, a solid investment- seemed momentarily to have beaten the sys-
the midsection . Wyatt was under fire from more shot, finally fell to the ground. minded citizen knows who's going to win tem as they waited by the horses with their
both Frank and Billy Clanton. Morgan It was over. The entire action was esti- (and thus whose stock is going to go up) 1001, heard the firing, knew their brother
couldn't get in a good shot at Tom McLowery mated to have taken place in a few seconds before the action starts. The riff-raff entre- and friends were in trouble, went back into
because of the two horses - but Tom got - one minute at the most The Clanton side preneurs would have to go. Law was too the maelstrom of lead to try to help - and
Morgan in the neck. had been decimated - only Ike and noble a concept to offer for sa le to every the system gobbled them all. If it was any
Ike, meanwhile (Earp supporters state Claiborne had survived by fleeing. Virgil, passing free-lance, enterprising gun-fighter. consolation to them, they managed to take
only after he had seen Claiborne take off Morgan and Doc were wounded, but all To ma ke a bid. one should be required first quite a few honest citizens with them.
and Fra"k double up hit), jumped at Wyatt recovered. Wyatt alone emerged unscathed. to amass the proper wealth and dignity- The symbolic implications were not yet
and pleaded to be spared. It was a tight That was the end of the battle, but just and once bought, the damned law should complete. Emmett Dalton, who had no busi-
space for delicate negotiations. Doc later the beginning of the legal machinations. stay bought With so much free-lance volatil- ness being alive after being punctured by all
told Wyatt he was crazy for not shooting Sheriff Be.han finally came out of the photo- ity around, how could an honest market- that lead, survived a fourteen-year prison
him. It seems agreed by all that Wyatt did graphy studio and tried to arrest th e Earps. manipulater operate? term. He ended his life as an old man in
not fire at the man who was pleading for Neither the Earps nor the crowd that quickly So th e sides began to un scramble. Hollywood, California, obviously hoping to
mercy. Wyatt is reported to have said: "This gathered to see the carnage would allow th at Pinkerton men were hired by the railroads. see the movie moguls put the Daltons into
fight's commenced. Get to fighting or get But an inquest took place before ludge Local law enforcement men could be trusted history via the silver screen. If he had lasted
out" Upon which Ike too headed for Fly's Spicer, and a lengthy report was filed to know for whom they worked - specifically. just a few years longer he might have made
ever more popular photography studio. The claim that the Earps had attacked local politicians and the state legislators. it as an instant celebrity making TV com-
Billy Clanton had been hit twice, one unarmed men was pretty well disposed of by And to eliminate the uncertainty, these mercials for the National Rifle Association.
shot breaking his gun arm, but he shifted the damage that was done to the wounded worthies were pre-bought and paid for on
the gun to his left hand and got Virgil in the Earps and Doc. Even Sheriff Behan's admis- a stand ard salary-scale by the railroads. There were still loose ends to tie. Bill Dalton,
leg. Frank was not down yet, but his belly sion (before he thought better of it) that the Gunmen had to stop this jumping back and who had not gone on the Coffeyville job,
wound had temporarily at least made him Clanton gang had refused to give up their forth across the line of law and order. teamed up with Bill Doolin for a series of
lose interest in the action. guns worked against the unarmed men So gradually the independent operators highly profitable enterprises in bank and
Morgan, meanwhile, although hit and theory. And there was a serious fallacy to were sq ueezed out. shoved across the line train robbing. But the system was being per-
told by Wyatt to lie down out of the line of theory (which Ike Clanton supported with into open lawlessness and hunted down. fected. An undercover operator found the
fire, cho$e to stay in the fight He got a solid detailed testimony) that the Earps were just When the Younger brothers and Frank new gang were occasional visitors of the town
hit to the chest on the wounded Billy Clanton. trying to kill off the one man who could tie and lesse lames tried to raid Northfield. of Ingalls. Two wagonloads of heaviy armed
Tom McLowery. from behind his horse them to the earlier stage robbery and murder. Minnesota. the Younger brothers were deci- deputies waited outside town till the informer
screen , was now firing at Wyatt. Doc still Ike claimed Wyatt had offered him a large mated. Frank and lesse escaped - but not gave them the word the quarry was there.
did not pave an opening to shoot Wyatt amount of money for eliminating the last for long. The bribery extended into the out- They sealed off the town and made ready to
used a sl)ot to nick one of the horses. Both witness. lustice Spicer, in his report, points law gangs themselves. lesse was shot in the collect the outlaws.
horses thereupon broke their reins and took out that if this was true - if it was all in- back by a colleague while straightening The outlaws weren't so ready to be col-
off. Tom tried for another shot at Wyatt tended as a plot to eliminate Ike and his a picture on the wall. Great outlaws were lected. They fought back effectively, killing
Doc beat him to it incriminating knowledge - how come Ike ending not with a bang but a whimper. three experienced deputies in the process.
He let both barrels of the shotgun go at was still around? Wyatt had had ample The Daltons. scourge of the ra ilroads, Then with a sudden rush on horseback all
18 19
the outlaws except the one firing from an not even a grown man yet. But things were
upstairs window in the hotel made it out narrowing down now. The walls were closing SOURCES
of town and escaped. The outlaws had ap- in. There wasn't much room to tum around
parently triumphed over the carefully laid any more. Col. Charles Askins. Texans, Guns & History. John Myers Myers. Doc Holliday. Little,
plans of the system. He knew he was going to have to give up Winchester Press, New York, 1970. Brown and Company, Boston, 1955
There are glitches in all systems. But this time. But his favorite phrase was "one
those operating them know the odds are chance in a million." That's all he'd ever Carl W. Breihan. The Complete and Authentic Richard O'Connor. Bat Masterson.
inexorable. Within three years all members asked for, and with those odds he'd been
Life of Jesse James. Collier Books, New Doubleday & Company, Garden City,
York, 1953. New York, 1957
of the gang had been hunted down, most of willing to chance it every time. Even now he
them killed, the rest imprisoned. Even the didn't feel really discouraged. It was some- Ca rl W. Breihan. Younger Brothers. The Bill O'Neal. Encylopedia of Western Gun-
leader, intelligent and courageous Bill Doolin, thing about him - maybe just a gift He just Naylor Company, San Antonio, 1961. fighters. University of Oklahoma Press,
was captured, escaped, and finally was blasted naturally saw the bright side. Maybe that Robert K. DeArment Bat Masterson: The Norman, 1979.
into oblivion by a double-barreled shotgun. was why so many men so much older than Man and the Legend. University of Harold Preece. The Dalton Gang: End of an
he had been willing to follow him. Oklahoma Press, Norman. 1979. Outlaw Era. Hastings House Publishers,
Much indeed had happened in the West Well even if he gave up this time (though Harry Sinclair Drago. The Great Range New York, 1963.
since Henry McCarty had crouched with his they'd be sure to give him the rope after the Wars: Violence on the Grasslands. Dodd, Stephen Tatum. Inventing Billy the Kid:
rifle in that stone house at Stinking Springs. trial), his "chance in a million" would come & Compan y, New York, 1970. Visions of the Outlaw in America,
Back then it had seemed that a man had round again. He'd be ready for it when it Richard Garrett Famous Characters of the 1881-1981. University of New Mexico
a chance on his own. Especially when his did. Hell, there wasn't a jail made that could Wild West. St. Martin's Press, New York, Press, Albuquerque, 1982.
boss and friend, the young Englishman John hold him. Nor a jailor he couldn't outwit. 1975.
Tunstall, had bravely taken on the power of He'd find a way.
the Murphy-Dolan-Riley forces. But Tunstall But suddenly that small dark cloud that
didn't know how the Dolan people (and their he'd begun to know settled once more over
bought-and-paid-for sheriff, James Brady) his spirit What if he did break out? What if
operated. When the sheriff had ridden out he got clean away? Things were closing in
with a thirty-man, outlaw-filled posse (all to on him all the time. He could face anyone
serve a legal paper), young Henry McCarty in a gunfight That didn't bother him a bit CREDITS
had yelled a warning and ridden fast for But it wasn't like they were just tough
defensive terrain. He had thought the young hombres anymore. Hell, it was like they Game Design
Englishman was following him. But that weren't even people. It was like they were Jeff Johnson
gentleman had calmly sat his saddle and coming at him with gatling guns and how-
waited for Sheriff Brady and his cut-throats. itzers now - and who they were didn't Apple Programming
It was just some legal matter that could easily matter. Something in that little dark cloud Jeff Johnson
be straightened out, the naive young man told him what he did didn't really matter, Atari and C-64 Progra mming
had assumed. And the first members of the wouldn't really change anything a bit Keith Brors
posse had ridden up and shot the English- He shook off the sense of depression
man out of the saddle. So much for American with a heavy effort Whatever came up, he'd Game Development
frontier justice. sure given em' a run for their money. Who- Mike Kawahara
Henry McCarty didn't fold. He stayed in ever would have thought little Henry
the fight, was chosen a leader, young as he McCarty, born in New York City, would Rulebook Editing
was, and it looked many times as if his side have come this far? What did a man live for Leona Billings
might prevail. if not to make a stir, at least once in his life. Customized Disk Operating System (Apple version)
Of course that was before the Dolan Plenty men over seventy with white hair Roland Gustafsson
people had managed to get Colonel Dudley, hadn't made the stir he'd made already, in
as crooked an officer as ever was commis- just a sliver of their years. Sure, it would be Art & Graphic Design
sioned, to bring in his troops, a howitzer nice to get rich and famous and have folks Louis Hsu Saekow, Kathryn Lee & Dave Boudreau
and a gatling gun to back up Dolan. know about you fifty years after you're dead.
Wel~ they'd had to buy themselves But he'd done pretty good in the time he'd Typesetting
another sheriff, anyhow. Henry McCarty had. And while they'd never hear of Henry Abra Type
had had a hand in that Sheriff Brady McCarty, that didn't bother him none. Printing
wouldn't organize any more posses filled Henry McCarty - that wasn't really him at A&a Printers and Lithographers
with hired gunmen and then take them out all. Out here a man could make himself
to do Dolan's dirty work. over into someone else - someone bigger
It was cold here in the stone house. And than lifesize - any time he had the guts to
they were out there eating bacon and eggs, pull it of[ And he'd tried a bunch of names
drinking hot coffee. The place was sur- before one sounded right and stuck. And
rounded - no chance to slip away. Not he bet even fifty years from now, there'd
even any water in the stone house. He'd led be people around that had heard of Billy
If you have a ny question s or probl ems regarding the progra m or game. please send a self-
'em quite a chase. Especially when he'd had the Kid.
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