Friday, September 28, 2012

Lovers of Myra Belle Shirley: aka Belle Starr

Cole Younger and Belle fill under a spell
that lasted many a day.
He was on the run for things he had done
so they shacked up in a cabin to play.
Soon time was at hand, he rejoined the band,
leaving Belle who started to show.
Soon out popped a girl, who she named Pearl,
and it's still thought her father was Cole.
The next man to feed, a man named Jim Reed,
a robber just like the last.
The pair up and looted, then quickly scooted,
only to find they spent it too fast.
But Reed's luck was raw, and he was slow on the draw,
and so he bit the dust.
Yet it was soon found that a new beau was around,
Blue Duck now gave Belle his trust.
Their new gang would hustle the livestock they rustle,
and some would actually say these two did care.
It was proven when Blue Duck ran out of luck
and Belle did more than her share.
He was sentenced to die, the ol' "hang 'um high,"
but Belle kept the legal fight going.
There would be no noose, he was eventually cut loose,
but for Belle there would be no knowing.
Not one to tarry, Belle would soon marry
her aka namesake Sam Starr.
But their wheelin' and dealin' got them six-months for stealin',
and their romance was now from afar.
When they left jail behind, right back to the grind,
they always sought a dishonest dollar.
But Sam would soon fall, killed in a brawl,
and Belle found another man to collar.
His name was Jim July, another on the sly,
it was obvious Belle had the itch.
She packed her own gun, joined in on the fun:
today they'd just call her a "bitch."
But a life of crime dunks a soul in slime,
and there's always victims who hurt.
So when one is despised, don't be surprised,

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Abilene: wild beginnings

In the early days of Abilene
A wide open town in Kansas it would seem
They had a few who served the law
Those quick on the draw
But for the most part it was wicked and mean

You would see a gunfight pert near every day
Many came to the town honest then started to stray
Life was an oddity
And death was a commodity
For residents in Abilene in its heyday

Many a souls there quaked and quivered
Hoping by day-break they'd be delivered
The drunks had stopped drinkin'
By morning they're stinkin'
And shoot 'um ups slowed cuz' gun hands shivered

But mornings turned to noon and then to night
And hangovers gave way to the call of dance hall delight
Between dealings quite shady
They'd court a scarlet lady
And just for kicks they'd cause someone fright

Cowboys and floozies danced cheek-to-cheek
Then turned and switched partners for a whole new treat
Cowboys chose pokin'
Or opium smokin'
Yes, every known sin was on an Abilene street

Don't turn down a drink or you'll be called out
Don't be caught with a hole-card or you'll feel a clout
Keep your horse off the pool table
And your paws off Aunt Mable
And you might live to see what Abilene's all about

It was thick with thieves and moral disease
With most everybody doing just as they please
But all the disorder
Lost to law and order
But a good hoop and holler can still be heard on the breeze

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Dayton Graham: Arizona Ranger

From Bisbee Sheriff to Arizona Ranger
Dayton Graham lived a life of danger
But his feud with Bill Smith
In truth not a myth
Proved that he and Stubbornness were no stranger

When Graham and Tom Vaughn first met the outlaw
They were in Douglas but their plan had a flaw
They gave Smith an inch
And he drew in a pinch
And shot down both men of the law

A bullet to the neck laid Vaughn low
To the arm and chest had Graham about to go
On Death's door he did hover
But soon did recover
And he swore to give Smith the final blow

He took to the trail and started trackin'
And found him in a saloon chip stackin'
It was hot bullet weather
As both men slapped leather
And filled the saloon with shots crackin'

At that moment he remembered some sound advice
"Don't let an outlaw ever best ya' twice"
So three shots, one to the head
Left Bill Smith lying dead
Showing if you shoot a lawman beware of the price

Friday, September 21, 2012

Bob Meldrum: a bloody-handed lawman

Legend has it Bob Meldrum worked with Tom Horn
Though his ethics were different and his morals were torn
But he got 'er done
A quick-triggered gun
Who then found himself the subject of scorn

The star that he wore was bought and paid for
By mine owners and ranchers with profits galore
So they turned a blind eye
When more men did die
Then those who were locked behind a cell door

When Meldrum killed Bowen they threw him in jail
But the Snake River Cattlemen raised his huge bail
He then chose to scram
Six-years on the lam
Justice sometimes clearly moves like a snail

He chose to surrender and go through a trial
Some think it was rigged but they did it with style
A manslaughter conviction
With prison restriction
For five to seven years, "you'll be gone for awhile"

Yet just three months later Meldrum was free
Paroled to a rancher who took custody
So his life killing men
While still wearing tin
Would fade making saddles anonymously

Robert Williamson: Three-Legged Willie

Judge Robert Williamson was known as "Three-Legged Willie"
On account of a peg-leg he had attached to the knee
It looked mighty weird
Though the man was revered
For upholding the law in Shelby County

He set-up court behind the general store
And let folks know it wouldn't be lawless no more
Some were glad
Yet some were mad
And tried their best to run him out the door

A local rowdy saw the judge and started to snicker
Then he drew and threw his pig-sticker
It impaled the bench
But the judge didn't flinch
He knew brains over braun was quicker

"This is the law in Shelby County," barked the fool
So the judge drew his pistol to over-rule
His superior show
Made the heckler eat crow
And stand with his mouth agape about to drool

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

William "Bill" Brazzleton: stage robber

Bill Brazzleton the outlaw was vicious and mean
He killed his first man by the age of fifteen
He was full of surprises
Wore many disguises
When robbing stagecoaches of gold, silver, and green

He went from a traveling show to taking the stages
Giving up honest work for other mens' wages
But with such a switch
There's always a hitch
The law wants to put them in cages

His criminal life turned out fairly brief
So the local stage lines breathed a sigh of relief
One of Brazzleton's men
Choose to betray him
And the loss of his life brought no sobs, pain, or grief

Monday, September 17, 2012

Chandler Bank Robbery: the Bill Cook Gang

When the fierce Bill Cook Gang did steal
The Chandler Bank money with zeal
The Creek Light Horse Police
Chose to release
A posse to make the gang kneel

They tailed them 'crossed the Cherokee Strip
Yet several split-off like rats off a ship
But near Supulpa was found
Two outlaws a-ground
Who quickly pulled triggers and let bullets rip

Munson and Gordon were very irate
They had thought justice was blind in this state
But the posse gun fire
Made both men expire
And go straight away to seek out hell's gate

Sunday, September 16, 2012

Kit Ross: back shooter

Kit Ross was a Cherokee half-breed
Who lived by a selfish creed
He started a feud
With an action quite rude
He rode into the Davis' house on a steed

Jonathan Davis ejected the drunk
With a few choice words, like "you skunk"
He protected his wife
Who was sick during the strife
And did not need the hassle from a punk

Davis let the event fade away
While Ross let hatred gain sway
After two years passed
Ross' time came at last
To pull the trigger on a sad sorry day

Davis said he thought there'd be snow
And Ross agreed with him... though
He then drew his piece
And two shots did release
And both to his back don't you know

It was obvious Ross had been drinking
When he gave-in to this criminal inkling
But then at Fort Smith
His plea turned to myth
He would not go free cuz' booze did his thinking

No boozer believes in responsibility
He told the jury, "they done it to me"
And the day of his sentence
Still no repentance
He'd go to his Maker still ignorant as can be

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Joe Stinson: gunslinging bar keep

From soldier to miner to bar keep slinging lead
Quick temper, quick trigger, though few ended dead
He drank away fame
Which altered his aim
He even missed a kill at point-blank to the head

Reddy McCann was the man, or so the story goes
The man was disfigured, lost part of his nose
The two had fought early
McCann came back more surly
Yet Stinson chose bullets over more manly blows

The alcohol habit did Joe Stinson in
Rye whiskey, rye whiskey -- no beer and no gin
A drink at all cost
Til everything lost
He died in a "home" piss-poor in his sin

Friday, September 14, 2012

Dutch Henry: outlaw

German born of Dutch descent his name was Henry Borne
Dutch Henry was his alias that many men would scorn
By a twist of fate
He chose the states
And became a person no one would mourn

A member of the 7th CAV, known for Custer's folly
Mustered out in the sixties, he was anything but jolly
He joined the ranks of fools
Stole twenty government mules
And he was arrested soon after, by golly

At Fort Smith he was taken and charged with the crime
Then sent off to prison to do all his time
But three months was enough
He thought it too rough
So he escaped from the grit and the grime

He soon built a rep that was second to none
A horse thief with a gang up to 300 guns
He'd send forth the word
And they'd bring in the herd
The law wanted Dutch who he kept on the run

Well, Bat Masterson finally took ol' Dutch in
Only to find out he escaped justice again
The law was encumbered
But Dutch's days were numbered
He soon found himself doing twenty in the pen

When he got out he wanted to sob
He found that progress put him out of a job
The horse was "has been"
The auto now "in"
So for the rest of his days he was a miserable slob

Tuesday, September 11, 2012

The Bucket of Blood: Big Steve Long and the Moyer Brothers

Big Steve Long and the Moyer's, Con and Ace
Did deeds they now wish they could erase
They should've been behind bars
But wore self-appointed stars
Which made the law in Laramie City a disgrace

The Moyer's founded the city as it stood
But turned it into their own private hood
They owned the saloon
Their outlaw cocoon
Aptly named "The Bucket of Blood"

The card games in the back room were fixed
So the Moyer's could profit from tricks
When accused of the scam
A six-shooter went "Blam!"
Til the town folk got tired of these hicks

A miner called "Hard Luck" was ambushed by Long
He wanted to rob him but things went all wrong
The gunman was shot
The miner was not
And a case could be made that he didn't belong

The fiance of Long treated his wound
Then made the decision her marriage was doomed
She told of his deeds
To the vigilantes
And their anger festered and bloomed

Boswell the rancher took charge of the mob
To put three corrupt lawmen out of a job
From the bar they were taken
In boots they were shakin'
A fair consequence after they chose to rob

The unholy trio went lickety-split
To an unfinished cabin with nooses now fit
From rafters they hung
Their Swan Song was sung
Hell hounds now chase them deep in the Pit

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Thomas Riley: when a gunman quits

Tom Riley's an outlaw who knew when to quit
It began when he shot Sheriff Tim Smith then split
From Carson to Dayton
With a new posse waitin'
Cuz' Asa Kenyon spotted the fleeing nit-wit

He mounted a horse and started to ride
While the non-posse townfolk found places to hide
They shouted and pointed
Their thoughts were disjointed
They wanted to see Riley shackled and fried

Bullets were whizzing passed ears on the run
Riley dropped H.A. Comins with a shot from his gun
But with ammo now low
He chose how to go
He blew his own brains out, so the posse still won

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

Ned Buntline: the murder charge

A byline for Buntline came after a Navy hitch
First in Cincinnati, then to Nashville he did switch
With a sensational rag
Ned Buntline's Own mag
Where some called him, "genius," and some, "son of a bitch"

Charged with murder in forty-six, a mob took Buntline to lynch
Before a trial they grabbed a noose and tightened it to pinch
They strung him up high
But he didn't die
And the whole affair soon had a stench

They found him "not guilty" on his day in court
And the mob would now like to go back and abort
"We're sorry as heck
For the scar on your neck
We'd each like to buy you a rye whiskey quart"

Monday, September 3, 2012

Richard "Dick" Smith: outlaw

When Tom Pringle took a stroll Dick Smith gunned him down
In the Choctaw Nation, near Wheelock he was found
They say that Smith tried
The dirty deed to hide
But they found his boot print on the bloody muddy ground

Smith removed the tacks from the soles of his shoes
Trying to get away with murder by making new clues
But the holes left behind
Still matched up real fine
So they hung him at Fort Smith while singing the blues

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Texas Rangers: fugitives from San Antonio Colony

Jim Putnam, Lon Oden, and fellow Ranger John Hughes
Went to San Antonio Colony on a tip with some news
They arrested Desi Duran
Who they left with Putnam
Cuz' they saw three more outlaws bidding the town their adieus

The two Rangers chased down the bad trio
And they killed the one known as Florencio
And when they got back
They stopped a mob attack
On Putnam, who said "woe is meo"

Saturday, September 1, 2012

Texas Rangers: the Shafter Silver Mine Affair

A Shafter silver mine was watched by two Rangers
When their undercover man came out with three strangers
Their lot was now cast
So the ore thieves drew fast
But the lawmen drew faster, alleviating the dangers

John Hughes, Lon Oden, and Ernest St. Leon
Fulfilled their sworn duty, of that we can agree on
The thieves made their choice
And now lost their voice
As their blood stains the ground the cattle still pee on