THE STORY OF THE OUTLAW: A Study of the Western Desperado – Emerson Hough

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  • Paperback : 302 pages
  • Item Weight : 1.01 pounds
  • Dimensions : 5.5 x 0.69 x 8.5 inches
  • ISBN-13 : 979-8573293240
  • Publisher : Notoir Books (November 28, 2020)
  • Language: : English

[capslock on] WITH HISTORICAL NARRATIVES OF FAMOUS OUTLAWS, THE STORIES OF NOTED BORDER WARS, VIGILANTE MOVEMENTS AND ARMED CONFLICTS ON THE FRONTIER [capslock off]

The Story of the Outlaw by Emerson Hough is a study of the Western Desperado, written long before a century of Western movies had created a rather glamorous image of these men. It was a time when the use of firearms with swiftness and accuracy was necessary in the calling of these men, after fate had marked them and set them apart for their inevitable, though possibly long-deferred, end.

Besides the inevitable Billy the Kid, Emerson Hough’s Story of the Outlaw also draws portraits of some old-time ‘bad men’ who are lesser known today: Boone Helm, Henry Plummer, Buckshot Roberts, John Murrell, and Joseph Slade, to name a few.

What distinguished the bad man in peculiarity from his fellowman? Why was he better with weapons? What is courage, in the last analysis?

Pondering these deep and existential questions will not bring us closer to understanding outlaws. But reading this book will.