Other editions of book The Story of the Outlaw

“Though the exploits of Western bad men have been greatly exaggerated in novels and films, many of these guys were pretty nasty characters, killing and stealing without remorse. This 1906 title profiles many of the real baddies and the legendary lawmen who brought them to justice.” -Library Journal “His book is distinguished by a scrupulously careful moderation of statement.” -The New York Times “The pages exhale the smell of blood and hemp. The realism is almost too raw for literature.” -Literary Digest “Historically exact [and] filled with shocks and thrills of no ordinary caliber.” -The Spectator The Desperado—Analysis of His Make-up The Imitation Desperado—The Cheap "Long-Hair"—A Desperado in Appearance, a Coward at Heart The Land of the Desperado—The Frontier of the Old West—The Great Unsettled Regions—The Desperado of the Mountains— The Desperado of the Early Railroad Towns. The Early Outlaw—The Frontier of the Past Century—The Bad Man East of the Mississippi River—The Great Western Land-Pirate, John A. Murrell—The Greatest Slave Insurrection Ever Planned. The Vigilantes of California—The Greatest Vigilante Movement of the World—History of the California "Stranglers" The Outlaw of the Mountains—The Gold Stampedes of the '60's—Armed Bandits of the Mountain Mining Camps. Henry Plummer— The Head of the Robber Band in the Montana Mining Country Boone Helm—A Murderer, Cannibal, and Robber—A Typical Specimen of Absolute Human Depravity. Death Scenes of Desperadoes—How Bad Men Died—The Last Moments of Desperadoes —Utterances of Terror, of Defiance, and of Cowardice. Joseph A. Slade—A Man with a Newspaper Reputation— A Product of Courage Plus Whiskey, and the End of the Product. The Desperado of the Plains—Lawlessness Founded on Loose Methods—The Rustlers of the Cow Country—Excuses for Their Acts—The Approach of the Commercial West. Wild Bill Hickok—The Beau Ideal of the Western Bad Man; Chivalric, Daring, Generous, and Game . Frontier Wars—Armed Conflicts of Bodies of Men on the Frontiers—Political Wars; Town Site Wars; Cattle Wars—Factional Fights. The Lincoln County War—The Bloodiest, Most Dramatic and Most Romantic of all the Border Wars—First Authentic Story Ever Printed of the Bitterest Feud of the Southwest. The Stevens County War—The Bloodiest County Seat War of the West—The Personal Narrative of a Man Who Was Shot and Left for Dead—The Most Expensive United States Court Case Ever Tried. Biographies of Bad Men—Desperadoes of the Deserts—Billy the Kid, Jesse Evans, Joel Fowler, and Others Skilled in the Art of Gun Fighting. The Fight of Buckshot Roberts—Encounter Between a Crippled Ex-Soldier and the Band of Billy the Kid—One Man Against Thirteen. The Man Hunt—The Western Peace Officer, a Quiet Citizen Who Works for a Salary and Risks His Life—The Trade of Man Hunting—Biography of Pat Garrett, a Typical Frontier Sheriff. Bad Men of Texas—The Lone Star State Always a Producer of Fighters—A Long History of Border War—The Death of Ben Thompson. Modern Bad Men—Murder and Robbery as a Profession—The School of Guerrilla Warfare—Butcher Quantrell; the James Brothers; the Younger Brothers. Bad Men of the Indian Nations—A Hotbed of Desperadoes —The Dalton Boys—The Most Desperate Street Fight of the West. Desperadoes of the Cities—Great Cities Now the Most Dangerous Places—City Bad Men's Contempt for Womanhood—Nine Thousand Murders a Year, and Not Two Hundred Punished—The Reasonableness of Lynch Law.

The Story of the Outlaw A Study of the Western Desperado by Emerson Hough In offering this study of the American desperado, the author constitutes himself no apologist for the acts of any desperado; yet neither does he feel that apology is needed for the theme itself. The outlaw, the desperado—that somewhat distinct and easily recognizable figure generally known in the West as the "bad man"—is a character unique in our national history, and one whose like scarcely has been produced in any land other than this. It is not necessary to promote absurd and melodramatic impressions regarding a type properly to be called historic, and properly to be handled as such. The truth itself is thrilling enough, and difficult as that frequently has been of discovery, it is the truth which has been sought herein. We are delighted to publish this classic book as part of our extensive Classic Library collection. Many of the books in our collection have been out of print for decades, and therefore have not been accessible to the general public. The aim of our publishing program is to facilitate rapid access to this vast reservoir of literature, and our view is that this is a significant literary work, which deserves to be brought back into print after many decades. The contents of the vast majority of titles in the Classic Library have been scanned from the original works. To ensure a high quality product, each title has been meticulously hand curated by our staff. Our philosophy has been guided by a desire to provide the reader with a book that is as close as possible to ownership of the original work. We hope that you will enjoy this wonderful classic work, and that for you it becomes an enriching experience.

"The realism is almost too raw for literature." — Literary Digest Compiled a century ago, when the wildness of the American West was still a living memory, these tales chronicle the rugged lives and audacious crimes of bank and train robbers, cattle rustlers, horse thieves, and other desperadoes. Recounted mainly by the outlaws themselves along with eyewitnesses to their deeds, the stories profile Billy the Kid, Frank and Jesse James, the Dalton Gang, Wild Bill Hickok, and other legendary figures of the era. In addition to famous instances and epochs of outlawry, this book relates equally fascinating but lesser-known incidents, including the Lincoln County War of the Southwest and the Stevens County War of Kansas. Atmospheric illustrations accompany these dramatic fables of adventure and conflict in the Old West.

"The realism is almost too raw for literature." — Literary Digest Compiled a century ago, when the wildness of the American West was still a living memory, these tales chronicle the rugged lives and audacious crimes of bank and train robbers, cattle rustlers, horse thieves, and other desperadoes. Recounted mainly by the outlaws themselves along with eyewitnesses to their deeds, the stories profile Billy the Kid, Frank and Jesse James, the Dalton Gang, Wild Bill Hickok, and other legendary figures of the era. In addition to famous instances and epochs of outlawry, this book relates equally fascinating but lesser-known incidents, including the Lincoln County War of the Southwest and the Stevens County War of Kansas. Atmospheric illustrations accompany these dramatic fables of adventure and conflict in the Old West.

Author Emerson Hough traveled with lawman Pat Garrett and interviewed eyewitnesses when researching his account of a uniquely American criminal type—the frontier outlaw. Hough describes the circumstances that form outlaws, then provides vivid accounts of famous bandits and their pursuers. Chapters cover the career of John A. Murrell, a cunning criminal who masterminded a gang of hundreds of killers and thieves that ranged across the South before the Civil War; the life of sometimes lawman Wild Bill Hickock, including the story behind his nickname; a firsthand account of the killing of Billy the Kid; the history and methods of rustling cattle; the criminal tutelage of Jesse and Frank James and Cole Younger, all of whom rode with Confederate guerillas and participated in the bloodiest massacres in Midwestern history; and many other lesser known but equally sensational murders and robbers of the American borderlands.

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The Story of the Outlaw - A Study of the Western Desperado is presented here in a high quality paperback edition. This popular classic work by Emerson Hough is in the English language, and may not include graphics or images from the original edition. If you enjoy the works of Emerson Hough then we highly recommend this publication for your book collection.

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