The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-07-17

-
ic figures that stallSed with picturesqu
and gigantic daring u generation az
through the stirring melodrama OF IN
west have bulked TO IL mighty size on III
pages OF American history WIN inc eN
ception of & few gray haired, steady eye
survivors, they have been gathered Y
their fathers; some Of recent years. u
peace; others at an earlier day, In thel
prime, when the song of the siS-Shoote
was still too often feVeiic. The lllad Q
that day will not be sung. perhaps. until
time has softened the detail and create'
the perspective. but IN the meantime TN
veterans remain. ready, prhaps, to teIi
mouth filling tale TO tho CRAFTY auesuoner
One of these men who often is seer
in the cool places OF the Great W hit'
Way frequently finds himself pointed on
TO the curiosity seeker as the king or IN
gun men. and il makes him angry. Per
sons who know this man we'll hall hin
as Bat Others call him Mr.. Master
son.
For twenty years. while the early wcs
was a place OF tumult. he wns one Of
those who roamcd the prairies OF the vas
territory lying between the Missouri r1NeI
and the Mexican border.
Buffalo hunter. Indian fighter COW
puncher sheriff, city marshal-he was o.
the leaders OF that reckless horde wht
only arguments were bullets and where
men filed the hammer notchcs from theiI
guns. In friendship cemented by common
perls he was the close comrade OF such
Luke Short, Ben Thompson. Doc Holiday
Buffalo Bill and scores more. all Of them
towering head and shoulders above the
men around them in nerve. skill with their
weapons, qualities OF leadership. resource
lulness and brains,
Unfortunately for the would-be histor-
Ian. William Barclay Masterson Is modest;
When pointed out to me by an eager bell
boy he was placidly smoking n cigar and
radiatlng an atmosphere OF peace ineffa-
BILE. He looked up with. n pair of very
steady blue eyes, and his voice gave a
curious impression of nerves that would
not easily vibrate. A smile fiickered over
his face at my tentative question and he
nodded his head slowly.
"Oh. yes-yeS-Ive seen a few scrapsp'
The Information came erudgingly, but
:ried again.
Young Fellow said Mr.. Masterson
shaking warning finger, take il from
my own press agent. and no one else Is
lf / know Ii. ! wouldn't have n press
agent for a gift, I'd as soon have a lap
"If there's anything that makes me
tired" he went On. severely. ITS these
young fellows who Insist on writing lot
OF trash about events, that happened
twenty years before they began yelling for
sheir living. II they'd tell the truth IL
wouldn't be so bad. but they have to dress
II up and tell the public that peaceable
his gun. Now, don't. you say anything
about those notches and I'll let you have
! few unvarnshed facts"
About some one elso?"
"Plain, Ordinary Men,
Precisely" he said dryly. You could
Erte n book about each OF those boys |
Ised 10 run with. But just the same they
were Just plain. ordinary men, who could
shoot straight and had the most utter
courage and perfect nerve-and. for the
most nos. pari, keen sense OF right and
men like You and me-
| let ii pass
You distinguish between courage and
lerve?" ] asked
ITS a distinction that's vital" he re-
,lied. Every one out there had cour-
,Ec. ] suppose But nerve Is different.
Nerve was the quality that marked the
. greater or less degree. It's hard TO de-
inc IL. but I should say that II was that
tncr Kind of courage that allows a man
o be deliberate and careful at times
when most men fall all over themselves
II their haste TO get ahead OF death I
'on't know what IL Is. but IT marks every
srcat fighter. knew n man named
,harlie Harrison in the old days. He was
lie most brilliant performer with a pistol
II any man have ever seen and he could
hoot straighter and faster than many
II the great fighters, yet when he got
nto scrap with n man named Jim Levy.
'c missed him with ali six shots at close
ange before Levy could reach for his
Weapon. Levy coolly dropped him with a
lngle .shot, Harrison was brave but he
.ad no nerve. you see.
I'm reckoning up the qualities of tho
nen or that country you must remember
hat to the kind OF shooting which you
ee nowadays only on the stage they
lad been trained since they were bows.
Not only that but they were in perfect
ealth from their out OF door life. Per
ect physical condition Is half the battle
this matter of cournge. Men Ike
WYATT Earp and Wild Bill could do won
erful things with their fists and wild |
Bill could have licked six ordinary men
vith his bare hands. They were some-
hing more than crack shots.
"Of course their accuracy with the
stoi was marvellous. and they could sure |
% the tricks-even those you read about |
n dime novels. | remember favorite |
tunt used TO be for man to put fast |
orse at full speed and then put all six |
ulIets from his gun into a tree eight |
nches In diameter as he rode by IT, Now
shen you come to think OF it, he smiled |
tilat was pretty good.
1t reminds me of a fellow whom TIL |
All Bill Smith, since that isn't his name |
re got sore at me one dag and lust |
nooned around aching for a scrap. His
nd every time he'd make a motion I'd
ay: Now. Bill you be careful. Don't
ou draw that gun. Bill. because I'll sure |
epPer you II YOU do Well. he kept 1t up,
1nally he yanked out the iron He han
eneo TO be a good friend OF mine Or IL |
you'd have been his finish, AS IL was /
ust shot his gun out Of his hand. We
made up later. He's a big detective In |
Denver now, Yes. we knew a lot about
ardware."
He chuckled at the recollection before
e went on. THE first gun we had out |
here was the old cap and ball six shooter
here was a little steel ramrod fastened |
ionsside the barrel and aligned with the
hambers OF the cylinder. II was neces-
arg 70 pour In the powder then the ball. |