This is a readable account of his exploits, but it credits him with
superhuman ability, and relates incidents that could not have happened.
In Mr. Giffen’s belief, Murrieta’s true history has not yet been told
and at this late date, it is unlikely that it ever will be. It may be
interesting to collectors of Murrietana, to note that in 1880, a play
was produced at the Adelphi Variety Theatre, San Francisco, purporting
to picture the life of Murrieta. It was called “The Scarlet IX.”
Stories of two California bandits of a much later date, Evans and
Sontag, are related in “The 25th Man”, published in 1924. The author, Ed
Morrell, gives a readable account of his experiences with these outlaws,
bearing however a bit heavily on the first person. The exploits of Evans
and Sontag were also offered to the public in dramatic form, at the
National Theatre, San Francisco, in the early nineties, some of the
bandit’s children having been engaged as a sort of “added attraction.”
C. B. Glasscock’s “Bandits and the Southern Pacific” (New York, 1929) is
also an interesting narrative. “Old Waybills”, by Alvin F. Harlow (New
York, 1934) while primarily concerned with the pioneer express
companies, gives entertaining accounts of Black Bart, Jesse and Frank
James, Sam Bass and the Daltons, and indicates a sincere effort to
gather the facts. The books of Owen P. White have added much to
present-day popular knowledge of the outstanding killers and peace
officers of the Old West. His “Them Was the Days” (New York, 1925),
“Trigger Fingers” (New York, 1926), and “Lead and Likker” (New York,
1932) make exciting reading and present a true picture so far as the
truth can now be known. “Triggernometry” by Eugene Cunningham (New York,
1935) is another sincere endeavor to treat the gunmen as human beings
rather than supermen.
Returning to books about individual bandits, one of the best is “Wild
Bill Hickok—Prince of Pistoleers”, by Frank J. Wilstach (New York,
1928), this work also containing many illustrations of more than passing
interest. “Wild Bill” (James Butler) Hickok has been much written about.
Probably the best account of his connection with the famous McCanlas
affair was published in the NEBRASKA HISTORY MAGAZINE for April-June,
1927. In it, the story of Colonel Nichols, published previously in
HARPER’S MAGAZINE of February, 1867 (and copied practically by every
biographer of Hickok) is disproved.
Of nineteen volumes dealing with the James gang, “The Rise and Fall of
Jesse James,” by Robertus Love (New York, 1925) seems the most thorough
and unbiased biography. An important and scarce James item is “The Trial
of Frank James for Murder,” by George Miller, Jr., privately printed in
Missouri in 1898. It gives in detail information not to be found
elsewhere. The list could go on indefinitely, for the period of the
gunmen extended from the Civil War to the middle 90’s, and the
literature on the subject is limitless. Much of it, of course, is lurid,
sensational material, written solely for entertainment and with no claim
to historical accuracy. But there are also many more pretentious works:
good, bad and indifferent. Many otherwise excellent biographies of
Western gunmen are marred by the fact that the author’s treatment is
colored by his admiration or contempt for his subject. But, perhaps,
that is a failing of biographers in general.