Wanted! Belle Starr!

by J. T. Edson

  iv The events which led up to and followed the incident in Ellsworth, Kansas, are described in CALAMITY, MARK AND BELLE.

  v Resembling the Colt Navy Model of 1851, apart from having a spring plate interposed between the caps and the hammer, as produced by the manufacturers who had long since gone out of business the Manhattan Navy Model revolver had a barrel six and a half inches in length. The one carried by Belle Starr, when concealment was necessary, had had four and a half inches removed and the loading lever shortened accordingly. Should circumstances permit the wearing of a gunbelt and holster, she carried another which had not been modified in such a fashion.

  vi See: Paragraph Three of our AUTHOR’S NOTE.

  vii “Peckerwood tail-peddler’: derogatory name for a prostitute who was a Southron.

  viii As we pointed out in WACO’S BADGE, although we had not previously known it, Belle Starr had the habit of having her hair cut short when engaged upon criminal activities which required her to make frequent changes to her appearances by adopting disguises. Belle ‘the Rebel Spy’ Boyd some details of whose career are given in various volumes of the Civil War and Floating Outfit series, used a similar hair style whilst serving with first the Confederate, hence her sobriquet, and then the United States’ Secret Service.

  ix An explanation of the relative value of the ‘hands’ in the game of poker is given in: TWO MILES TO THE BORDER.

  x Details of the family background and special qualifications of the Ysabel Kid are given in APPENDIX TWO.

  xi Information regarding how the reputation was acquired by Captain Dustine Edward Marsden ‘Dusty’ Fog C.S.A. can be found in various volumes of the Civil War and Floating Outfit series. Something of his connection with the Ysabel Kid is described in APPENDIX TWO.

  xii An occasion when Captain Dustine Edward Marsden ‘Dusty’ Fog, C.S.A. took advantage of the qualities of easy concealment offered by the British-made Webley Royal Irish Constabulary revolver and its shoulder holster is described in Part One, ‘Small Man From Polveroso City, Texas’, OLE DEVIL’S HANDS AND FEET.

  xiii More detailed information regarding the kind of conversion required to produce a whip gun is given in CUT ONE, THEY ALL BLEED.

  xiv The events recorded in the next three Chapters are in the form of a ‘flashback’. Commencing two days previously to the various activities described so far in Part Two, we detail the connections between Belle Starr, Geoffrey Crayne and David Icke.

  xv As had always been the case in the British Isles before the variant was developed at Rugby public school in 1823, and came to be called by its name, the version of foot ball played in various universities and colleges in the United States of America at that period sometimes with up to twenty-five men a side allowed only kicking the ball and was much like present day soccer.

  xvi The events which led to and followed the appointment of Captain Dustine Edward Marsden ‘Dusty’ Fog, q. v. as town marshal of Mulrooney, Kansas, are recorded in THE MAKING OF A LAWMAN, THE TROUBLE BUSTERS and THE GENTLE GIANT. Two incidents during the time in office of Town Marshall Kail Beauregard are described in WHITE STALLION, RED MARE and THE WHIP AND THE WAR LANCE.

  xvii Another occasion when Belle Starr made use of such an unflattering disguise, albeit without the false ‘buck’ teeth, is recorded in: THE GENTLE GIANT.

  xviii How and why General Wilbur B. Smethurst, United States’ Army, was killed is told in THE HOODED RIDERS.

  xix On checking into the Railroad House Hotel in her character as ‘Darlene-Mae Abernathy’, Belle Starr had informed the desk clerk that the maid she had accompanying her was occupying cheaper accommodation elsewhere, but would be bringing her luggage and coming each day to attend to her needs. Leaving instructions for the non-existent maid at the reception desk, announcing she was taking a stroll to see the sights, she had joined Blue Duck and Sammy Crane. Donning the appropriate disguise, she had returned to the hotel as promised. By careful manipulation, she had contrived to maintain the two different identities without the deception being discovered.

  xx How the romance between Belle Starr and Mark Counter commenced, developed and was brought to an untimely end by her death is told in Part One, ‘The Bounty On Belle Starr’s Scalp’, TROUBLED RANGE: its ‘expansion’, CALAMITY, MARK AND BELLE, RANGELAND HERCULES, THE BAD BUNCH, THE GENTLE GIANT, Part Two, ‘We Hang Horse Thieves High’, J.T. “S HUNDREDTH, Part Four, ‘A Lady Known As Belle’, THE HARD RIDERS and GUNS IN THE NIGHT.

  xxi In addition to having frequently made such an assertion throughout his career, the late and great W.C. Fields also wrote the screenplay under the pseudonym ‘Charles Bogle’ and starred in the 1939 movie, YOU CAN’T CHEAT A HONEST MAN.

  xxii Although at the period of this narrative gambling for high stakes was still considered a masculine occupation, a few women ‘Poker Alice’ and ‘Madame Moustache’ being the most prominent, had gained acceptance and were highly respected as players. Both ladies make guest’ appearances in: Part Two ‘The Gamblers’, THE WILDCATS and THE HIDE AND HORN SALOON.

  xxiii A detailed description of the kind of test conducted by Belle Starr is given in Chapter Five, I’m Counting On You Losing, THE HIDE AND HORN SALOON.

  xxiv How the first meeting between Belle Starr and Belle ‘the Rebel Spy’ Boyd came about is told in THE BAD BUNCH and another occasion is described in THE QUEST FOR BOWIE’S BLADE. Other ‘guest’ and ‘starring’ appearances by the latter are listed in Footnote 8, APPENDIX TWO.

  xxv Some further information regarding Amelia Penelope Diana ‘Benkers’ Benkinsop is given in: Footnotes 13 and 13a, APPENDIX ONE.

  xxvi ‘Tom’: abbreviation of tomfoolery, Cockney rhyming slang for jewelry.

  xxvii In the interests of fair play, the information supplied by Andrew Mark ‘Big Andy’ Counter establishes that the man in question was no longer employed by the Pinkerton National Detective Agency. Having been discharged for similar malpractices, he had retained their identification documents, but was working for himself. Having caught the man who stole the jewelry, he had seen how he might turn it to extra use by giving the town marshal a reason to hold the Englishwoman while arrangements could be made for her extradition from Texas to New York. Therefore, he had released the actual thief with orders to leave Austin immediately and say nothing of what passed between them. All this was learned by Belle Starr later.

  xxviii Told in Part Five, Belle ‘the Rebel Spy’ Boyd in, ‘Butcher’s Fiery End,’ J. T.’S LADIES.

  xxix Pairaivo: first, or favorite, wife. As in the case of other Comanche names, this is a phonetic spelling.

  xxx Nemenuh: ‘the People’, the Comanches’ name for their nation. Frequently with good cause, present day ethnic apologists notwithstanding, members of other Indian races called them, Tshaoh, the Enemy People.

  xxxi A description of some methods employed by mustangers is given in .44 CALIBER MAN and A HORSE CALLED MOGOLLON.

  xxxii Told in COMANCHE.

  xxxiii An example of the Ysabel Kid’s ability to conceal his tracks is given in Part One, ‘The Half Breed’, THE HALF BREED.

  xxxiv An example of how the Ysabel Kid turned his knowledge of wild animals and mimicry to good use is given in Part Three, ‘A Wolf’s A Knowing Critter’, J.T.’S HUNDREDTH.

  xxxv Some researchers claim that the actual designer of the knife was the eldest brother of James Bowie, Rezin Pleasant and it was made by the master cutler, James Black, of Arkansas. Other authorities assert that it was manufactured by Jesse Cliffe, a white blacksmith employed on the Bowie family’s plantation in Rapides Parish, Louisiana.

  As all James Black’s bowie knives were hand-made, there were slight variations in their dimensions. The specimen owned by the Ysabel Kid had a blade eleven and a half inches long, two and a half inches wide and a quarter of an inch thick at the guard. According to W.D. ‘Bo’ Randall of Randall-Made Knives, Orlando, Florida a master cutler and authority on the subject Bowie’s knife weighed forty-three ounces, having a blade eleven inches lo
ng, two and a quarter inches wide and three-eighths of an inch thick. His Model 12 ‘Smithsonian’ bowie knife is modelled upon it. One thing all ‘bowie’ type knives have in common is a ‘clip’ point where the last few inches of the otherwise unsharpened ‘back’ of the blade joins and becomes an extension of the cutting edge is a concave arc, whereas a ‘spear’ point is formed by the two sides coming together in symmetrical curves.

  What happened to James Bowie’s knife after his death in the final assault of the besieged Alamo Mission, San Antonio de Bexar, Texas, on March 6, 1836, is told in GET URREA and THE QUEST FOR BOWIE’S BLADE.

  xxxvi Told in THE BLOODY BORDER and BACK TO THE BLOODY BORDER. Other appearances by Belle ‘the Rebel Spy’ Boyd are made in: THE COLT AND THE SABER, THE REBEL SPY, THE HOODED RIDERS, THE BAD BUNCH, SET A-FOOT, TO ARMS! TO ARMS! IN DIXIE!, THE SOUTH WILL RISE AGAIN, Part Eight, ‘Affair Of Honor’, J.T.’S HUNDREDTH, THE REMITTANCE KID, THE WHIP AND THE WAR LANCE and Part Five, ‘The Butcher’s Fiery End’, J.T.’S LADIES.

  xxxvii Details of the careers and special qualifications of Captain Dustine Edward Marsden ‘Dusty’ Fog, C.S.A. and Mark Counter are given in various volumes of the Civil War and Floating Outfit series.

  xxxviii Told in THE YSABELKID. Our original title for this volume was DUSTY FOG, but the substitution was made without consultation or explanation by our first publishers.

  xxxix Details of the career of General Jackson Baines ‘Ole Devil’ Hardin are given in the Ole Devil Hardin series, Part Four, ‘Mr. Colt’s Revolving Cylinder Pistol’, J.T.’S HUNDREDTH which cover his early life the Civil War and Floating Outfit series. How he was crippled in a riding accident is described in Part Three, ‘The Paint’, THE FASTEST GUN IN TEXAS and his death is reported in DOC LEROY, M.D.

  xl ‘Floating outfit’: a group of from four to six cowhands employed by a large ranch to work the more distant sections of its range. Taking food in a chuck wagon, or ‘greasy sack’ on the back of a pack animal, they would be away from the ranch house for several days at a time. For that reason, they were selected from the best and most trustworthy members of the crew. Because of the prominence of General Hardin in the affairs of Texas, the OD Connected ranch’s floating outfit were frequently sent to assist such of his friends who were in difficulty or endangered.

  xli When manufacturing the extremely popular Winchester Model of 1873, the makers selected those having barrels found to shoot with exceptional accuracy to be fitted with set triggers and given a special fine finish. Originally, these were inscribed, ‘1 of 1,000’, but this was later changed to script, “One of A Thousand’. However, the title was a considerable understatement. Only one hundred and thirty-six out of total production of 720, 610 rifles qualified for the distinction. Those of a grade lower in quality were given the name, “One of A Hundred’, but only seven were so designated. The practice commenced in 1875 and was discontinued in 1878, allegedly because the management decided it was not a good sales policy to suggest the Company was producing different grades of the gun.

  xlii Told in SIDEWINDER.

  xliii Told in HELL IN THE PALO DURO and GO BACK TO HELL.

  xliv Told in THE QUEST FOR BOWIE’S BLADE.

  xlv One occasion when the life of the Kid was saved by the pocketknife is described in OLD MOCCASINS ON THE TRAIL.

  xlvi Told in WHITE STALLION, RED MARE.