William Antrim
Was none other than Billy the Kid, alias Kid Antrim, alias Billy Bonney, alias William Bonney.
The four chemicals listed in my previous post were all used as 'cutting agents' to dilute whiskey in an effort to stretch the pure form so that bar owners could keep expenses low while accelerating profits. Two additional chemicals not on my list, but frequently utilized in the saloons of Lincoln County - were ammonia and gunpowder!
The latter gives a whole new meaning to the phrase, "gut rot", a common synonym for Old West whiskey and/or rye. If an unschooled barkeep ever forgot which agent he was using and accidentally mixed two or more of the agents together- he could have blown up the joint.
I cannot offer enough praise for Mr. Wallis' book. It is by far the most fascinating look at the world's most beloved villain. As a matter of teasing you into taking a closer look at this book, I will tell you that his incredible resourcefulness and thoroughness in research turned up some interesting items about Billy that most people don't know. First, Billy's favorite tune was "Turkey In The Straw". He whistled it everywhere he went, and when attending dances made sure that the musicians performed it at least once while he was on the dance floor. Second, Billy the Kid actually met and conversed with Jesse James in at least one public venue. The two were reported as being jovial towards each other- imagine that!
Finally, the one story that stood out among many other fine instances was one I share here.
Billy was in a bar with several of his mates. An unknown drunk cowboy started harassing one of Billy's friends. The drunk walked up and took the friend's peacemaker out of the holster and replaced it with his own! Billy watched and walked up to the two in order to diffuse the situation. He carefully pulled the drunk's Colt out of his friend's holster and closely examined the cylinder noting that three of the six were empty. Before handing the gun back to the drunk, Billy turned the cylinder so that upon cocking it would fire on an empty chamber. (He did so without the drunk knowing.) Billy handed the gun back to the drunk and turned and walked away. Before he took more than three or four paces, Billy heard the unmistakable "click" of a pistol pointed at his back. Upon hearing the noise, witnesses said Billy whirled around and shot the drunk three times in the chin with his own pistol. Eyewitnesses said a silver dollar would have covered the cloverleaf hole in the dead man's chin.
Folks, that's shootin'...!!
-TMS
The four chemicals listed in my previous post were all used as 'cutting agents' to dilute whiskey in an effort to stretch the pure form so that bar owners could keep expenses low while accelerating profits. Two additional chemicals not on my list, but frequently utilized in the saloons of Lincoln County - were ammonia and gunpowder!
The latter gives a whole new meaning to the phrase, "gut rot", a common synonym for Old West whiskey and/or rye. If an unschooled barkeep ever forgot which agent he was using and accidentally mixed two or more of the agents together- he could have blown up the joint.
I cannot offer enough praise for Mr. Wallis' book. It is by far the most fascinating look at the world's most beloved villain. As a matter of teasing you into taking a closer look at this book, I will tell you that his incredible resourcefulness and thoroughness in research turned up some interesting items about Billy that most people don't know. First, Billy's favorite tune was "Turkey In The Straw". He whistled it everywhere he went, and when attending dances made sure that the musicians performed it at least once while he was on the dance floor. Second, Billy the Kid actually met and conversed with Jesse James in at least one public venue. The two were reported as being jovial towards each other- imagine that!
Finally, the one story that stood out among many other fine instances was one I share here.
Billy was in a bar with several of his mates. An unknown drunk cowboy started harassing one of Billy's friends. The drunk walked up and took the friend's peacemaker out of the holster and replaced it with his own! Billy watched and walked up to the two in order to diffuse the situation. He carefully pulled the drunk's Colt out of his friend's holster and closely examined the cylinder noting that three of the six were empty. Before handing the gun back to the drunk, Billy turned the cylinder so that upon cocking it would fire on an empty chamber. (He did so without the drunk knowing.) Billy handed the gun back to the drunk and turned and walked away. Before he took more than three or four paces, Billy heard the unmistakable "click" of a pistol pointed at his back. Upon hearing the noise, witnesses said Billy whirled around and shot the drunk three times in the chin with his own pistol. Eyewitnesses said a silver dollar would have covered the cloverleaf hole in the dead man's chin.
Folks, that's shootin'...!!
-TMS
posted by Troy M. Stirman | 12:05 PM
1 Comments:
Great story!
I guess the only thing worse than taking a knife to a gunfight is taking an empty gun.
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