The Fastest Gun in Texas

The Fastest Gun in Texas is one of J. T. Edson's fine western novels. The story consists of three major episodes in the life of Dusty Fog, the fiercest, fastest, gunman in Texas. The first third of the book is devoted to some of his exploits in the Civil War, like being assigned to blow up a bridge to disrupt the Union Army from making headway for a time, taking on a fencing master (yes, he's an expert with the epee) while visiting the Yankee camp to testify in the case of the Union soldier who was assigned to prevent the bridge blow-up. He was honorable, too. After he takes care of the big, bad, Union General who was behind this, he makes it home to Texas and goes after killers who had murdered five Texans in a saloon without giving them a chance. And the third major episode concerns a horse his uncle bought for the OD Connected ranch. It had been captured in a wild horse roundup and was the biggest, baddest, and orneriest paint that had ever been seen. His uncle, the ranch owner, had to try to break him before anyone else tries and gets his back broken for his efforts. So, you guessed it, little Dusty Fog gives it a try and the paint is stolen out of the corral as he make progress with it.

I haven't read too many westerns where swordplay takes place in them; can't remember any off hand. It was a pleasant diversion from the gunplay which you know is coming in this well written story and some of the descriptions gets a little gory in the details. I read the Dell book published in 1968, almost ancient history, and thought it was a good read with enough action to carry me through to the exciting end.

I will now dig out another from the box of books waiting to be read. Let's see, which one will it be this time that I will put in the car and read while the wife shops? It'll have to be a pocket-size book to fit in the cubby hole.