Western Fictioneers Presents -- WEST OF THE BIG RIVER: THE SHERIFF by Chuck Tyrell

Outlaws ran wild in Apache County, Arizona Territory, until the day a long-haired, straight-shooting cowboy with the unlikely name of Commodore Perry Owens pinned on the sheriff's badge and set out to rid the county of lawlessness. Owens would need every bit of his gun skill just to stay alive as he cleaned up the territory!

Acclaimed Western author Chuck Tyrell brings the illustrious career of Commodore Perry Owens to vivid life in THE SHERIFF, the latest entry in the West of the Big River series from Western Fictioneers. An action-packed blend of history and fiction, this novel is a compelling portrait of a brave man in a time and place that have become legendary. It's excitement all the way in this new West of the Big River saga!

EXCERPT
    Four riders pounded toward us from the east, raising a cloud of dust and firing like they had all the bullets in the world. I took a bead on the lead horse, a three-color paint, and squeezed off a shot. The horse went down and the rider tumbled head over heels to the ground. When he scrambled to his feet, I put him down again with a shot in the brisket. I jacked another shell into my Winchester. 
    I switched my aim to another rider, not worrying about the one I’d shot. He was dead.
    The other three scattered. There wasn’t all that much cover on the flat, but they ran for what there was. Andy was firing, but the running horses showed that his lead took little effect.
    “Aim for the horses,” I hollered.
    A six-gun cracked and a bullet plowed into the dirt not an inch from my left foot. I whirled and pulled the trigger when the Winchester’s muzzle lined up with Denny, whose hand worked at earing back the hammer of an old Colt Army M1861. My bullet took him just above the belt buckle and knocked him on his butt, where he sat, staring with disbelieving eyes at the blood stain spreading on his shirt.

BIO
Charles T. Whipple, an international prize-winning author, uses the pen name of Chuck Tyrell for his Western novels. Whipple was born and reared in Arizona’s White Mountain country only 19 miles from Fort Apache. He won his first writing award while in high school, and has won several since, including a 4th place in the World Annual Report competition, a 2nd place in the JAXA Naoko Yamazaki Commemorative Haiku competition, the first-place Agave Award in the 2010 Oaxaca International Literature Competition, and the 2011 Global eBook Award in western fiction. Raised on a ranch, Whipple brings his own experience into play when writing about the hardy people of 19th Century Arizona. Although he currently lives in Japan, Whipple maintains close ties with the West through family, relatives, former schoolmates, and readers of his western fiction. Whipple belongs to Western Fictioneers, Western Writers of America, Arizona Authors Association, American Society of Journalists and Authors, Asian American Journalists Association, and Tauranga Writers Inc.

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STAR WARS: A DISGUISED WESTERN - Meg Mims

I can hear it now... "but Star Wars is sci-fi." "It's set in fictional worlds of outer space." "Star Wars, a western? BUNKO!" Aha. You may not agree, but I'll try to convince you that this classic American film is indeed a disguised "western" in "a galaxy far, far away."

First, I'll confess that my first date with my husband was going to the movies in 1977 to see Star Wars. We'd heard how good it was, yadda yadda. Hey, we like good movies. So why not? Like any newly dating couples, we were cautious (no popcorn, might stick in the teeth... do we hold hands this soon? nah... what else should I say to a guy I don't know well?) Once the film began, with the "backstory" scrolling into the distance, and the small space ship being swallowed up by the huge Imperial cruiser -- we totally forgot each other. The movie was *that* good.

Everyone knows that George Lucas is a western fan. Sure, he loved Flash Gordon and wanted to incorporate those elements, but here's what he also said:

"I liked westerns. Westerns were very big when I was growing up. When we finally got a television there was a whole run of westerns on television. John Wayne films, directed by John Ford, before I knew who John Ford was. I think those were very influential in my enjoyment of movies."  (Click here to read the whole interview) Okay, so he enjoyed westerns. It doesn't prove Star Wars is a western in disguise. This is only my opinion, after all.

Think analogy. Let's consider the setting of Star Wars too. Skip the whole Princess Leia vs. Darth Vader confrontation on his ship and go straight to Tatooine -- a desert planet. Reminds me of New Mexico or west Texas (except it was filmed in the Tunisian desert) -- and the "ranch" Luke Skywalker lives on is actually a moisture farm, scratching out a sparse living (much like any desert area in the old west.) The "droid" robots could be imagined as the "cattle" -- except they help work on the farm tending "vaporators."

Okay, let's go back to Princess Leia, who cannot escape from villainous Darth Vader. Her droid robots C3PO and R2D2 use an escape pod to avoid capture and land on Tatooine, where they are "rustled" by the Jawa creatures to be sold to the highest bidder. And that's how they end up at Uncle Owen's farm. Luke takes on a quest to find the reclusive Obi Wan Kenobi that he knows as Ben Kenobi (consider him to be an old west "sheriff" since the Jedi masters once kept order using the Force and their light sabers).

Luke engages with Tatooine's Tusken Raiders (think native Americans) before Ben Kenobi rescues him. This cements a bond between them, making Luke his mentee, especially after they discover that Darth Vader's "soldier" or Stormtroopers destroyed the Jawa transport as well as killed Luke's aunt and uncle at their farm. Luke has no choice but to join Ben Kenobi -- who gives Luke his father's light saber (as deadly as a Colt or Peacemaker in the old west). The mentee becomes the "deputy" with this weapon and must learn to use it. And while these lessons take place later on on a space ship, Luke and Ben could easily be standing anywhere in the old west shooting tin cans off a fence.

Ben and Luke (and the droids) head to the "den of scum and villainry" called Mos Eisley (which could be Dodge City, Deadwood, Tombstone) to find some way of escaping the villains. Enter Han Solo, mercenary -- think of him as a hired gunslinger -- who makes a deal with Luke and Kenobi at the cantina. But first, Han runs into a bounty hunter -- and ends up killing Greedo first. Harrison Ford was a natural in this film. His first credited role was in the western A Time to Kill before he appeared in Gunsmoke, The Virginian and Kung Fu, and after his Star Wars and Indiana Jones series of films, played a villain in Cowboys and Aliens. And after shooting the bounty hunter, Han Solo tosses a coin to the barkeeper and says, "sorry about the mess." Classic! He struts off, his blaster once again holstered and tied to his leg.

Since Princess Leia didn't cooperate with the villainous Darth Vader (the real bad guy), she was sent to "jail" -- and Luke talks Han into rescuing her. She is the love interest, after all, like any western "damsel in distress." Plus Ben Kenobi (the sheriff, remember) must confront the villain Darth Vader -- Ben believes only he can defeat him. Luke and Han (deputy and gunslinger) end up in trouble during the rescue and Leia must save the day (a nice twist), but they end up jumping from the frying pan into the fire. (In case you haven't seen Star Wars, I'll keep the details vague.) And the ultimate showdown between Darth Vader and Ben Kenobi (villain and sheriff) sends Luke (deputy) into a further showdown with the enemy.

Okay, that's enough proof for one post. I suppose I could go on and talk about the other films in the series, but Star Wars (A New Hope) is enough for now. And check this out! I stumbled over this site when researching about Star Wars' characters -- they "rebooted" them as collectibles. Click here if you're interested in seeing the West Wars figures. Here's a picture of them. Pretty wild.

Oh, my boyfriend back then (now my husband) and I ended up seeing Star Wars at least sixteen times. That movie was far better than anything else released that year -- and we saw more things we missed the first few times. We're still total fans to this day of the original three films, as is our daughter. May the Force be with you! And happy trails to you as well.

Award-winning mystery author Meg Mims lives in Southeastern Michigan with her husband, a 'Make My Day' Malti-poo dog. Her sweet Lhasa Apso-mix rescue dog -- the "hero" of her Christmas novella Santa Paws -- will live forever in her heart. Meg loves writing novels, short novellas and short stories, both contemporary and historical. Her Spur Award / Laramie Award winning Double series is now among the Prairie Rose Publications book list. Meg is also one-half of the D.E. Ireland team writing the Eliza Doolittle & Henry Higgins Mystery series for St. Martin's Minotaur. You can find her on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest. 

TIN STAR: The Men Behind the Badge by Tom Rizzo

The sheriff sat at his desk fiddling with a tin can, cutting, and bending the metal to create a temporary badge that would identify him as the law. 

Since the county never needed a sheriff before, it had no badge to provide the man citizens just elected.

The new sheriff began having second thoughts about the extent of his new duties and responsibilities. Enforcing the law was only part of the job. He also served as jailer and tax collector, and served warrants, subpoenas, and jury summons. 

For the most part, the small and isolated early settlements across the frontier did a good job of self-policing. The majority of those looking to establish a new life and career in the West were  honest and law-abiding. Most were friendly, hard-working, and trusting--willing to give someone the benefit of the doubt.

Frontier families rarely secured their homes or businesses with locks. Businesses granted credit without seeking collateral.

Western communities took their time establishing a law enforcement arm, but with good reason. Many settlers who founded the towns were immigrants who previously encountered police abuse and harassment. They harbored a natural distrust for the law.

These citizens became the enforcers and often formed vigilante committees.

The need emerged for a formal entity to deal with issues of crime at the local level.

The men who wore the badges had to be diligent when it came to enforcing the law. Any communication about crimes and criminals was almost non-existent. The telegraph helped, but not every community had the service.

The U. S. mail provided lawmen with descriptions of criminals, their names and last known locations. 

Word-of-mouth helped, as did a crude likeness on a wanted poster. But, information traveled at a snail's pace. and often was unreliable and outdated by the time it got delivered.

The most effective kind of sheriff took a proactive role in the enforcement of frontier justice. A good lawman monitored the arrival of strangers in their towns. He kept tabs on who they were, where they were staying, and why they were visiting.

Sometimes, of course, the town’s sheriffs just happened to be criminals themselves. Some changed, went straight, and did their best to uphold the law, and were good at their jobs. Others used their position for financial and political gain, and influence.

It's no wonder some lawmen crossed to the dark side. The post of sheriff, although high in responsibility and visibility, proved a low-paying job.

As a general rule, some counties provided an annual salary of around $200, plus a percentage of any fees they collected. 

The fee system differed from territory-to-territory but, on average, generally reflected this schedule: 

• Serving a warrant: $1

• Summoning a juror: $.50

• Summoning the grand jury: $5

• Summoning witnesses: $.50

• Attending court: $1.50

• Calling each witness in court: $.05

• Committing prisoners to jail: $1

• Daily support of prisoners: $.25

• Executing a death warrant: $15

• Travel allowance: $.05 a mile 

• Reasonable expenses for other services not specified. 

Sheriffs also functioned as the ex-officio tax assessor and collector. The many duties, low pay, and the risks involved often prompted good men to turn bad for the opportunity of more lucrative paydays.

The types of crimes lawmen dealt with were too widespread for just one person. 

The situation provided the perfect opportunity for the advent of bounty hunters. These individuals were in the hunt for the pay-off of reward money.

Enterprising individuals created profit-minded private companies to help fill the gap, too. The most well-known was Pinkerton National Detective Agency.

Little glamor was associated with role of sheriff.

In reality, they spent much of their time serving subpoenas, and issuing summons. Lawmen were also responsible for seizing property as directed by civil rulings. And, they often had to issue summons for a coroner’s jury. And, in some instances, they faced life-and-death situations.

Much of their daily work was mundane. As lawmen became more visible, daily life for the town's citizens improved for the better. Citizens began to recognize the need for a legitimate, organized enforcement process, leading to a more peaceful way of life.

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