The Llano News. (Llano, Tex.), Vol. 54, No. 19, Ed. 1 Thursday, March 26, 1942 Page: 2 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Llano Area Newspaper Collection and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Llano County Public Library.
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THE LLANO NEWS, LLANO, TEXAS THURSDAY. MARCH 2«, 1942.
day Allison, “Gentleman Killer” of
West, Specialized in Unusual Killings
By J. Frank Dohie.
In Th« Houston Post
Afte*- all these years the populace
•till regards Billy the Kid wild other
ksd men of his kind as representa-
tive cowboys—even if a little ex-
treme. Billy the Kid, it Is true, rode
well, stealing from John Chisum,
range owners and ‘ hired men on | complimented Clay AUiaon’s horse
horseback.M Mnra nt ,i,.i ___, _______ .
horseback.” More of them shot to
hold what they had than shot to get
what they held.
Like otlter moral lines, the line be-
tween good range men who shot bad
men and thieves, and bad men who
rode the range wa8 not always dis-
wbo had him hired, and then from tinct; it often wavered. Many a cow
any owner whose cattle or horses boy was like the one in the song who
were ? testable. That he was a good
hand, interested in hig work—as all
good hands at any business must be
—has never been Intimated. His
reputation is based solely on his ef-
ficiency as killer and thief.
says, “I know I’ve done wrong." But
here I am talking about conduct,
while Clay Allison of -he Washita
waits impatiently to ride and shoot.
Clay Allison is not to be classed as
a gunman, either on the side of the
Bam Bass rode up the trail with a law, like Wild Bill Hickok. or out
herd of cattle. At the end of the side of the law. like John Wesley
trail he helped rob a train and the Hardin. Yet he was emphatically a
rest of his short life was spent in
• evading officers of the law—until they
abut him. Before he went up the
trail he had done odd jobs, stolen
horses from the Indians, and made
something of a reputation at racing
“the Denton mare.” He did very
little cow work, and probably no real
cowman would have cared for his
services.
Bad Men Not Cowboys
You can go up and down the list
of tbe more noted bad men of the
West—Billy the Kid, Sam Bass, John
Wesley Hardin. Ben Thompson, the
Daltons—and while you will find most
of them associated sporadically with
cowboy life, you will hardly find a
dyed in the wool, straight-out cowboy
among them. Of course, there were
plenty of tough hombres among both
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”23 years doing one thing well”
man of guns. He wa8 not a bad man
in the sense that that term has come
to have. Yet he seems to have killed
more men than many a bad man
made his reputation on.
Victims Deserved Killing
Charlie Siringo credits him with
having killed 18; others say he killed
only nine or 10, “not counting Mexi
-cans." All agree that everybody he
killed deserved killing. To quote
from iny old-time trail driver friend.
Bob Beverly, of Lovlngton, New Mex-
ico, who has supplied me a lot of
data on this character. Clay Allison
was "a gentleman killer."
He was strictly a range man; he
hated cow thieves, and nobody ever
accused him of being one. He was
quixotic in standing up for his rights,
and he was quixotically independent
in interpreting what constituted his
rights. The more whiskey he drank,
the more rights he possessed; and
sometimes when he came to town he
bought a great deal of whiskey. He
was generous with it. however, even
insisting on his horse's enjoying a
fair portion.
Born in Tennessee, he \v..3 about
20 yeMrs old when the Civil War
started. Of course, he joined the
Confederates. Once, it is told, he
v. as captured as a spy and sentenced
to be shot. But he slipped the hand-
cuffs c ff over hands that were re-
markably small, and lived to fight
many ether days. He never was re
ciustructed, and in mati|rer years
was described as looking the part of
a Southern plantation gentleman.
Always Dressed Neatly
In his prime he was six feet, two
inches tall, erect, weighing around
ISO pounds, always neatly dressed.
When lie came to town he rode either
a pure white or a coal black horse.
After the war he went west, ranch-
ing in Colorado New Mexico and in
Texas. He had made "the reputation
that comes when fellers shoot" be-
fore he located on the Washita river
in the Texas Panhandle, late in the
70's. He wag well known in the In-
dian territory and in Dodjge City,
where he had a notable rtinln with
Marshal Wyatt Earp. He died In
New Mexico about 1884.
The episode in his career that has
been most often related—with many
variations—was his meeting with
desperado named Chuck (Jolbert at
the Clifton House, a stage stand, in
northern New' Mexico. He did not
know Chuck, but Chuck knew hint
Chuck wanted fresh laurels to add to
his reputation. Killing Clay Allison
would put the biggest kind of feather
inhls cap. He did not concela his
ambition. Yet he was wary, and Clay
was wise.
Challenge Accepted
Not long after the twro met, Chuck
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and proposed a race. The challenge
was accepted, and, to Clay’s chagrin,
his horse was beaten. Chuck seems
not to have been becomingly reticent
over the victory, and Clay slapped
his jaws. Night came, and then bed-
time, and still no gun had been
drawn. When Allison went down to
breakfast next morning, he found
Chuck already seated at the table.
With a polite salutation, he sat down
directly opposite him. He had reason
to think that Chuck’s six-shooter was
in his lap, under a napkin. A plate
of scrambled eggs was set before
each man.
Chuck requested Allison to pass the
salt, which was off to one side. When
Allison reached for it. Chuck raised
his six-shooter, but he fumbled the
shot, and before he could shoot a
second time he had a bullet between
his eyes. It is related that he fell in
such a way that some of his brains
mixed with the eggs in his plate.
Clay Allison finished his breakfast,
eating his eggs straight, and walked
out to make proper funeral arrange-
ments.
Speaks At Funeral
No preacher or priest was within
reach, hut Allison insisted on a Chris-
”.;.n funeral. Ftna\y jie found a
young man named Bill Robinson who
had an Episcopalian prayer book that
hi8 mother had given him. He agreed
to read the proper prayer over the
corpse, provided the nickname of
“Parson” or “Preacher" was not fas-
tened to him. He was new in the
country, and did not want to get
tagged with any such name.
Clay Allison readily agreed to this.
At the funeral, he got up and said
“Friends, mourners and others. Bill
Robinson here is going to give the
late Chuck Colbert a decent Christian
burial. This is on condition, how
ever, that nobody will ever allude to
him as Parson, Preacher, or any other
such name. Now, 1 want you all to
understand this, and to realize that 1
am under obligation to see that his
request is complied with.”
None Violated Request
Nobody ever violated the request.
Edgar Beecher Bronson, in hi* book
"The Red-Blooded,” tells another
story of Clay Allison's religious pro-
cliviteis. I uni sure that the langu-
age ascribed by Bronson to Allison
was not in character, for Allison, ac-
cording to all accounts, used correct
English, Tin story is probably m.ore
of what might have been than what
was; but it is a sample of many Clay
Allison stories.
One moaning, as Bronson tells,
Clay Allison of the Washita walked
into the Lone Wolf saloon at Pecos
City, liquored, laid two pistols within
handy reach no the bar, and remark-
ed to Red Die k, the bartender, that
he intended to turn the saloon into a
church for about two hours, and that
during the services he wanted no
drinks served or cards shuffled.
Then, standing at the door, one of
the six-shooters in hand. Mr. Allison
began to usher in the congregation
All passers were stopped. Merchants
railroad builders, gamblers, cowboys,
freighters—they all knew Clay Alli-
son. When 50 or 60 souls had as-
sembled, he closed the door and fac-
ed about.
“Fellers,” he began, “this meeting
being held on the Pecos. I reckon
we'll open her by singing ‘Shall We
Gather at the River?’ Of course, we
are already gathered, hut the song
sorter fits. Now, turn loose.”
Calls For Prayer
Tile result was not encouraging,
for not many of the audience knew
any hymn, much less this one. How-
ever, Mr. Clay Allison of the Washita
was not fazed
“The next in order," he said “Is a
prayer. Everybody down!"
To quote Edgar Beecher Bronson,
“Only a few knelt. Among the con-
gregation were some who regarded
the affair as sacrilegious, arid others
of the independent frontier type were
unaccustomed to dictation. However
a slight narrowing of the cold blue
eyes and a significant sweep of the
six-shooter brought every man of
them to his knees, with heads bowed
over faro layout and on monte tables
“O Lord" began 'Allison, "this
yere’a a mighty bad neck o' woods,
an’ I reckon You know It. Fellers don't
think enough of their souls to build a
church, an’ whem a pja'son comes
here they don't treat him half white.
O I»M! Make these feller* see that
when they gits caught in the final
roundup an' drove over the last dl
vide, they don’t stan' no sort o’ show
to git to stay on the heavenly ranch
'n!es« they believes an’ builds a
house to pray an' preach In Right
here I subscribe* H hundred dollars
to build a church, an’ If airy one of
these yere fellers, don’ ante up ac-
cordin’ to his means. O Lord, make
It Your persn'l business to see that
he wears the Devil's brand and ear-
mark an’ never gits another drop o’
good spring water.
Sermon On Jonah
“Of course, I allow You knows I
don' sport no wings myself, but I
want to do what’s right it You’ll sort
o give me a shove the proper way.
An’ one thing I want You to under-
stan ; ( lay Allison's got a fast horse,
an’ Is tol’able handy with hi8 rope,
and lie's goin' to run these fellers in-
to Your corral even If he has to rope
an' drag ’em there. Amen. Everybody
git up!"
The sermon that followed had to
do with Jonah In the belly of the
whale. After seeing that all hands
were raised to signify belief in this
Bible story. Clay Allison had Red
Dick pass the hat for money to build
a church. The contributions were
generous and general.
lu the region of Pecos, Texas, Clay
Allison did another good deed. Rid-
ing in’o a cow camp one evening, he
noticed that a young man who had
a crippled arm and hand seemed very
nervous. He learned that this youth
had had a falling out that afternoon
w-ith another cowboy over a mav-
j erlck yearling, each claiming it. They
had agreed to shoot it out the next
morning at a certain spot between
the two cow camps, the opponent's
camp being over a hill.
Allison tolfi the cripple that he
could never get his gun out in time,
and that he would take hi8 place. So
the next morning Clay Allison rode
forth. He was well known to the
second party of the quarrel, and when
this second party galloped up, rais-
ing his gun to fire, and saw who was
opposing him, he wheeled so rapidly
to ride in the opposite direction that
he dropped his gun. He left it be
hind.
Bold Deeas Recalled
In tin old town of Cimarron, New
Mexico, Allison did many of his bold
deeds. Here he killed a Mexican out-
law named Pancho Griego, who, while
pretending to fan himself with his
hat, was working! to get his si*
hooter out of the scabbard. Mace
Bowman was sheriff here, and want-
ed to take AJllson into custody. Thi-s
was against Allison's principles
Finally they agreed to put their six
shooters on the bar of the saloon
that constituted the main part of
Lambert’s hotel, each man to lura
his back on the other, walk 26 steps,
Wheel, rash back to his gun ami
shoot.
Allison specialized in old duels.
One time, as the story goes, tie at.il
bls adversary agreed to dig a grave
jointly, then to stand up at either
end and shoot it out, the victor to
cover up the other. The result o
this duel was another Christian buri-
al. at which Allison was niuste. < :
ceremonies. But lie was crippled from
a bullet that he had accidentally pu
Into his own foot; sometimes he used
his rifle or a crutch. Only on a horse
was he without handicap, and it
seeing odd that he should have agre
ed with Mace Bowman to make the
foot race.
He won the race, however, and his
pistol was pointed straight when
Bowman stuck out ills chest, hit it
with his fist and said, "Shoot, you
blank of a blank." Still holding his
gun steady. Allison replied. "Mace,
you are too brave a man to kill." Tin-
two shook hands and the law was
satisfied.
Cavalier Career
Considering his cavalier career,
Aljiscyi’s end was pure irony. In
Toyah, Tex'as, on a spree, he heard
that two men named Joe Nash and
Jake Owens were trying to get pos-
session of his water over the New
Mexico line, and had made talk about
him. He got a buggy and team from
the livery stable and started out to
find them. After driving about 20
miles, be came, at dark, to the camp
made ity a freighter for the Hash
knife outfit. He knew that the Hash-
knives were working the range, and
he supposed that Joe Nash and Jake
Owens were probably with them. The
freighter said they were; moreover,
he knew where the chuckwagou was
camped.
Nothing would do Clay Allison then
but for the freighter to get in his
buggy, drive to the Hashknife camp
and warn Nash and Owens to pre-
pare to meet their God. The freight-
er got back about daylight next morn
ing. having driven all night, and de-
livered the message. There was
road to travel. Just a direction, some-
times a trail, across the prairies. The
wagon was going the same way
Hay Allison for a good part of the
distance.
Story Teller’* Charter
After the four mule* had been
hitched to the loaded wagon, Allison
proposed (hut he tie his buggy horse*
to thit they would lead, to the hack
of the wagon; that the freighter lie
down on the load end get some sleep
and that he (Allison) get in the seat
and drive. Perhaps the freighter
was entirely willing; perhaps Clay
Allison still had enough whiskey In
him to make his arguments persua-
sive. Anyhow, the freighter went to
sleep and Allison went to driving.
Before long, one of the front wheels
hit a clump of salt grass, causing
such a jerk and lurch that Allison
was thrown off the wagon and almost
under It. This scared the mules, and
they gave u lunge that pulled one
rear wheel over Allison's head, crash
ing th ■ skull and killing him instant-
ly.
He was one range man exceeding-
ly deft with a six-shooter who was
not a bad man. Other men much less
Interesting hai^ had whole books
written about them. He seems more
of a story teller’s character than a
biographer's. The most delicate points
of the code of the West could he
drawn from his career.
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Collins, Will. The Llano News. (Llano, Tex.), Vol. 54, No. 19, Ed. 1 Thursday, March 26, 1942, newspaper, March 26, 1942; Llano, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth816590/m1/2/?q=%22Places+-+United+States+-+Texas+-+Llano+County%22: accessed July 10, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Llano County Public Library.