John Wesley Hardin--From Hell Part 1.

I have always been a fan of "The Wild West".  It likely comes from having a boyhood in an era when Westerns on television and in the movies was dominant. We had shows (viewed in black and white) like "Bonanza",  "The Rifleman",  "Rawhide" and "Gunsmoke".  As a boy, I got steeped in the lore and legends and later, my interest in the drama of the western gunfighter continued.  Time-Life published a series on "The Old West" and I came into possession of "The Gunfighters".   I guess it's the first Old West history book I collected.  In particular,  I became a "fan" of Billy the Kid.

Was entertained by "Wild Bill Hickock" and read about many, if not all, the notorious gunmen of the era.  Once you 'dig in' and pursue this kind of historical knowledge, it doesn't take long to sort out just how fictional Hollywood versions of what had happened then are.  Clint Eastwood does a very good job of "flipping" the myth in his film "Unforgiven" as he portrays a retired gunfighter who confirms that all the 'big stories' really emerged from having been "drunk all the time" and "lucky in killing".  

Folks still debate whether Billy the Kid was honorable or just a psychopathic killer.  (In my opinion, Billy's place in the American Myth-scape comes from how many times he escaped after having been captured by the law. He became famous in his own time because it seemed like the "Law" just could not hold him.  American's ,  it seems to me, always have something of an attraction for some outlaw who escapes the clutches of John Law.  Even to the present day,  when there is a prison break and some desperate men (or women) go on the run,  it is a big news story and people follow closely. If we are honest,  some small part of us secretly "roots" for the fugitive(s).  

Other figures truly do come across as bizarre psychopaths....serial killers who found themselves in a place and time when they could give full range to their sadistic and brutal natures. The accident prone Clay Allison comes to mind immediately. 

He seems to have gravitated to any and all conflicts that might yield violence regardless of his own personal stake (or lack thereof) in the matter. After wielding a gun so viciously for so long against so many, it's darkly amusing to realize he met his end like a fool. He was so drunk he fell off a wagon and broke his damn neck.  

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I was in a rural courthouse one day, about 20 years ago and heard the good old judge calling out the docket.  To my surprise he called for "John W. Hardin".  I couldn't resist a little bit of snooping and soon learned that, yes, indeed,  this fellow claimed to be the great great grandson of the original Texas legend.  (I admit it makes me wonder about the parents who decide to name their newborn babe after an ancestor known to be a cold blooded killer....Do people surnamed "Manson" name their boy children "Charlie" these days?)  This current specimen actually bore some resemblance to the original as best I could tell. Average height,  similar features in the face,  pale even skin and a mop of dark straight hair. But,  considering the name, the alleged crime was quite mild as I recall...some variety of traffic violation. He told me his parents had moved up to Indiana from Texas before he was born.  So, it tracked and the fellow was nice enough about my curiosity. As this JW was a prisoner in the jail,  we didn't have much time for him to fill me in on any more family lore.  

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I had, by that time,  somewhat singled out the original John Wesley Hardin as figure of interest to me because , of all the gunfighters I was aware of,  only JW had become, like me,  an attorney.  

It was due to this fact, and his well known reputation as a prodigious killer and outlaw, that some years later when Goliath started this blog,  I used the device of using John Wesley's ghost from hell to comment on all things concerning "the legal world" i.e., courts, courtrooms, cases, judges etc.,  It was fun for me and my readers seemed to enjoy it.  Here's an example: JW on the Yalanda Parish case  

Hardin was a racist of the highest order.  The first man he killed was a black former slave named "Maje". and Hardin's family was squarely on the side of the Rebel Racist South after the loss in the American Civil War.  Hardin had wanted to run away and fight with the Rebs at 9 years of age. 

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I'm not sure how all these things percolate in my brain, but recently I chanced to re-read the Autobiography of old JW.  "The Life of John Wesley Hardin As Written by Himself"  

In my time, I have found very few chances to read the actual writings of these famed gunfighters.  I recall being shocked at the rather exquisite penmanship and elevated writing style in the letter Billy the Kid had written from a Santa Fe jail to the governor of New Mexico asking for the governor to live up to what Billy believe the "deal" was.  But here was a whole book written by one of the top legend/myths from the old wild west.   It was a fascinating experience.  This article is, among other things,  an attempt to relay my impressions of the man and his world. 

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