The Code of the West

From the time when the first American pioneers entered the grasslands of Texas until the day when the frontier itself was no more, the West was a magnet for lawlessness.  Respectable folks did their best to impose law and order and in some places gunfights were unknown, there were no lynchings, and barroom brawls were rare.  However, violence was romanticized to a remarkable degree and things like a denial of social restraints helped make the West a haven for the bad guy.

What made the law of the gun so important in the American frontier?  One reason was the need to fight the Indians - to oust them from the frontier settlements.  Another reason was the Civil War from which hatred and bitterness grew in places like the Kansas-Nebraska border.  Gangs of looters and murderers in those border wars became a training ground for many of the West's most notorious outlaws.

Finally, the geography of the region was probably the most important reason that the gun was so important on the American frontier.  The nature of the population in the West's early days was young, male and adventurous.  The nearest neighbor was miles away, and the courts of law were even further.  Men thought of themselves as rulers of their lands - possession was 9/10 of the law to the settlers.  The nearest town, with the sheriff, judge and court of law was so far away, who was left to keep law and order?

So the West was so sparsely populated that there was no one close enough to establish law as any effective force.  No society can exist without some kind of rules, however, so there emerged a "Code of the West."  The Code was romantic, mannerly and idealistic, which made it an inadequate substitute for the law:
1.  A man's word was his bond.
2.  Rustling and stealing was evil
3.  Shooting an unarmed man was contemptible
4.  Strangers were to be treated with hospitality
5.  Handshake were as good as lawyer agreements

Next time...The Code at work
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Today in Pioneer History:  "On August 16, 1896, while salmon fishing near the Klondike River in Canada's Yukon Territory on this day in 1896, George Carmack reportedly spots nuggets of gold in a creek bed. His lucky discovery sparks the last great gold rush in the American West. 

Those Wicked Cattle Towns

Names like Wichita, Abilene, Hays City, Dodge City, Ogallala, Caldwell - born shabby and scruffy with dusty streets, sleazy saloons, gambling dens, bordellos and false front stores - those were the early cattle towns.  Popular dime novels of the day and newspaper exaggerations pictured the violence and bloody brawls that took place on a daily basis.  Supposedly.

The coming of the cattle seemed to settle these Wild West towns down some.  Local governments were formed.  Cattle sales meant hard money, not only for gamblers, bartenders,and ladies of the evening, but also for grocers, bootmakers, financiers, and merchants.

Andy Adams, veteran of the cattle days, wrote from the cowboy point of view in Log of a Cowboy: "Dodge is one town where the average bad man finds himself badly handicapped.  The buffalo hunters and range men have protested against the iron rule of Dodge's peace officers, and nearly every protest has cost human life.  Don't ever get the impression that you can ride your horses into a saloon, or shoot out the lights.  Most cowboys think it's an infringement on their rights to give up shooting in town, and if it is, it stands, for your six-shooters are no match for Winchesters or buckshot, and Dodge's officers are as tough a set of men as ever faced danger."  His picture was accurate.

To keep order and attract businesses, cattle town officials had to walk a fine line.  Quickly passed laws established lucrative systems of fines for gambling and prostitution - even carrying a concealed weapon. The income allowed the town to offer tax advantages to businesses and paid for the police.

Contrary to legend, a Kansas town marshal's job was not a glorious job, nor was it lonely.  Businessmen and politicians did not risk their safety or their city's reputation by hiring gun-happy cowboys.  Arrests were usually bloodless, and fines paid.  "Wild Bill" Hickok of Abilene and Wyatt Earp of Wichita did their job along with five other policemen on duty during the cattle season.  It wasn't a job for a lone gunslinger marshal, but it wasn't the job depicted in movies or books either.

Next time...When Mayhem Happens
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Today in Pioneer History: "On July 12, 1861, Wild Bill Hickok fought his first gunfight, outside the police station in Nebraska, establishing his reputation as a gunslinger.