Lawman

LAWMAN is the story of a US Marshal, BILL PEARSON fighting to tame the West in Arizona at the end of the nineteen century. He came out of the Civil War determined to make it safe for the people living there. He had come to the frontier to find a future for himself. But, after losing a deputy while spending some time in Wyoming, he begins to question his goals. He relocates to Dudleyville, Arizona and takes the job as marshal there. He is successful in bringing a small measure of law and order to the southeast part of the territory. His time is spent chasing outlaws and settling disputes among ranchers, while trouble shooting problems with the Southern Pacific Railroad that is working its way from the west to the east across the Southwest. He eschews any social involvements and suffers through a bout with pneumonia and gunshot wounds, realizing his life might be a short one if he continues as a lawman. His long time best friend, Lee Johnson, is killed by an outlaw that had been a marshal Pearson and Johnson served under. The marshal’s resolve cracks and he leaves his other deputies and his past behind. He moves to San Diego to raise horses, seeking a more pastoral life. Among the battles the marshal faces before leaving Dudleyville is a chase of escaped territorial prisoner, Pony Martin. Johnson and Pearson traipse the Tortilla and Galiuro Mountains and a stretch of desert, finally corralling the man and killing him. Catching Martin by surprise, Pearson shows a less than pure nature when he shoots the outlaw in the back. Unfortunately, another deputy is lost when a wild shot from Martin finds the center of Fields’ chest. Another example of darkness in the marshal’s soul is an episode wit h the man who shot Johnson. Pearson takes advantage of the drunken Pony Lincoln (a Nickname ‘Pony’ was common) and after killing him in a shootout, he again shoots the man as he lay on the ground, already dead. The two lawmen had given up the search for Lincoln and paused for a meal in La Mesa, only to find the outlaw in the same cafe. Johnson’s demise came about when he tried to draw and shoot the badman after he had wounded his friend. Lincoln had not reholstered his gun and Johnson’s draw was too slow to overcome the outlaw’s advantage. Pearson is unable to pursue Lincoln, due to his wound, but eventually returns to Dudleyville and gathers his remaining old friend, Rod Jones, and some new deputies to hit the trail to find the outlaw. The culmination of that chase results in the death of Pony Lincoln and the shooting of the dead man on the ground. Often multiple situations required the lawmen to spread themselves thin. Rancher Jim Wheland has a dispute with his partner over selling part of their ranch. A sharpster, named Hank Smith, tries to corner the land market of the spreads the Southern Pacific wants to use to cross the territory. Violent raids to persuade ranchers to sell to him, unknowing the ultimate goal, are attempted to give Smith the profit from increased prices offered to the S.P. The lawmen organize the ranchers to stifle the effort. A connection between the raids and Smith is proven and he is carted off to the territorial prison in Yuma. On the final unsuccessful raid, the newest deputy, Joe Harris, (Joe is also a common name in the old west) is killed by the raiders hired by Smith. It all becomes too much for the marshal, prompting his move to the coast. Missing his deputies, Johnson, Fields, and Harris, as well as the one lost in Wyoming he pulls up roots and leaves law enforcement behind. The stage line Pearson embarks on wanders all over the place on it’s way to San Diego. It is attempting to cope with the inroads the railroad is making into their business. The stage picks up passengers and freight wherever the telegraph tells them there is an opportunity. The coach meanders south to Tucson, then northwest to Casa Grande, finally turning west to Gila Bend. Pearson becomes enraged when the next variation of the journey takes him north to Buckeye, nearly to Phoenix, where he could have been the day before if the stage he was on hadn’t veered all over the territory. The former marshal’s disposition was reaching bottom when the route turned west toward Blythe, California. Wishing he had made a connection with the S.P. for the trip, he encounters a belligerent rancher in Blythe. The bulky man is upset that lawmen haven’t freed him of rustlers and blames the man he recognizes as the famous US Marshal, even though he has nothing to do with the situation. That short scuffle reminds Pearson of what he so glad to be leaving behind. Knowing that he is at last in California, he convinces himself that his trip is nearly over, but he remains glum. His spirits perk up only when he finally reaches San Diego. Pearson is awed by the tallest buildings he has seen since those of St. Louis in his youth. The paving of some streets also draws his attention. The progress of civilization seems to have passed him by. Used to no more than the population of Tucson, the former marshal is nearly overwhelmed by the masses of people on the streets of San Diego, making setting up a horse ranch more of a challenge to his faculties. That is just the sort of goal Pearson needs to make him feel worthwhile. But, transitioning from his former violent life to the peaceful nagging problems of running a ranch us full of misadventures. His first excursion into town for supplies causes him embarrassment when he realizes he has no wagon or even a pack horse to haul his purchases to his spread. He needs tools and he is not sure even which ones. He manages to chop a sparing amount of trees along his water course and form a basis for a home. Caulking joints, smoothing logs, and outfitting the inside needs of living, controls his life long before he even buys his first horse, other than his personal mount. With help from his neighbor Jim Seine and handy hardware store operator, Clive, overcoming the initial obstacles soon leaves the former marshal bored. The neighboring cattle rancher, Seine, who, as a land agent, sold him his land, becomes his best friend. Abandoning his land office to become a full time rancher, he takes it upon himself to get Pearson to focus on a complete life. There is interest for a short term in horse racing. But, the interest fades rapidly. There are underhanded efforts put forth by the man who sponsors the races and always wins, which convince Pearson harm could come to his horse or his rider. Eventually pal Jim Seine gets the former marshal to attend poker games with some other men. The new horse rancher also finds a social outlet with the waitress in the cafe he frequents in town. She is the first woman he has taken an interest in since he left one behind in Wyoming. He has had encounters with other females, but none had meant as much to him. The turn of the century and California’s fiftieth statehood celebration poise to bring joy to the new rancher, but catastrophe strikes. Pearson’s stallions are impotent, and unexpected losses of foals and a mare during birthing, threaten the ranch’s existence. Along with these challenges, Seine tries to enlist his friend in the attempt to wipe out the rustling going on to the north of their ranches, causing ill will with Pearson. Admitting only to himself that he is tempted to renew his former lawman like actions, he tells Seine that the rustlers only want cattle. His horse ranch isn’t threatened. That causes bad feelings between the men.