To Hell on A Fast Horse
By Mark Lee Gardner
($26.99, William Morrow)



"...There was a whole lot of hell going on in Lincoln County," and you can read about it in this entertaining book.

The subtitle, "Billy the Kid, Pat Garrett, and the Epic Chase to Justice in the Old West," prepares the reader for what's between the covers, the history of that episode in time in the United States. Mark Lee Gardner has done good research on his subject and posts it in a most excellent and readable format. While this is not as smoothly written as a novel, each sentence does draw us into the next and compels us to read on for more.

Of further interest are the old-fashioned tintypes sprinkled throughout, illustrating the people populating the story. Billy the Kid's tintype is surprisingly in contrast to how most people said he normally appeared. He was said to be "a neat and tasteful dresser," but his photograph belies that.

Pat Garrett was hired to be the Sheriff of Lincoln County, specifically to track down Billy the Kid. Garrett was tenacious in his pursuit, but he also had duties of collecting taxes. Once he'd rounded up The Kid, he had to leave him in charge of his deputies, from whom The Kid managed to escape in a short time.

William Bonney (as he named himself) was endeared to the native population of New Mexico and spoke Spanish fluently. When his friends recommended he leave for Mexico, The Kid said, "I am not going to leave the country, and I am not going to reform, neither am I going to be taken alive again." He died at the age of 21.

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