"Charlie Siringo's Riata and Spurs is...truly another cowboy epic...like leafing through a Who's Who of the old cattle days in the West." -Piute County News, July 8, 1927
"Buffalo hunters, Indians fighters, cowmen, bronco-busters, the mess-wagon, the long trail, the hoe-men...horse and cattle thieves---these are portrayed energetically by Charles A. Siringo in Riata and Spurs."-Oakland Tribune, June 12, 1927
"One of the southwest's most famous cowboys...Siringo knew Billy the Kid as he knew most of the notorious outlaws of the early days...Riata and Spurs is Siringo's own story of his life...fascinating." -Arizona Republic, August 28, 1927
"Riata and Spurs may well become the classic of the cattle period of the West...he knew personally many of the most famous outlaws as well as most of the cattle barons of the period." -Sacramento Bee, May 7, 1927
How did Texas cowboy Charlie Siringo survive decades living among the worst outlaws of the Old West cattle country, such as Billy the Kid, Bill Moore, John Wesley Hardin, Ben Thompson, Clay Allison, Sam Bass, and Tom Horn?
In 1927, Charles A. Siringo published an in-depth narrative of his life among the outlaws and lawmen of the Old West cattle country, as well as first-hand accounts provided by other noteworthy figures of the times. It is this book of 270 pages, titled "Riata and Spurs," that has been republished here for the convenience of the interested reader.
In fact, a reading of Riata and Spurs is like leafing through a Who's Who of the old cattle days in the West. There you will see the names of Old Man Goodnight, John Chisum, Beals of the great LX ranch, Outlaw Bill Moore, the manager of that ranch, Billy the Kid, Jim East, Pat Garrett and a dozen others who were connected with the famous Lincoln county cattle war and the saga of that youthful outlaw. If you would know the true story of how Billy the Kid came to his death before the six-shooter of Pat Garrett read Charlie Siringo's Riata and Spurs.
In introducing Siringo's book, his friend writes:
"Charlie Siringo's story of his life is one of the best, if not the very best, of all the books about the Old West, when cowpunchers actually punched cows, that ever passed under my eye....No one book can contain the whole story of Siringo's most adventurous life, but what is contained between these covers is genuine. In these days, when so much is written about the West by authors who never saw a cow-pony outside of a circus, it is worth something to be able to lay your hand on a book written by a man who is the real thing, and who tells the truth."
About the author:
Charles Siringo (1855 - 1928), was a Cowboy, New Mexico Ranger, Justice of the Peace, detective of the Pinkerton Agency stationed in the West out of Denver. His first book A Texas Cowboy was published in 1885, establishing his reputation as a writer selling over a million copies. Over 40 years later he updated "A Texas Cowboy" by publishing his 1927 book "Riata and Spurs."
