Now Available From Big Lost River Press

Steamboats, Shoshoni, Scoundrels and Such;Seldom-told Tales of the Western Frontier

Steamboats, Shoshoni, Scoundrels and Such is collection of stories chronicling some of the little-known events that took place during the opening of our Western Frontier. Many of the incidents depicted took place in the backwash of America's great Civil War, which largely overshadowed events in the West. This perhaps, is one reason they are so little known. Despite their relative obscurity, these engrossing tales have long deserved a fuller recital.

Most of these yarns are set in early California, Nevada and Idaho. One is about Brother Jonathan, a Gold Rush steamship with a hex. Another is the story of the little steamboat Shoshone that sailed on the upper Snake River, and once went hurtling, pell-mell down through Hell's Canyon of that river. Still another recounts the antic history of Caleb Lyon, the foppish territorial governor who started a "diamond" rush in the Owyhee region of Idaho, who twice fled the territory out of fear for his life, and who stole treaty money meant for the Nez Perce Indians. And here, for the first time, in full, is chronicled the short, melancholy life of Colonel Charles McDermit, who played such a large part in early Nevada military history. The protagonists of another tale set in Nevada--the Haws brothers--are a pair of hoodlums who rediscovered their religion after spending their younger days in league with Indians, robbing emigrants. Nearly all of the stories deal with the deadly clash between white and red men that took place in the mid-nineteenth century, and demonstrate the damage done to both races, by corrupt, carpetbagging politicians. Two of the stories deal exclusively with White-Indian conflict--one tells of a massacre of Shoshoni in Idaho, and another recounts the "last battle" between the two races that took place years later, perhaps as a consequence of that massacre.

All of these stories will have a strong appeal to those who enjoy Western history.

Mr. Varley's meticulously researched book provides a wealth of new information, and it aptly chronicles the harsh and tenuous nature of life that was part and parcel of opening a new country. His writing also shows the restless energy that existed in America in earlier times--the hustle, and that overwhelming desire to see what lay farther west, or at the newest mining camp. The author has relied heavily on contemporary newspapers, with their rough, cynically-humorous editors, who didn't hesitate to state their opinions or prejudices. By a thorough examination of these early newspapers, and the discovery of various other untapped primary sources, new interpretations have been made possible.

Soft cover. Fine 6 by 9 format, 368 richly-illustrated pages, including notes, bibliography and index. Edition limited to 2,000 copies. ISBN 0-9647747-2-0. Library of Congress Control No. 2001118978.

	About The Author James F. Varley is a native of southern Idaho, and a former submarine commander in the United States Navy. He has written three previous histories---Brigham and the Brigadier (1989), The California Adventures of Lola Montez (Arthur H. Clark Co., 1995), and The Legend of Joaquin Murrieta (Big Lost River Press, 1995)