This is the second book by this master storyteller that features the adventures of U. S. Marshal Oscar Schiller. The story is set during the early 1900's in the Oklahoma Indian Territory and Fort Smith, Arkansas. It is replete with the author's vivid characters and graphic situations. Jones also sprinkles much colorful history throughout the story and this adds to the reader's enjoyment. His imperfect principal character and the period chosen for the plot have a close similarity to the PINKERTON EYE. The only negative factor in the book is that it's editor repeatedly substituted "Marshall" for the correct form, "Marshal." The author, Douglas Jones, died during production of the book and probably was not involved in reading proofs. I enjoyed every page of this book and enthusiastically recommend it to others.

What a masterpiece! This book is truly magnificent. Someday critics will review this historical fiction and recognize it for the great literature that it is. The audio version with Ed Sala's narration is perfection itself. Please read or listen to the audio version of this book. Great writers like this must be appreciated.

The author of this book, Richard Ingrebretsen, does a fantastic job writing a book about both science and religion and how both and be correct! Usually science and religion are in a game of tug-of-war, with truth being the rope. The author's writing is so clear, it is easy for a novice of astronomy to understand the theory of relativity, the big bang, and even black holes. The book then goes into a religious aspect of these phenomena. And with the amount of degrees and education the author has, according to the introduction, I found his grasp on science credible. The book is quite short, so you and zip right through it. Even if you don't believe some of his conclusions, it is great reading.

This is a story of the pursuit of a murderer in what is now eastern Oklahome just before it became a state. The pursuit is carried out jointly by a U.S. Marshall and the law officers of the Indian nation involved, probably the Cherokee.
In addition to a good story by an excellent writer of historical fiction, Douglas C. Jones, ("The Court-Martial of George Armstrong Custer"; "Elkhorn Tavern"), it describes the relatively unfamiliar operation of an Indian nation in the "Indian Territory" a few years before Oklahama statehood in 1907.

Written by noted Western author Glenn Shirley in 1957, this book is not up to the standards of his more recent works. Shirley depends extensively on other books, and unfortunately, his book contains a large number of errors. Sure is fun to read, but if you are interested in Judge Parker and the Fort Smith court, read 'Hell on the Border' instead. Leave this one to hollywood....

This book cobbles together accounts from policy makers and the popular press seeking to show that Indian country was a lawless place, with Judge Parker and the federal marshalls as the slim line between law and anarchy. The account utterly ignores the reality in Indian country and works mightily to justify the actions of a man for whom, apparently, the accusation was enough to make you guilty. The book does, however, compile some interesting sources not found elsewhere, including a description of each of the 79 men Judge Parker hanged, the battle between Parker and the Supreme Court which continually reversed Parker, and the statements of some of the Indian defendants on their views of federal justice. The evident desire of the author to celebrate Parker and the court rather than objectively examine his record, however, fatally taints the entire work.

I bought this book at he Ft Smith Court House museum because my Great Grandfather rode for Parker. I was expecting information about the bad deeds of many of the desperados but I was pleasantly surprised to find additionally a comprehensive treatment of the legal aspects of Parker's tenure. As Glenn Shirley effectively documents, the Judge Parker known and respected by the citizens of Arkansas and the Indian Nations is a far cry from the one created by the Eastern press and the monied interests (including Congressmen) of the East. This book will provide the reader with a very balanced approach to what Parker saw as the rights of the victim and community with the rights of the accused. And as Shirley clearly points out Parker may have gone too far sometimes but early on extreme measures were needed.

The body of the book covers many of the best known cases to be covered in Parker's court but also provides appendices on each and every person that Parker sentenced to hang (including those that were commuted, pardoned, reversed and acquitted). Byron Dobbs, a second generation lawyer that practiced law in Ft Smith for 40 years, provided a lawyer's appraisal of the Parker Court a number of years ago for the "Ft Smith Historical Journal". He wrote:

Parker was given the near impossible task of providing justice between the white men and the Indian. The disgrace arose out of the failure of the U.S. and Congress to appropriately prevent intrusion upon the Indian land and in permitting such carnage as to result in the great number of murder trails and then Parker was condemned in the halls of Congress for imposing the only penalty authorized by Congress. Parker's accomplishments stand as a monument to law and order achieved under the most trying circumstances.

Shirley's book simply and effectively documents these accomplishments.