THE PURSUIT OF ERNEST CASHELL

Softcover. While the real world of the turn of the 20th century had changed, the legend of the American wild west persisted - fuelled by newspapers and dime novels. The outlaw who was depicted as a man of courage, a blend of ruthless killer and innocent boy, still claimed the admiration of thousands. When Cashell arrives in Canada, the image of these outlaws sets the stage for his own actions. He is able to charm and cheat by turns, and finally he murders, for no more than a horse, saddle, shotgun, clothes, and a $50 bill. The pursuit of Cashel, who escapes twice from the hands of the Calgary Police and from the custody of the NWMP, is a story too of incompetence and deception, as well as careful and logical detective work. There is the rivalry between the city police and the NWMP, each concerned to enhance its own reputation, neither seen by the elusive outlaw as a fitting adversary. And there are the ironic sympathies for the boy-murderer turned popular hero who died not in a gunfight but on the gallows. Based on police records and newspaper accounts of the time, what emerges is a suspenseful, fast-paced, and intriguing account of a young man out of step with the times. Illus. + Epilogue and Bibliog. 194pp. trade size softcover. From the library of true crime writer, Wilfred Gregg, with his personal b/plate. Nr. F. with sl. sunned sp. but no creasing to covers.