Trails Meet

by B.M. Bower

Alone in his camp on a bad night, Jess Robison hears shots and goes out to find a dying man. Shortly afterwards he has callers. Next day a boulder crashes down a slope and nearly finishes him. Somebody is out to get him—but who?—and why? Jess though born and bred in the cattle country and heir to his grandfather’s ranch, is most interested in drawing and painting—to his father’s intense disgust. In spite of himself, however, he becomes involved in a murder followed by an accusation against himself and by the strange disappearance of Sara Barrett. With the help of Link Whelan, deputy sheriff, and of the red-haired girl, Jess plumbs the mystery while reputations crash all around.

Like all of the best Bower Westerns, “Trails Meet” is a lively and ingeniously tangled tale, peopled with delightful men and women.

Genres: Westerns

154 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1933

About the author

Bertha Muzzy Sinclair or Sinclair-Cowan, née Muzzy, best known by her pseudonym B. M. Bower, was an American author who wrote novels, fictional short stories, and screenplays about the American Old West. Her works, featuring cowboys and cows of the Flying R Ranch in Montana, reflected "an interest in ranch life, the use of working cowboys as main characters (even in romantic plots), the occasional appearance of eastern types for the sake of contrast, a sense of western geography as simultaneously harsh and grand, and a good deal of factual attention to such matters as cattle branding and bronc busting.

Born Bertha Muzzy in Otter Tail County, MN and living her early years in Big Sandy, Montana, she was married three times: to Clayton Bower, in 1890; to Bertrand William Sinclair,(also a Western author) in 1912; and to Robert Elsworth Cowan, in 1921. Bower's 1912 novel Lonesome Land was praised in The Bookman magazine for its characterization. She wrote 57 Western novels, several of which were turned into films.

Reviews

[Larry Piper · Rating 3 out of 5]

After giving up on an unreadable book, I opted for another cowboy book, another one of B. M. Bower's "westerns". Such a relief to read something that isn't total crap.

We have Jess Robison in a cabin in the woods. He thinks he hears shots, so he goes to investigate. He finds Albert Parsons, still alive, but barely. He takes Parsons to his cabin and tries to patch up his wounds. Parsons babbles a bit. It's not clear to Jess whether he is delusional, or if he's actually trying to communicate that he'd been double crossed by someone or other. Parsons tries to pass along a letter indicating the perfidy of which he babbles, but the letter drops to the floor and is lost, unseen, under the cot on which Parsons lies.

Eventually Parsons dies, and shortly thereafter, two ranch hands from the Diamond Slash, Tom Richie and Bob Francis show up. They try to convince Jess that Parsons had committed suicide. Jess doesn't want to be involved, so he says he'll be mum.

But the next day, Jess has an accident. A giant rock falls from the hill above the cabin and pins him to the ground. The rock is perched precariously on some saplings, and threatens to give way and crush Jess completely. But Jess' sister, Lizbeth comes by, trims a few saplings, and the rock falls harmlessly to the side. Lizbeth gets Jess safely into his cabin and tends to his wounds.

Well, who should show up but Peggy Wolsey, the daughter of Sen. Thomas Wolsey, the owner of the Diamond Slash, and her friend Sara Barrett, also known as Sarky. It seems that Sarky has adorable copper hair and completely bewitches Jess with just one look.

Eventually, the local sheriff, Job Witherspoon, and his deputy, Link Whelan, figure out that Parsons couldn't possibly have committed suicide, he'd clearly been shot from behind. So, they have to tread lightly around the Senator, and other folks to figure out what happened. They also figure out that the giant rock that fell on Jess didn't just give way naturally, rather it was purposely dislodged, an obvious attempt to quiet Jess.

Well, lots happens and it all comes out ok in the end. Isn't that what's always supposed to happen in "Westerns" from a century ago? A lovely book, probably worth 4*- (which is a cut above 3*+) were GoodReads willing to allow such fine distinctions.