b'The Untold Story of Pat Garrett, Billy the Kid,Lew Wallace and the Notorious Albert B. FallPART 1 By Alan RockmanT hink you know everything about the story of Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid? You had better think again.You might know that Billy was set to receive an amnesty from the former Civil War Hero, ex-Union general and future author of "Ben-Hur" Lew Wallace, who had been appointed territorial governor of New Mexico, but that it had been derailed by those factions resentful of the Kid\'s role in the Lincoln County War. You might also know that two other Old West legends, Charlie Siringo and Henry Newton Brown (that hapless ex-Marshal of Caldwell, Kansas who couldn\'t completely escape the outlaw life and paid dearly in the end) were closely associated with the Kid, Siringo being a brief acquaintance while Brown rode with him for a time. You might also know that Pat Garrett and the Kid had been friends and close drinking buddies until one decided to stay true to the law and that led to a parting of the ways (more about that later).You might not have known that the Kid was not the first leader of the "Regulators." That dubious honor fell on the shoulders of one Dick Brewer, who had been the foreman of the unfortunate John Tunstall\'s ranch, and who later wouldRegulators Lineup: You might not have known that the Kid was not the first leader of the Regulators.be killed by Buckshot Roberts in one of the fiercest gunfights in Old West history.moved to Texas. Little is known of his immediate post- It would be Pete Maxwell, friend to both Pat Garrett and this You might not have known that one member of the Kid\'sadolescent life but it is known that he was hunting buffalodeadly New York City expatriate named William Bonney, gang, George Coe, would later tell stories about his friendshipin the "panhandle" in 1876. He must have just missedwho would play a central role in the destiny of both men.to a very impressed young Texas boy named Billy Ash. hunting with two other future lawmen by the names of Wyatt Earp and Bat Masterson. It may have been fortuitous for Garrett that he arrived in Billy Ash would later, after being shot down by the GermansFort Sumner when he did, for trouble was already brewing. while flying for the RAF (Royal Air Force), becomeAs the buffalo disappeared from the plains, the tall, lankyHad he had arrived earlier; he might have been forced to somewhat famous as the "Cooler King" who helped planGarrett needed to contemplate his future. Accordingly, ontake sides. If that had been the case history might very the mass breakout of RAF fliers immortalized in the movie,a winter\'s day in February 1878, he and two companionswell have turned out quite differently. It appears at first "The Great Escape." (He was fortunate enough not to haverode south into New Mexico, seeking work and a placeGarrett took no interest in the increasing violence between participated, as most of the airmen were recaptured - andto live. Upon reaching Fort Sumner, the two companionsthe (John) Tunstall-(Alexander) McSween faction of over half executed by the Gestapo). But that\'s another story. didn\'t like what they saw and rode on, but the likable"Regulators" of which Bonney, soon-to-be-known as "Billy Garrett ingratiated himself with the prominent rancherthe Kid" was a part of, and the notorious cattle barons James While I will briefly cover some of the trivia mentionedPete Maxwell, a one-time close friend of Kit Carson\'s andDolan and Lawrence Murphy. Garrett at first wanted to above, this will certainly be no regurgitation of the alreadya majordomo in his own right in New Mexico and wentget his new ranch going and get his saloon business off the well-known story of Billy the Kid and Pat Garrett. That hasto work on Maxwell\'s ranch as a cowhand for about sixground - he established a partnership in a mercantile store/been covered numerous times but Pat Garrett\'s own storymonths. (Burns, Walter Noble, The Saga of Billy the Kid,saloon when differences between himself and Pete Maxwell has been largely relegated to the sidelines of the Billy the KidKonecky and Konecky, New York, 1953, pp. 167-171). had escalated to a head that saw Garrett leave the latter\'s story and how he finally put paid to it by giving the Kid aemployment to set out on his own. He would become a great dose of "lead poisoning." pal and an almost regular drinking buddy with the toothy kid from New York and his outlaw gang.How about this as a start to his experiences in his post-Billy the Kid life? How one president admired Pat enough toOne young woman who knew both men very well, she offer him a valued position in his administration, only towas perhaps erroneously said to be the Kid\'s sweetheart recoil and remove him from that appointment when Pat(she did admit she was quite fond of Billy but insisted she showed up with dubious company at a reception for thatwas never his sweetheart, let alone being intimate with president. Or how another future presidential appointee, ahim) was Pete Maxwell\'s teenage daughter, Paulita. She, if fraudulent man who besides being a corrupt individual mayanyone outside of perhaps her father, knew the nature of have been a murderer, was the cause, indirect or not, of Patthe then-friendly relationship between the Kid and the tall, Garrett\'s ultimate demise - murdered as he was relievinglanky Garrett. "Pat Garrett was as close a friend as Billy the himself by the side of a New Mexican road. This politicalKid had in Fort Sumner and was on friendly terms with chameleon and his corrupt behavior would be the cause ofevery member of the Kid\'s gang. When we saw Pat and Billy this other president\'s downfall. Pat Garrett may have been atogether we used to call them \'the long and the short of it.\' better-than-competent lawman with an oft-times kind heartPat towered over Billy and would have made two of him. He towards former adversaries but he was also a very complex,ate and drank and played cards with the Kid, went to dances at times disturbed, disappointed, and desperate man, pronewith him, and gallivanted around with the same Mexican to making mistakes in both his business dealings and hisgirls. I have seen them both on their knees around a horse personal life that would ultimately prove his undoing. blanket stretched on the ground in the main street gambling their heads off against a monte game. If Pat went broke he Pat Floyd Garrett was a son of the South, born in Chambersborrowed from Billy, and if Billy went broke, he borrowed County, Alabama on June 5, 1850, to reasonably well-to-dofrom Pat. Sometimes they had friendly shooting contests. plantation owner parents. The Civil War, however, ruinedHenry Newton Brown Gang Both were wonderful shots. It was a toss-up between them the family. After his parents died, the 18-year-old Garrettwhen it came to the rifle, but Billy was the better shot with a 44 September 2020'