James Bowie died before the knife that bears his name was supplanted by the six-shooter. It is generally said that Captain Jack Hays, of the Texas Rangers, at the battle of the Pedernales with Comanche Indians, about 1842, first fully demonstrated the superiority of the Colt’s revolver over all other weapons in close combat. It was about this time that Robert M. Williamson, a lawyer and one of the most singular characters among the highly individualized men of Austin’s colonies, made a gesture that signified the waning dominance of the Bowie knife. The President of the Republic of Texas commissioned Judge Williamson to go to a certain county and there hold a term of court. No court had been held in the county for years; the citizens were principally engaged in feuds and wanted no legal meddling. Just before court was to be convened, a mass meeting of the feudists adopted a resolution declaring that no court should be held. When Williamson took his seat on the bench, a lawyer who had been deputized to set forth the resolution arose and read it aloud. The courtroom was crowded with armed men. After the lawyer had concluded and taken his seat, the judge asked him if he could cite any statute to warrant the adjournment of court for any such reasons as he had set forth. Coolly enough, the lawyer again rose, pulled out his long Bowie knife, laid it on the table, and said: “This is the statute that governs in such cases.” At this the fiery Williamson leaped from his chair, drew one of the new Colt’s revolvers, pointed it at the lawyer, and roared: “And this is the constitution that overrides the statute. Open court, Mr. Sheriff, and call the witnesses in the first case.” Whether they be literally true or largely the product of imagination--and many of them must be fabrications--the tales that have come down regarding the origin of the Bowie knife and of its use by Bowie and other frontiersmen reflect, in a phrase from Henry Adams, “what society liked to see enacted on its theater of life.” Indeed, they reflect not only what society “liked to see enacted” but what was enacted. As truly as documented history they reveal a time and a people. Acknowledgments Most of the third story in “Christmas and Remembrance”--about Tim Cude and the oxen--first appeared in _The Longhorns_, published by Little, Brown and Company, Boston, 1941. The publishers have kindly granted permission to use the story in this volume. “James Bowie and the Bowie Knife” first appeared in the _Southwest Review_, Vol. XVI, April, 1931. TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_. Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed. The cover image for this eBook was created by the transcriber using the original cover and is entered into the public domain.