THE BANDITTI OF THE PLAINS, OR CATTLEMEN'S INVASION OF WYOMING IN 1892. [THE CROWNING INFAMY OF THE AGES]

Cheyenne, Wyoming: Printed By the Author, 1894. Corners worn, spine extremities a bit frayed. New endpapers, front and back. Final page repaired by master binder, using Japanese rice papers. Several free edges also repaired using archival materials. General toning of the paper. Illustrations in black and white through the text. A clean copy throughout. 139pp. Collated complete. This rare piece of Western Americana has an intriguing history! "Although purported to have been copyrighted in 1894, this book was never published, but printed. Immediately after it made its appearance in Cheyenne, Wyoming, the entire issue was impounded but a local court in the (truncated) course of a libel suit and ordered to be destroyed. While the edition was in custody of the court, a number of copies were stolen and smuggled to Denver, which city lay outside the court's jurisdiction. It is claimed that the books were unbound at the time and later bound in Denver. The scarcity of the book is due not only to the impounding, but also to the fact that for many years members of the Wyoming Stock Growers' Association and their sympathizers would destroy any copy discovered. The author's print shop was burned and he was ordered to leave the state." (From Adams, The Rampaging Herd #1474). Rewritten and republished in 1923 as "Powder River Invasion. War of the Rustlers in 1992". Grabhorn Press also published an edition in 1935. This first edition is exceedingly difficult to find now. We have seen one copy for sale in recent years. We have found a total of eleven copies sold at auction in the past 35 years. Cited in most of the Western Americana bibliographies including: Howes M522, Graff 2750, Herd 1474, 6-Guns 1478, Streeter 4:2385, Decker (Soliday) 277, 6-Score 79!! Please see photos.. First Edition. Black Pebbled Cloth. Moderate General Cover Wear/No Dust Jacket. Medium Crown Octavo. (Inventory #: 015847)