Introduction
“Guns of the Mountains”. This story along with “The Ghost with the Silk Hat” and “A Gent from Bear Creek” was received by Howard’s agent, Kline, on November 8, 1933. It was published in Action Stories May-June, 1934. The story sold for $50, earning Howard $42.50.
“Guns of the Mountains” is a rollicking tale that perfectly encapsulates the blend of humor, adventure, and the larger-than-life persona of Breckinridge Elkins, a character who embodies the spirit of the American frontier with his unmatched strength, naive honesty, and an unyielding sense of family duty. This chapter in Elkins’ adventures begins with a seemingly mundane quest—to recover his Uncle Garfield’s stolen watch—but quickly spirals into a series of misadventures that showcase the chaotic and often absurd nature of life in the Wild West as imagined by Robert E. Howard.
This short story was altered slightly to become Chapter 4 of the novel, A Gent From Bear Creek.
Through “Guns of the Mountains,” Howard delivers a tale that is at once a parody of and a tribute to the Western genre, highlighting the absurdities of frontier justice, the complexity of human nature, and the enduring appeal of a character who, despite his flaws, remains endearingly heroic and unstoppable.
The story
The story opens with Elkins embroiled in familial and romantic entanglements, specifically his rivalry with Jim Braxton over the affections of Ellen Reynolds. The theft of Uncle Garfield’s gold watch by bandits, however, pulls Elkins away from his love interest and into a wild goose chase that leads him into the heart of outlaw country. Along the way, Elkins’ good intentions and heroic efforts are continually thwarted by a combination of bad luck, misunderstandings, and his own gullibility, leading to a series of confrontations with both outlaws and lawmen alike.
Elkins’ encounters with various characters, including the real Sheriff Dick Hopkins and the outlaw Joel Cairn, are marked by classic Howard humor, with Elkins often misunderstanding the situation or being tricked by others. His physical prowess is unmatched, as seen in his single-handed defeat of Tarantula Bixby’s gang and his unintentional capture of Joel Cairn, but it’s his simple, straightforward thinking that often lands him in trouble.
The climax of the story is a comedic masterpiece, with Elkins unwittingly playing both sides—outlaws and lawmen—against each other, resulting in his near-fatal injuries and the destruction of the very watch he set out to recover. Yet, even in defeat, Elkins remains a hero in the eyes of the law for his accidental but effective takedown of the outlaws.
The tale ends on a bittersweet note, with Elkins learning not only of the return of the watch but also of Braxton’s impending marriage to Ellen Reynolds, leading to a humorous outburst of familial frustration rather than romantic jealousy. This twist adds a layer of irony to Elkins’ already comical misadventures.
Characters
- Breckinridge Elkins: The protagonist, a man of immense physical strength and a heart of gold, whose adventures are as much a product of his own innocence as they are of his environment.
- Uncle Garfield Elkins: The catalyst for the story’s events, whose lost watch sets Breckinridge on his journey.
- Sheriff Dick Hopkins: A lawman who becomes an unwitting ally to Elkins in the pursuit of outlaws.
- Joel Cairn: An outlaw mistaken for a rival but ultimately captured by Elkins.
- Tarantula Bixby: The leader of the outlaw gang that stole Uncle Garfield’s watch.
- Jim Braxton and Ellen Reynolds: The romantic subplot, with Braxton as Elkins’ rival and Ellen as the object of his affections.
Published in:
- ACTION STORIES VOLUME 12 NUMBER 8, Fiction House, Inc., May-June 1934
- THE SUMMIT COUNTY JOURNAL, October 4, 11, 18, 25; November 1, 8, 15, 22, 29; December 6, 13, 1968 (11-part serial, similar to book version)
- THE NEW HOWARD READER #3, Marek, November 1998 (original magazine version)
- THE COMPLETE ACTION STORIES, Hermanthis, November 2001
- THE COMPLETE ACTION STORIES, Wildside Press, November 2003
- THE COMPLETE ACTION STORIES, Wildside Press, January 2005
- RIOT AT BUCKSNORT AND OTHER WESTERN TALES, Bison Books, April 2005 (magazine version)
- THE BEAR CREAK OMNIBUS, Dennis McHaney, 2009
- A GENT FROM BEAR CREEK AND OTHER WESTERNS, Halcyon Press, Ltd., January 2010
- THE ROBERT E. HOWARD OMNIBUS: 99 COLLECTED STORIES, Halcyon Press, Ltd., May 2010
- COLLECTED WESTERN STORIES OF ROBERT E. HOWARD, Halcyon Press, Ltd., October 2010
- THE COWBOY MEGAPACK: 25 WESTERN STORIES BY MASTERS, Wildside Press, February 2012
- THE BRECKENRIDGE ELKINS STORIES, Jame-Books, August 2012
- THE MISADVENTURES OF BRECKINRIDGE ELKINS, Nuelow Games, August 2012
- ROBERT E. HOWARD’S COLLECTED WORKS, Jame-Books, February 2013
- A GENT FROM BEAR CREEK, Fiction House Press, February 2015
- THE ADVENTURES OF BRECKINRIDGE ELKINS VOLUME 1, REH Foundation Press, August 2016
- GUNS OF THE MOUNTAINS, Raging Bull Publications, April 2017
- GUNS OF THE MOUNTAINS, Audible Audio, June 2017
- GUNS OF THE MOUNTAINS, Raging Bull Publications, June 2017