The Riot at Cougar Paw

Introduction

The Riot at Cougar Paw. Featuring Breckinridge Elkins. It was published in Action Stories in October 1935. It’s now known how much Howard got paid for this story.

This short story continues the comedic and action-packed adventures of Breckinridge Elkins, the towering and trouble-prone mountain man from Bear Creek. Like many of the tales in this series, the story mixes slapstick brawling, rustic dialect, and exaggerated frontier humor in a deliberately over-the-top narrative set in the American West of a bygone era.

Summary:

While forging horseshoes for his ornery stallion Cap’n Kidd, Breckinridge Elkins is approached by his mischievous brother John, who pretends to be injured after Breck hits his foot with a hammer. John tricks Breck into traveling to Cougar Paw to collect a supposed debt from a man named Bill Santry. Upon arriving, Breck unknowingly provokes a town-wide brawl when Santry fulfills his promise—not of payment, but of a brutal beating due to a grudge against John.

After laying waste to half the town, Breck is arrested but later offered a chance at freedom if he defeats a “wild man from Texas” who’s tearing up the local saloon. The wild man turns out to be his cousin, Bearfield Buckner. Their family reunion quickly devolves into a legendary fight that destroys the mayor’s store, saloon, and house. Breck eventually knocks out Bearfield, escapes town under gunfire, and sets out for a romantic rendezvous with a local girl, Joan—only to discover she’s Bill Santry’s sister. When Santry identifies Breck as the source of his injuries, Joan turns on Breck and opens fire.

Battered and heartbroken, Breck rides back home, only to find John hale and healthy. The whole ordeal was a prank based on an old horse trade gone wrong. Breck delivers poetic justice by re-breaking John’s supposedly injured toe and rides off in wounded dignity.

Characters:

  • Breckinridge Elkins – The story’s narrator and protagonist. A massive, strong, but gullible mountain man from Bear Creek, quick to anger but fiercely loyal.
  • John Elkins – Breckinridge’s conniving brother who tricks Breck into going to Cougar Paw to settle an old grudge on his behalf.
  • Bill Santry – Resident of Cougar Paw and brother to Joan; harbors a grudge against John Elkins and takes it out on Breckinridge.
  • Joan Santry – A pretty mountain girl who briefly kindles a romantic spark with Breck, before learning he’s the man who beat up her brother.
  • Cap’n Kidd – Breckinridge’s wild and powerful horse, known for biting and fighting.
  • Pap Elkins – Breck and John’s father, who fondly recalls the violent pranks of his youth.
  • Maw Elkins – Implied to be off-stage, likely the one who applies horse liniment to John’s “injury.”
  • The Sheriff – A cowardly lawman in Cougar Paw who flip-flops between enforcing justice and fleeing for his life.
  • Jonathan Middleton – Mayor of Cougar Paw, and proprietor of both the general store and the saloon; obsessed with his property and profit.
  • Bearfield Buckner – Breckinridge’s cousin from Texas; a fierce fighter and fellow tornado of destruction, he ends up in a friendly but epic brawl with Breck.
  • Unnamed Livery Stable Hand – Manages Cap’n Kidd briefly in Cougar Paw, only to be bitten and insulted.
  • Various Townsfolk – Hard-looking men, saloon patrons, and general store loafers who end up beaten, bruised, and scattered by Breckinridge’s rampage.

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