Book Excerpt

A buzzing sound passed to his right ear and simultaneous distant explosion tumbled Stuart Brannon from the back of his horse…
Rolling on the ground, Brannon dove behind (a stack of timbers)… two more shots blasted from the rocks somewhere on the other side of the creek. They ripped into the heavy beams.
At that same moment Brannon rolled and raised up… and four quick shots into the distant rocks above which a puff of smoke still trailed. Seeing something like a blue shirt lurch backward, Brannon squeezed off 3 more rounds.
A yelp and a curse followed by the dust from a fleeing horseman looked to Brannon like a retreat. But he wasn’t about to count on it.

False Claims at the Little Stephen Mine, Crossway Books

Part of the "Winchester 73" series. These five paintings were originally rendered for western book covers. Each represents a specific situation in the story.  Here, remains of many small mining efforts, from the mid nineteenth century, are still evident in the mountains around Silverton, Colorado. No doubt, as shown in the third scene of this series, a miner had to be prepared to defend his claim against thieves.