Hashknife and the Fantom Riders

"Hashknife and the Fantom Riders" by W. C. Tuttle is a Western novel written in the early 20th century. It follows drifting partners Hashknife Hartley and Sleepy Stevens as they take a job probing mysterious cattle thefts and killings around the Circle Cross and Tomahawk outfits in the Ghost Hills. Hired by ranch investor William Lanpher while tensions flare over his son Ben’s attachment to Lorna Cassidy, they ride into a rough cow town where fear of unseen “phantom” rustlers keeps mouths shut. Expect a blend of range humor, saloon dust‑ups, and detective-style sleuthing on the open range. The opening of the story moves from a foggy San Francisco hiring to the hardpan of Wolf Wells: Lanpher engages Hashknife and Sleepy after rustling and two dead detectives rock the Circle Cross, Pinto Cassidy is arrested, and Ben Lanpher throws in with Cassidy and vows to wed Lorna. The pair reach town in time to see a hung jury (Smoky Cole the lone holdout), and Hashknife neatly defuses a bar challenge from the drunk Ben. They meet sheriff Fat Fleager, deputy Lonesome Hobbs, and Circle Cross boss Jim Trainor, then visit the Tomahawk, where Lorna and her Sioux mother speak warily of silent “ghost riders.” After Lonesome secretly empties Ben’s and Smoky’s guns to head off a street shootout, a prospector reports a corpse; Smoky is found shot from behind, with Ben’s hat and gun discovered up the road. The sheriff rides to arrest Ben while Hashknife and Sleepy alert Trainor; Circle Cross hands Buck Avery and the grim Poco Saunders head to town, where Ben is being locked up as this opening section closes.

Summary written by Project Gutenberg, by machine.