Fools and mules: [A Shorty McKay story]: Classic Book Guide and Free Edition
Fools and mules: [A Shorty McKay story]: author and translator credits, catalogue synopsis, subjects and links to the Gutenberg reading formats.
Fools and mules: [A Shorty McKay story] is catalogued by Project Gutenberg with author credits for Humphreys, Ray (1893–1973).
Catalogue synopsis
Project Gutenberg supplies this automated synopsis of the opening text:
"Fools and mules : [A Shorty McKay story] by Ray Humphreys" is a Western short story written in the early 20th century. Set in the snowbound Sangre de Cristo mountains near Monte Vista, it centers on a perilous winter payroll run and a run-in with a notorious road agent. The likely topic is a frontier adventure that blends danger, irony, and rough humor to test a deputy’s judgment and highlight the surprising worth of a mule. Shorty McKay is tasked with carrying a mine’s payroll through deep snow; he rejects a mule for his trusted horse, Lobo Loco. On a narrow, icy trail he’s held up by Buck Bancroft, who rides a huge white mule, and is forced to ride that mule, bound and captive. A sudden avalanche sweeps Shorty and the mule into a snow pocket, while Lobo Loco turns back, bolts to town, and—by scraping the dozing outlaw off in a stable—delivers Bancroft and the recovered cash to the sheriff. Stranded and helpless, Shorty survives the night as the mule’s relentless braying guides Sheriff Cook’s rescue party to their hidden perch. Humbled, Shorty admits his mistake about “fools and mules,” insists the mule be saved first, and concedes that in a pinch the mule’s noise and stamina were the difference between life and death.
Book and edition facts
- Title: Fools and mules: [A Shorty McKay story]
- Author credits: Humphreys, Ray (1893–1973)
- Catalogue language: English
Catalogue subjects
- McKay, Shorty (Fictitious character) -- Fiction
- Outlaws -- Fiction
- Short stories
- Western stories
Gutenberg collections
- Category: Adventure
- Category: American Literature
- Category: Short Stories
Read this edition
View the complete Gutenberg catalogue record. Project Gutenberg identifies this edition as public domain in the United States; that designation does not establish its copyright status in every country.
Source notes
Catalogue metadata is public domain and is supplied through Gutendex, which imports Gutenberg's machine-readable catalogue. The automated synopsis is source-supplied, not an independently verified review. Author dates above describe the credited people; no ebook release date is presented as the book's original publication date.
Sources
More in Books & Authors
Keep reading
