Fools and mules : [A Shorty McKay story] by Ray Humphreys
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"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. (This is an automatically generated summary.)
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About this eBook
| Author | Humphreys, Ray |
|---|---|
| Title | Fools and mules : [A Shorty McKay story] |
| Original Publication | New York: Street & Smith Corporation, 1924. |
| Series Title | Produced from the December 27, 1924 issue of Western Story Magazine. |
| Credits | Roger Frank and Sue Clark |
| Language | English |
| LoC Class | PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature |
| Subject | Short stories |
| Subject | Western stories |
| Subject | Outlaws -- Fiction |
| Subject | McKay, Shorty (Fictitious character) -- Fiction |
| Category | Text |
| eBook-No. | 76842 |
| ISBN (HTML) | 979-8-238-76842-7 |
| Release Date | Sep 8, 2025 |
| Last Update | Sep 19, 2025 |
| Copyright | Public domain in the USA. |
| Downloads | 148 downloads in the last 30 days. |
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