Outcasts of Poker Flat

By Bret Harte

Book Overview

Francis Bret Harte (August 25, 1836- May 5, 1902) was an American author and poet, best remembered for his accounts of pioneering life in California. Bret Harte was born in Albany, New York, on August 25, 1836. He was named Francis Brett Hart after his great-grandfather, Francis Brett. When he was young his father, Henry, changed the spelling of the family name from Hart to Harte. Henry's father - Bret's grandfather - was Bernard Hart, an Orthodox Jewish immigrant who flourished as a merchant, becoming one of the founders of the New York Stock Exchange. Later, Francis preferred to be known by his middle name, but he spelled it with only one "t", becoming Bret Harte. An avid reader as a boy, Harte published his first work at age 11, a satirical poem titled "Autumn Musings," now lost. Rather than attracting praise, the poem resulted in his family's ridicule. As an adult, he recalled to a friend, "Such a shock was their ridicule to me that I wonder that I ever wrote another line of verse." His formal schooling ended when he was 13 in 1849. He moved to California in 1853, later working there in a number of capacities, including miner, teacher, messenger, and journalist. He spent part of his life in the northern California coastal town of Union (now Arcata), a settlement on Humboldt Bay that was established as a provisioning center for mining camps in the interior. The 1860 massacre of between 80 and 200 Wiyots at the village of Tuluwat was well documented historically and was reported in San Francisco and New York by Harte. When serving as assistant editor for the Northern Californian, Harte editorialized about the slayings while his boss, Stephen G. Whipple, was temporarily absent, leaving Harte in charge of the paper. Harte published a detailed account condemning the event, writing, "a more shocking and revolting spectacle never was exhibited to the eyes of a Christian and civilized people. Old women wrinkled and decrepit lay weltering in blood, their brains dashed out and dabbled with their long grey hair. Infants scarcely a span long, with their faces cloven with hatchets and their bodies ghastly with wounds." After he published the editorial, his life was threatened and he was forced to flee one month later. Harte quit his job and moved to San Francisco, where an anonymous letter published in a city paper is attributed to him, describing widespread community approval of the massacre. In addition, no one was ever brought to trial, despite the evidence of a planned attack and references to specific individuals, including a rancher named Larabee and other members of the unofficial militia called the Humboldt Volunteers.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0451511611
• ISBN13: 9780451511614
• Release Date: August 1961
• Publisher: Signet Classics

Customer Reviews

AN EARLY WESTERN WRITER

There are wonderful, well-written (although in an older style) stories about the early days of the Old West along the lines of Jack London, Mark Twain and John Steinbeck. Early California comes alive on the pages, as do some of the characters doing the gambling, settling down, and even stealing horses, with some of the culprits barely escaping the vigilantes (but not always). I particularly enjoyed "Salomy Jane's Kiss," "The Poet of Sierra Flat," and "The Luck of Roaring Camp." Some sadness and struggle in the stories, but also a lot of humor. These stories will never die and the writer will become immortal with the readers that enjoy this genre. This book would be make great reading while sitting along a "Gold Rush" creek in the High Sierras.

Comments on the One-Act Play from Dramatic Publishing

This dramatic play in one act was adapted by Perry Edwards from the original story by Bret Harte. It has a cast of 4 men and 3 women. It is set in a cabin somewhere in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California from November 23 to December 12, 1850. Six people are trapped there. There are the outcasts--Uncle Billy, Mother Shipton, John Oakhurst, and Duchess. And there are the innocents--a young man Tom, his fiancee, and Jim Wheeler, a solid citizen. Uncle Willy will use any method necessary, including murder, to survive. Oakhurst's gentle breeding stirs him to risk his own safety in loyalty to the group. Tom's bubbly enthusiasm often ignites the group, and though lacking in education, his depth of understanding is unmatched. As the effects of hunger take a deeper hold on the group, the action heats up to a violent and dramatic brawl which will irrevocably change their destinies. This play is appropriate for middle school, high school, and adult audiences. It can effectively be performed by high school, college, and community theater groups.

A GREAT AMERICAN CLASSIC

The cover blurb describes Bret Harte as "the creator of the Western story." This may be true, but it is praise that undersells the quality of Harte's writing. While these stories contain many of the clichés to be found in typical Westerns - stage coach robberies, hangings, and slick, handsome gamblers - these are not escapist stories, but admirable studies of men and women subjected to frontier isolation and harsh conditions. They are easily comparable to the stories of Jack London, and a few of them even to John Steinbeck. If his other books are equal in quality to this selection, Harte certainly deserves to be more widely read. I remember that "The Outcasts of Poker Flat" was included in one of my high school literature anthologies, but I think that it was one that we did not read, probably because there is a prostitute in it. A common theme of many of these stories is how deeply these frontiersmen respond to innocence, whether in the form of young love or a newborn child. These are stories that will stay with you for a long time.

"Outcasts" a truly great story.

I had never even heard of Bret Harte before I read this story, and I really enjoyed it. I loved the way that he used language and imagery to vividly portray the people of Poker Flat. The way that John Oakhurst's (the gambler) thoughts are described, as everything relating to a game of cards, was interesting. It really made me feel like I could see all these people- they seem like very real, everyday characters that could be encountered in anyone's life. Harte obviously knows people, and knows how to tell a good story. I would love to read other stories that he's written.

THE TRUE POKER STORY

tnIn my opinion Uncle billy truly steals the scene. It was true inspiration to me. I couldnt wait tot see how it ended . I recommend it to anyone