Well, BJ, as you may have noticed by now, I not only have a suspicious nature but am inclined to read every few lines with an "...wait a minute. something doesn't sound right here!..." attitude. It slows up my reading quite a bit.

So when I read Virgil's statement, which I will partially quote here, that thing came up in my head again.

Virgil said, "...Bronk...came down after a commitment I had for a party that was in jail...While he was getting the commitment, he said 'you had better get up. There is liable to be Hell!'..."

It is that word 'while' that got me. Bronk obviously, according to Virgil's own words, did not hurry down to warn Virgil about imminent danger. He mentioned it after he already had occasion to go to Virgil's home for some other reason, and then delivers 'all Hell bustin' loose' as an afterthought! Apparently he was not in a great panic over Ike's activity after all.

Let's remember that all of this is Virgil's words. There is no reason to believe Bronk ever turned up or said any such thing; especially as Virgil's smart lawyer didn't see the need to bring Bronk in to support Virgil's statement. After all, everyone should readily believe what Virgil says and he should not be expected to prove it.

Kind of reminds me of Wyatt's similar sense of fear when Ned Boyle felt the need to warn Wyatt that Ike was out to get him. Ike's words were really inflametory because this time he dressed it up, according to Boyle; or Wyatt; or whoever is trying to sell this silly story! Wyatt, not Boyle apparently, says Boyle said that Ike said, "...as soon as those damn Earps make their appearance on the street today the ball will open, WE are here to make a fight. WE are looking for the sons-of-bitches!..."

Wait! It gets better. In Boyle's testimony he relates NONE of this. Best part is, he sees Ike at 8:00 a.m., but doesn't run in a panic to warn endangered Wyatt until...near noon! One of these guys does not have their story straight. And if Boyle took three hours or so to become so alarmed, why did he not seek out the Marshal or the Sheriff, instead of Wyatt who was in no official capacity at the time?

And should we really believe that Ike, all alone, is ready to take on the representative of the law in the town and his misfit cronies, and use the term We? Tom is nowhere around. I know you think they are idiots, but surely they would not ride into town with intentions of killing several men by coming in a supply wagon (no fast getaway here) just two of them, then separating for the whole day, and also turning in their guns?

You need to read more carefully too. Try the 'wait a minute' thing. It works!