Billy the Kid's Editorial

At some point after killing Robert Olinger and James W. Bell, and escaping imprisonment at the Lincoln county courthouse, William H. Bonney, alias Billy the Kid, wrote a letter and paid one dollar to publish it in the Las Vegas Optic.

The letter was purportedly signed “William Bonny,” and the editors of the Optic did not figure out that this person was the famed Billy the Kid until after its publication, as the Arizona Weekly Citizen states on December 25th, 1880:

“The Las Vegas Optic of a recent date contains the following item regarding an alleged ex-Arizonan:

‘William Bonny, who remitted a dollar for the Optic some weeks ago, his letter being published at the time, proves to be none other than the notorious ‘Kid,’ who is now at the head of twenty-five well-armed, desperate men in the neighborhood of Fort Summer [sic]. The ‘Kid’ is possessed of considerable talent and is one of the best shots in the country. He spent a number of years in Southern New Mexico and Arizona. Several indictments for dark and damnable crimes are hanging over his head, and it is quite certain that he would rather be killed than captured alive – one or the other awaits him.’”

I have been unable to locate this editorial written by Billy the Kid anywhere online. Any researcher in the vicinity of hard copies of editions of this paper would obtain considerable notoriety for locating a newspaper article written by Billy the Kid.

Perhaps someone reading this is willing and able to peruse the archives in New Mexico and search through the dusty tomes for this valuable historical nugget.

If nobody finds it by the time I make my way to New Mexico, then perhaps I’ll take a look myself.