Western Aces, September 1944

"The Shotgun Guard Wore a Mask!" (novelette) by J. Edward Leithead features Brett Clanton, a stage agent, intervening to save two siblings from hanging. Fanning, seeking revenge on outlaw Whip Kilmer, attempts to lynch Kilmer's associates—blonde Cora and her brother Jody—hoping to draw Kilmer into a trap. Clanton releases Kilmer's hunting dogs to create chaos, allowing him to cut down the noose victims and escape with them. The narrative involves gunfire, stampeding horses, dying dogs, and a hard-riding pursuit toward Kilmer and his gang. Additional stories include "Magic of a Killer's Name" by Joe Archibald, "Paroled from Powdersmoke" by Gunnison Steele, and "Two Against a Buzzard Brood" (novelette) by Galen C. Colin, among others. Covers typical Western pulp themes of outlaw gangs, lynching, gunfights, and frontier justice.