Whispering Smith

Frank H. Spearman (1859 - 1937)

Whispering Smith, like most of Frank Spearman's western novels (and some non-fiction as well) are set in the world of railroads, in the late 1800's. The main character, Gordon Smith, is a railroad detective; he first appears in this novel, then later in others. This novel was popular enough to be made into film eight times (four being silent) and into a TV series. In this novel, Smith finds that the culprit of the railroad mishaps he is investigating is a close friend, Murray Sinclair. That plot may seem overworked, but Spearman makes it nuanced enough for it to be quite interesting; two interwoven romances are included. The strongest feature of Spearman's novels is probably his beautiful descriptions of the American western landscapes. His character descriptions and plots also hold up well against the other writers of westerns of the early 1900's. (Summary by Bob Rollins)

Genre(s): Westerns

Language: English

Section Chapter Reader Time
Play 01 The Wrecking Boss Bob R
00:12:44
Play 02 At Smoky Creek Bob R
00:17:53
Play 03 Dicksie Bob R
00:12:48
Play 04 George McCloud Bob R
00:25:27
Play 05 The Crawling Stone Bob R
00:13:47
Play 06 The Final Appeal Bob R
00:04:53
Play 07 In Marion's Shop Bob R
00:09:54
Play 08 Smoky Creek Bridge Bob R
00:07:01
Play 09 The Misunderstanding Bob R
00:16:58
Play 10 Sweeping Orders Bob R
00:07:28
Play 11 At The Three Horses Bob R
00:13:04
Play 12 Parley Bob R
00:27:34
Play 13 The Turn in the Storm Bob R
00:13:47
Play 14 The Quarrel Bob R
00:13:54
Play 15 The Shot in the Pass Bob R
00:08:56
Play 16 At the Wickiup Bob R
00:08:44
Play 17 A Test Bob R
00:10:13
Play 18 New Plans Bob R
00:11:08
Play 19 The Crawling Stone Rise Bob R
00:13:37
Play 20 At The Dike Bob R
00:24:55
Play 21 Supper in Camp Bob R
00:12:46
Play 22 A Talk With Whispering Smith Bob R
00:13:12
Play 23 At The River Bob R
00:09:51
Play 24 Between Girlhood and Womanhood Bob R
00:22:32
Play 25 The Man on the Frenchman Bob R
00:20:22
Play 26 Tower W Bob R
00:08:22
Play 27 Pursuit Bob R
00:11:45
Play 28 The Sunday Murder Bob R
00:14:03
Play 29 Williams Cashe Bob R
00:15:38
Play 30 The Fight in The Cashe Bob R
00:19:16
Play 31 The Death of DuSang Bob R
00:10:10
Play 32 McCloud and Dicksie Bob R
00:11:43
Play 33 The Laugh of a Woman Bob R
00:09:22
Play 34 A Midnight Visit Bob R
00:09:21
Play 35 The Call Bob R
00:07:37
Play 36 Duty Bob R
00:07:49
Play 37 Wickwire Bob R
00:07:58
Play 38 Into The North Bob R
00:12:14
Play 39 Among the Coyotes Bob R
00:18:11
Play 40 A Sympathetic Ear Bob R
00:09:09
Play 41 Dickie's Ride Bob R
00:14:02
Play 42 At The Door Bob R
00:07:38
Play 43 Closing In Bob R
00:11:42
Play 44 Crawling Stone Wash Bob R
00:15:47
Play 45 Back To The Mountains Bob R
00:12:33