Slingin' Seamus
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James Larcus | |
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| Born | March 19, 1847 |
| Died | September 1, 1882 (aged 35) Somerville, Afoncord |
| Occupation | Outlaw, seminarian |
| Years active | 1870-1882 |
Slingin' Seamus (born James Larcus; March 19, 1847 - September 1 1882) was an outlaw and gunfighter of the Urcean frontier. Although famous in his own time for successfully robbing three trains, he became more famous posthumously in the public imagination in his role as gunfighter, particularly in his last stand at Somerville, which became the template for gun duels in future Urcean media.
Early life
James Larcus was born in Urceopolis in March of 1847, a time when the city was continuously growing and was subject to the rising Industrial Revolution. While conditions in the city were not as bad as some examples abroad, Larcus almost certainly grew up in conditions of urban squalor living in industrial neighborhoods. His own journal recollections, written in the 1870s, recounted both parents working in the factories as he roamed the streets. Following a turbulent upbringing, Larcus enrolled in the Catholic seminary in 1865. Seminary records indicate Larcus was bright and grasped theological concepts but was often quarrelsome with other seminarians and teachers. His own recollection stated that, following four years in seminary, he began to have various sexual encounters around town with prostitutes and married women. In late 1869, his activities were discovered by seminary leaders, and Larcus fled the city for the southern frontier before authorities could catch him. A warrant was issued for his arrest citing fornication, adultery, and breaking the vows he took as a seminarian. Larcus arrived in Afoncord following months of travel on 18 February 1870.
Initial criminal career
Having arrived in Marianapola, Afoncord in 1870, Larcus began using a number of pseudonyms in order to procure odd jobs to sustain himself, the most used one being "James Donio". While some of these roles were legal, most of them involved participation in cattle rustling gangs and other criminal enterprises which needed larger numbers of people. Larcus had never fired or held a gun before arriving in Afoncord, but at age 23 quickly became proficient with it. On May 19, 1870, he shot and killed a man whose wife he was having an affair with when the two were caught together. Larcus had to flee town and took up residence in the nearby town of Aliana, which he would call home for the remainder of his life. Following this episode, Larcus more fully committed to the life of an outlaw; his own recollections state that "running, womanizing, and making talers" were his true calling. It was around this time, when he joined the Gaius Mór gang, that he first acquired the nickname "Slingin' Seamus" for his proficiency with a firearm.