Naturally self-effacing and deferential, Captain John Reynolds Hughes is not as famous today as his publicity-hog contemporary Captain Bill McDonald. Yet, Texas Rangers of the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries considered him an authentic hero, a straight-ahead lawman that did his job and left the talking to journalists. Hughes became a ranger in 1887, serving in the celebrated Frontier Battalion. In 1900, he won appointment as captain in command of Company D. During his long career he served primarily along the Texas-Mexico border where his word became law. State offi cials subsequently promoted him senior captain, moving his headquarters to Austin. Hughes retired in 1915-having served as ranger and captain longer than any man on the force. This State House Press reprint of Border Boss makes this Texas classic available to a new generation of readers and introduces them to one of the bravest rangers who ever sported the cinco peso.