Devil's Dictionary

Ambrose Beirce was a remarkable wit under any account, but the ambiguity of his fate cast a long shadow on history. If we take the most common account, by no means certain, then he was last seen headed in the direction of the Battle of Tierra Blanca, where, if we take Carlos Fuentes conjuring of what might have been, he was an imaginary witness to the actual Ivor Thord-Gray's lucky shot, as he was trying to make the most Pancho Villa's only pair of 77mm canons, as portrayed in the movie "Old Gringo"