Throughout his long life, James Elderkin was more than a soldier but for thirty years, he tramped along with the U.S. Army, as did his wife. He was a soldier, a trombone player in regimental bands, a circus man, a cigar seller, and a gold miner.

He and his wife lived in California before the Civil War, a time when he writes that murder was a daily occurrence and offenders frequently went free. He writes with a simple but very engaging style about a life full of adventure and brushes with fame.