Who’s On The Run?

Who's On The Run?

There weren't much law in the 1870's
In Northeastern New Mexico back then
Folks purty much fought their own battles
Against violent, greedy and evil men

Eager late-comers and land grabbers
Had been squeezin' out the small spreads
They wanted half the territory it seemed
'Specially where water was in creek-beds

If folks wouldn't readily sell out,
If they bucked the ogre's demands
And his undercut, robbery prices,
Big-shot Schultz brought in gunhands

Well, we've all got our quirks
One o' mine is rage at a bully
When I see someone unfairly abused
My brains roll back and I lash out fully

This really wasn't my battle of course
But when another family buckboard
Moved east outt'a town with a load
It was my last straw to be ignored

Then they roughed the next spread
An' I jumped full-force into the fray
Offerin' assistance to the Springer family
Never did learn about doin' half-way

With guns blazing a thunderin' fury
Those hardcases galloped into their yard
One tossed a torch towards the roof
Quickly, I shotgun blasted it hard

The tosser fired a shot nicking my arm
So I gave him the second barrel
Good thing he wasn't going to need 'em
Since that purty much ruined his apparel

Well word got around 'bout me
Guess they figured I was pryin'
Schultz the big rancher was fumin' and
Sent seven toughs to hasten my dyin'

I led 'em a fast wild chase on the prairie
Eventually circlin' back in a draw
I hid quiet under an outcropped rock
My bay and I, by God's grace, they never saw

Now they was actually startin' to rile me
After dark I slipped back into Maxwell
And sent off a telegram to the U.S. Marshal
Figurin' 'bout time to ignite this bombshell

Ol' Schultz, mister full-of-himself
The thief tryin' to grab all the land
Was about to get a mite surprised
By something on which he'd not planned

He'd been runnin' bully-roughshod
Over folks in these parts a coupl'a years
I was gonna give Schultz an education in
The difference 'tween a bull and mere steers

The marshal was way east in Topeka
He dropped everything and come a'runnin'
He gathered three, stout, young deputies
On The Santa Fe they came for gunnin'

Upon their arrival at the new station
The five of us rode out to the Schultz place
Hombres started shootin' as we entered the yard
If we hadn't before, now we had a case.

Two hired guns were killed and one wounded
By the time we got up to the house
Schultz tip-toed to the porch with raised hands
Where we arrested this lily-livered louse

Well the railroad could run east too
The passle of crooks were put in the jail car
Then taken back to the courthouse for trial
Never mess with a man wearin' a star

They finally all got their just rewards
Servin' sentences one way or another
Why did I send so far east for a marshal?
Oh, didn't I mention he's my big brother?

Copyright 2022 Rik Goodell
© 2022. All rights reserved

This provocative painting is by Jack Sorenson. I appreciate his permission to use it here.

To see more of his work, go to his website: https://www.jacksorensonfineart.com