January 19, 2004
Yesterday’s Op Ed piece in the Arizona Republic came out nice (with the exception of the art). You can check it out—here’s a link.

Regarding the piece, on whether to dig up Billy the Kid, here’s part of an interesting e-mail I got this morning:

“My father was the sheriff of DeBaca County (Ft. Sumner, NM) during the 50's. He was born in the territory of NM and raised in the Ft. Sumner valley. During his term as sheriff, a Billy the Kid controversy raised its head. Probably, just about the time Brushy Bill Roberts died. At that time, there were still at least two people in
Ft. Sumner who were old enough to remember when he was killed. One of them
claimed to be one of the Kid's girlfriends, and the other was a young boy of
12 who was one of the persons who dug the grave for Billy. There was a
tin-type, or a sketch, of the Kid's burial. My dad often spoke of the flood that changed the Pecos River's course and washed out most of the old fort, including the grave yard. He said for years people found uniform buttons down river. The graves were remarked by one of the older residents who remembered the location and lay-out of the
cemetery. Whether the site, as it stands today, is the same site is unknown. My father did not think it was. I seem to remember that someone wanted to move a long-dead relative that was buried in the old fort cemetery, and nothing was found in the grave. Now, take the flood and the fact that Billy was only wrapped in a blanket, it is highly improbable that anything will be found, even if the location is exact.”

Finally started work on the Maniac art. Didn’t get far, but at least I’m in the water. Got big hopes for it.

A reminder to take our new poll! Do you plan to see The Alamo when it is released in April? You can click right here.

“For anything worth having one must pay the price and the price is always work, patience, love, self-sacrifice.”
—John Burroughs