True Texas Tales?
by
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I’m going to tell you a series of short stories about my experiences as a cowboy beginning when I was 13 and ending when I was 17. I spent each summer on the Bill Dix Ranch from 1934 through 1938. The ranch was located about half way between Marathon, Texas, and what later became the Big Bend National Park. I went to the ranch each summer as the result of a deal between my mother and Mr. Dix which enabled him to pay off the debt that he owed my father.
Before his death when I was seven, my father owned the West End Motor Company, a Ford dealership in San Antonio. Mr. Dix had bought two cars from my dad on which he still owed about $1,000 – a pretty good sum of money sixty-five years ago! He was determined to pay off this debt because he was a very honest person who never failed to pay his debts. Anyway, the deal called for me to spend each summer on the ranch for five years to settle this debt.
"It will be up to you to decide."
Of the stories I will be telling, most are totally true, a few are part true and part false, and at least one is completely false. In other words, most of the stories contain not a single falsehood and are, therefore, completely true. However, at least one of them is completely false since nothing in the entire story actually happened. The remaining stories will begin with the truth, but at some point I have strayed from the truth so that the ending of the story is false.
It will be up to you to decide if the story is all true, part true and part false, or all false. If you believe the story to be partly true and partly false, try to decide where I first deviated from the truth. Space has been provided at the end of each story for you to write down your conclusions. I have provided a brief analysis of the truthfulness of each story in the appendix at the end of the book. Please jot down your thoughts about each story so that you can later check them against the analysis given in the appendix. See how many times you can correctly find where I strayed from the truth.
Incidentally, I have changed the names of everyone in my stories so that they cannot be identified and, therefore, will not be upset by anything that I have said about them. All of the characters in my stories have been given fictitious names and should not be confused with any person, living or dead, who ever resided in Marathon or the Big Bend area of Texas.
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About the Book
Beginning at age 13, the author spent five consecutive summers on a working ranch located about half way between Marathon, Texas, and what later became the Big Bend National Park. True Texas Tales, which he authored sixty years later, reports some of his adventures while he lived on the ranch. His reported exploits include finding a lost gold mine, breaking his own horse, watching a Texas Ranger in action, feeding honey to a rattlesnake, facing down an adult black bear, observing the crew of an alien spaceship, escaping from a gang of cattle rustlers, performing at a Texas rodeo, attending a Mexican fiesta, and assorted other adventures, some perilous and some humorous.
The stories provide interesting and educational reading about the region’s unique inhabitants, climate and geology. The profusion of animal and vegetable life thriving in such harsh desert conditions is also reported. Raised in the city until sent to spend summers on a working ranch, the author gives a first-hand account of ranch life and his evolution from tenderfoot to cowboy. Although they occurred over sixty years ago, his experiences are entertaining, timely, unusual, and exciting. Historians regard the area as being part of the final frontier in the United States. While agreeing that the area was wild, dangerous, and unforgiving, the author helps the reader to see that it was also beautiful in its isolation from civilization.
Four games have been developed to accompany True Texas Tales. Each is designed to help the reader achieve a better understanding of the region and its inhabitants.
About the Author
Bill Brown, born in San Antonio, Texas, finished two years of college before entering the United States Air Force for training as a command navigator. He saw service in the Philippines and Japan and was discharged with the rank of Captain. Returning to college, Brown earned his doctorate at the University of Texas with a major in psychological research at the School of Aerospace Medicine and Human Resources Research Office.
Moving to academia, he served as Director of Counseling, Director of Counselor Education, and Professor of Psychological Services, all at Southwest Texas State University. His academic publications include 10 books, 9 standardized tests, 5 filmstrips, 2 motion pictures, and 11 software programs—more than 100 significant publications in all. He has also chaired several symposia and read many papers at national and international meetings.
Brown has maintained a part-time private practice as a Clinical Psychologist serving adolescents and young adults. Over the years he has also authored several science fiction and western short stories and novels.