As our son relayed the story … “We were robbed! The ‘outlaws’ rode down the train, stopped it on the tracks, climbed into the passenger car, and demanded, “Give us your watches, your purses, your wallets, and your gold!””
I should explain; we weren’t really the victims of a roving gang of ne’er-do-well cowboys, we were the audience, and we were entertained. As the sun set on the end of our train ride back to Williams, Arizona, these well-dressed desperados left us with a good laugh and wide smiles on our boys’ faces. They knew it was all part of the show, thanks to the skit before the Grand Canyon Railroad’s departure for the South side of the Canyon that morning. This photo, snapped with an old-fashioned digital camera so many years ago, shows the moment the Marshall enters the stage. As we witnessed this vaudevillian show, it was obvious how much fun the actors were having.
This is the storybook West, the stuff of myth, legend, movie, and play. What’s the harm in this most outlandish of comic-book histories? Well, it may obscure the hardships of life in the 1800’s but there’s probably little harm in it. On the plus side, it can serve as a useful stepping off point on a journey to better understand the West, the cowboy, the ranch, the horse culture. Keep a’ movin’, pardner, it will be an interesting ride.
