Robert G.

Taylor
))2 2 l t { o o r e D ri ve
Texarkana, Texas 755A3

SYNOPSIS

DSATB'v\iITT{DTSTTNCTION

A s t r a n g e cl l sa p p e a ra n e e on a long Labor Day weekend takes o n

pecullar susplolons. The vletlm ls thought to bc on a drunken sprec

or a l o n g bl n cl e r fro m l o ve g one umong. Then, the fear of sulcld,e

thtokens the plot b e sa u se o f the ilepr essing dlvor oe pr oceeillngs be-

a o n r l n g a a ad cl e clfa cto ro
T h e l n vo l ve d . a p p e a ra n cos of nafla bosses settllng old soor es on

ln n o c e n t r e l -a tl ve s a n d frl e n d ,s add a new d.lmenslon to the no9ug

gp e r g n d i s pe o u l a tl o n s. T h e oonaeotlon of the or ganlzed, or lm e to

the nillve vlctln has a foreboillng relatlon of the soolal ellte to

the underworl-d. f oroeg,

T h e i l ea d b o d y i s fi n a l L y dlsoover ed ln a vaoant fteltl wher c

three dlfferent se a re h p a rtl e s hacl pr evlousLy oaavassed that opetr

spsceo T h e co rp sa sh o w ccl n o slgn of nutl} atlon or foul play la

ha v l n g b e e n n o ve d to th e sta ged, ar ea as a m otor oyole acelilent"

T h e e o mp l e x n o tl ve l s too br oad. to oonvlct anyone per son. T he

resolve ls glven in the olues. Thls true-Ilfe @ a s er e s u l t e i l ln the

na t l o n a l polloy o f n e ve r a n n ounolng a vlotlm tg nam e pr lor to aotl fy l ng

lmnedlate nenbers of tbe fanllY.

Robert G. Tayier
3)"2 l{oore Drive
Texarkana, Texas 7550)

DEATH ffITII $ISTIT{CTIOI{

Labor Day Lgb5 was not as usual, even in the early mornlng Texas

searing sun. Thls partlcular h o t n o o r n l n gw o u ) . d b r i n g a n e v e n h o t t e r

afternoon becauso of no shelterlng clouds gatherlng overheadlln Dallas

County. This heat wave was the hottest ln memory, enough to bake ycur

bralns into a simneriag stew, The least bit of eroltenent would. raise

the blood. pressure. tach year, tboughr was always much the sane as the

o n e b e f o r e u n l e ss so ra ee ve n t happeneclto get you a lI hot- and' - bother ed

e n o u g h t o bri n g o n a fa ta l heatstr oke'

A s t r oke o f l u o k, h o w e ver , had br ought a far olly of fr lend' s fr on

deep East Texas to Dallas town or Blg D as the locals called the clty.

oarcl. Donald Morgan was the latest afl-

Job opportunity was the calllng
of new arrivals. A few brief years away in
dltlon to the close clrcle

the nollltary h a d s p o i l e d D o n a L df o r tbese sultry long Dog Days of a

on this vary
typical Texas sumner that was supposed to end offlclally

c a l e n d a r c l a t e , b u t n e v e r c [ ! d .f o r saveral more hot weekends' Donald oould

clays of hi s y outh'
no t h e r p r e n e n b e rl n g th e ro ng old Lazy Texas sLLnmer time
a sunmer oould bo'
Y e t D o n a I c Lc o u l d n e v e r f o r g e t J u s t h o w b r a n d i n g h o t
seastono r[€ cou]'d
especlalry with hls recent arrival ln Dalllcf hottest
wher e his m l l l tar y
n o t h e L p t hl n kl n g a b o u t th e seenlngly far away Ger nany

t c u r o f d . uty h a d se n t h l n . Donald was full of the memor ies abou t the l ong
TAYr.oH/ oge'r,i 2

fun o l d . - w o r I d D a n u b eR l v e r bi-cycIe hikes that were nothing ln conparison

t o t h e h u m i d D a l l a s T u rtl e C r eek Dr ive neand.er ings whlch he now o fton took

on scorcnlng days like thls, to enJoy the canopy of shaiiy trees from this

lntense heat.
Shade trees, however, dld not llne the streets out ln thls newly de-

velopect sectlon of North DaIIas Forty as Donald called the open pralrie

ln t h t s part o f to w n kn o w n a s Nor th Par k tr ( all. Donatd was swealter l ng ln

t he o p e n s l ra ce s o f th e re ce n tly pavecl wlde str eet. Ile vr as slowly bec om l ng

accllrnated back to hls natlve Teran habltat. It takes yankees flve years

to ailjust to thls hot lnvlgoratlng Teras cllmate or so hls slster Jaekle

lTo r g a n G o o d w l n fre q u e n tl y o o nmented.fr on her voclfer ous r eaillng ani l s tor e

ho u s e o f k n ow l e i l g e fro m fl l e s as seor etar y to the head of State Far m In-

s u r a n c e H e a cl q u a rte rs l a D a Il a s.
Thls dlstlnctlve Daltas hot Labor Day mornlng breeze, however, fel-t

go o d .t o y o u n g D o n a L d l rd o rg a n , fanlllar and lntense. He par keil hle H ar l ey -

Da v l d s o n m oto ro ycl e n e a r th e phone booth at the oor ner Seven- E1ev en s tor e
fl nan-
wj- t h t n s l g h t o f th e o l d C a ru th nanslon, a lucky synbol to br ing hl m

clal Buocess as weII, museilDonald''

,rI donrt really neeil another pack of Lucky Strlkes clggy-butts, or

a s th e o L d. adage goes, but then why not for llfe l s too

nalls l n n y o o ffl n
lnsld'e the snall con-
short not to enJoyro nuttereil Donalil as he sauntered'
Lazy J'angul c l
v e n l e n o e s t o re th a t w a s o n e of the few places oPen on thls
to
holtday, Do n a l d p l u n ke i l cl o wnhls r usty quar ter that was far too m uc h
on a
pay for the mere oonvenl€nce of being able to purohase olgarettes
all had to be closeil'
long hoLlday wben the regular stores legally
[BIue ]aws are a patn in the royal back si'te, glvtng these Seven-
are at least a llttle
T l e v e n t r a l a c e so p e n h O U r S t O b u y e m e r g e n c y l t e n s
taylor / Ogarit

t o u c h o f E u r o l r e a n c l a s s t o t h e D a l l a s s c e n e r " s i g h e d D o n a l d ^I t t l o r g a nw i t h a

homesick vocal tone to the sklnny attenilant. Donalil exlted, pulling the

cellophane red tab fron the pack. The shiny Harley-Davidson started on

t he f l r s t kl ck a s a l w a ys. D onald lvlor gan blasteil off down the Laz y v ac ant

street b a c k to w a rcl th e a p a rtment comPler r r her e he had Just r ecentl y m ov ed.

The btg tall n e o n sl g n fro n the bod.er lng back lot of the Fr iendly C hev r ol et

a u t o c l e a l e r sh l p o n L o o p L Z seemed.to keep a fam lllar watchful ey e on the

wh o l e n e i g h b o rh o o d .. A se cu re feellng pr evalled thr ough the heated. al r of

t h e h o t p a Ye me n t.
g n l y sh l n n e ri n g h e a t w a ves ln tha hot Texas alr r enalnod. wh er e D onal d

Morgan had just s t o o d h t s g r o u n d .t o l i g h t one last cigarette before blazlng

away down the qulet stre e t o n thls hazy tonely Labor Day of L965 . N o one

toolt muehnotlcel he was always golng places alone after being ln crowded

groups, to get a''aeyf or some clown tlme,

'rl{e ls a loner slnoe hls dlvoroe recently was flnal-lzed from that

G e r n a n b r l d e o f h ts; n y l l ttl e br other ls slm ply not the same happy - go-

I u c k y k l d I h e l p e d ra l se rtr renar ked Jaokie lvlor ganGood.win, anr lous l y c hang-

in g h a n d . s to h o l d th e te l e trl hone with the long cor d.

o t r ear edl hln well as m other would oor r eotl y
"y o u ra l se a l h tm ri g h t
to her best fr 1end. ?fD onal i l
saIrtr s t s t e i l trrT a ryJa o q u e l yn Bufftngton- Taylor

wi l l g e t o v e r th l s i l e e p h u rt soon enough; hls Oer m an wife r efuseil to c one

to Anerica with hlm after hls d.lscharge, to leave her famlly. It nust

h a v e b e e n tru e -Io ve g o n e w ro ng after - al1 slnoe many fr a' fileln br lcl c s onl y

w e i l G T rs l n t h e f l r s t place Just to get passager here for the good Llfe.

We all know Donald has lt l n hlm to sur vlve the bad tlm esr r f conti nued ttl ar y E

pulllng n e rvo u sl y o n th e p h ona wlr eg oom lng fr om tbe wall- nook c onnec tl on'
tlYouknowhlnwellasanyonea}iveslneewehavellvednertcloorto
Ta y l o r / n m fi t

eaoh other all our livesr'r replied Jackle wlth deep concern building in

her voice having a shakY edge.

tfgur close family lives are too interwoven not to help-cut now. If

y o u a r e d e e p l y w o rrl e d a b o u t Donalilf s fr ane of m lnd, then by all m eans w e

should aII go vlslt bln tbts rlay at hls new apartmentr?r suggested Mary B

emphatically with a llttle htnt of gulle plottlng a get-together.

,No, not yet at least. M y b r o t h e r w a n t s t o b e l n c l . e p e n d e n t ,n o t m o t h " " " J .

and smothereil to cleath, even by hls blg slster. f nust respeot that wlsh

of hlsrn s i g h e d Ja ckl e re l u n tantly mouthlng her or r n wor ds.

' r H o w eve r, D o n a l d d o e s n eeil eheoklng on while in the doldr ums . D onal c l

should not be left alone for long perlods of tlne wlth hls fraglle mental

state. A lovlng fanlly a l w a y s s t a y s c l o s e b y , n a d d e d l v f a r yB f u l l of free

advlc e.
o l , o v e o a n b e co n e a cu rse, though, when used to pr y lnto eve r y pr l v ate

moment. We shoulcl know from growlng up ln small-town, bossy Terarkana

wlt h lts b u sy-b o d y g o ssl p e rsr il laughecl tr ackle wlth a ser les of s hor t

nervous coughs.
n Bu t D o n a l d w l l l n e ve r oonslder us a our se or a pr oblen. He l ov es

hls blg sister too nuch ever to resent honest concern for longril consoleil

[4ary B whl],e she brusheit her halrwlth the henna rlnse out of her eyes.

n l l o n e stl y, f d o n o t kn o w what to do. f am er tr enely wor r led . Ius t

wa n t i n g t o ch e ck-o u t my l n tu l tlve feellngs that sonethlng ls not qul te r l ght

even lf tt does nean prylng lnto ny brotherts pre-clous;lrivaeyrH declarecl

J a c l < l e l n a te n se b u rst o f l ovlng conceTr le

n r h e n r g o o h e ck l t a l L out for your own Peaee of nlnd. Better to be

safe than sorry. trust casually drop by hlS place. say you are on a

n e r e l y c t ' r o p p i n gb y , | f Donald' !s
pleasure drlve to see the local- slghts,
Taylor / onatn 5

there and does protest too much that you are indeed being a nosey busy-

bodyr?i plotteit trfary B with her usual helpful style.

rtYou convlnoeil rn.€r Talkecl ne lnto going. T wlll call you baok later,

tfary B, after I have eased my worried mind.rtfpromlsed Jackle with some

rellef already showing ln her tense voice.

n G o o d l u o k o n fl n d l n g a II ls wellr fr cooed ltilar y fult of enco ur agem ent

for thls poslttve declslon by her llfe-long friend., hanglng-up the phone

ree elver .
trThe frleniis l h ry a n i l R ober t also itecldeit to take a shor t l ate m or ni n

drl v e t h e m se l ve s. Ou t to th e near by Nor tb Par k lttlall aor oss the fr eew ay

f ro r n D o n a l d l ,rl o rg a n tg n e w a p a r tnent actually was the aln ln the fl r s t p1aoe.

A lelsure outlng would be ercuse enough to casually then drop by, to see

f or t h e m s e l -ve s h o w th e tu rn of events wer e comlng along. Their genui ne

o o n c e r n w a s mo re th a n me re td.le cur ioslty by fr lends. They hacl al l gr ow n

up together w i t h a o o m m o nh t s t o r y , bonded, Ilke one blg haPpy ertendecl

f an l l - y . l v ta ry h a d h e l p e d o ften ln the dally baby slttlng car e of D onal d. as

a chlld. He w a s n u o h th o u g h t Of l.lke a younger br other or nephe w . R ober t

a n c l M a r y h a cl b e e n h l g h sch o o l fr lends long befor e aar r ying' Jao k l e bl or gan

ha d a l m o s t n a rrl e d o n e o f th elr own set of old cr ony ohuns, but a l as t

mlnute ttff o r w e cl d .l n gJttte rs spat tr ad r esutted. ln a r ebouniled es c ape

Terarkana. Blg Dallas was the not-so-dlstant place to

from the fanll-ler
ge t a g o o d Jo b . T h e l n p e rso nal. lar ge city aptly called Blg D wa s ful L of

Terarkana young peolDle wlth rel,atives who helped. thern learn the trrays of

blg ctty llfe"

n AI l ar e har e llke a eolony of expatr l ots ln
o u r T e ra i ka n a frl e n ds

We a re a l l n e vrco mer sher e to seek our for tunes in the bl g bad'

Da I I a s .
who w er e fam 'ous
c ity . E x c e ;rt fo r yo u , R o b e r t, wlth your gr eat- gr and' par ents
pl o n e e r l _ e a d e rs l n fro n tl e r Oaltas Countyr tt ) - aughedlr lar y as she adJ us ted'
TayI or / D!.ATH

the radlo diaL to get another statlon alring her brotherr s ad for soae

new blg furnlture store sale ln town.

',your youngest brother ls havlng another huge furniture ad sale; lt

s e e n i st h a t T. Buff -qales wlII never run out of places to promote business

in Dallasrn chuckled Robert gooit naturedly'

n T o n Po y,th e f. B u ff su p er sales pr onotor , ls a tr ue sho$man ' H e nev er

gets tlred of naking outrageous TV advertisenrent appesrancesr' agreeel

Ma r y B w l t h a fl rn b l tl n g o f her lower 11p'

, y o u k no w a s w e l l a s I tbat your br other Tor unyr eally enJoys bel ng

ln the publlo eye ever slnce be flrst appeared

the center of attention
pro f o s s l o n a l l y w l th th e trfi e nof Ter as vocal gr oulD that J' T' Adam s s ang

h L t. for my is Just a natur al for star r lng l n gl am or ous

G o d I s R e a I n a tl o n a l

IT'spots arl o v e r t h e A n e r l c a n S o u t h w e s t r e g l o n r r t c o m m e n t e dR o b e r t n o n c h a n t l :
n T o m myl s a ccu sto n e d to glanor ous publlcr ty aver since nar r y l ng U Il s s

Eastern Alrllnes beauty queen Jeannle Cooperril admitted lfary'

, r A n i l Je a n n l e r s b ro th e r ls the v' r r lter wyatt cooper who happe ns to be
Vander bllt. Thus, Tom m yenJ oy s aLl
t h e h u s b a n d to th e ve ry fa mo ug Glor ia

the fame wlth rnfamous llnerrghtr" oontinued. Robert !0atter-of -factly.

*t { y b ro th e r l s sl n p l y trylng to } lve up to the fane tbat our d'ear

befor e she moved to D al l ae,

au n t l e h a s a l w a ys e n Jo ye d b a c k !n fer ar kana
lrtary B happlly.
Barrylng her a rlch rnan even for Big Drt summed-up
n An c l sp e a kl n g o f yo u r n otor lous Auntie r d' td you cal- l har about the
a s k e c lR o b e r t w l t h a n e a g e r
c o n c e r n f o r D o n a l d ts s t r a n g e c t l s a P p e a r a n c e ? r t

edge to hls volce.

'rye', of course, I called. Aunt llettie K1lne, alertlng her to the

by hlnself ln hls state of nl nd' not

a n g u l s h o v er D o n a l d r s w o n d e rlng off
N e ttre K ri n e wlr r then ter l winkle her husband' w ho c an
telrrng a so u r.
Taylor / DEATH 7

help us wlth advice later if we need aay addltlonal asslstance fornlng a

s e a r c h p a r tyrtr i n f o rme d Ma ry lvith d,eep conceltlo

rrMr. Wlnkler ls sttlt a t h l s J a m s r sg . E d w a r d s B e a u t y S u p p l y o f f i e e ? "

lnterrogated Robert, keeplng the c onversatlon llghtly golng.

"By all neans, Wlnkie is always there worklng Iate till aII hours,

m a k i n g m o r e mo n e y th a n h e ca n ever spend. He r eally has a knack f'l or bei ng

a m o n e y - n al re r e ve n fo r th l s r lch townr r mar velled illar y wltb lnten s e adni r a-

t io n w l t h do l l a r ma rks a l n o st showlng ln her br lght eyes.

'rlfoney ls what lt ta ke s plenty of to llve ln thls par t of to w n. T he

big bucks keep the wheels of lndustry greased around Blg D, O h , L d a r yB ,

we are aLmost at the erlt for Caruth Haven. Do you want me to stop at

that nearby Seven-Sleven to get you a Dr. Pepper to help qulnce the thlrst

of thls e r tre me l y h o t n o rn l n g?' r lnqulr ed Rober t with a nod of the head.

ttYes, but f wlll ru n i n s lde nyself to get tbe Dr . Pepper , th ank y ou.

Yo u t a k e t o o l o n g b y ta tkl n g to ever yone," laughed ltdar y B as s he eager l y

Junped out the stoBped. Chevy fmpal.a.

F r o n t h e w l n d .o w o n R o b er tr s side, tower ed the stately old c ol unnec l

Ca r u t h n a n sl o n tb a t sto o d l fl rmly secur e on the far slde of the fr eew aJ r .

tvlattle Caruth Byrd owneclmost of the development belng done on the old
plantation lanil. Ju st a cro ss fr om the btg house wlth yet a hundr ec l ac r es

o f l a w a b o rd e rl n g th e e xl D re s swaywas the new Nor th Par k shopplng m aII. T he

wh o l e a r e a w a s fu l l o f h u g e lur ur y apar tment compler bulldiags. T he l ar ge

o u t c l o o r s l g n s a d ,ve rtl se i l th e posh sur r ound.ings. The auto r adio bl ar ed. ar r ay

wi t h a n a d ve rtl se n e n t fo r a fur nltur e sales pr omotlon. A loud pl tc hed

voice proclalmed.that T. Buff hlmself lnvltes all you shoppers to come on

iio v i n f o r a l o o k w l th a b tg h oudy fr onr the good fotks her e. [dar y r etur ned'

ln a flash with her bottled soda PoF.

Taylor / oeRrH 8

"Letrs avoid the f,Iashing stop llght at the frontage road by clrcling

around by the large constructlon slte on the way to Donaldfs apartment.

0h, there is Jackie. She ls standlng beslde her car near all those tall

bushes. She seens to be wlthout Harry. We had better Joi-n her prcntol
pu l l o v e r r t ' d e ma n d e dl.rfa ry w l th deep concer oo
'rJaok1c, are you all right?f? asked Robert as the car docr was opened

wide for [{ary to exlt, runnlng to hug her llfe-long friend.

nYes, Fobert, I am very weLl now that I have looked aII around tho

ap a r t m e n t co mp l o r fo r D o n a l d.. His l{ ar ley- Davidson ls gone; he m us t s ur el y

be out for a l o n g ri d e to so rt out hls wor r led thoughtsr ft lnfor ne d J ac k l e

swallowlng deep).yto keep from showlng a stralned force to her volce.

rrYrlherels llarry, your better half?t qulokly lnqulred l,Iary f ull of

anazement that he was not rlebt there wlth her frlend lackie.
n Vf e l l , H a rry l s o ve r yo nder ln nlddle of thts vacant fleld out of

sight soneplace. He wtll get heatstroke lf he stays here much longier ln

thls o v e n - ba kl n g su n rtt crp l a l ned Jackle polntlng towar d tbe far s l de of

the old fleld.

t r l w l Ll g o Jo l n l l a rry l n the open spaoe. Fe could use som e he1p,

I ats surc, lf o n l y mo ra l su ppor tr n salcl Rober t hur r ied.ly, alm ost anx l ous Ly .
n Y o u d .o th a t. l 'Ie g i rl s wlLl safely stay ln the car untll y ou fel l ow s

can return fro n sco u tl n g o u t the whoLe placer n offer ed. M ar y qulok Ly .
r W h a t e ve r yo u e a g r" ro spondeil Rober t taklng the hiat to hur r y onw ar d.

to joln lacklers h u s b a n c lH a r r Y "

Harry that we nust go on back hone soon. Telephone D€s-

"0h, do telI
sages mlght be coming lnr" suggestetl Jackie wlth an almost detached concern

a b o u t t h e lmn e d .i a te se a ro h l n g thls ar ea.

T h e t w o yo u n g me n , R o b er t and Har r y, met !n the center of the v ac ant

Taylor / UqATH 9

ot i i a b a n d . on e dC. a ru th co rn fte ld. Each had ar r j- ved ln the nlddle, d'ead

center of the stalced-cut constructlon slte from illfferent angles of the

s lo p l n g terraln. Deell gullles r an zlg- zagged. thr ough the open lani l . A

careful look lnto the depths took nearly an hour }onger to complete. A

d.esolate knoll dominated the mldsectlon of the open land.. 01al gulley

washer raln storms had 1ong ago erodecl the once rlch top soil into clltches

t h a t h a d b e o o r n er a v l n e g . No one else was outside ln thls heat of the day

sun. Neitherams there any foot prlnts of another porson lately tmlklng

the sanclysoi1. No tralL rldlng traoks of a motoroyoLe across the wlcte

open space was evldent. No vlslble marks of humanevldence passlng thls

wa y s l n c e t h e l a st b l g ra l n c ould be cietected.. The huge ciusty g ul l - ey w as

d e v o l i l o f r e ce n t l rn p rl n ts o f any klnil. This futur e buildlng slte for

Pr e s b y t e r i a n H o sp l ta l w a s mer e vacant Iand thls clay'

r f H a r r y, d o yo u th l n k th at Donalcl oould be hldden som ewhor e out l n

thls l a r g e va ca n t fl e l cl ? n concer n of w hat the

q u ested. Rober t wlth d.r ead.ecl

a n s w e r m l g ht b c.
n y e s , th a t ve ry th o u g b t dlcl cr oss ny mlnd as well. I have al r eai l y

l e n g th a n d br eath of tbls tr act of hllly scr ub la nd. I

wa L k e d t h e fu II

f e a r e c l f l n d ln g a n a ccl d e n t soenc of the m otor cycle wlth a hur t D onal d, or

worsel r Just dlcl not want Jackle to be the flrst one to disoover a nasty

here. She would never forget or regret seeing for the rest of
sltuatlon
a personal tragecly. r cane alone for that reason. M a d ' eh e r w a l t
her Ilfe
atthecurbbacktbere,nelpressed,Harryfrownlngaworrledman|slookon

hls sweaty face.

nThat was a good.ldea. Do you think foul play ls posslble ln this

hls nose at the

s t r a n g e d l s a p p e a r a n c e o f D o n a I d ? ' t a s k e d .R o b e r t t w i t e h l n g

m e r e t h o u g b t.
Taylor / n:,amt IO

n s o n n e th i n g ve ry stra n g e has lnd.eeil happened f or sur e beoause D onaId.

wo u l d n e v e r tra ve l a n yw h e re wlthout flr st telllng tr ackle. He kno w s w hat

a worry-wart sh e l s a b o u t h l m. Donald has been unduly ilepr essed ov er the

re c e n t f i n a l l ze i t cl l vo ro e . H e mlght get har nedl la a mlshap, for h e i s

accident prone when soverly worrled. I at flrst cvcn feareil sulciile ln

t hts c a s e r ' r co n fl d ,e d , H a rry al- m ost whisper lng thr ough his teeth, nak l ng

s u r e n o t t o b e o ve rh e a rd .
rtDonald. woulcl have to be terribly clepressett to oonnlt hara-klri, no

self-ruln s h a me fo r h l m. I k now hin nuch too well as a good Chr i s tl an boy

no t t o d . o a cl e e clth a t w o u l i l hur t all hls deeply r ellgious r elatives , nev er

in a m t l l t o n yca rs to u p se t hls har tlshell Baptlst par ents wlth that hor r i c l

nenory! Ilave you lnqulred. at the churoh to see if he ls on an erranil for

t h e y o u t b d.l re cto r, o r i s-:a w a5rwlth som e of his Sunilay School budi ti es ?i l

further q u crl e d S o b e rt.

n y e s , I a l re a d .y sto p p e cl by the Eplscopal Bducatlonal HaIl wher e D onal i l

o f t o n a t t e n its se rvl o e s rvL th m e, I agk ever ycne, not a soul knew the

v t h e r e a b o u t s o f n y b ro th e r-1 n -Iaw; and. all offer eil to help sear ch s eel ng

how worrledl slck I onr'repllecl Harry Goodwln full- of erasperatlon.

n I o e r ta l n l y p ra y a n d h ope that nothlng per manently bad has happenec l

to Donalil. H e a l w a ys rn i n cl s hls own buslness. Never bother s other f ol k s t

to make enemles Llke so oany red.necks clo f or their fun-ancl-ganes arounil

t h e s o p a r t srn o o n o e n tcd ' R o b er t thoughtfully'

r r T r u l y, I X rra y th e sa me anit as nuch. Yet, I clo know sonethl ng

l n th l s pecullar sltuatlon. Do not nentlon thi s c l r i ft

s la i s t e r d .o e s e rl st
to Ja ckre, nor to Mar y B, who wlr l ter r ever y thl ng
of o u r c o n ve rsa tl o n
they always do share a1l upsetting thouglrte
later anyway to trackle llke

overthephone,.requesteclHarrymostforcefully.
Taylor / DEAfH 1I

ItReIy on me, Harry, to ease tho aBprehensions. Mun ls the word to

keep our unhappy spouses paclfled, quletly free of ad.dedsttess. We shoulil

go h o r a e , t o g e t o u t o f th l s blazlng sun befor e our br alns baker tr s ugges ted.

Ro b e r t t h o ug h tfu l l y.
The two worrlcdl nen wallcecl at a slow paoe back towarcl their parkecl

au t o n o b i l e s w h e re th e l r w l ve s anr lously walted. The husbandt eac h put thc l r

a rn s a r o u n d th e l r h e l p n a te , s lghetl wlth a big cnlgnatlo snlle that s al i l

mu c h [ r o r e th a n a ].1 th e l r o b s cur e fear s eouldl ever er pr ess. Not ev en thc

s u p p r e s s e t l frl g b tfu l cl o u b ts coulil be conpletel- y aver tedl ln the baok of the

mlncl. C a s u a L l l g h t-h e a rte d oonver satlon of the moment ooulcl not hl de a

nagglng fearo
r0ome oor glrls, letrs heail baok to the house" Nothlng ls here rlght

now for us to secrtr recocunencledHarry wlth a hollor laugh. Everyone got

into the ears to take shelter frono the hot sun, to retrrn home ernpty

handeil of any breaklng news.

' S e e yo u l a te r. D o o a l L when you bear anything" Let ne know thc

Ieast blt o f l n fo rn a tl o n . Phone lf you Just want to talk about nothl ng

m u o h a t a 1 ,1 rF o ffe re cl }fa ry wtth synpathy.

nMary, vrr€rshoulcl all try relarlng at hone for a whlle. No neecl to

Ilnger around. enpty flelds untlL our nlnils get blown-out of proportlon by

thls wlnil that has alroacty turned, qltr halr-closupslcle clor,vnancl lnslcle out.

UT u s tn o t s ta y tn th l s boillng sun to get fr led to a or lspy noon day l unc h

for t h e g n ats to e a t u s o u t her er ' obser vod' Rober t as he guqncil the engi ne

t o g e t a 1 t re vve d . u P to l e a ve.
nI am yours to oomrnaodrttsn1led fulary weakly slamrnlng the auto door

ancl plaolng her enpty soaia pop bottle on the floorboarcl und'er her seat for

}ater a t th e sa fe w a y deposlt center ( fr ugal Mar y ofton gather ei l

re s a l e
faylor / neafH L2

d. i s c a r i t e d . p o p b o ttl e s b y th e dozen at bus stops to r eileem for show aoney ;

Mary was stlngy b e yo n cl w o rC l s. TIer tr ust fund had not spollecl ln to ex c €s -

s lve s p e n c il n g , n o t Ja d e d N e l m an- tr { ar custaste for thls Ter as gal) .

T h e y o u n g co u p l e s d ,ro ve alr vayfr om the open flelds. Each goi - ng tow ar d

t he i r o w n pl a ce fo r a q u i ck lunch of cold. outs. ldar y anil Rober t then

he a i l e d s o u th o n N o rth C e n tra L Fr pr essway, Thelr oustom or cler ed. fm pal a

kiakcd lnto oyerdlrive, a real gas saver. Suddenll a blg black Cadlillac

I lmo u s i n e pa sse d th e n o n th e nar r ow entr y r amp, hogglng the r oad .. T hs

ohauffeured Il n o u sl n e d ,e tl b e rately for cecl, Rober t alm ost lnto the gutter

o r e l s e a n a co l d e n t w o u l cl h a v e r esulted on the r anp J,eadlng downtow tr o

' r T h a t b l g b l a ck S OB o f a llnouslne ls r eally ln a wlld super fas t

hurry! y e l p cd l fa ry l n sn a rl l n g aggr avatlon at a]- nost belng r un dow n.

"Y e a h , th a t b l g b ta o k l l naouslne ls a pr lvlledged char aoted l n thl s

neck of the woodg. T l s a n a fla car fr on the Deep El.Iun eastslde s tr eet

ga n g . Y o u re ro cn b e r se e l n g a Ll tbose well- dlr essedl nen ln that sle az y ar ea

o f t c m r n g e t l n to th e l r L l n o when we wer € passlng thr ough yester d.ay , dontt

y o u ? n q u e s te d , R o b e rt a g g l ta te tl, not elpectlng an answcr .

*t r { o s t Il ke l y sa mc o rg a n lr eil cr lne buslness that br lngs r acke teer l ng

chleftaln Ilcutenants from here to Texarkana. Thls lclentlole car almost

ran us d.own near Aone Salvage Yardl back ln our dear olil East Texas home-

toran. I o ou l cl n o ve r fo rg e t that llcense tag. Stolen useil oar s ar c r e-

pa l n t e i t a n d re -n u mb e re d l b e fo re selllng to seventeen states. W e hav e al s o

or o s s e c l p a th s b e f o re , re me mber , dlor n ln naf la oapltal Galveston on our

$ p t a s h D a y e n co u n te r l a st tl n e along the Seawall r estaur ant r oltr noney

lnfor nedl
la u n d , e r l n g b u sl n e sse s a n d ca slnos out over the water fr ontr n

Ro b e r t g r t ml y co n ce rn e d , a s they oontlnued' dr lvlng honewar d-

monrents passed slowly for the

The heat of the noon d'ay stressful
the hour ' N othl ng
y o u n g o o u p l e s w h o te l e p h o n e d each other ever y hour on

n e w d e v e l o p e cl .. T h e sa a e o l d thlng of no wor il about Donald.ts belng l oc atei l .

Taylor / DEATH I3

T h e r n y s t e r y l n te n si fl e a l l l ke the long hot weekend.bor e on. fhe T er ar k ana

c o n c l a v e l n D a l l a s h a d b e e n alar ted to the omnlsus sltuatlon, T he d.r eadful

ln f o r m a t l o n h a d n o t ye t b e e n r elated back to the Texar kana klnfol k s , Anc [

for g o o d r e a so n . Ja ckl e re fused to wor r y her par ents with her ow n doubts

futl of wild ooncerns stlll wlthout tangible proof. The pollce dld not

feel Justlfted for alarn of any person really belng lost until the long

we e k e n i l o f f lcl a l l y e n cl e d " . E ver yone usually r etur ns to wor k, ver y l ate,

t lr e t l , a n d a l l " h u n g -o ve r w a s the pclloe ad.v!- ce. Jackle and, Har r y , nonetbe-

Iess, h a c l d.rl vcn i to w n to w n l a ter that after noon to tho r nain pollce s tati on

to f lle a r e l l o rt fo r a n l ssl n g per sono

n f h e la te st a fte rn o o n d .evelopments ar e that .Tackie ancl Har r y dr ov e

d . o w nt o t h e p o l l c e statlon tn person to f ll-e a mlsslng personf s reportrF

an n o u n o e i l M a ry w l th l ro n c re si gnatlon to the pr essing tur n of events that

po o r D o n a l d , h a d l a l a s b e cn ml sslng for nor e than Zf- hour s.

frThe oops aLso told Harry that they thought Donal-cl ls on a long

be n d , e r , a b l g b l n g e o r w l l d toot becausc of the d.lvor ce pr oblen. Oons equent

lX , u n r e q u lte d . Io ve se e tss to be the m ottve for nost donestlo pr obl ens

that the macho pollceman mentallty wants to asslgn to thts klnd of casc.

I h a v e a l r e a i l y ta L ke d to E a rr j on ny CB ln the tr uokr n statecl Rober t s l r npl y .

n Bu t n y A u n t N e ttl e K l -l ne ls the oae who r esponded the m ost odi l of aL1

ln a l o w k e y so rt o f w a y to thls nevts. Nettle Kllne got ver y qul et as a

m o u s e w h e n I to td l h e r. T h e n, she told ne not to be sur pr lsed lf the w or s t

ha p p e n e r l 1 n th l s p e cu l l a r ca se wlth Donaldf e str ange dlsappear anc €. Ses m s

s h e k n o w s s o n e th l n g w l th o u t actually knowlng why. I Just got the fr eak l s h

prenonltlon whlle sh e a n d f wer e talklng that scmething bad ls c onl ng

d o w n o n u s a l l rtf l a me n te d l l l ar y iitstor ting her wor r iecl face.

n y o u al w a ys g e t b a d . vl ves when things d.o not go your way fas t enough,

Taylor / DEATH rI

Ifary. D o n rt g e t a l l u p se t o ver your wildhalr tntuitloor t war ned . R ober t

trylng not to show hls alarmlng fears.

"Robert, the polloe need to get actlve on thls case soon as possible"

Yo u s h o u l d b e a b l e to g e t so ne favor s slnce one of your r el- atlves N or v el l

Wl n n l f o r d , wa s o n ce sh e ri ff o f Dallas County. You sur ely can get s om e

p ro g r e s s s ta rte d . fo r o u r sa tl s faotlon,a ur geil M ar y poutlng her ll ps "

'fVIecoulil vCIry wclI get gg progross lf we harass the wrong people.

G r u c l g e s g e t n a d e th l s w a y. Let weII enough alone wlth the power s that be,

lf ia r yr ' t r e s p o n d e d , R o b e rt o u rtIy .
t t W e L l , e xcu se me fo r tl vlng. l Just fell out of the hear se on the

wa y t o s t o p a fu n e ra L , I stmply want soae ktnd of posltlve r espons e l n-

medlately to thls holy terror we are all sufferlng throughrtf Justlfled

Ma r y i n n o o e n tty u sl n g h e r d ramatlc style.

n A n c t yo u th l n k I d ,o n rtl I know you uant lnstant satlsfaction thl s

mlnuts. J u g t l l ke e va ryth l n g else abouf, your ever y wtr lm. The o nl y thl ng

that y o u o a n d o rl g b t n o ry l s to attend the speclal pr ayer ser vlce" fw o

chqrches are boldlng a prayer vtgll for Donaldts beneflt of a safe returnr"

suggesteil Robert testlly.

T h e de vo u t co u B l e s n e t at the near est ohur ch for the evenln g pr ay er

servLoe. Mo st o f th e frl e n d .s fr on Texar kana attencleCl. Befr lencl ec l as s o-

la t e s a n d r e l -a tL ve s o f l l a rryts famlly wer e ther e, aII thlr d gene r ati on

Da I I a s l t e s . T b l s B a p tl st se rvice was long, lnvolved wlth hol' dlng hand's

uh l l e b e s e ech l n g th e L o rd . to dellver Donald hom e safe and sound to al l

hls l o v e c t on e s. T h e n , a se cond pr ayer ser vlce vr as held at the E pl s c opal

Church where Harry attead.ect. A ten mlnute d.rlve took most of the first

party t o t h e se o o n cl g a tb e rl n g place thls tlne ln the Eclucatlon C enter that

functlons' Thls ser vlce was shor t' s w eet to

Do n a l - d a l w a ys e n Jo ye cl so cl a l

thepglntasSsupportgroupfortheworrleclcouples.
faylor / DEAfH L5

nThe services s e e m e dm o r e l l k e a w a k e f o r a d . e a dm a n o S t r a n g e a n d e e r l e .

t {o r e o f a f u n e ra l e u l o g y th a n a pr ayer ser vice for a safe r etur n of a l ong

I os t l o v e d t o n e rw re n a rke d . l rfar y sbutter lng fr om the chllling effeot of thl s

numblng experlence.
ttyep, lt w a s mu cb .n o re l lke a m enor lal ser vice for a dear ly i l epar ted

one as tf they know somethlng we tlonrtr'agreecl Robert full of hls own

nuLllgrubs.
f t T w o pra ye rfu l se rvi ce s close together wer e alr nost m or e than f c oul i l

b e a r t o s 6 e Ja ckl e e n d u re th e pubtte gr lef r " noted Mar y str etchlng ln

a n e x h a u s t e d l ma n n e r fu l l " o f r ellef that the day was end' lng.

nI am so g]-adthe last servioe was short, slmple to the point. CouLd

no t t a k e t w o o o mp l o te l y l o n g d.r awn- out r ltuals. At least Father Gay l and

p o o l e k n o w s h o w to re a cl a crowil of gr levlng fol- ksr n oolnmenteilRober t r e-

Iteved. to be back hone.

n E a o h se rvi ce w a s d l ffe rent; two dlffer ent wor Lds apar t ln er pr os s l ng

conoern for th e sa n € sl tu a tl o n, r lght her c ln Dallas no less. f s houl d

be awarc way preachers aot weII enougtr slnce qy ol-ilest brother Ra]ph ls a

ml n l s t e r , A Iso r D y o o u sl n R ever enil Doctor BIIIy Har gis founded R ad'1otr 'r ee

Eu r o p e t o r e a ch l a rg e g ro u p s of people. They bave the ear of Go d and the

keys to the eternal klngdon, glvlng us an lnslde tract to dlvlne lnter-

ventlon to brlng Donald safely baok to us, The Lordl really works mkac,ulous

wo n d e r s f o r l o ya l fo l L o w e rsri l utter ed M ar y ln a r ote tone'

. T h e go o d l L o rd ce rta tn l y got the message both tim es, f am sur e today '

le t me tell yo u . T h e fl rst ser vlco was loud enough to get the w or d to tbe

T h e l a st o n e was r ever eatly quiet enough to sult the m os t

h l g h h e a v e ns.
grln'
htgh fornal serlous as a Judge Goilr'reJolcecl Fobert with a
'fl es t
, f T h e p ra ye r se rvl ce a ctually r emlnded ne of an old' - fashloned '
Taylor / UEAra r6

Te x a s c h u r c h n e e tl n g to p ra y for r ellef of no r aln fr onn a long d r ought on

tbe clesert farnland near the ranch my roother gets oll royalltles regularlyn

Re n e m b e r t h e ch u rch w e a tte n ded. when we llved near Lubbock?tt r het or l c al l y

quested Mary ln a noble tone.

rrl)o I ever. The prayers called up a wlndl fuII of sanil" That sanilstorm

wa s t h e w o rst th l n g I e ve r e xper ienoed tll thls wor r isom e plight ov er

Do n a 1 d . A tcrn a cl o l s n o t h a lf so bacl as a b]lndlng sanclstor m. Sc ens that

the human eye woulil nud ov6r, Bet boggeil d.ounrshut, fron all the blowing

farm soll l n th e a L r,tr l a u g h ecl Rober t attempting to br lng r oir tb to the

g ra v e m o o d .
o A h , I a n n o t i n th e n o oil to be olr eer eil up by wltty obser va tl ons .

L e t r s g o t o b e i l , f o rg e t tb e whole wlile wor lil f or a change tonlghtr " s ug-

g e s t e c l M a r y w i th a tw l n kl e o f ur genoy to her denr :r e eyes anil lllting v ol c e .

n s w e e te r sl u o b e r o f th l n e and nlne ls batter for daiLy allnents than

aI I the rest tn th e w o rL i l to nlghtr w cooeil Rober t uslng hls Shake s poar ean

pentaneter cadenoc reaillng tone whloh workect lts oharns on Mary.

' r W e n e e d . to g e t p h ysl ca t af ter suoh a long har angue of thls dl ay t s

heLllsh llvlng n l g h tn a re . I Just clontt under stand why bad thlngs happen

to godly peopLc lllre uer'nodestly respondedMary falllng full- of exhaustlon

onto the bedlo

The nlght passeil into nornlng wlth no nore news fron Donald. lrforgan

h ir n s e l f . D a rru no f a n o th e r d a y br ought mor e of the sane oLd aaxleti es to the

Da I I a s c o u pl e s fro o T e xa rka n a. llhelr fr tenitshlp was belng put to the tes t

of t h e l r s h a re cl e n d u ra n o s. Thls new nor nlng was Just as heated wl th l n-

tenslty a n d h o t te n p e ra tu re s as the pr evlous ones hail been.

, r l c e i l co ffe e !s e xa ctl y what hlts the spot on a nor nlng tlke tb1s ,'?

y a w n e d M a r y w l th sl e e p y e ye s vshlle r ubblng her faceo

, , I i e r e f s yo u r fa vo rl te china cup with lt{ ar y B enposseil on lt, !{y Sw eet

by thelr getti-ag
l,ovellnegs,o sighed.Robert with a f irn smile, restored
nhvgieal to relleve the tenslons of the i[ay"
Taylor / DHATII L7

nYou... you have alread.y gotten clressed, been outside while f was

stlll s o u n d a sl -e o p ? t' q u e stl o necl lfar y wlth obvlous sur pr lse.

n f n d e od , a l l d re sse i l a n cl ever ythlng qutetly ear ly. I went bac k to

t h e $ e v e n - s l e ve n co n ve n l e n ce stor e wher e Donald was last s6en, ) -ear ned

that t h e s kl n a y a tte n d a n t d .fd r emember aeour ately a young r nan on a H ar l ey -

Da v l d . i s o n . T h e o l e rk d e scri bed Donald oompletely to a T as a guy w tr o s ai al

h e w o u l d , r l de a ml l e fo r a L ucky Str lke clggy- buttr " softly stated. R ober t

g rl n n l n g a n d p ro u d o f h l n se l f.

L { a r y o o u l ,cl h a rd l y w a l t to oall her fr lencl Jackle, to tell the l ates t

tgrn of events. Keeplng a secret was never an easy thlng to do, especlally

no t h l n g n u st b e b e l .d b a ck to day. The ellgbtest fact of a pr ogr es s r epor t

wo u l i l b e a p p re e l a te d b y a IJ. ooncer ned. fr lends. M ar y anx!ousLy, eager l ,y ,

dla l e d t h e fa ml l l a r te l e p h o n e number .
' r I a c l c l e , o h Ja o kl e , d .o I evei bave some good newg. Rober t has J us t

re t r a c e c l a l l tb e ste p s th a t Donald took to the Seven- fiIeven. Yes , R ober t

u s e d h l s t on g w tn d e i l skl l l to } ear n mor e lnfor natlon fr on the sk l nny c l er k

wh o l a s t s a w D o n a }d b u yl n g a pack of Luckysr r eager ly announcedlM ar y at

gettlng to dellver brandl new facts.that Robertrs pal-aver pald off .

r r N o n e e i l to ke cp tra o kl e on the phone ver y loag. The pollce nay neec l

t o c o n t a c t h e r a g a tn r" u rg e d Rober t softly whtsper lng ln llar yr s ear that

wag free.
' r G o o d b ye fo r n o w , Ja ckle ilear . Rober t ls calltng Ine. You c l o c al l

ne f or anythlng at allrff pressed tfary eincerely.

, r T h e ne w s th a t w e h a ve s tlll does not Look good. Donald has not y at

shown up on hls own. Harry even went back to the vacant lot to take

a n o t h e r l o ok. T h e n , h e w a l ked. aII over that place Just ln case he c l l d not

Ilar r y also w al k ed fr on
s p o t s o n e cl u e w h e n w e w e re alL out ther e at noon.
 Tay lor / ur;.gfg x"8

t h e S e v e n - E l e ve n b a ck to th e atr r ar tment, to look for som ething pe r haps

d . r o p p e t l o n th e stre e t su ch a s finillng the package of Luoky Str lke s c l ga-

rettes throrrvn down by Dona1il. That whole illscarcled. pack was found by

Ha r r y t h l e mo rn l n g e a rl y, th e only ar tlfact possibly bel"onglng to D onal c l r n

in f o r r a e d R o b e rt w l th a so n b er tone to hts volce and a gr av€ look on hi s

s a d .f a c e .
' r H o p e l s a L I w e h a ve l n flnd.lng Donald. The nisslng per sonf s bur eau
ln Dallas works wlth the FBI, Thls d,oesnot seemyet to be a federal cass.
No t h l n g c a n b e cl o n e a cco rd l n g to the latest lnfo that lftnkle got fr om hi s
ne w s w i r e c o n n e ctl o n s a t th e pollce statlon. W lnkle or r unsa cbaln of s m aLl
t o w n n e w s p s B e r s a n d .o a n g l e a n a f e w f a c t s a t a t l n e w l t h o u t belng unethlcal,
reporteil Robert itutlfully.

"By the way, Nettle Kline wants us to come to her house for late
b ru n c h . f h e n , sta y fo r L u n ch. She ls wor r ledl about tr s, not keepl ng our

strength up d u rl n g th l s o rd ,ealr tt lnfor nec!. M ar y on the nove to ge t her

o a r k e y s f or th e cl rl ve f o u r blocks to her auntt s house and then d .r l v e to

see Jackla.
t r I t l a l t r.P . We b e tte r g e t ohanged.lnto flner y, all clr essed up pr oper ,
fit to kllt when lnvlteit to dlne at Nettle Kllnet s. You know her elegant
style for slnple th l n g s. [d u st also dr lve the sky- blue Cadlllac to be
really flucey, put on the dog oompletelyrr cautloned Robert emphatlcally,

wls e l y b a s ed o n p ro to co l fro m past spur of the m oment or sasual l nv l tatl ons

at Nettie Kllner s houso"

rVerllyr gou speak the truth. A woril to the wlse ls sufficLent... yag

ln il e e d y . Al w a ys co rre ct n o t to hur r y headlong lnto br eaohlng r ule s of

c on d "u c t o r an y fo rn a l l tl e s a t Auntie Nettle Kllnef s place wlth my hanr n-

s c a r u n w a y srt a sse n te d Ma ry sim m er lng d.ownfr om her scur r ylng sty l e.

Taylor / D&ATTT 19

I'Drive the truek, your cLassic Doilge, to park out front. Maybe to ln

the 0pel statlon wagon or the Peugeot as }iuropean vehlcles can squeeze lnto

any snall s p a ce l n D a l l a g rn tJoked. I' r far yB snlcker lng ln Jestlng fun about her

aunt Nettlef g proprlety"

Nettle Kllne B u ffl n g to n Luopkln Bemy Melton W lnkler llved i n a dol l

house styled dwel1"lng that had been f eatured ln GARDENS

ffiTTSk"EO'ME$AN0

m a g a z l n e o T h e p l ctu re sq u e a bod.ewas bullt on a hllloek onwhloh eac h r oofl t

wa s o n e s t e p u B r,rn rdl n a sp l ral swlr l ar ound the sloplng ter r ain. T he

a ro h l t e c t u r a l a tmo sp h e re o f the lr yboLeplace was one elegance ml ngl ed. w l th

sophistlcatecl lelsure graceo Nettle KIlne was always oalled by her ilouble

flrst nane because she hacl narrlecl, so aany tlmes ln Texarkana that no one

ooulil remenber exactly whlch current l-ast weildecl surnane to use ln any

address to her, eleven narrlages total for Nettle Kllne (Nettlet s nother

ha d " n a r r i e d . n l n e tl me s, h a vl ng ohlldr en by each nan r ,vtr ooshe outll v ec l ) .

Aunt Nettle Kllne llved ln the best of all posslble worlds. She was one

o f t h e b e a uti fu l p e o p l e a ccor dlng to the posh wtr lr l of her Jet- set l l fe.
t f A u n t N e ttl e Kllne u se d to be poor as a ohur ch mouse her self befor e

s h e m a r r l e c l e l e ve n tl me s to dlffer ent r loh nen to get all this gr eat l unr r y

for herself to enJoy. She keeps all her property in a separate named ac-

c o u n t f r o m Wl n kl e r sr'r tl tte re d lfar y wlth a gtddy str eak to her n er v ous nes s

as s h e p a r k e d a t th e cu rb l n fr ont of her auntr s hom e, clr lvlng the other

mo T e s p o r t y C a d l l }a o a o l o re cl stee]. gr .ay to natch her olothlng.

t r K n o ck, kn o ck, w h o t s th er ela squealed a volce on the other s i d.e of

t h e h e a v y ou tsi i l e d ,o o r fro n tl ng the slanted lar m .

n t h e b i g b a d w o l f, b e tter known as the Phantom Klller booger m an fr onn

f e x a r k a n a r r t b a rke d R o b e rt w l th a dellber atb noocl of ser ious qulet fun w hl l e

la r r g h l n g s ud d .e n l y a t h l s frl voIlty.
Taylor / DEAfi{ 20

mGet your ornery bad self rlght lnslde here thls very mlnuterr caekleil

Au n t N e t t i e Kllne w l th a w l l cl eyecl ].ook of concer n on her star tled fac e.

'rYou klds nust really be down ln the clwnps to d.reilge up that old

Te x a r k a n a Ph a n to n K l l L e r d e a dly stuff fr om your Iong past but ten der

chlldhood daysril further qulpped Nettle KIlne more anxlous).y.

f l n c l e e cl , w 6 h a ve b e e n thlnklng about all the connecttng odd .l tl es of

Donaldts strange cllsappearanceo It all has a vaguel.yfamlllar rlng to lt.

E s p e o l a L l y fo r u s n a tl ve so u ls fr om notor lous Texar kana Ar k- la- Te x ar ear n

a d r n i t t e d R o b e rt w l th a sl u n p l ng of hls shouliler s.
t t l n c l e e d y, p e rn a n e n t stra nge d,lsappear anoes of loved ones ar e a eom m on

occ u r r e n o e fo r d .e o a d ,e sb a ck ln the Ar k- La- Tex ar ear n agr eecl Mar y w i th a

oolil shlver e ffe ct to h e r b o d,Y.

nldore people tllsappear fron Texarkaaa than anywhere else ln tha whole

U.S. of A. Tls not a gocd thlng as no onc ls really safe thererfr enllghtene,

Ro b e r t w l t h i l .e e p o o n ste rn a ti o n on hls faooo

trexarkana nafta has everythlag Luoratlve sewed,up. The nob gets its

1 l;a ya s a s ha i l o w fo rce ktl Il n g a favor lto lnnooent r eLatlve, to teac h a

le s s o n t o t h e su ffl o l e n tl y scar ed sur vivor s when e dleal goes sour or a

wa y w a r c l o l l e n t tri e s to g o str algbtr F conm ented.ldar y wlth a shr tl L hl gb

volce.
nrlrst h a n ct, I i l o kn o w onLy too well that a noneynaklng blg pr ofl tabl e

s u c e e s s r e q u l re s cl o l n g so me klnd of buslness cleal- lng wlth the or ganl z ec l

m.a f i a f a n l l l es l n fcxa rka n a , all flve nob gr oupsr r chlm neil- ln Ne ttl e Kl 'l ne

m o v l n g h e r h e a cl u p a n d tl o w n llke bobblng for apples.

n N o o ne o a n tn cl e p e n cl e nt) - yoper ate a successful establlshnent ln

t e x a r k a n a w l th o u t fl rst d .e a llng wlth the nafla ttlr ectly or lndlr ec tl y . I

b e o a u se n y fa ther owned'an automotlve r epair ser vi c e on N ew

know very well
Taylor / DEATTI 2L

Bo s t o n R o a i l fo r d e ca d e s. I helped- out at the shop when the swee t tal k l ng

g o o n s c a m e o u r w a y. T h e y u sed tbe nlcetles of Chr istlan platitudes to

talk rellglous g o o d , n e s sl n a s e l f - s e r v l n g way that you learn to hate aLl

n a n n e r o f th e l r b ra n cl o f p re teosoo Can s€e lt cor nlng at the ope n d.oor ,

ea s y t o r e c o g n l ze o n ce a l e rte d,o These sweet talklng hypocr lts w r eok hav oo

on llves o f o th e rs w h i l e co ver lng thelr our a dlr ty tr acks that the l aw c an

never touoh the gullty, oF woaf trn conternptuously avoweil Mary wlth her

a n g e r b u i L dl n g w l th e a ch w o rd, as neck vlens tur ned pur ple.

nDlrty d e a l tn g s g e t re w ar ds whea tb.e fear faotor ls lnvolved . T hus ,

Do n a l i l t s s t ra n g e cl l sa p p e a ra n ce has a pathetloally far nlllar @{ 8 oper aEdl

rin g to it. l fa ryrs mo th e r e speclally should under stancl the slgns . T he

f a n c l l y h a s a )-o n g h l sto ry l n fexar kana. Consequeatly, a hor r lblo r un- l n

with nafla powers-that-be wlthln the twln clty kllIed a relatlve. Maryrs

g ra n c l f a t h e r H a rg l s o u n e d th e Nash bank. Ee offende< l the nafla b os s es . Oae

o f b l s d l a u g h te rs cl l sa p p e a re d f or ever whlle ln a movle houge, ln fac t tbe

P a l a c e ! n Da l .l a s. N e ve r a traoo founcl of her bodlyr w elabor ated[ Rober t as

t h o u g t r s o l vl n g a o a sc b y p u ttlng pleces together .

n M y c l ea r Mo th e r F l o rl n e was seated. r lght next to her slster w ho di s ap-

p e a r e i l f o r e ve r rl g b t th e re fron her slcle. The slster s went to s ee a c l nem a

a t t h e Pa l ace T h e a te r h e rs l n Dall- as whlle on a buylng sptee at Netm anf s

b a c k 1 n t h e I9 2 0 ts, su sp o se c lly far aacl safc fr on the Texar kana mafi ar r r

e lu c l d a t e d Ma ry w tth rrl d e n l n g eyeft"and nostr lls f lar lng.

rTetarkana mafla settles old over-d,ue soores by arranglng mlshaps to

t h c n o s t b e l o ve d me n b e r o f the fanlly, One- car aeclctents ar e typl c al

ha n i l l w o r k . S tra n g e i l i sa p p e a tances ar e a polnted. lesson to the sur v l v s r s

to step back ln llne, o ! e l ser w ad.mlttedl.Nettle Kl- tne with a r eluc tanc y

to utter the woril nafla very J-oud'

Taylor / DF^{fH 22,

' r D o n o t fo rg e t yo u r o th er ner t d,oor neighbor lf.D. Hudson who founded,

a e h a i n o f Au to n o tl ve P a rts stor es ln the Ar k- la- Tex ar ea. He vt as ac c us ed

b y t h e L o e a l T e xa rka n a co u n tr y club r um or nllI gosslps, wtr o know ev er y thl ng

lo n g b e f o r e th e o ffl o l a l w o rcl comes out, of belng the Phantor nKIII€T r tl

f ur t h e r r e m a rke d R o b e rt w i th flr n convlctlon.

I h a d fo rgotten about those viclous r umor s to r ul n hl s

"A y e t e th a t.
rep u t a t l o n cl rcu l a te i l b y th e or ook school elenent of the countr y c l ub. My

n ie c e G a y l o re fu se d . t,o n a rry the father of her baby Last year beoaus e hl s

f ath e r i s a ma fl a ra cq u e te e r boagl.n Ter ar kana. Gayle dlcl not wa!,t to Il v e

that k l n d o f fe a rfu l l l fe styl e . Sbe Just d"uckedout by suppltnS ex ous es

, ry gasplng ln ilecp swallowing gulps for al r -

n o t t o o f f e n cl rn a o o e d ,e clMa
nThs Rl-tehl,e . prod.uce supply company ln Texarkana may have gomehow offentlecl

o f the or ganlzed cr lne ]- eacler s" Pltlful D onal d'r s

t he g r o s s se n srl b tl l tl e s

notherrs e R l tch fs..E e r b ro ther r ow oper ates the fanl) .y buslness ther er 'r

further speculatedl Bobert wlth a long face as he looked around. at everyone

ln t h e ! o o n .
*Ah, hB, our famlly and good. frlends all have nany loose ends to the

thrlve constantly ln Texarkana' compllcatedl o]-ose

murclerous f orces that
0ne- ear accldents pr ov l d'e
pe r s o n a L t l e s 1 l n k g o o d p e o p le to batl folks.

y e t a n o t h e r € a 3 y n e a n s to sn uff out the unsuspeotlng r elatlvas a s s al 'l

wor d to the fanlr y sur vlvor g that the

be f o r e , t o g e t b a ck th e d l rty-btr d
FatI lnto llne or elser n lnpar ted the
p h a n t o m h a s l n d e e i t stru e k a g ein.

ne w s a s R o be rt L a u g b ,e db. a l f-h ear te<11- y telLlng tbe str ange oonnec tl ons of

thls ourrent oase.

H T h a t rs T a te rka n a fo r you, to use a safe dlr ty pool- plox that $ttII

t h e p o l l ce re co ri l . AIr accldent or a suiclile appear snce nev er gets

satlsfy
r ouch less ever solveil' legal i us tl c e
a n u r d e r o b,a rg e to b e l n ve stl gatecl,
fanlr les ln fexar kana. Tbey mlngl e l nto
s e l d o n g e t s cre a rt to th e n a fla
Taylor / oeetH 23

the local hlgh soclety. The nafla profess deepLy reJ,lglous convLctlons,

t o b l e n c l l n to th e n a l n stre a l l llfe style, Thatr s why I stay far aw ay

from anyone oonnectlon to the ctty oouncll or polltlcs thereo Rtght nowt

I m u s t g o se rve so me g o o i l e a ts to ever yboilyr w lanented Nettle Klt ne as

she exltetl the roon to step d,ownwardarouncl the sloplng floor toward the

kitcben. Food snells f lIIed the house'

ftYou know what the good hlgh-churchedl people ln Texarkana say about

a ll thls b a d n e ss. T h e y ta l -k about your Aunt Nettle Kllne, bacl m outhl ng

h e r s h e n a n lg a n s !o d 'l ffe re n t fr on the nafla?" or ated' Rober t posln g a l ow

wh l s p e r me n ti o n l n g a l l th e f anlLy slcelcton hlstor y.

*0f course, I know what goos oa. I donrt llve ln a Yacuum' I clonrt

s t a y u n i l e r a ro ck a n d I d o n f t hlde m y head ln the sand. Nettle K l l ne ls

simply way aheail of her tlne, beyond the tlnres ln baokward Sast Tcxas.

But gossLps had rath€r l'lsesely talk about a flasby Lady who ilrlves plnk

Ca d l l l a o s l o n g b e fo ro Ma ry K ay dld r ather than r lsk offendlng the c l oubl - e

c ro s s l n g n a fi a b o sse g b y e ve n m entionlng that mobster s existr e fl nl s hec t

lv fa r y l n h u s b e C ltsn e g r u e l n g hand geetur es to close Rober tf s llps.

n C a n r t sh u t n e u p n o w thet I hnve Just got star ted scelng al l the

f a m i l , y c o n 3e ctl o n s to th e i l e vlous Texar kana mafla tles to us follc s 11v l n6

he r e i n D a IIa s. yo u r A u n t N ettle KLlne has the most closo conne otl ons to

interests of the Terarkana nnfla. She owned a chaln of honlcy

the far-flr:sg

tonks d.urlng world wer Ir. Blacknarket gooiLs were stol,on from the arsenal

anrmunltlsn warehouses near Texarkana. Tho contraband ltems were ped-

dle d f r o m h e r n l g h tcl u b s to the r lcb folks ln Texar kana countr y ol ub s et,

wh t c h l s c r o o k sch o o l a s sa i d. bofsr e. The Phanton KlLLer mur der s pr ee

to settle olr ii scor es. Your aunt wlsel y s ol d

starteil after w o rl d . w a r II
the same clay. she truly had' to leave town fast
out one hontcy tonk twlce
fro m th at shady dealr r explained' Rober t ln hoar s e
ah e a d . o f t be sb e rl ff

whlspers.
Taylor / DT,ATH 24

"How can you slt here ln her house enJoylng her hospltaltty and

t h e n s a y s u ch b a d th i n g s a b o ut the sweet per son who loves us all v er y

m u c h , ? ' ra n g r i l y a ske d Ma ry p u lllng awalo

rI g u e ss I h a ve l e a rn e d how ts be ciouble handed., snlde to a w or c l

lea r n e d f r o n r e ve ryo n e w i th somethlng to hlde. Thatt s belng a tr u e- bl ue

Texarkana baby for you. Besldes, I an not aocuslng Nettie Kllne to her

face or ln a oourt of law, I anr talklng ).ow, not louil enough tones to

a n n o u n c e t o th e w o rl d a l l - h e r past lndlser etlons. f am only talk i ng to

Vo u , l f a r y , a s n y w l fe l n a fanlly that bear s all our soul to each other

t ru t h f u l l y . . . n o ma tt€ r h o w n ur ky or evll. Thls ls Just your ole l s ht Ey

lnn e r s e l f ta l kl n g to yo u r my Sweet Lovellness. I,etf s step out o nto the

hll l o c k t e r r a o e w tth th e sn a lL baloony to get sone good fr esh alrr n nuz z Led

Ro b e r t a s he p u t h l s a rn a ro und. hls wlf e, gulcllng her outsld.e lnto the

wln d y a t m o sp h e re o f N e ttl e K lLnef s d.ol- L house nanslono

"Truthful tal-k e ould ruln everythlng gooil that I now have golng with

ny A u n t N e ttl e Kllne b y p u ttl ng on your wlndy self- r lghtesus alr s , Ioos e

Lips oould get her last wllL and testanent ohangecl. }ly own mother ilesplser,

Ne t t i e Kllne e n o u g h fo r th e both of us, exaotLy for all the salle r eas ons

y o u J u s t s t a te ct. I a n tru L y awar e of all oltl tlme gor y histor y she has .

Ke e p l t all q u l e tl y h l d d e n l n the hor r lble past, for m y sake, Ro ber t,n

urged. Mary B anxlouslY"

n T h e h o rrl d p a st l s fa g t r eappear lng to have oause and effec ts on

pr e c i s e l y w h a t l s h a p p e n l n g to us atl r lgbt now, hauntlng tLneso Yet,

y o u w a n t t o g e t o n th e g o o d side of yoLlr Aunt Nettle Kllne and stay ther e '

to lnherit h e r p ro p e rty. tl l oney ls god tn Dallas. Atl nlne of her bl g

d la m o n d r l n gs a re o n e b l g fo rtune alone. Nettle Kllne nay lndeec l bav e

to d .a y by nar r ying or de lvtnkr e ffr nkr er wlth hl s hun-

soclar r e s p e cta b trl ty
Taylor / Pslrn 2f

d . r e d s o f n l lL i o n s ca sh . S h e ls a valued. nenber of the tfor Ld San pl er s

Country CIub of the air, Jet-setters with an airplane for thelr club house.

The glarlng truth ls stitl before ycur eyes; lust for m o n e yn a k e s a J a d e d

an i l d e e a d . en t o h a ra cte r o f o u r souJ.r tr contlnueil Rober t ln a taspy w hl s per o

I I A I I t b a t g o o d y-tw o -sh o es stuff ls well known to ne, but no ney l s

what oounts ln tbe real. world. Be qulet about Nettlets character, be con-

g e n l a l - Bl e a se , o h p re tty p L ease for ny sake. You have tr ust fund s antl a

do z e n l n h e r lta n o e s a l re a d y w lth nuoh mor e yet to helr . W e ar e n ot the

rlc h e s t l n th e w o rL d w h e re b l g spend.er s get all the attentlon. D o not

c le s t r o y n y ch a n ce s f o r a b l g lnher ltanoer n pleaded. M ar y ner vously .

r r l l e a r tse o u t, Ma ry, Y o u ar e v6r y olose em otlonally to Dona l d. M or gan

o f o o u r s e a n d to yo u r A u n t N ettle Kl1ne vlbo loves her llttle llar y B. l l k e

the chlld sh e n e ve r h a d ,, Y o u have a loor al c.holce.", A ver y flne l l no oon-

ne o t l o n a f t er all d ,o e s e xl st to the Texar kana nafla vla her honly tonk

ila y s . T h l s !s su b tl e re a so n enough for the od.cldlsappear ance of D onal d,

to connoct all th e p a a t tro u blesone slns to our pr esent d.ilem m a. T he

na f l a r s L o ng a rm o f o rg a n l ze d. cr lne never Lets up when manna ls l or d r n

el- a b o r a t e d . R o b e rt p u ttl n g all the pleces of tbe puzzlenent together l nto

wo n d s r t g h t to th e P o i n t'
n Sl l e n ce l s g o l d ,e n o r g olden oppor tunlty. Never and I say n ev er nenti on

thts conversatlon to anyone ln Dallas. Letts get back lnslde, out of thls

wln d t h a t is stro n g e n o u g h to knock down a br lok waLl. I almost pr efer a

bl- u e - a o r t h e r e o l d sp e l l to thls bllster lng hot wlnd.r fi r ebuffecl lfar y ,

headlng toward the glass doors to get back lnslde. Nettie Kllnef s volce

was calllng to then wlth the fan.lllar klddy rslll€sc

that Har r y has Sone bac k

"I f e y r V Ou kl i l o e s, tra o kl e Just oal]ect to say
al r ead'y
t o N o r t h p ark a re a to sh o w p ollce detectlves exactLy what be has
Taylor / OfrtfH 26

d!scovered or uacoveted nothing at aII. Jackle has teLephoned her mother

to say that Dona1d ls lndeed. mlsslng. Not showlne up anyvrhere, even at hj-s

bossr party all employees are expected to attendrwas the flnal straw that
b r o k e t h e c a m e l t s b a c k o f h e r h o p e a g a l n s t h o p e r n a n n o u n c e dN e t t l e Kllne

loudly tc be heard.above the rislng wlnd on the patlo terrace.

iNothlng p o sl tl ve h a s b een found yotr t m oenedMar y .outtlng her r l ght

h a n d .o n h e r f o r e h e a d .
tfNo news ls sonetlnes the best news ln situatlons like thisr[ supplled

Robert haltingly as the phone rang onc6 more, Ioud.ly, shutting the door.
'fHello, Nettle KIlne speaklngrr? answeredAunt Nettle eaEerl-y ln a

loud vocal nervousness, expectlng the worst.

n l , { o r e n e w sy d e ve l o p me n ts. Hopefully good thts tlnner n anxlou s l y r es pond.

ed.Mary, wrlnglng her hands, looking at Aunt Nettle, holdlng the phone.

"Good, I wlII reLay the message. Bye. Slt downr Xou two. The

sherlffrs i le p u ty Ju st ca l l e d .. M lnutes ago, the Har ley was found unec k ec l on

the knoll o f a sl -o p i n g d l tch ln the r nlddle of the vacant fleld wher e al l

o f y o u a l r e a d y s a l d . w a s s e a r o h e d s e v e r a l t i m e s r t ' a n n o u n o e dN e t t l e Kllne

forLornly and slowLy slttlng.

t r l o r d , y me rcy. N o n e o f us safe anynor e fr on som ething bad happenl ngr n

s n a p p e i l l d a ry w l tb a sh ri e k l oslng her new- f ound' hope.

r t 0 a l m d .o w n , d .e a re st. P r omise me that both of you wlII never go any

p l _ a c e a l o n e, e vo r. Y o u r p rl a t shop and. ailver tlslng com pany ar e not a s afe

ha v e n . An d n e ve r g o se p a ra te) .y for your lillster Bob Par ty Plannln g bus l nes s

clients when you get al-I d,ressed-up in top hat, tle and talls. Unsafe ever

t o g o a n y wh e re a p a rt fo r a n y r eason. The pollce cannot glve ar ou nd the

cLock protsctlon, canrt be everywhere aII the tlme as you have obviously

Justreallzed.,ncleclared'NettleKllnedrylyrbutforcefully'
',If this klnd of horrlble tragedy can happen to good people llke us,
Taylor / DEATH 27

t b e n n o b o d y l s re a l l y sa fe a nyr adr er eat any tiner ' f r nutter ed M ar y al m os t

ln a gwoon.o
ftsafety is not the blg concern at thls monent, Sweetle-ple, We un-

fortunately l l ve l n d a n g e ro u s tlmes. Your olcl gr andr nother Har gls l n the

l9 2 q f s c o u l d n o t u se h e r o w n vast lnfluence to br lng back her dlg appear ed

da u g h t e r . H e r fa th e r w a s th e r enownecl 0llver lYendell Holmes, Junl or . He

wa s C h l e f J u stl ce o f th e U n l ted States Supr ene Cou3t, dolng no gooi l w hen

t ra g e c l y s t r l ke s. P ra y h a rd e r for the Lor df s pr otectlon, to dellve r us fr om

ha r m f I w a y rft l mp l o re d a u n t N ettle KLlne, fuII of anxlety f or her s el f .

th ro u g h a l o t of nnlsfor tune wlth gr eat per sonal dl gni ty

"s u f f e r l n g
ge t s p o l n t s w l th Go d ," Go d h as glr ca m y kln wor ldly weaLth and

posltlon, a}as, for a1l the tragecly belng net wlth dl8nlfted. grace,

pr o m p t s d M ary sh o w l n g so me rslief.
rrWealth ls not muoh of a grancl prlze reward. for personal traged.y.

lvloney may pacl,misery by golag on a shopplng splee, but glltzy thlngs do

no t m a k e - u p fo r }o ve d . o n e s l ong gone. All Dallas ellte know thls fr on

t h e r e o e n t b u rg l a rl e s l n to their hones. fhe Jaok of Dlam onds Je w el thl ef

br e a k s l n , o n l y to g te a L th e best of the flner y and thr owlng onto the fl oor

d . l a m o n d . sw ith a fl a w . T l s a lnost an honor to be bur gled by the c r ook . I

ha v e t o k e e p n y p re tty Je w e ls lockecl. away ln a bank vault, seLclom to enJ oy

wearlng !n publlc,rt reported Nettle Kllne with a hlnt of d.esperation'

ilpretty sa d co n n e n ta ry on our soclety that llfe ls fuLl of m any deadl y

plt-fa1ls. AII out Ilves are merely a Jalthouse oondlltlon to be secured

away fronr thleves. Each of us end,ure a helltsh f orm of housebound ln-

' fr ledar e not go placesdr tpplng ln i l l am ond's r n
p r i s o n n e n t w h e n w e a rl n g fl n e r y.

d.isclosed Mary unhapplly )-ooking at her large sparkllng d.ianoncl rings'

rfFear aot. The llkes of me belng around wlth ny loacled' guns wlII

pr o t e e t y o u rtr te a se d . R o b e rt tr ylng to change the m ood.

Ta y l o r / DnAm 28

ttl,lke a breath of fresh alr ln ny breezy llfe, Vou are Robert,

talklng t h e e a r s o f f a n y m u l e h e a d . e db o r e r ' r J e s t e d N e t t i e Kline attenpting

t o c h a n g e t h e n o o d fo r Ma ry.
i r N o i l ea d , b o d y h a s b e e n found.r Xet. That ls lnd.eed ver y goo d n e v , | s ,t t

contlnueil Robert trylng to anphasize the posltlve aspects of thls ilreadful

sltuatlon.

"I g ! l s th e ke y w o rd , l n thls str ange case because Har r y and R ober t

bo t h w a l k e cl o a re fu l l y o ve r e ver y lnch of tb,at vacant fleld yesterday l n

t be b r o i l l n g h e a t. T h ,e y fo u nd nothlng. No tr ace of tlr e tr acks out ther e

ln t h e s a n il . T l s a sn ,e l L y fl sh ln the deep blue s€a of tr oubles about

thls t u r n of e ve n ts" B e tte r get back out to Nor th Par k, to glve m or al

s u p p o r t t o tra ckl e a n d H a rryri l ur gecl Mar y for cefulLy ollnglng to her ol d

fears o f e x p e ctl n g th e w o rst.

tfNo deacl body cloes nean no orlminal- charge can ever be nade. That

does foL1ow a fantllar Inttern of sortsrn further statecl Nettte Kline

sof tly to Roberto

nlrfust hurry to drlve baok to the Harley scene of all tbr strange

happenlngs. I4 l g h t L e a rn th e tr uth toclayr r t infor neil Rober t openln g the

d o o r l - e a i l l n g to th e d rl ve w a Y .
r t Y e a , a g o o d . l d .e a . R o b er t alr ead.y went back to the Seven- 61ev en

earLy thts mornlng as he sald. He Lnterrogated. the cashler wlth hls

f rt e n d l - y ga b u n tl l D o n a Lclr s menor y got r esur r ected., klnd of. tfor e

d.e t a l l s t h a n o n e a b o u t h l s b uylng a paok of Luckys, then r ldlng of f tov m r d

t h e a p a r t n en t co n p l e x," su p p l- led M ar y tboughtfully as they all wal k ed to

the automobile whlle Nettie Kline followed.

r B u o k u p , ro u g b rl d e rs know to be good soldier s in the tough fi eht

assu$ect' Robert honestty squeezing the arm rest on

of Life's battlesrn

the car door.

Taylor / onerH zg'

i t G o o d n sss sa ke s, th l s h lgh wind is blcwlng ny mlnd wid.e open or

lnside out. Afl thls hot steamy gusts glve us the vaporsr'f lnslsted Mary
w i t h r e n e w e d ,v i g o r f r o n h e r d e J e c t i o n m o m e n t so g o o

"G l v e n e yo u r p ro rn i se . PLease stay away fr om tr ouble, You tw o ean

b e t o o f r l e nd l ).y fo r yo u r o w n gooil wlth str angar s. See what lt aLl l ed

to with D o n a l d t w h e n h e w a s o ut alone. Go nowwher e by ycur selves at any -

tlme. You all a r e t o o p r e c l o u s f o r m e t o l o s e X o u , t o o r n w a r n e c lN e t t l - e

KI l n e l n c e ssa n t}y a s R o b e rt and Mar y exlted the cur b, pulllng au r ay tow ar d

t h e f r e e w u Y e n try ra mp .

T h e i l r l ve o u t N o rth o e n tral Expr essay to Loop LZ seem ed to tak e m uc h

longer than usual. The nood was tense, llfeless fee}lng. No ldle ccnver-

satlon. T he h o t a l r b l o w l n g acr oss the open wlndows took the vital tty out

of efforts to b e h a p p ry o r e v en optlm lstlc. The heat of the sun ny i l ay ti noe

e v e n t s h a d b e g u n to ta ke a tolL on ever yone conaer neil wlth the wor r y . T he

notorcyole b e i n g fo u n d w h e re sear oh par tles had been sever al tlmes di d

no t b e t p t h e te n g i o n , Il o p e was fast cllsappear lng. The Car uth m ans l on

loo m e c l l n t he i l L sta n ce o s R o ber tr s lef t. Nor thpar k MaIl to the f or egr ound,

cane In view. T h e e xp re ssw ay dlvlded the lanclsoape for the new yet to be

bullt Presbyterlan llospltal- site on the deadly fleld full of deep gulllos.

Th e v i e w w as p re tty d .e so l a te thls tlne for tho young couple. Dal l as J us t

no l o n g e r se e me d th e l r kl n d of town. Not the per fect placa to be after al l .

perfecttcn of the good ltfe was not evldent to the young folks' Sorrow

wa s t h e b l g b L a ck p a l l e n g u )-flng thalr llves thls day.

t r T h e r e g o e s th a t b i g b L ack l- funouslneagaln fr om Deep Ellum . Al f tbe

oth e r o r g a n l ze d , ra cke te e ri n g fanllles head.quar ter ther e. Guess they ar e

cond.uctlng buslness as usual ln the fast lane. The garnent illstrict fron

he r e t o G a lve sto n a n d b a o k to Texar kanar ogolnr tt comm entedRobert w i th

slow clellberat lon.

Taylor / D.BATIi ')o

r r T h e1 l n o c c u l d b e c i r c l l n g back, returning to the scene of the

c ri n e t o c h e ck o u t h o w n a n y cop car s show- up for a sim ple unknow n hoar etow n

boy fronrLittle Chlcagor alals Texarkanar" lnjected Mary witb a quivering

vo106,
'Need not fear the worst, yet. N o d , e a db o i l y h a s b e e n r e p o r t e d . r n e o m -
f o r t e i l R o b e r t t o t h e b e s t o f h l s o w n d . e s p o n i l e n ta b l l l t y .
' r l V o r st l s b o u n d . to h a p pen, even Aunt Nettle Kllne sald lt al l bac k

at her bouse. One must not ever be out alone, for somethlng bad, evil

t h r o u g h a n d th ro u g b , w a l tl n g to happen fasto W e have all been k l l l l ng

time tfll thls breaklng news. Now it has sadly co&e to passr" sobbed.

Mary wlthout tears fl-owlng.

n S a d a n cl b a ct b re a ks h a p pen all the tlne, Thatts the Texar kana nafi a

way for llfe ln these parts. We should be useclto lt by now, Llke Nettie

Kllne says. S h e ' r v a gm a r r t e d t o J u s t a b o u t e v e r y e l e g l b l e rlch baohelor

in town. Thls Donalcl nessy happenlng raust be one more nasty way to get

b a c k a t N e ttl e K l l n e r s f a !0 1 1y and. fr lenils becauge of som e old time gr ud.ge

by o n e o f th o sc b ro ke n d o vrn nar r iages evenr ' f analyzed Rober t wlth fl r m

d.eliberatlon.
F f l m e h a s b ro ke n u s d o wn, wor n us to a fr azzle, by kllllng our s pl r i ts

wl t b thlg te rrl b l e tu rn o f e ventsr if nouthed ldar y wlth a lost look fu}I of

grief.
iuary, ny Sweet Lovellness, Iook up at the skJ/, see aLl the floatlng

clouds. Be a u ty w l th a sl l ve r ) - lning awalts ln the iieep blue yonder .

Su r e l y a s th e T e xa s sky h a s a touch of gr een r lr hloh ls your favor l te c ol or

s o n e b e a u t lfu l mo me n t l u rks near byr tt eootheil Rober t wltb futlLe attenpts

to ehange hls own mood reflectlons lnto happler ones for ber'

n l o o k , o h l o sk a h e a d a t that or oud ar ound the anbulance. G uegs l tr s

Taylor / DTATH )L

a h e a r s e b y n o w , w h l ch d .e p e ndson tbe condltion of the bod.y. A b o d y l s

being loadecl onto the gurneyo Dear Goil, tro, Rot...t That stretcher has

p o o r D o n a } d .o n l t . All eovered ancl zlppod up fron heacl to toer't screamed

lr{a r y a s t h e l r ca r sto p p e d . Then, she Jumped out to r un for war d l nto the

o ro w d o f n e w s n e d l a g a th e rl n g ar ound the am bulance, to flnd. poor J ac k l e.

' r s h e r l ff fo u n d . D o n a l cl a t last. My pttlful- dear Donalcl was l y i ng fl at

on hls back wlth eyes opon, thrown a few feet fron hls nnotorcyeler" cried

J a c k i e u p o n se e i n g Ma ry ru n n i ng towar d. her o
r r i t f h a t yo u n e e cl l s to co nle wlth ne, this m lnuter ' f sympathlzed M ar y

wit h t e a r s stre a ml n g i l o w n h e r face.

' r l ) e a r H a rry, d o te l l th em what happened.. I Jtt"gt canf t speak of 1t....

c rl e d l t r a c k le n e a r o o l L a p se , leanlng on tha anbulance open door '

"U h , Do n a l d w a s fa ta l l ,y thr own fr om hls notor cyole whlle r ld l ng on

t h e s l o p l n g kn o L l . T h e sl a n tlng bllLslde ln the oonter of thts v ac ant

f le l - d h l d hl n fro n vl e w o f tha r oacl. Polloe constonsus gtates all the c or -

t u s l o n s a n d b ru l se s l n d tca te a sudden accld"ental cleath causecl by a m l nor

faII on that d l rt p a th . H c',[hagbeen dead, for a per lod of tlne longer than

Zb-hours ln thls hot sunrtr grave}y reported llarry by rote wlth a d.oubtfuL

qulvor ln hls volce.

n Bu t a l l o f u s w a l ke d . n or e than once ever y step of the way ac r os s
' $ie looked for hls notor cycle. Sone-
thls v e r y s p o t se a rch l n g fo r Donald.

ho w , D o n a l tl ts b o cl y a n d mo to rcyole had to be moved ilellber ately to thl s

a 1 l e d . g e d a ecl i l e n t so e n e . Wtr y, w€ all took a goocl look for our sel v es m or e

t h a n . t w t c e , to n a ke su re D o n a1d was not tylng hur t. Not to b" lef t !n need

of n e d l c a L a tte n ti o n o u t l n this hot b]- ister lng sutlr tt neekly r esp ondec l

Robert in conplete <lisbellef of the offlclal report.

' r D o n a l cl n e ve r g a ve a n yo ne a r eason to kill hln or cause to hate hl m .
 Taylor / cluss )z

Aint t fair w h e n Ju stl ce l s o n hoLlday dur lng a long hot Labor Day w eek -

e n i l r " w h i m p e re d .l vl a ry l n a w eak hoar se whlsper . A package of Luc k y Str i k es

cigarettes lay o n th e g ro u n d. next tc the denr "ed motor cycle. The pac k of

L u c k y s w e r e l ro n l ca l l y n o t so luclclly inclinued for the lll- fated D onal c l

lforgan.

Aecld.ental d.eathwas the offlclal verdlct by the Dallas County

Sheriffrs D e p a rtme n t. D o u b le end.em nlty was pald. on the life lns ur anoe
pollcy b e o a u se th e n e w s me d la announceil the name on the alr waves befor e

notlfylng me n b e rs o f th e l n n edlate fanlly. DonaId.[' lor gan' s par e nts fl r s t

le a r n e i l t h e fa ta l re w s o n th clr oar r ad.lo when eater lng the clty Ll nl ts

of Dallas ln te rsta te )O. T hls case pr or npted the natlonal pollcy of

ne v e r a g a i n a n n o u n o i n g a vl ctlnr s nane untll all noem ber sof the l m m edl ate

famlty h a v e fl rst b e e n n o tl fl edl.

No one who knew Donald Morgan was ever the saoe after this tragedy.

T"tfe ls not falr or safe.

D o n a l d l l lo rg a n ts sl ste r Ia ckle } /lor gan Goodwln was secr etar y to the

p re s l i t e n t o f Al -L sta te In su ra n ce Com pany, heailquar ter ecl ln DalLas ( and ouned

by Sears, Rocbuok& Conpany). Jacklete llkcabl,e gooil nature and flne work

habtts got the polloy enaoted and then dl}egently enforoed).