OCR Text |
Show SALT FLAT NEWS, NOVEMBER, 1970 n 9 : By R. N. Goldberger I always seem to be too busy to be around to hear the news, A Ufa Sffyk shelf that in worse days carried bottles of Coca Cola, Eddwin Bums explained that in addition to himself on the Bar F, the owners, Jerry Morgan and his son Alfred Morgan resided with their in- muttered Eddwin Bums astride a white mustang that he was attempting to break. Eddwin Bums, the foreman-pushe- r dividual families. Like Mr. Bums house, most of of the Bar F Ranch, as he the other buildings on the Bar F titles himself, also spells his first are old town of Kel- also from the name with two d's. Rolling a Bull w Durham cigarette, Eddwin Bums, ton. Glancing over his shoulder to see a mother sow give birth to a his eyes casting off the labor of the west, relaxes for a moment as choice piglet, Eddwin Bums menhe surveys his gingerbread house. tions that the pig sty was once the Bums rustic yellow house at old trading post at Kelton. Rollone time served as the .station-master- s ing another Bull Durham, Burns house at Kelton, Utah, walks over to an old earth roofed now an abandoned town located shack that he explains served as a three miles back east of the ranch. bunkhouse in Kelton but now Inside Mr. Bums house are other just houses various tools. relics of the past that today well Today Kelton is a junction of could be considered antiques, two abandoned railroad beds,' their trackage far removed, and though to Eddwin Bums, they serve a very functional purpose. an old grave yard. It was during In a comer sits an old wood-burnin- g the 1860s that Kelton served as an important railhead in the stove, with a brestplate bearing the words from the esbuilding of the transcontinental tate of P. D. Beckworth Dowag-iarailroad. Many Chinamen were Michigan, engraved upon its quartered at Kelton and some tarnished surface, awaiting the even to this day rest in that old oncoming chill of winter. Set upwindswept grave yard. right, in an open closet, are an old Looking around the Bar F, one notices fence posts made up of pair of white wooden skiis. When asked about the skiis, "Bums old railroad ties and cattle grates mused and said, We usually ski that once were part of the steel behind a jeep. . bridge linking America coast to coast. Replacing a dust covered book back up upon a makeshift orange For twenty years, Eddwin g, NEWS Photo by R. Goldbtrgor Bums has worked for the Morgans on the Bar F. Prior to that, Mr. Bums was a carpenter and during the Second World War, a pilot flying B24 Liberators. Got1 tired of getting shot up so I went to work at carpentry, Eddwin Burns, former captain in the Army Air Force, relates. Squinting at the distant sky to the south, Bums continues to talk about past events that occurred around the Bar F. For instance, the time some pilots from Arizona accidently dusted a portion of the Bar F with flour as they were practicing bombing with flour sacks. Table Top, Bums hand pointing to a dusty mesa in the south, is where they should have dropped the flour as rattlesnakes just seem to thrive there. Also, the Air Force Testing Range is located there which would ex-- . plain the presence of that errant jet. Climbing back into the saddle, Eddwin Bums admitted he gets lonely for his wife and four children, however, stating he would not give up this job for anything. An independent man but a gregarious person at heart, Eddwin and horse reel off and away into the North 40 of the Bar F just as the Six OClock News starts its redundant way across this great land. By Summer Hymas Deputy Lacy of the Elko County, Nevada, side of Wendover, and Deputy Carter of the Tooele County, Utah, side of Wendover, have important jobs and they do them well. Both believe in the spirit of justice over the absolute letter of the law. There is a marked difference between a city cop and a small town policeman. In the dty, when the lawman gets off duty he goes home away from the people he serves. He never really knows them or strikes up any sort' of personal relationship. Too often as the man gets into a uniform and behind a badge, he loses his ability to understand and identify as a human being with the people he is dealing with. Too often as he takes that uniform off, he changes into a new set of ethics and morals completely different from those he uses while on duty. Ip a small town such as Wendover, however, the cops best friends are the people whom he is protecting, and the peoples best friend is the cop. As a result, the lawman will maintain a good example in his off hours as well as while on duty. There is a strong identification between the deputies of Wendover and the townspeople. Deputy Lacy of the Nevada side has been offered other jobs, but he likes it here in Wendover. There isnt too much pressure put on me. Im not much of a dty boy; Ill take the desert any old day. Its open country that gives me the freedom that I need. MINER TO MARSHALL After working in the coal mines of Carbon County in southern Utah for several years, Lacy was induded in a layoff one spring. They needed a marshall in a tiny town called Wellington. So he. applied and got the job. ; After Wellington, I went into the sheriffs department, worked in the dty, came to Wendover as a deputy sheriff, then to Nevada as a highway patrolman, and then bade to Wendover again. Here I am, and I like being here. Lacys wife used to worry a lot about her husbands job, but within time she became immune J to worry. If something is going to happen, itll happen, and thats the way its written in the book, I guess. When asked if he ever had any exciting experiences, Lacy recalled the time he arrested a couple of men who had stolen a car in Grand Junction, Utah. I took the towns seventy-year-ol- d juvenile officer, Vern me to the county with Miner, line where we picked up the two men. I told Vern he had better get the shotgun down from the dashboard, and he nearly ripped my head off getting it! He was a salty old man, but the salt was starting to shake off. However, Vem proved his worth when we were walking the criminals back to the car. Even though I had told one of them several times to keep his hands up, he happened to be an old time con man and didnt keep his hands where he should. Finally, Vern bellered at the top of his lungs, Git yer Goddam hands up or Ill blow yer guts out!" That man reached so high for the sky he could hardly touch the ground. MOVE IN Deputy Carter and Deputy Lacy waited with pounding Interesting still life found along the old pony express and overland stage route forbodes ill for cattle and soda pop businesses. hearts in separate cars for the Volkswagon bus to appear. Finally, Carter spotted one and gave the word. There they are. Move in. - t Both deputies, armed with shotguns and pistols, raced in from different directions with screeching sirens and flashing red lights to surround the VW bus. Come out with your hands up, yelled Carter, expecting at any moment to be peppered with bullets. The four criminals inside stepped out of the bus, which was plastered with peace symsigns. bols, daisies1 and anti-wa- r Four long haired youths shrunk at the sight of the guns. Hey, man, this is really weird, exclaimed the driver. Keep your hands up and line up against the bus, Carter cautioned. This shotgun makes little round holes in people. Flabbergasted, the four faced the bus as Carter moved in to frisk them. As he did ever, something told was not a he, but Are you a girl or so, howhim one a she. a boy? Carter asked, quite confused. Indignantly, she replied, Im a GIRL. After a search of the bus. Carter was Anally satisfied the youths were as innocent and harmless as their tuna Ash sandwiches. PATROL PROVES BORING After riding for an hour with Deputy Carter on his patrol of the Utah side of Wendover, my previous conception of the adventurous, dangerous and exciting life of a policeman dissolved into the realization that the job is actually boring. Nothing much ever happens. This town is usually pretty quiet, with an occasional problem with drunki and bums. Carter drove along the back roads for a while. However, much to my disappointment, nothing wat amiss. Dont you get bored just driving around for hours and hours doing nothing? I asked. Dont you ever wish that a call would come screaming over your radio about a dangerous criminal holding up Wendovers local laundromat? Deputy Carter, wondering if I really believed Wendover had a laundromat, looked at me jn Well, no, I like it. surprise. peaceful. Its my job to help way. It may be kep itat that times just driving tiring around, but I know that Im protecting other people. Somehow it becomes a satisfying feeling, knowing I am doing my job well. The most exciting experience Carter had was when he received a call from . Salt Lake City of a Volkswarning Wendover ' wagon bus full of dangerous armed criminals wanted by the FBI for escaping from a menta institution. r |