Jim Cox

The Demise of a Gunslinger Jim Cox

Lefty and his friend, Hide, had left Texas for the Sierra Nevada mountains in search of gold during the 1849 Gold Rush. Not only did they find a huge gold strike, which they sold for thirteen million dollars, but both had found the love of their lives and married. When Lefty learned Texas had a hundred thousand acres of land for sale, which encompassed the small ranch he'd grown up on, he and Hide decided to form a partnership, buy the Texas land, and start a ranching business. They had also been introduced to a newly formed railroad company that planned to lay east-west tracks through Texas, which was a potential place to invest part of their money. However, before any of this could take place, Lefty would have to fulfill his promise to his wife, Suzan, and take her to Boston to visit her mother. Consequently, Hide and his wife traveled south to Texas to purchase the hundred thousand acres, while Lefty and Suzan traveled east to Boston. Lefty was uneasy about meeting his mother-in-law. Suzan had described her as being a high-strung, sophisticated, rich woman who had been pampered her entire life. He visualized her viewing him as a worthless bum, not fit for her daughter, especially after she was told that he was a well-known gunslinger who had killed several people. Maybe, when she learned Suzan was pregnant with her grandchild, she'd have a different view of him. First things first, he thought. I can stand a couple of weeks around Suzan's mother before we head for Texas. But Lefty had no idea what lay ahead for him.