BADGER

all my life growing up my dad operated a cotton farm for a family who had ag intrests all over the state. from the time I was 12 or so I worked week ends and summers on that farm. in those days any law enforcement that came around was rare. so all the farm kids there drove when it was needed . no one thought anything about turning a 12 or 13 year old loose with a pickup to run around the country on unimproved dirt roads.  one of my jobs  in the summer time was to take 4 or 5 irrigaters or tractor drivers out to the fields  to work, then at lunch time pick them up, and take them back. then at quitting time pick them up again. between trips I would sort bolts and odd stuff around the shop.   one morning I was delivering the boys out to work. there was a big indian who run a bulldozer. his name was Dodson. when we arrived at the bulldozer there was a badger backed up against the dozer blade. that badger was mad and on the fight. Dodson took a shovel and brained the badger. we all had a laugh and went on to work. Dodson threw the limp body of the badger in the bed of the pickup as he wanted to skin him .  all day that badger lay in the back of the pickup. everyone who came by would turn him over, hold him up and comment on him. that night I picked up 4 of the boys and then lastly Dodson. he was covered in powdered dirt. when he jumped into the back of the truck he hollered " MAKER FLY" with the intention of blowing that dust off. of course a 12 year old driving needed no excuse to drive faster than he should and here a grown up told me to! as I reached 50 on a washboard dirt road the men in the back started yelling and going over the tail gate to stand on the bumper! Dodson had jumped up on top of the cab yelling to stop! now Dodson was a pima indian, who normally don't raise their voice. but Dodson was yelling at the top of his voice for me to stop. I slammed on the brakes skidding sideways down the road. when I got stopped Dodson ran to the back and let the tailgate down. that badger  had came to life and was he mad! I bet he had a hell of a head ach!! Dodson used a shovel and herded the badger out of the truck onto the road where he was as we drove away. I asked Dodson why he didn't kill the badger. " I killed him once " he said " that was enough!"