Pat Garrett & William H. Bonny
Pat Garrett & William H. Bonny
Standing here, looking at the resting
Place of History.
A solemn eerie feeling as Pat
Garrett's tombstone faces me.
Recalling the account of the supposed
Outlaw, Billy the Kid.
Remembering that it was all these
Little towns where Billy hid.
What exactly was it that made William
Such a wanted man?
Truth be told, for, he wasn't that old,
There are things that we don't understand.
Books are written by the living,
Dead men tell no tales.
People take instead of giving.
Everything's for sale.
If they want it bad enough,
You know the evil some men do.
If you don't just give it up,
They might come to take it and kill you.
Cattle land was like black gold, and
The local Barron's were kings.
Even the law did what it was told,
By this Bovine monarchy.
A place called Lincoln County was
The place where it would start.
A corrupt sheriff named William Brady,
Would take a bullet through the heart.
The murder of a local rancher that
Had befriended some young men.
Would start a local war that ended
Up with most of these people dead.
The killing of John Tunstall over
Rights to land that couldn't be bought.
Would form a band of Regulators,
And a man who could hardly be caught.
Born Henry McCarty in the winter of 1859.
An orphan at fifteen, forced to steal
What he could find.
Stealing turned to murder turned to
Rustling as his years went by.
Many a wanted poster told how
Many people had to die.
A wanted man in Arizona, Henry
Changed his name and came back home.
He left the mark of Billy The Kid,
In the desert where he would roam.
Caught in a deadly rivalry with his
Friends of a similar company.
It's been said, he was shot dead,
Now the rest is a tainted history.
When an animal gets a taste of blood,
Their demeanour is never the same.
There are some people in this world,
That the law will never tame.
Regardless of his wild heart, his wit
And charm would earn him friends.
He made gunplay look like an art,
Fast and smart, with no pretence.
Loyalty can be bought off, as it was
With a job and a Sheriff's star.
Patrick Garrett would turn on Billy,
And chase him down, no matter how far.
But did he really kill him, is the
Question that will still remain.
It's not like we can take D.N.A. from
The place where he was supposedly slain.
There are too many stories, but there's
One fact that holds still.
Standing at Pat's tombstone gives me
An eerie feeling and a bone-numbing chill.
What creates a Legend? These were
Crimes committed by ruthless men.
Some things need attention when
There's a lack of justice and no amendment.
The irony in life depicts how crazy
Things can go.
You might even find a Spanish wife,
Down here in New Mexico.