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Romance of the Davis Mountains and Big Bend Country
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This book’s title is undeniably corny—even the author admits as much. But there is an equally undeniable spirit of adventure and, yes, romance about the Big Bend of Texas. Even today the Big Bend remains one of the few outposts of the Old West. Vast deserts rippled with rugged mountains resist every effort to civilize. The border at the Rio Grande, with all of the divisions and conflicts that it has engendered, lends a special flavor to life there. It is a land that suits only the hardy. Carlyle Graham Raht writes from a lifetime of experience in the Big Bend, and a lifetime of acquaintance with some of the region’s most colorful figures. Though loaded with facts, his story has the feel of folklore, the tone of a friend telling you the tales of the way it was before. Raht defines his Big Bend generously, extending from the Pecos River on the east to the stretch of the Rio Grande that forms the Texas border on the west. A more compact definition might slice off more than one hundred miles on either side. Like many writers of his period, Raht does not meet today’s standards of political correctness. Our preference is not to edit those passages that some may find offensive, but to leave them largely intact, for they are themselves a piece of history.
This book’s title is undeniably corny—even the author admits as much. But there is an equally undeniable spirit of adventure and, yes, romance about the Big Bend of Texas. Even today the Big Bend remains one of the few outposts of the Old West. Vast deserts rippled with rugged mountains resist every effort to civilize. The border at the Rio Grande, with all of the divisions and conflicts that it has engendered, lends a special flavor to life there. It is a land that suits only the hardy. Carlyle Graham Raht writes from a lifetime of experience in the Big Bend, and a lifetime of acquaintance with some of the region’s most colorful figures. Though loaded with facts, his story has the feel of folklore, the tone of a friend telling you the tales of the way it was before. Raht defines his Big Bend generously, extending from the Pecos River on the east to the stretch of the Rio Grande that forms the Texas border on the west. A more compact definition might slice off more than one hundred miles on either side. Like many writers of his period, Raht does not meet today’s standards of political correctness. Our preference is not to edit those passages that some may find offensive, but to leave them largely intact, for they are themselves a piece of history.
367 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1919
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November 30, 2013
This book, while a solid read on the back history of Big Bend, wrested 4 stars from me largely on the basis of the directly relevant info provided toward the end about the Glenn Springs-Boquillas raids in 1916. Raht is a competent storyteller, but I think he could have been a little more economical. Still, now I can proceed with the Virginia Madison, who is a much more gifted stylist.
Displaying 1 of 1 review