I was sheriff of this county when I was
twenty-five. Hard to believe. Grandfather
was a lawman. Father too. Me and him was
sheriff at the same time, him in Plano
and me here. I think he was pretty proud
of that. I know I was.

Some of the old-time sheriffs never even
wore a gun. A lot of folks find that hard
to believe. Jim Scarborough never carried
one. That the younger Jim. Gaston Boykins
wouldn't wear one. Up in Commanche County.

I always liked to hear about the oldtimers.
Never missed a chance to do so. You
can't help but compare yourself against the
old timers. Can't help but wonder how they
would've operated these times. There was
this boy I sent to Huntsville here a while
back. My arrest and my testimony. He killed
a fourteen-year-old girl. Papers said it
was a crime of passion but he told me there
wasn't any passion to it.

Told me that he'd been planning to kill
somebody for about as long as he could
remember. Said that if they turned him
out he'd do it again.

Said he knew he was going to hell. Be
there in about fifteen minutes. I don't
know what to make of that. I surely don't.

The crime you see now, it's hard to even
take its measure. It's not that I'm afraid
of it.

I always knew you had to be willing to
die to even do this job. But I don't want to push my
chips forward and go out and meet something
I don't understand.

A man would have to put his soul at hazard.

... He would have to say, okay, I'll be
part of this world.