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I think I might have touched on this story twenty years or so ago, but whether I did or not, it bears repeating.  Good Ol’ Terry Barr was the one who related this to me about when later on Circuit Clerk Rusty Nichols was assistant coach down yonder in Sweetwater.  Anyhow, seems like a school kid came running in to holler at the principal, Sid Atkins.

“Mr. Atkins! Mr. Atkins!  I just seen a school bus going down the road, and it looked like it had a little boy driving it.”

Well, Ol’ Sid checked things out, and sho nuff, they was missing one of their yellow mamas that was supposed to be parked out there. 

Sid went into action, and he jumped in the car with Joe Etheridge, after he had instructed Rusty Nichols to load up in the school bus truck, and head out in a different direction, and they’d meet up later.

Off they all screeched in search of the fugitive bus driving kid.

Weren’t long before Sid and Joe had found out what boy had left school, and they figured out the identity of the eleven year old run-a-way bus robber. 

They were heading on back to school when good ol’ Rusty slid up to the intersection beside Sid and Joe, rolled his glass down, and announced to his boss, with a knowing grin, “Hey, I picked up this boy here, and he knows who got the bus!”

Sid looked at the boy in the truck with Rusty, shook his head, and informed the coach, “Rusty, that’s the boy who did it.”

Rusty looked mighty surprised, I’m told, looked over at his passenger sitting next to him, and asked, “Boy, did you swipe that school bus?

“Yas Suh, I sho did,” was the reply.

Well, Coach Nichols had unknowingly captured the fugitive from justice, and had him all the time.

Next day, Head Coach Nolan Atkins was ready for Rusty to go with him someplace, so, in keeping with the fearless school bus robber capture escapade, much like we’ve seen Barney handle in Mayberry RFD on TV, Nolan motioned to Rusty, and with a straight face said, “Awright, come on and let’s go, Coach Fife.”

That’s another good ‘un, Terry. 

Hey, talking ‘bout law abiding folks and all,  heap of folks I know in these parts get to where they install security lights and alarms on the house, garage and car, and then still leave ‘em unlocked just like they used to. 

You look around in a store parking lot, and you’re just apt to see a car setting there with the motor running, and nobody in it.  Ain’t that the south for you.

Speaking of the southland, living here in Alabama, we still describe the first cool snap (below 70 degrees) as good chili con carne eating weather.  ‘Course, we really only got four seasons…Almost summer, summer, still summer and Christmas. 

Hey, I was just looking at some writing from back yonder round about 1953, back just past the halfway mark of the last century. (Man, I’m old).  Anyhow, the head man of the federal bureau of investigation, J. Edgar Hoover, him own self, sent a letter all the way down here to Marengo County thanking Sheriff Wilmer Shields for helping him catch those two fellows who up and robbed the Sweetwater bank. 

That same year, Governor Big Jim Folsom was the Master of Ceremonies at the Linden Fiddler’s Convention where my classmate, Ouida Faye Lindsay, was picked out by the judges to be the prettiest girl.  (Shucks, I could’ve told ‘em that).

Any of y’all recollect seeing Ol’ Lash Larue and his sidekick, Fuzzy, come right off the cowboy silver screen, and appear on the picture show stage in Linden and Demopolis?  They sho did. Back yonder in those fifties.

Anyhow, I still like watching the real Barney Fife end up catching crooks by mistake up yonder in Mayberry, RFD.  Don’t y’all?