Observations and Thoughts

This week end I did the first live interview with Jimmy Portillo on Old West El Paso Radio.  I had to edit the show a bit, and as I was listening to the recording, a few thoughts came to mind.  When studying history, be it gunfight history, economic history, or social history, one has to look at the entire picture.  One man sneezes and falls on his backside.  Another man laughs at the sight of a man falling on his backside, thus not seeing another man drawing a weapon. The man with the weapon fires and kills yet another man.  The sneeze its self was not significant, yet the consequences were immense for another.
One thing I have discovered in researching El Paso's gunfights over the years, one has to research EVERYTHING.  Knowing who shot whom is one thing, but learning why they shot each other is a complicated matter.  For years I wondered why Dallas Stoudenmire had such animosity against Alderman Warner Phillips.  Until that is I ran across a small ad in the Texas Lone Star.  This ad announced the opening of a livery stable by Frank Manning and Warner Phillips.  On further reading, one finds that there were a number of social trips in which the Manning and Phillips families made together.  Armed with this information, one can now understand why Dallas had such a burr under his saddle about Phillips.
So, my advice for budding historians; spread your searches across the board.  Something that might seem insignificant on its own, may have a major impact on events in other circles.
Just my thoughts for the week end.
So until next time, Take care, God bless, and keep your powder dry.