Origins and Hardship
Oh handy bright coincidence,
Oh drama in real life,
Oh peg to hang our show upon
Is this legend - and a true one!
The Silver blood's a blue one.
(The name was once Silvaro.)
If they had stayed in Spain our Lon
Would now be bowed to, and called Don.
Bring on the gay fandango -
Bring on our Spanish Dance.
Sing a song of Morganville
And Captain Morgan's dream.
Like the hoof-prints of the bison,
His Wild West has come and gone.
Automobiles ride the range now,
(What is left out in the hills.)
Coyotes echo winter evenings,
Cowboy songs he used to sing.
Captain Morgan got his cattle;
Captain Morgan got his horse;
Got eight hundred rolling acres;
Found his dream come true in Kansas;
Found the lonely melancholy;
Loved the magic blue horizons.
Bought the best of many cattle;
Bought a head of nature's best;
Turned them loose upon the prairie,
(Many a farmer knows the rest.)
Winter came with frozen creek streams,
Captain Morgan with his wild dreams,
Who'd survived the ocean's fathoms,
Lost his herd in shallow creek beds,
Lost his dream in shallow water,
Where the cattle grazed on bluestem,
Buffalo grass and rabbit berries,
In the valley of the river,
On the site of Morganville.
Little boys now live the old dream;
Little boys keep his Wild West;
Little boys and girls ride herd yet;
Ride Old Paint home on the range.
Comment
In the theater or in writing, a "peg" is the idea that is central to the story. In this case, the Silvers' origin is an
"excuse" to present the Spanish dancers. Lon Silver was at the performance. "Legend" is probably the right word as the Silver
family can be traced not to Spain, but to England. So he would not be a noble with the title of "Don." The name "Silvaro" is
virtually unknown in Spain.
Again, Carson underlines the message that even for rich Captain Morgan, things did not always go well and
hardships had to be endured.
Carson says that Morgan bought a fine herd, but lost it. Whether that is true is
unknown. Morgan did return to his home in the East, but whether that was due to failure in Kansas or for some other
reason is also unknown. He had some large investments in other states as well, so it is possible the ranch in Kansas
was just something he wanted to try.
Carson again illustrates how the old stories are kept alive, in this case by children playing as cowboys. "Old Paint" was a
common name for a horse.