The Last Of The Plainsmen Novelist

Alabama, Auburn football rivalry set aside during tragedy, but will the Iron ...

The half-crimson, half-blue "A" painted on the turf behind home plate at Plainsman Park during last month's Alabama-Auburn baseball series was a fitting symbol for the unity many in the state have felt since a string of deadly tornadoes ripped through north Alabama on April 27.

The weeks since the tornadoes hit have been filled with images and stories of Alabamians coming together to help those who lost homes and loved ones. Many Auburn athletes, coaches and fans have been among those helping with the cleanup efforts in the affected areas, including Tuscaloosa -- home of the arch-rival Crimson Tide.

The outpouring of good will, which has also included a large fundraising effort, was such that some wondered if the 118-year-old Iron Bowl rivalry -- considered by many to be the most bitter in the country -- might be forever changed.

"During that, I really didn't think things would go back to the way they were," Birmingham-based sports talk-radio host Paul Finebaum said. "That was such a stunning and tragic event that I heard and saw things I never believed I would see. I saw Auburn fans in Tuscaloosa helping out. I saw Alabama and Auburn fans working together. It just didn't make any difference because it was life and death."

"You've got to decide as soon as you come out of the womb who you're going to be for," said former Alabama center Roger Shultz. "It's just our culture. ... I think it's a healthy relationship based on hatred."

Shultz and Cubelic don't believe that hatred is any more prevalent now than in the past, and Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs called the rivalry "as healthy as it's ever been."

"The players, because we all grew up together competing with or against one another in high school, we all have the utmost respect for each other," Jacobs said. "We just wish that would permeate to the fans."

Added Auburn coach Gene Chizik : "I would say that if the people who aren't involved in the rivalry had respect for each other like the coaches and players do on the field, I think that would be a good thing because it's a great rivalry."

Not all fans would disagree. An al.com poll conducted last November showed that 69 percent of nearly 3,000 respondents believed the Iron Bowl was too intense, but it was OK with them. Another 12 percent said they'd lost friends over it.

The Last of the Plainsmen by Zane Grey

As a direct descendant of John R. Rea introduced in chapter 8 Naz! Naza! Naza!, we have a different telling of the story regarding who wanted to shoot who. A local community history of pioneers of his burial place in Stavely, Alberta notes in regard to his characterization by Grey that “Jack” as he was known, was not accustomed to cursing. Also, my great grandfather was less than 6′ tall, but he did have yard wide shoulders. He was the younger of three brothers. All three trained during the civil war for the North, the eldest died in Battle, The remaining two went west after the war and the elder was a deputy in a mining town and was shot. John traveled to the Yukon gold-fields, and Barkerville where he worked as a Blacksmith, after which he was a Freetrader in the area now known as Alberta where met met Jones, where he later purchased an entire township of land. After the Arctic Musk Ox adventure, he ranched in Montana and made his family. He was a skilled fist fighter and a known friend of John L. Sullivan the bare-fisted boxer. J.R. Rea had four sons and a daughter, his wifes name was Daisy.

The Last of the Plainsmen

The last of the plainsmen

The Last Of The Plainsman

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