Category: random

Andy Griffith, who played Sheriff Andy Taylor in the fictional town of Mayberry, died at the age of 86. Born in Mount Airy, North Carolina, in 1926, Griffith graduated from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1949 with a degree in music.

He originally planned on being a preacher, but instead became a teacher. After teaching high school music for a few years, he began his entertainment career with regular appearances on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” and Broadway.

Griffith received a Tony nomination for “No Time for Sergeants,” and later “Destry Rides Again.”  He made his film début in “A Face in the Crowd,” but it was the 1960 début of “The Andy Griffith Show” that brought his greatest fame and ran for eight-years.

Twice during the late-1970s, Andy Griffith unsuccessfully attempted to launch a TV detective series as  Abel Marsh, Jasper Lake’s police chief whose back-woods demeanor hides a sharp analytical mind and gift for deduction.  The first pilot film was “The Girl in the Empty Grave;” the second was “The Deadly Game.”

“Girl in the Empty Grave” gets under way when a girl shows up in town, whose  believed dead, leading town-folk to wonder whose buried in her grave. First broadcast September 20, 1977, “Girl in the Empty Grave” was followed a couple of months later by “The Deadly Game.”

Once again Griffith stars as resort-town Jasper Lake’s sheriff Abel Marsh, this time wrestling with a military conspiracy involving a dangerous chemical spill. “Deadly Game” first aired December 3, 1977.

I recall watching both made for TV movies when they first aired.

It was in the mid-90s when I first saw a rerun of “The Deadly Game,” and suddenly recognized much of the landscape in the movie. While the Internet Movie Database (IMDb) lists both of these movies as being filmed at Big Bear Lake, California, Washoe County old-timers have confirmed what I’ve suspected all along — filming of “The Deadly Game,” took place around Lake Tahoe and the Washoe Valley.

The major mining districts of northern California from 1850-1853, were the Trinity River mines, of which Weaverville was the center, and the Klamath and Salmon River diggings, of which Orleans Bar was the focal point. It was from the diggings on the Trinity that the Gregg party started on the expedition resulting in the rediscovery of Trinidad and Humboldt Bays.

Had the towns of the Humboldt Coast been dependent solely upon the trade with the Trinity River mines, they would have been far less prosperous in the 1850s. Fortunately adventurers in June 1850 discovered gold on Salmon River and two months later made a strike on the Klamath.

Within weeks after the establishment of the towns on the along the coast, trails were cut through the redwoods and across the mountains to the mining regions. Trinidad and Uniontown, now known as Arcata, took the lead, as both were well situated by geography to act as supply stations for the diggings of the Klamath and Salmon River Districts.

The first town established was Trinidad, and was for a few years the leader in the packing trade, because it was located closer to the Klamath diggings than the others. During the summer of 1850, packers, utilizing old Indian trails, opened a route from Trinidad up the coast to Big Lagoon, then across the divide to Redwood Creek.

Redwood Creek was forded at “Tall Trees,” and the trail ascended the Bald Hills to Elk Camp. It then passed along the crest of Bald Hills to French Camp, where the trail forked, one branch leading to the Klamath at Martins Ferry and the other into Hoopa Valley.

The Trinidad trail followed a route dictated by the topography, and intersected the route leading up the Klamath from Klamath City to Martins Ferry. From Uniontown another trail led to Orleans Bar via the Bald Hills intersecting the Trinidad trail near the mouth of the Trinity.

A large number of mules had been driven from Sonoma in May 1850, but the demands of the packing trade made it necessary that more be shipped by sea during the winter. High prices were asked and paid for transporting freight.

Two dollars a pound was asked and received for the trip from Trinidad to the Salmon mines. This raised the price of all imported items to an all-but-prohibitive figure, but such were the times that the miners were prepared to pay the price asked.

John Daggett was one of the adventurers who reached the Klamath diggings, in 1852, via the Trinidad trail. He wrote that they had to “furnish our own transportation, carrying blankets on our own backs, as there were few if any inns on this route to the mining district. We passed first through the grand belt of old redwood trees, a sight long to be remembered, thence over the bald-hill country, abounding at that time in elk.”

During the Red Cap War of 1855, pack trains were attacked and traffic over the trail was cut. Supplies at the Klamath and Salmon River diggings ran short. With the return of peace, traffic improved.

To guard the Trinidad trail and to protect the ranches that had been established on the Bald Hills, troops were posted at Elk Camp in 1862 and 63. These soldiers were supplied by pack trains from Trinidad.

The section of the Trinidad trail leading from Big Lagoon, crossing Redwood Creek at “Tall Trees,” and ascending the Bald Hills to Elk Camp was abandoned after the construction — in the final decade of the 19th century — of the Bald Hills road, connecting Orick with the Bald Hills.

The heat beating down on the sidewalk seemed to exhaust everything including my good mood. It had been a difficult day at the radio station and the walk seemed like a nice idea at the time.

Yet the temperature was another factor I had not counted on as I trudged up the long hill. It seemed as if it had taken me forever to make it to the driveway of Rancho San Rafael.

The white arch across the park entrance gleamed and beckoned me to march the last few uphill steps and through it to its cool shaded trees and flower garden. I heard its call and responded without a word.

Inside the garden I found not a soul accept myself. I could hear the chirping and singing and whistling of the birds.

And a time or two I spotted a rabbit dash for cover surprised by my presence. I thought, “This could be Eden.”

Within minutes I found myself relaxing and able to enjoy the sight of the many different flowers. I heard a rushing sound of falling water and a few seconds later discovered myself standing in front of a pond with cascading ripples running down hill to places unseen.

Here I also found a spot to sit, a park bench in the shade in which to take in the leisurely sounds of the waterfall. I sat there and unwound, realizing the troubles at work were worthless matters to be dealt with later.

As I sat and listened, staring into the pool I caught sight of movement in the corner of my eye. It came from the right.

I turned to look, finding a woman standing not less than twenty feet from where I sat.

She was outfitted in a Victorian style dress. Its satin texture reflecting the sunbeams that slipped through the leaves above and hair was pulled back, weaved with curls in the back.

I couldn’t help notice how dark her hair was; nearly black as midnight.

Yet her eyes sparkled bluer than robin’s eggs. Her skin was a creamy tan with full red lips.

I was speechless.

“Hello,” she said, “My names Rosa.”

She stuck her hand out. I stood up, grasped it and we shook..

Suddenly remembering my manners I responded, “I’m Tom, pleasure to meet you.”

“Are you handy with a camera?” she asked.

I looked at her left hand and saw the “point and shoot” camera for the first time.

“Yes I am,” I answered.

Rosa smiled widely revealing her white teeth, “Could I bother you to take some pictures of me?”

“It would be my pleasure,” I answered a little too quickly.

She handed me the camera.

“It’s all ready to go, jus’ push the little red button on top,” Rosa instructed.

The woman turned and skipped over the rocks in the pond and came to rest in the clearing near the water fall.

Rosa posed and I snapped a picture.

She smiled and said, “Isn’t this fun!”

I had to admit it was and secretly I was thanking my lucky star to be finding myself in the company of such a beautiful woman.

“Do you mind if I do a little cheesecake?” she asked.

“Do whatever you’re planning and I’ll take the picture,” I declared.

Rosa pulled off her top revealing that she was wearing a corset. She posed and I took her picture.

She smiled brightly.

Next she slipped out of her skirt. Under it was a hoop and again she posed.

And again I clicked away.

A few seconds later the hoop dropped straight to the ground and like the blouse and the skirt it was piled up on the bench. She struggled to unfasten the corset but got it just as I offered her my assistance.

“A day late and a dollar short,” I said to myself as she stacked it on top of the growing mound of discarded clothing.

Rosa was in a set of all white pantaloons. She flexed her body that way, then this way, and I flashed each pose, enjoying the antiquated erotic idea of her undies.

Without notice Rosa slowly started unbuttoning the long row of buttons that held the single piece outfit together. She stopped just below her navel.

I  felt my heart pounding wildly as I tried to hold the camera steady for the shot.

From my hip pocket, I pulled a handkerchief and dabbed my forehead. The afternoon’s heat had returned along with my libido, so I found myself sweating without mercy.

When I looked up, my face flushed red as the blood that coursed through his all-American veins. Rosa was standing before me in the clearing in all her wonderful glory wearing only button up high-heel boots and ankle socks with fringe.

I could not help but stare as I felt as if I had entered a dream world or fallen down the rabbits hold.

Slowly, I raised the camera to my eye to take the picture. This gave the beautiful Rosa time to pick a large white daisy with its butter like yellow button, and use it as a prop.

It was something to hold in her hands and to look at.

I placed the tiny dot midway between a spot under her breasts and above her hands, then breathed out and as if firing a rifle, squeezed the button downward, snapping the picture.

Rosa smiled brightly at me as she skipped back across the rocks and towards her clothes.

“Thank you so much,” she chirped as she pulled on the blouse and shirt.

She gathered up the corset and hoop, not wishing to be tortured by them any further. I handed her the camera and she kissed me on the cheek.

“Thank you again,” she said.

Then she turned and disappeared down the trail from which she came.

I sat down on the bench after splashing myself with some water from the pool. I chuckled lightly, as I thought, “Maybe I should have told her there was no film in the camera.”

Running ten minutes late as usual, I pulled up to the sidewalk.  I set the brake and turned off the motor.

No one else was on board but I did not want to take chances, especially since a company vehicle had been stolen in Las Vegas three days before. I opened the side door and stepped out on to the sidewalk.

I could hear voices from jus’ beyond the hedge bush. One of them sounded like Harold’s.

It sounded as if Harold was defending himself. So I walked around the hedgerow and discovered three teenage boys picking on the much old and mentally retarded Harold.

“Get out of here,” I shouted.

And bullies being what they are, they turned and ran away down the street.

“You okay?” I asked Harold.

“Yes, I’m okay Mr. Bus driver,” Harold answered.

He wiped his tear-stained face. As he did I helped him to his feet.

Together we walked back to the vehicle and climbed on board. I made a note of the incident so I could report it later, then we were on our way to High Sierra and Harold’s job.

As we drove across town, I looking in my overhead mirror thought, “What if that was me?”

I was looking at Harold, who kept glancing up into the mirror and smiling at me.

Fifteen minutes later, we turned into the Longley Drive address driveway. I stopped the van, set the brake and turned off the engine.

I stepped down from the last step and assisted Harold down as well.

That’s when Harold reached up and gently patted me on the shoulder and said, “It’s okay Mr. Bus driver, there but for the grace of God go I.”

With that Harold disappeared behind his employer’s door.

“Roger that,” the engine operator said as he slipped the gear into drive. The large fire-rescue truck moved forward, slowly building up speed.

Reaching over, I flipped on the lights and sounded the siren. I then pulled out the map book and started thumbing through the index for the street name.

“You don’t have to bother with that,” said the operator, “I know where were going, I drink there all the time.”

We entered onto the highway then exited at the next off ramp. The fire-rescue truck made a left hand turn and proceeded straight.

I sounded the siren again as the operator slowed for the upcoming intersection. The light was red as we approached.

Leaning forwarded in the cab and looking to the left I could see that no vehicles were approaching. The lane was clear.

Looking to my right, I saw that there were no cars or trucks coming from that direction either.

I double checked to the left again and said, “Clear left, clear right, clear left.”

The engine operator stepped down on the gas pedal and the truck picked up speed again. We completed this ritual three more times before we made a right hand turn.

“Quarter of a mile—on the left,” the operator stated.

There was a sheriff’s vehicle already in the parking lot.

“He must have called it in,” I thought.

The dispatcher said it was a possible heart attack and that CPR was already in progress.

A second rig pulled up right behind us. I opened the cab of the truck and climbed down.

I put on my white helmet and walked towards the lounge, pausing to look around to take note of how many crew people I had on hand.

A third crew truck pulled into the gravel driveway and parked. All total there were firefighters and other emergency personnel.

I stepped inside. Two firefighters were right behind me.

The scene appeared surrealistic. The jukebox was playing an upbeat county-western song while two patrons sat at the bar drinking as two sheriff’s deputies did CPR on a man lying at the foot of the bar.

“You two take over for the deputies,” I directed.

A third firefighter came in carrying oxygen and a defibrillator. I looked at the firefighter with the equipment and said, “Set up the bag valve mask at 15 liters.”

The firefighter did as instructed.

Once relieved from doing CPR the two deputies walked over to me, “How’s it going?” one of them asked.

I smiled, “Great. How long were you at it?”

“About five  or six minutes,” the bigger of the two answered.

“How long was he down before you got here?” I continued.

They looked at each other, then back at me and the bigger one answered again, “A couple of minute’s maybe. We were across the street at the diner.”

“Thanks guys, good job,” I told them, “One last thing, can you clear out the two lumps sitting at the end of the bar?”

Both deputies nodded and said, “Yeah.”

They immediately walked to the end of the bar and asked the two drinkers to leave. Both of them started to put up an argument, but then thought better of it.

I walked over and unplugged the jukebox as it started into its second song. By this time the defibrillator was set up and ready to go. With the ambulance still 5 minutes away this was the victim’s only chance.

I nodded a go-ahead to the rescuers as they prepared to deliver the first shock. The man jerked slightly as the energy coursed through him.

Nothing changed.

The firefighters went back to doing CPR. They did this three more times and each time they had the same end result.

The man’s heart beat did not return. Yet the rescuers continued.

Seeing an opportunity for an on the job lesson, I looked around the room and pointed to the two newest members of the volunteer fire company.

“Come here, you two need to take over for these two,” I said as I directed their attention to the two rescuers at the man’s side.

One of the firefighter’s said, “But I can’t remember how…”

I cut him off mid-sentence, “I know, but I’ll talk you through it.”

They both moved in and took over the breaths and chest compressions. I continued to direct of them.

The radio crackled and the dispatcher said, “Your ambulance is less than two minute away.”

Lifting the the microphone to my lips I calmly answered, “Ten-four.”

Then I returned my attention to the new firefighters doing CPR.

“I want you to stay right where you are, but switch roles,” I directed.

They did as they were instructed.

Upon the third compression there was a strange sound. Something popped loudly.

I was standing next to the bar at the victims head when it happened.

The two rookies jumped up and away from the body, as did another firefighter across from me.  I jumped too, but emabarrassingly it was onto the bar.

The room was silent, except for the sound of a marble rolling across a linoleum tiled floor.

Then I noticed the man’s face.  His left eye socket was slightly sunken and a chest compression was just enough pressure to cause a man’s glass eye to pop out.

“Get that eye over there,” I directed one of the firefighters.

“Not me! I ain’t touching that thing!” he exclaimed as he quickly exited the barroom. His hand was covering his mouth as he pushed his way passed other crewmembers, who stood transfixed on the little white object with the light blue dot.

The two rookies moved back to their positions and continued CPR as I hopped down from the bar top and over to the glass eye, scooping it up jus’ as the ambulance crew came in the front door.

1997

The wind howled hard
An’ carried my father’s voice.
I did not want to listen
Though I had no other choice.

The winter blow comes bitter
An’ chills me to my bone.
I hear my father’s voice
With his unmistakable tone.

My horse paws the ground
As the wind bites an’ howls.
I push him to the ‘ole trail
With scratchin’ from my rowels.

He hears him too, like me, or
Does he sense my tension ’cause I fear it?
Bein’ chased down by a winter wind,
Or is it my father’s haunting spirit?

1997

He’s in the dog house now
After drinkin’ too much hooch,
He kicked his wife,
An’ kissed their pooch.

Our dear, departed leader, Nikita Khrushchev was correct when he said, “America will destroy itself from the inside.”

Now that the Supreme Court of The United States (SCOTUS) has spoken saying  what is commonly referred to as “Obama-care,” is constitutional since Congress has the right to impose taxes on citizens, it’s time to see what sort of tax is in the bill.  Joyfully, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) includes 20 new and/or higher taxes on American families and small businesses.

These took effect last year:

1. Medicine Cabinet Tax: Americans no longer able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement account (HRA) pre-tax dollars to buy non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin). Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,957-1,959.

2. HSA Withdrawal Tax Hike: Increases more tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantages them relative to IRAs and other tax-advantaged accounts, which stay at 10 percent. PPACA; Page: 1,959.

These are taking effect this year:

3. Excise Tax on Charitable Hospitals: $50,000 per hospital if they fail to meet new “community health assessment needs,” “financial help,” and “billing and collection” rules set by HHS. PPACA; Page: 1,961-1,971.

4. Codification of the “economic substance doctrine.” This provision allows the IRS to disallow legal tax deductions and other legal tax-minimizing plans just because the IRS deems that the action lacks “substance” and is merely intended to cut taxes owed. Reconciliation Act; Page: 108-113.

5.  Cellulosic Biofuel Producer  tax hike. This is a tax increase on a type of bio-fuel made from wood byproducts. Reconciliation Act; Page: 105

6. Tax on Innovator Drug Companies: $2.3 billion annual tax on the industry imposed on a share of sales made that year. PPACA; Page: 1,971-1,980.

7. Blue Cross/Blue Shield Tax Hike: The special tax deduction in current law for Blue Cross/Blue Shield companies would only be allowed if 85 percent or more of premium revenues spent on clinical services. PPACA; Page: 2,004.

8. Tax on Indoor Tanning Services: New 10 percent excise tax on Americans using indoor tanning salons. PPACA; Page: 2,397-2,399.

9. Employer Reporting of Insurance on W-2: Preamble to taxing health benefits on individual tax returns. Bill: PPACA; Page: 1,957.

These take effect in 2013:

10. Surtax on Investment Income: Creation of a new, 3.8 percent surtax on investment income earned in households making at least $250,000 ($200,000 single). This would result in the following top tax rates on investment income: Bill: Reconciliation Act; Page: 87-93.

2012 Capital gains: 15-percent, Dividends: 15-percent; *Other: 35-percent.

2013+ Capital gains: 23.8-percent, Dividends: 43.4-percent; *Other: 43.4-percent.

*Other unearned income includes gross income from interest, annuities, royalties, net rents, and passive income in partnerships and Subchapter-S corporations. It does not include municipal bond interest or life insurance proceeds, since those do not add to gross income. It does not include active trade or business income, fair market value sales of ownership in pass-through entities, or distributions from retirement plans. The 3.8-percent surtax does not apply to non-resident aliens.

11. Hike in Medicare Payroll Tax: Current law and changes: First $200,000 for a single individual or $250,000 if married. PPACA, Reconciliation Act; Page: 2000-2003; 87-93.

12. Tax on Medical Device Manufacturers: Medical device manufacturers who employ 360,000 people in 6000 plants across the country. This law imposes a new 2.3 percent excise tax and exempts items retailing for less than $100. PPACA; Page: 1,980-1,986.

13. Raises Medical Itemized Deduction from 7.5-percent to 10-percent of Adjusted Gross Income (AGI): Currently, those facing high medical expenses are allowed a deduction for medical expenses to the extent that those expenses exceed 7.5 percent of AGI. The new provision imposes a threshold of 10 percent of AGI, which is waived for taxpayers 65 years and old in 2013-2016 only. PPACA; Page: 1,994-1,995.

14. Flexible Spending Account Cap – aka “Special Needs Kids Tax”: Imposes cap on FSAs of $2500 (now unlimited). This is indexed to meet inflation after 2013. PPACA; Page: 2,388-2,389.

15. Elimination of tax deduction for employer-provided retirement Rx drug coverage in coordination with Medicare Part D. PPACA; Page: 1,994.

16. $500,000 Annual Executive Compensation Limit for Health Insurance Executives. PPACA; Page: 1,995-2,000.

These take effect in 2014:

17. Individual Mandate Excise Tax: Starting in 2014, anyone not buying a qualifying health insurance plan must pay income surtax according to the higher of the following:

2014: 1 Adult: 1-percent AGI/$95; 2 Adults: 1-percent AGI/$190; 3 or more Adults: 1-percent AGI/$285.
2015: 1 Adult: 2-percent AGI/$325; 2 Adults: 2-percent AGI/$650; 3 or more Adults: 2-percent AGI/$975.
2016+: 1 Adult: 2.5-percent AGI $695; 2 Adults: 2.5-percent AGI/$1390; 3 or more Adults: 2.5-percent AGI/$2085.

Exemptions for religious objectors, undocumented immigrants, prisoners, those earning less than the poverty line, members of Indian tribes, and/or hardship cases as determined by HHS. PPACA; Page: 317-337.

18. Employer Mandate Tax: If an employer does not offer health coverage, and at least one employee qualifies for a health tax credit, the employer must pay an additional non-deductible tax of $2000 for all full-time employees. This applies to all employers with 50 or more employees. If any employee actually receives coverage through the exchange, the penalty on the employer for that employee rises to $3000. If the employer requires a waiting period to enroll in coverage of 30-60 days, there is a $400 tax per employee or $600 if the period is 60 days or longer. PPACA; Page: 345-346.

19. Tax on Health Insurers: Annual tax on the industry imposed relative to health insurance premiums collected that year. This will be phased in gradually through 2018. This is immediately and fully-imposed on firms with $50 million in profits. PPACA; Page: 1,986-1,993.

This one takes effect in 2018:

19. Excise Tax on Comprehensive Health Insurance Plans: Starting in 2018, a new 40 percent excise tax on health insurance plans of $10,200 for one person or $27,500 per family. This includes higher threshold ($11,500 single/$29,450 family) for early retirees and high-risk professions. This is based on collateral protection insurance, plus a one-percent point index. PPACA; Page: 1,941-1,956.

Fortunately the SCOTUS failed to address the fact these new taxes — as the Justices referenced them – originated from the Senate and not the House of Representatives as the U.S. Constitution requires. Nor did they review the fact the same document says taxes are to be raised for the “expressed purposes of creating revenue,” not as a punishment for failing to purchase a qualifying insurance policy.

Americans  have lost even more of their rights with this ruling and do not yet know it, with that said, Socialist everywhere can rejoice. But be warned — the battle has jus’ begun for the control of freedom-loving peoples everywhere.

Do not forget to send a note of thanks to Chief Justice John Roberts for turning this into a victory for us by changing the argument from “Interstate Commerce,” to a federal taxation issue. He’s simply brilliant!

With the war overseas still raging, the inevitable happened — Jennifer Griffin received her draft notice. Her grandparents and parents were upset – she, however, was ecstatic.

Soon Jen, as she was known to her friends and family, was off to the Marine Corps Training Center at Parris Island.  It would be nearly four months before she’d be allowed leave to visit her family.

The two-weeks passed quickly and before anyone realized it – the time had come for her to board the bus for the long journey to her new duty site. Her mother and father, grandparents and even her younger brother came to the station to see her off.

They continued to wave, cry and watch as the brakes on the bus released and it began to move. It had gone about a thousand yards when it suddenly pulled to the side of the road and stopped.

Everyone gazed in wonder as the vehicle slowly backed up, returning to the station. It seemed like an eternity until the doors opened and Jen stepped out.

She looked over the crowd she’d jus’ left, “Damned my rotten luck! The war’s over.”

Jennifer Griffin still had four-years to fulfill to the Corps before she could again call herself a “civilian.”

Described as a beautiful, tall, and slim brunette with dark eyes, the day she died, miners throughout the Comstock cried. The bludgeoning and strangling of 35-year-old prostitute Julia Bulette on January 20, 1867, stunned Virginia City’s residents.

Less than six-years earlier, in 1861, Virginia Fire Company No. 1 had led a grand parade through town. The town’s citizens were gathered to celebrate Independence Day.

Riding on top of the pumper, wearing a fireman’s helmet, a brass fire trumpet filled with roses in her arms was Julia.  The crowd cheered for the “Queen of the Independence Day Parade.”

Julia, born in London, England, in 1833, she and her family moved to New Orleans in 1848 and then to California with the gold rush.  She arrived on the Comstock around 1859, where she lived and worked in a small frame house on D Street in the town’s red light district.

Her reputation for helping the sick and the needy grew over time. This eventually led to her election as an honorary member of the Virginia Fire Company No. 1.

She donated large sums for new equipment and often personally lent a hand at working the water pump — in effect becoming the first woman-firefighter in the nation.

The day before she was found murdered, Julia went to see a performance at Piper’s Opera House. She was unable to attend the performance because she refused to sit in a section reserved for ‘working girls,’ and instead returned home after be escorted from the establishment.

The next morning her next-door neighbor, Gertrude Holmes, who was bringing Julia her Sunday-morning breakfast, found her lifeless body. The neighbor immediately sent for the police.

They found she had been struck with a pistol, beaten with a piece of firewood and strangled. Most of her costume jewelry and fancy dresses were missing.

Julia ‘s funeral was held at Virginia Fire Company No. 1.  Her fellow firefighters took up a collection and purchased a silver-handled casket.

After the sermon, a band led about 60 members of the fire department and 16 carriages of mourners, to the Flowery Hill Cemetery.  And although Julia was given a Catholic funeral, she could not buried in consecrated ground.

Instead she was entombed in a lonely grave half a mile east of town.  A simple wooden plank with the name “Julia” painted on it was all that marked her final resting place.

As the mourners filed back into town, the men of Virginia Fire Company No. 1 sang “The Girl I Left Behind.” The city was draped in black, and for the first time since President Lincoln’s assassination, it’s reported, saloons were closed.

Several months later, prostitute Martha Camp was awakened by someone approaching her bedside. Her screams sent the man fleeing, but she later recognized him on the street.

He was identified as Frenchman John Millian, a baker and drifter. A search of his belongings revealed some of Julia’s possessions, whereupon he was immediately arrested.

Jurors quickly convicted Millian and on April 24, 1868, he was escorted to the gallows where more than 4,000 spectators witnessed the execution. Among them was Mark Twain, who described what he witnessed.

“I saw it all,” wrote Twain. “I took exact note of every detail, even to Melanie’s (sic) considerately helping to fix the leather strap that bound his legs together and his quiet removal of his slippers — and I never wish to see it again.”

Twain finishes, “I can see that stiff, straight corpse hanging there yet, with its black pillow-cased head turned rigidly to one side, and the purple streaks creeping through the hands and driving the fleshy hue of life before them. Ugh!”

While Millian memory has become more-or-less a footnote in Nevada’s history, Julia’s legend continued after her death.

The Virginia and Truckee Railroad honored her memory by naming one of its club coaches after her. Her portrait hung in many Virginia City saloons, and author Rex Beach immortalized her as Cherry Malotte in his novel, The Spoilers, while Oscar Lewis in his book Silver Kings reported that Julia was written about more than any other woman on the Comstock.

An in an episode of the television series Bonanza titled “The Julia Bulette Story”, featured Little Joe falling in love with her, much to the chagrin of his father. Written by Al C. Ward and first aired on October 17, 1959, Julia was played by actress Jane Greer.

To this day visitors to Virginia City report seeing an elegantly dressed woman walking along the wooden boardwalks, only to watch her dissolve into nothingness. Could Julia still be watching over the town?