This is not a story about James Butler Hickock, the famous American gunfighter and lawman. Rather I share a story about someone who is unknown and will never be placed within the pages of any history book. This is a story about a man who tried to live an ordinary life, but the sacrifices he had made earlier wouldn't allow him.
Wild Bill was a telephone lineman. He had helped to train me in the skill decades ago. After completion of training, he and I later worked on some assignments together. We shared shovels to dig 10' holes in the ground to place telephone poles. On some occasions after work, many of the linemen gathered at a nearby liquor store or bar. He and I would sometimes be there chugging down several cans of beer.
My first impression of Wild Bill was he was a redneck hick directly from the country. As it turned out he was from Oklahoma and his country drawl gave evidence to that fact. He was in his late 30's when I first met him. He was about 6 ft. and weighed about 200 lbs. on a muscular frame. It didn't take me long to figure out he was nicknamed Wild Bill because he was a beast at work. He was heralded by other linemen as holding the record for stepping telephone poles at 8 minutes. For one who does not understand what this means try to imagine climbing up to the top of a 18 feet telephone pole with spikes (hooks) strapped to the bottom of your boots, drilling 14 holes (7 on each side of the pole) about 16 inches apart and below each other, then driving eleven 12 inch steps and three butt steps and plates into the drilled holes with a 2 lbs hammer, while swinging back and forth down the pole. As a comparison, the best time I could ever accomplish this feat was 12 minutes.
At first I often wondered what I had gotten myself into by working with such a character. He fussed, he cussed, was quick to call others including me a “stupid muther f#@%&?” But I tolerated him and continued to perform the job.
As days passed to become months, I began to hear the stories about Wild Bill from supervisors whom knew his history and linemen he had shared some of the events of his life. He had fought for our nation as a marine in Vietnam. He had been captured, tortured and survived. When he arrived back to the U.S. he became a lineman and an alcoholic. He struggled through his marriage and became so intolerable to his family, his wife divorced him.
Having insight on his past, helped me to better understand why he had fits of rage. I remember an incident for example when he struggled to remove a terminal off a pole. He tried to unscrew one of the lags which supported the terminal and bruised his hand instead. He quickly became angered. He cried out to the terminal, “you coc#@%&?” He violently ripped the terminal off the pole and he forcefully threw it down to the ground. That was a typical Wild Bill moment.
After working with him for several years more, I came to accept Wild Bill's behavior and respected him. I became aware why he was the way he was.
He had given his all for what he believed of our nation. He had been a fearless warrior left traumatized and in psychological shambles. What worsened his plight, our government had abandoned him in his pain.
There have been many men and women who have served our country well; many of whom our government did not then, has not yet and most likely never will be able to give back to them all they rightly deserve for what they have sacrificed. Many of them have been injured in so many ways; not all being physical wounds.
Wild Bill died several years ago. Tragically as with most veterans, few if anyone will remember who he or they were and what they did. They become like the leaves which gave us shade and protected us from the heat during hot summer days, then withered away when the winter came.
I write this story to offer some remembrance for him and so many others whom have placed their lives in harms to way to protect us and our way of life. Though our government may have had some agendas other then those for the best interest of our nation by conscripting them, our veterans followed their assignments because they believed they were serving us…the people.
Not too long ago I ran into an old lineman who knew Wild Bill well. We discussed about some of the old times and past days. Then he told something which made me smile. He shared with me an old secret few knew. He revealed Wild Bill had cheated when he set the pole stepping record many years ago; he had used a larger drill bit. I smiled, mainly because the secret confirmed Wild Bill wasn't a beast after all.
