Eight shots blistered the air at Yettie Polk Park at noon Wednesday, leaving a woman in red on the ground and a second woman in green holding a smoking gun in her hand as she cursed her fallen rival.
Police shook their heads, but basically paid no attention to the histrionics of the two women who apparently shot at each other in a fit of pique over some romantic intrigue.
Of course the shootout was staged. A gunfight fracas of one sort or another has become a tradition with the annual Belton Area Chamber of Commerce and PRCA Rodeo July 4th Celebration Kick Off Barbecue sponsored by H-E-B and Schoepf’s Old Time Pit Bar-B-Que.
When the woman in red on the ground revived from her demise, she and her adversary revealed the dispute was over a flirtation.
Spicy, the woman in green, said that the woman in red, Miss Bea, had been flirtin’ with her brother.
“Actually she’s been flirtin’ with all four of my brothers - and Paw, too,” Spicy said.
Both women concealed .44-caliber Remington pistols in the décolletage of their 19th century dance hall dresses - the only ladylike way to pack heat, they said.
Both actresses are members of the Coryell Cowboys in Gatesville and hire their services to stir up old-fashioned commotion and melodrama for picnics, rodeos and special events.
At first, some 250 to 300 Bell County residents stared in disbelief at the staged shooting. Some stopped eating in mid-chew - jaws slack and eyes riveted on the fracas. Startled looks quickly turned to grins and light-hearted laughter as they realized it was simply the traditional kickoff gunplay.
“It’s a lot of fun,” Belton Mayor Jim Covington said. “People in Belton have come to expect the sheriff or bad guys or dance hall girls to be shooting the place up beneath the pecan trees.”
The setting under the canopy of the ancient trees on the banks of Nolan Creek seemed to many a perfect setting for the beginning of Belton’s 84th annual Independence Day celebration. USA Today recently ranked the five-day event as one of the top 10 in the nation.
Belton city council member Marion Grayson said the scene invoked the nostalgia of 19th century America.
“Don’t you think it’s about American Pie?” she asked.
“It’s kind of like the 1800s when folks gathered under the trees and talked to politicians - heavens forbid,” she said with a soft laugh.
Ms. Grayson said she celebrates being an American on this holiday.
“My mother came here from Germany in 1958,” she said. “She became an American citizen in 1963 and she celebrated the date every year like it was her birthday.”
Retired Maj. George Robbins, who served in plans and operations with the 13th Support Command at Fort Hood in the 1980s, said after a full Army career he especially enjoys celebrating July Fourth.
“This is really nice - and surprisingly cool here beneath the trees.”
Justice of the Peace Ted Duffield of Bell County Precinct 2 said he sensed an excitement in the air.
“Everyone gets to see people they haven’t seen and visited with in some time,” Duffield said.
Mayor Merle Stalcup of Salado with his wife, Karen, brought a delegation from Salado that included Debbie Charbonneau, Hulda Horton and Eldon Miller.
“We do this every year,” Ms. Horton said. “We’ll have our own celebration at Pace Park on July 4 in the evening.”
The 36th Infantry Division Band serenaded guests with their Jazz Guardians combo. The group played a potpourri of peppery jazz perennials to liven things up. They later graduated into the swing rhythms of Big Band repertoire.
Commander of the band, Warrant Officer Jeff Lightsey, said when they contacted the Belton Chamber about playing for the event they found out the chamber had almost given up finding a group that could play on that date.
Temple resident Jeremy Thompson, who teaches elementary music at Montague Village Elementary at West Fort Hood, plays with the band. The 36th is a part of the Texas Army National Guard.
