**Texas Ranger Ray Andrews was tired of hearing about the California gold rush. His best friend and fellow Ranger, Tom Jenkins, constantly badgered him about it. Tom wanted to quit the Rangers and head west, but Ray wasn't interested.

Both their lives changed forever the day they entered a shooting contest in Austin. Samuel Colt had just developed the new Colt Navy revolver. He sponsored a competition to promote his product. Ray won the contest. Tom finished fourth. The top ten Ranger shooters received one of the new revolvers. They also received a mission to guard a payroll wagon into the Indian country of deep Southwest Texas. Ray and Tom didn't know about the payroll mission when they entered the contest.

A ruthless outlaw named Sores Aguilar was watching. Dressed as a friendly observer, Sores obtained all the information about the payroll wagon. He was already devising a master plan to rob it.

Ox in the Culvert is a historical fiction novel about the true Wild West. The story travels from Central Texas through the great Southwest and into California. It continues on to Hong Kong and then back to San Francisco. Take an adventure into the early 1850s. The great western expansion of America was accomplished by both the good and the bad. It was a time that hasn't received its proper respect.**