Yellow Mama E zine

Ghost of the Occidental Hotel

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by Daniel G. Snethen

 

The Occidental Hotel is haunted

by the ghost of a gallant young outlaw

who walks the hall at night in cowboy boots

and antique silverplated Kelly spurs.

His gaudy batwing chaps of Herford hide,

chafing against each other, wail ghost-like.

The burnished handles of his forty-fives—

stained with the blood of his enemies.

 

His footsteps patrol the hallways at night

as he searches for his long-lost lover.

With both revolvers raised and hammers cocked

he enters the door to the Bordello.

And the ladies there scream as he empties

both guns on some unsuspecting fellow.

 

 

         Daniel G. Snethen is an educator, naturalist, moviemaker, poet, and short story writer from South Dakota. He teaches on the Pine Ridge Reservation at Little Wound High School in the heart of Indian Country. 

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      Bernice Holtzman’s paintings and collages have appeared in shows at various venues in Manhattan, including the Back Fence in Greenwich Village, the Producer’s Club, the Black Door Gallery on W. 26th St., and one other place she can’t remember, but it was in a basement, and she was well received. She is the Assistant Art Director for Yellow Mama.