Folks, this goes way back to that early southern Texas herd of land terrapins (non-swimming turtles) that a group o' turtleboys tried to drive to the railroad up North near Abilene. As I've said many times on various recrdings, they got to the Red River where an old mud turtle named Studs (yes, Studs Turtle)got spooked at the sight of the herd and he dove into the river. The land terrapins, bein' very I.Q. deficient, followed him into the river, and they all drownded. The turleboys thought about it for a day or two and then they heated up some boulders and pushed 'em into the river. That heated the water and for the next year the Red River ran pure turtle soup; kept the entire Commanche nation fed during a very bad winter. That ended the GREAT TUTLE DRIVE as it's come to be known in the anals of Western history. But the next year it gave 'em the idea to try the same thing with cows. Yep, it was the start of the cattle industry in Texas, and ultimately led to the big law suit against Oprah. (Cause & effect)

But what isn't well known is that the river became a tortoise shell mine of sorts. You could just plunge your hand into the Red River and "take your pick"---as it were...

I know all this because I "herd" it from my old uncle years ago---and I have "turtle recall".

Art Thieme