This story was told to me by Winfield about his dad, MQ. I’m pretty sure that MQ was as crazy as his son, Winfield. There are many stories about him but none that top the following. I had only limited contact with him when I was a kid. The first time I remember seeing MQ was during a hog buying episode when he bought a pen full of hogs from Brown Parker. Trying to load the hogs, something happened causing him to slip down in the loading chute with a big sow on top of him. He literally bit her ear, then once he was up on his feet, started beating her in the head with his fists and screaming. Then he lit into Winfield for no reason that anyone there could explain. The encounter ended with Brown and Cec running him off telling to never come back on our place again. I don’t think he ever did.

Okay now for the real true to form MQ story:

A hog buyer from Arkansas came to the Scott Hog Farm and bought a truck (big cattle truck size load) load of hogs and paid MQ with a check. The Buyer and the Hogs went to Arkansas. The check bounced. The buyer showed up wanting more hogs. MQ asked about the hot check, not wanting to get stuck for a second load. A deal was made for a second load under the condition that he would be paid with certified funds for both. The truck was loaded and told to follow them to the Big Wheel Truck Stop in Oak Hill, in the edge of Austin. The driver was to set and wait.

MQ drove the hog buyer downtown to one of the big banks where the guy had made arraignments to get a certified check for both loads. The buyer told MQ to pull up to a walk up window at 8th and Guadalupe where he has been told that a check would be waiting. In a matter of minutes there were APD cars with lights and sirens going coming from every direction.

The buyer had walked up to the window, handed the teller a note saying the guy in the brown Ford LTD had kidnapped him and was going to kill him if he didn’t pay a ransom. Once the cops starting arriving, the buyer faded away into the hustle-bustle of downtown Austin, supposedly meeting up with the truck and headed out for Arkansas. By the time MQ was arrested, booked into jail and allowed to tell his version of events, the guy was long gone, to never be heard from again.

The real problem was there was no evidence of who the guy was or where he was really from. The check had been a complete forgery.