Jim Wells’ Word Was Law In The Valley

Twenty-eight year old James Babbage Wells, Jr. arrived at the southern tip of Texas on Jul. 22, 1878 with a burning desire to make the most of a fresh start. The son of a proud but far from prosperous hero of the Lone Star Revolution had been in Brownsville only a few days, when he was surprised by an unexpected offer of employment. Judge Stephen Powers, the man who called the shots in South…