Gold Hill daily news. [volume] (Gold Hill, N.T. [Nev.]) 1863-1882, 1871-06-14
covcr.tEn DEADLY WEAPONS

CONCEALED DEADLY WEAPONS
Among recent casualties 1t Is re-
corded that a gentleman in Louisville,
kentucky, leaving 4 house at which
he had been a guest, caused the death
of one Of the ladies of the family. He
hsuded her q coat, a loaded pistol fell
from the pocket and was discharged
BY the conclusion, causing the fatal
result above stated. Such an accident
in times Of wal and tumult might
have occurred without occasioning
much surprise. At such times mel
habituate themselves to the dangerous
practice of carrying weapons. But
why In time of peace men should be
handing round to unsuspecting women
garments containing loaded pistols Is
a curious question. There has grown
among us too great a familiarity with
these dangerous and treacherous i'm
plements. A loaded pistol, always
the source OF peril, is doubly so when
there Is no occasion for its use, and no
suspicion Of its existence. Even for
the protection Of a traveller, or the
safety of 4 house against burglars, fire.
arms are apt to occasion more damage
to their unskillful owners and their
friends than to the marauders against
whom they are provided. The COM
mon use Of such things, under what
ever pretext they are obtained and
kept, gives frequently tragical termin-
atoms to petty. brolls and quarrels.
nl-tempered and boisterous men are
made more quarrelsome by their hay
ing, ready to their hands, the means
Of intimidation and injury. Once,
when u disturbance occurred, the first
impulse Of orderly men was to hasten
to aid In its suppression, and where an
officer was resisted the by-standers
were ready to assist him. Now, when
the beginning Of n dispute, or the
attempt Of a pickpocket to escape,
may result in pistol firing between the
parties, and perhaps In the production
of a small armory from the pockets Of
the participants, common prudence
impels quiet men to keep out Of the
way of chance shots If they can. The
nun who hastens to the assistance OF
either side, or to aid In preventing
riot, does so at the peril of his life ;
and if he stands by from motives OF
curiosity, he does so ut the risk OF
death or wounds. One Of the consc-
quences of such u condition Of things
Is the swelling of mere brawls into
the dimensions Of sa~nguinary rioting.
The disorderly have the field to them
selves, or If interference is attempted
by the custodians Of the public peace,
it Is under the penalty Of dangers not
contemplated when the laws for pre-
serving the peace were enacted. One
OF the practical remedies against such
a state Of things Is the rigid and severe
enforcement of the laws against carry
ing concealed deadly weapons. The
same course would operate to the pre-
yention of accidents. In the Louis
Vile case mentioned above, the man
who caused the death Of the lady Is
described rs "a clergyman = and the
day on which the occurrence took place
was Sunday. The manifest incon-
gruity of such circumstances 1t Is not
necessary to dilate upon. As there Is
probably in Louisville a law against
carrying concealed deadly weapons,
common justice demands that the
offender In this case should be made to
suffer its penalty. In our own city
and State, however, there Is ample
room for reform in the execution Of
the laws relating to this subject. While
statutes exist let them be operative,
and If their enforcement be impossi-
bic. let them be repealed. The COM
munity will then understand the situa-
ton.