The Russellville Democrat., 1879-12-25
The sIx-sHOoTER QUESTION.


 ked through these columns that as one the effects of the recent decis- ion of the supreme court upon the pistol law, many old murdcrous- look l ing SIX shooters had made their ap- pearance dangling out from under the coat tails of men all over the 1 State, and we believe VIC went on to deplore such a decision and such a practice as sad and unfortunate comment upon our enlightenment and civilization. The Malvern Me teor a journal which we had classed as q friend and advocate of general intelligence, O. the public school system, and of our States best in terests, strangely comes to the res cue of the six shooter lovers and takes exceptions to our article as 1 follows:
 l Society can govern this matter. But let us, for liberty's sake, have the law administered according to it's plain letter, and the intention of it's makers, and try to improve it's deficiencies in the future, and not strike like mad men at the adminis- tration of justice. We are prouder of Judge English to day than ever before. He is pure man with le gal ability, and administers law ac- cording to it's commandments, and not according to public sentiment. May we ever keep such men on our supreme bench, and for us we would not support any man that would de- eide questions according to public sentiment, disregarding the law.
 "Society can govern this natter is very easily said: but how, let us ask the Meteor man, is society to do It, if we have supreme court which rais- es it's finger of prohibition and says to society, "Stop, you shall not inter fere with those six.shooters, it is one of the inalienable rights, one of the g-l-o-r-l-o.u privileges of every citizen of Arkansas to go about arm ed to the teeth with war weapons. l The con s.t-l-t-u- -t-i-o-n says it is necessary for the public peace, for the safety of the country, for the ad vancement of our civilization, for the promotion of our liberty, and you must keep your hands of, MT. So- ciety." Society enforces it's man dates through the medium of laws enacted by it's legally chosen repres entatives assembled in a law mak- ing capacity, and when the agents of society, our law makers, are prohib- ited from enacting laws for the good of society, we are powerless. "Let us for liberty's sake have the law ad- ministered according to it's plain let ter, and the intention of It's makers, !" also sounds finely, but applied to the present case as justification of the pistol decision, is, in our opin. ion, weak and unhappy argument, for we fail utterly to construe any part of our national or State organic law to betray any intention on the part of the framers thereof, to guarantee individual cit izens, in their individual capacity, the right to go about mlngling among their fellow members of a quiet and pcaccable society, loaded down with deadly weapons, intimi- dating and over-awing hy their dan gerous looking presence, all lovers of peace and order.
 Don't strike like mad men at the administration of justice is high sounding. We can't see the justice, however, in allowing one man to go about armed with a pair of great formidable navy sixes, and depriving another man of the privi- lidge of putting derringer in his pocketto place himself on something like half way equality with the first mentioned walking battery. If discrimination in favor of the more lawless and dangerous element of society for it is only the more law less and dangerous, who cling to their navy sixes) IS justice, then we give it up.
 We fully agree with the Meteor when it says, "we should not sup port any man who would decide questions according to public senti- ment, disregarding the law but we want men to construe our law who will not construe it so as to discrim- mate in favor of the bad element and against the better element.
 We say let all men stand on an equal footing, and If it is to be the law in Arkansas that one man can Al 4