Belmont chronicle. [volume] (St. Clairsville, Ohio) 1855-1973, 1881-08-25
CARRYING PISTOLS.
BY THE REV. WILLIAM b. CARY.
In NJ y. Independent.

In the days of knights-errant and old.
en- chiyalry. when every gentleman"
wore sword, violent encounters and
blood-letting were of frequent occur
renee. And in the West, all along the
frontier and on the "cow-path," as they
call the cattle-trail from Texas to Cen.
trail Kansas, there are frequent bloody
encounters and numberless deaths, re-
sulting very largely from the carrying
of pistols by every man engaged in the
cattle trade.
1t seems to be necessity for men to
carry firearms in that new country, to
protect themselves and their cattle from
the Indians and thieves who hang about
the trail; but the effect of this custom
of wearing arms is none the less mark
ed. Every encounter of words is apt to
end in a'mntual target-practies, the bo-
dies OF the disputants presenting fair
marks for the trial of their skill.
had a friend at one time, the son Of
a good New England mother, who moved
from Massachusetts, to Kansas, with her
whole family, and settled on the from
tier. When of age, he went out rs 3
cowboy" with drover, and soon be-
gan to invest in two-year old for him.
self, keeping them with the herd till
they reached market, and laid up some
money. He was lather of a quiet dis
position; but carried his pistols just the
same and burned quantities of powder in
practice, becoming an excellent "shot."
| saw him at intervals when home on
visits. Finally his herd came in, but he
was not with it. The drover and owner
of the herd knew nothing of him, except
that he was with them when they left
Texas. "He must have dropped out at
one of the towns along the route" 1t
leaked out, however, that he and anoth-
ca man had some words, and Neither
of them came in with the herd. Both
fred at the same instant and both shots
were fatal. If the spirits of men mur-
dered in this way could be seen standing
where they died, they would form line
of sentries extending from Knasas City
to Santa Fe; and, if they could speak,
they would every one of them say:
"Killed in haste"
Human life is'at its minimum value
where every man wears his pistols and
is so practiced in drawing and firing
them that, before an ordinary man could
get his pistol out of his pocket, they
would draw, fire, and kill him. T..
1t has been said "They are mighty civ
il to each other" as sort of recommen-
datiOn for the practice Of carrying arms.
Yes, the unciyil ones die; but this num-
Der is so great that, if it were known, we
would be appalled, at the exhibit. d.
The tales of our borders are tales of
blood. A. desperate stands talking
with some of "the boys" A stranger
comes up the street. He wears blue
coat with brass buttons. 81
boys" says the desperate, "I'll bet an
x can drive that brass button into
that fellows heart"
al take the bet! Plank down the
coin!" replies one of "the boys"
At the word, the money is put into the
hands of an umpire, the desperate
draws, and, as the innocent stranger ar,
rives within range, levels his pistol and
fires. They all go up to the PROSTATE
body, out of which the life is swiftly
ebbing, and find that the marksman has
driven the button into his body; but are
not satisfied that he has won the bet,for
they cannot tell if it is in his heart.
"Well, never mind boys" says the
murderer. "May be Ididn't quite win
it. l move we give the twenty dollars
to the church" Which is carried unan-
imously, as no one in the crowd wants
any sort of button driven into his heart.
One living on the frontier for any
length of time hears scores of such tales,
and, from the character of the "cow-
boys" and -desperadoes, he knows no
reason to suspect their truth.
These men all carry arms, and they
practice so constantly with them that
they are as certain Of hitting their mark
as the great rifle-shOt is Of hitting the
glass balls thrown into the air.
The question that suggests itself to my
mind is this: Are We in. danger of be-
coming as reckless of human life, as the
years roll on, as the "cow-boys" Of the
plainsp If the mass of peace-loving cit
izens, who never think of firearms could
know the number Of pistols carried by
boys and young meu, could see their
practice with them. and hear their slang
talk and swagger, they would fear it.
Every young man must have his pis-
tol-pocket in his pants, All the custom
work is made up in this way, and all the
young men as they buy this necessary
article of apparel, thrust their hands into