The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1886-11-07
THE CODE OF HONOR,
The Decline in Dueling and
the Reasons Therefor.
GENERAL PUTNAM's JOKE.
Two Editors and Their FIght-A
Strange PartnershIP-rargets
of Human Bodies

rs dueling still popular among gen.
tIemen ?" was asked by a reporter the
other dsy of a military man who has
been prominent in several affairs"
No. times have changed marvelously.
During Jackson's second term the Dem
ocrats, flushed with victory at the Pres
identisl election. were rather arrogant
Many dashing and gallant young men
had been elected from the Western and
Southern States. and conscious Of their
great numerical superiority were some
what disposed to carry matters with a
high hand. Dueling in those days was
much in vogue aud personal discussions
in the house were frequently brought to
abrupt termination by Intimation that
Injurious imputstions would be re-
sented elsewhere. John NJ. Patton and
Henry n. Wise of Virginia. Bailie
Peyton OF Tennessee, Gallatin Halves OF
Kentucky, Jessy Bynum of North Caro-
lima, and many other Southerners were
known TO be prompt with the pistol,
and II was understood that q call 10 the
field would follow any damaging per-
sonal attack upon distinguished mem
bers Of the ruling party. The rude
demeanor and offensive vituperation by
which Congress has been disgraced for
some years past would have been
promptly published forty years. ago.
Now IL excites comparatively little
public attention and is only met in Con-
gresS BY a retort in kind"
how do you account for the decline
of the dueling mania2"
The decline dates from the time it
Was made auxiliary TO gambling and
sEindling, or TO the settlement OF dis
putes between vulgar scoundreis. Since
then IL has gone out of fashion rapidly.
The gross abuse of dueling has done
more to remedy its own mischief than
moral appeals aud legal enactments."
What do the Irish think OF duel
mgr"
"Grattan's dying advice 70 his sons
was Always be ready with your
pistols The Irish are often much too
ready There IS a trait in the Irish
character which Is considered By many
20 be nationally chiyuirOus and that is a
/ general dislike TO seek III courts of law q
monetary compensation for honor out
ragged through woman's folly. In this
country repaTation for loss of service is
| considered thing as correctly reclaim
able as loss of profit on a cargo of wheat
or cotton, while among Irishmen, in
nine cases out of ten, the man who
works upon the weakness of a wife, or
trIfies with the affections of sister, is
not subjected to an assessment for
4 damages by a jury, but summoned 10
give personal satisfaction"
Men disinclined 10 make targets of
themselves In obedience to a cOnYen-
tional code of honor have often got out
of the difficulty by availing themselves
of the right accorded TO the challenge to
choose the weapons. An old whaling
captain not long since declared he
would fight with harpOons or not at all
an alternative declined by his adver-
sary. \ MissOurian daunted his sntag-
Onist by insisting upon a combat with
rawhides, limited TO half an hours
duration. Gen. Putnam was ouce
challenged by 4 young officer and pro-
posed that each should sit upon a
powder-keg, with a lighted fuse 10 the
oung. AS be would hear OF no other
terms, the general had his way. At the
appointed time the belligerents took
their seats, the fuses were ignited, and
the veteran watched the process with
unmoved countenance. Not so his OPP
ponent. He took intense interest in the
fast-lessening match, and when the
flame got suggestively near the bung-
hole showed his possession of the better
part OF valor by Jumping oft the key and
making for the open field till arrested by
Putnam roaring out: Hold on, my
boy; its only onion seed.
Two western editors of opposing
papers once made fools OF themselves.
1t came about through the editor of one
of the papers declaring in a leader that
the editor of the other paper was q
bigamist, and that gentleman rssenting
the calumny by pulling the lioeler s
nose in the public street. The mayor oil
the town kindly undertook TO arrange
for the difficulty being settled in a pro.
per way, and the two editors were soon
ensconced, rife in hand, behind the
trees in a wood. For two mortal hours
they lodged and peeped. neither caring
to fire least by missing be should leave
himself at his enemy's mercy. Then
rain came down. and one of the com.
batants discovered that it had saturated
his powder.
lis your powder wet?" shouted he to
his rival.
No" answered the other.
Mines beautifully dry" continued
the first.
But his adversary, guessing how mat
tiers were, came boldly out of cover
with his weapon ready to come to the
present"
"stopW cried the appalled, man
"stopl Let's have parley. You are a
darned good fellow. Suppose instead oil
shooting we go into partnership"
IAN right" replied the other. and
they returned home together.
OF course both editors had 20 set
themselves right with their subscribers
which they did by telling them that
their guns were wet, and wouldn't 20
/ off New York Sfor