New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1888-11-29
WAS THE WOMAN DUPED ?
n DUEL FOUGHT ONLY IN HER MIND.
HER SENTIMENTAL HEART ALONE WOUNDED

HER SENTIMENTAL HEART ALONE WOUNDED
BY Two PRACTIoAL-JoKERs.
The age of crack Drained chivalry and its nearest
Of Kin, duclline. is past but that of wild fantasy
and sickly sentimentasm seems TO be In Its Hover.
A duel is q thing which appeals to peoples sympa-
thies, and when genuine duels are not to DO had,
men often fight them on paper or In their minds
The alleged duel In Central Park week ago proved
to be q fascinating bait for creduous folk. The
imaginative minds of reporters were strained to the
greatest tension and the duel declared actually
TO have taken place. The foundation upon which
the nimsy structure built consisted OF two blood
stained handkerchefs, a rusty, od-fashioned useless
pistol, with one barrel and ono chamber, and a
hysterica woman. Added to these camo, later on,
q story from q back-driver, and, moreover, New
Ysrk backdrver.
woman undoubtedly rushed into ONCE Of
the Western Union Telegraph Company, at Broadway
and Thrtieth-st, on the night Of November II
She hastily sent two messages one 10 Captain Reilly
OF the Thrtieth Street Police station, and one
to Captain Beatty, Of the Park Arsenal saying that
Q duel was take place that night in Central Park
and that the blood of the duellsts, II any was
shed, would rest her head Tho next morning
there found In the Park, near the West Ninety
second-st entrance, small pistol, in which was an
empty shell, and two handkerchlofs stained with
blood There also found on the same spot cork,
with the end which goes into bottles neck stained
thing. The handkerchiefs Of cheap cotton stun,
scarcely likely to be owned by New-York club-men,
b. two Of whom II is declared, the duel was fought
The most striking thing found however, was the
corh. Only the lower and smaller end bore inc
trscss of blood. The fierce duellists seem to have
had . bottle filed with blood, which was sprfnkled
over the hapdkerchiefs. They carried away the
bottle but lost the cork 1t is also said that surgeon
accompanied the party to the Park and went away
from there In the same carriage with the man who
was wounded Surgeons, however, would be likely
to carry bandages and lint such mission, rather
than cheap cotton handkerchiefs
Captain Beatty says that at the time the duel
q alleged to have taken place and for some time
before and after an officer within few feet
Of the spot. The Sergeant, too, was out doing In
specton duty that night and happened to be in that
Immediate neighborhood at the same time. careful
investigation was made soon as the hysterlcal
letter was received and for some days afterwau.
The Captain and his officers decided that the whole
thing was q hoax. Nothing new had been learned
about the matter yesterday by Captain Beatty. Cap
tain Reilly said that he had nothing TO say ABOUT
the matter, he knew absolutely nothing ABOUT
It beyond the fact that the had sent him the
note and that the handkerchefs and pistol had been
found.
1t was the opinion Of those who had been lnvestl-
eating the affair that two young fellows with
peculiar idea Of the "punDy' had played joke on
some lightheadcd young woman, and that the only
wounds which had been inflicted were on her 1851
ings. Talking over the affair, policeserseant VINO
has been working up the case f Ca n,s
that the woman was dnped. She now
probably has the satisfaction of knowing that she
rseRed her conscience in vain, while being made
fool Of by two bigger FOOLS