The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1890-01-27
SOMETHING NEW IN KENTUCKY d II
Tho Uae Of HEAVY Surgical Instruments In
~. Political Debate. y.

4 Political Debate.
Nas York Tribune. Il tlt
There Is no Slate inthe Union which
can approach Kentucky for originality.
When kentuckian tries to distinguish |
himself he never falls. And Kentucky
has art as well as genius. When tho
country Is quiet, when there Ia no Johns
town disaster or National election, or
other important event., to take up the
attention Of the people, a wise student
OF current affairs keeps Ills eye on Ken
tucky--nine times out OF ten she will
report blowing well or fresh ieud, q
new race.lorsc or q shower Of fish.
But the Oldest observer scarcely
thought 10 seea Kentuckian bringforward
any new plan or instrument for inilct.
Ing great bodily injury OIL a. fellow man.
1t was supposed that Kentucky had
sounded the whole gamut OF human
weapons, from the humble piece OF old
BcythG with a corncob handle, which the
law-abiding citizen Of Pike county in.
serts In his bootleg, TO tho silver.plated,
sclf.cocking revolver which the Speaker
OF the Kentucky House uses as q gavel.
Even the late memorable feuds which
swept over Kentucky developed nothing
new In tho way OF arms, though Judge
LOWS, OF Harlan county, put the double
barrelled shotgun to n somewhat novel
use when he employed 1t In the guise OF
writ OF mandamus. But II few days
ago when the whole country wus quiet,
and the last echo OF tho last breach-of.
promise suit had died away, there came
Il little, unassuming account OF an oc.
currenco near Louisville which must
awaken as much interest in Kentucky
as did the announcement concerning the
new smokeless gunpowder--the story
told OF Il recent unfriendly meeting be-
tween prominent citizens OF Newcastle,
In which one struck the other "a heavy
blow with surgical instrument" sl'.
Certainly here Is something new in tho
way OF weapons, and 1t will not surprise
Va to hear that Kentuckians, all the way
from Hickman to the Big Sandy, are dis.
posing OF their automalic.action pistols
and double.edged bowie.knives and pro.
viding themselves with surgical instru.
ments. at the future Rowan County
wedding, instead Of the walls being
blackened and disigured by powder.
smoke, the groom, and best man, and
grandfather OF the bride, and Justice OF
the peace, and Others present, map reacl,
down the back Of their respective necks
and draw out surgical instruments, and
all 90 ahead resolutely and settle the
matter then and there. We do not know
what kind Of surgical instrument was
employed by the original Newcastle
man, but that it was effective we
gather from the fact that the other
man, provided with only the usual Ken.
lucky side arms, was taken to the hos.
pital IL tlemorali2ed condition. As q
mntter OF record, it should be stated cha,
the man who welded the surgical instru.
ment is practising physician and sur.
geon, but whether or not he will read 8
paper at the next meeting OF his county
medical society on "The Use OF Heavy
Surgical Instruments in Cases of Politi
cal Debate" We cannot say. He is de.
scribed as a man OF more than average
ability, and as being popular and well
liked In the community where he lives.
We are convinced, however, that there
must be vein OF sarcasm in his mental
composition, when we remember Brown,
OF Calyeras, II man who must have been
Of similar character, Of whom VIC read !:
He was most sarcastic man. this quiet Mr..
And on several occasions he had cleaned out the
town." IT.7~.''> $50 :
And it occurs to US that the trouble
which followed at the meeting of the
scientific society wherein Brown figured.
thong b fragments OF old red sandstone,
tho skull OF a mammoth and other
remnants Of a palaeozoic age" were
used, no mention is made by Mr.. Harte
OF the employment Of surgical instru-
ments to remove a members interest in
the subsequent proceedings But it
would, Of course, after all, be wrong to
say that surgical instruments were never
before used to produce even greater
bodily harm than in the recent instance
in Kentucky; as witness the historical
dispatch which announced that 1"the
operation was a complete success. The
man is dead" But their use in this
case and in all others like it was, OF
course, strictly professional, and though
the Kentucky man is himself in the
proiesslon, he made a purely popular
use OF the instrument when he, pulled it
out OF his pocket on the street and struck
q personal friend back OF the ear with il.
In closing, we must congratulate
Kentucky on her discovery of way to
vary the monotony of her personal en-
counters. When Kentuckians all begin
tha nrQpfinN If o.