The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1894-09-20
MORAL Is NOBLER THAN PHI Y
SICAL COURAGE.

MORAL Is NObLEIN JhAN IL
SICAL COURAGE.
That was q revival of bad habl
set by those two editors up at Gates
Vile on last Saturday. There Is NJ
necessity for editors quarreling ant
shooting each other to death. ina
kind of pay for newspaper contro
versy comes q little 100 dear. INT
moment man gets into a passion III
ought to be locked up. Men who ar
in the habit of yielding to the contro
of violent temper are insane ant
ought not to he allowed to go at large
IL don't pay to get mad anyhow. A
man who permits his temper to ge
the better of him always does some
thing that in his cool moments ne
deeply regrets. To avoid all such
fatal quarrels an editor ought moi
to use his columns to crafty his pei
sonal revenge.
Ia large cities where newspapers
are inpersonal we never hear OF
personal conflict between editors and
for that and other reasons every
newspaper writer should totally ig-
more his own personality and address
himself to the discussion of the cur
rent topics of the day. While reader
are entertained by scraps between
editors they care nothing about the
editors and look on just as they would
look on and be entertained for the
moment by dog fight.
1t is therefore supremacy ridiculous
for editors to sacrifice themselves and
probably leave their families desti-
tute by resenting as mortal o1fense
everything that some foolish fellow
may say about them or the paper. A
brave man is not so touchy that he
must fly at the throat of any man who
offsnds him, in order to vindicate his
personal courage. 1t often requires
more personal courage to obey tho
laws, both civil and moral, than it
does to shoot down fellowman
Il. G. Armstrong, the editor of the
Star, and j. l.. Goodman, the editor
of the Voice, were both good citizens
Of Gatesvlle and members OF the
church, hut q newspaper controversy
aroused ali the ugly passions OF the
two men and they forgot their obligs-
tions of exemplary citizenship, broke
through the restraining influences of
the church and reckless of the conse.
quences to their families, they obeye d
their mad passions and meeting upon
the quiet streets of the town shot
each other to death.
Everything of this kind should be
condemned by the public press and
men and editors made to think that it
is not only wicked but evidence
of weak character for man to allow
himself to create all this sorrow and
affliction to those he loves and are
dependant on him. Let the fact that
the private citizen carries a pistol
brand him as coward and we will
soon be free in this state of such
lsmentable ana disgraceful scenes as
those enacted on the streets of Gates
vile on Saturday last. Let us re-
member that moral courage that pre-
vents us from doing wrong is higher
and nobler than physical courage,
that leads us to commit the greatest
crimes to vindicate false idea Of
protecting our honor. Our honor and
every principle of an advanced
civilization require obedience to
the laws Of God and man.
The very fact that men in their
, cool moments can think and talk thi
way, and then in moment of passion
themselves violate the very princi-
pies they have advocated, is an evi.
dence of the necessity for public
opinion aud the press to so formulate
opinion against such things as to
deter and sustain men in q passion
from resorliug to the natural instincts
OF violence, and until this is the case,
until public opinion is severe in its
condemnation Of o resort to violence,
men will not restrain themselves, but
if they have the backing and dread of
encounteriDg that condemnation, they
will pause and reason with them.
selves, and the moment reason is on
its throne the danger is over.