The Daily Texarkanian., 1895-01-08
TWO COWARDS.


ridiculed it, winning for my client,
We met soon after and quarreled,
He called me a liar,
AS that harsh word fell upon my
ear passion oyercame me. | struck
Adams in the face. His friends
drew him away, and | went out into
the open air,
On the following morning a friend
named Watkins called upon me and
presented note from Adams. /
opened it and found it to be chal-
lenge
What should l do2
What I ought to do was very
plain The lesson of life which my
mother had taught me did not
leave me to doubt. | ought to
have gone to Adams and made such
offers of cOnciliation as one gentle
man may honorably make to anoth.
err and if he had rejected that |
could have simply turned from him
and refused to do further wrong
already done. But / had not the
courage to do that. / was a COW
ard.
accepted the challenge,
"The sooner it is over the better, !"
remarked Watkins.
Certainly" I responded, 'Let
it be this very day at sunset, upon
the rivers bank | will send a
friend to you to make further ar
rangements,
"And the weapous?'
"Pistols." "
And so it was fixed.
An hour afterward | found John
Price, young physician, who
agreed to act as my second, He
did not urge me to abandon the
idea, nor did he enter upon the
work as though he loved it, but he
did it because he fancied / was de-
termined, / knew that Adams was
a good shot, and he knew that ] was
the same, for we had practiced to-
getber there was no advantage to
either in the weapons.
After dinner Price came to me
and told me that all was arranged.
After Price had gone | sat down
and wrote two letters, What a
coward | was to write theml One
was tony mother and the other to
the girl who had promised to be my
wife, AS sit now and think Of
that hour shudder the hour when
! wrote to my mother and my be-
trothed
White Heart ledge was a high
perpendicular wall of granite rising
above the river, the top crowned
with dark trees 1t received its
name from a peculiar mark, where
a mass Of white quartz appeared,
half way up the ledge in the form
of a heart
Late in the afternoon ] was upon
the sandy shore beneath the ledge,
and almost at the same time Adams
made his appearance, We were
both anxious to be thought. brave
men, He did not speak to me, nor
did / speak to him, Our seconds
conferred awhile together and
then Price came TO my side.
Must this thing go ou2" he ask
ed
told him ! did not know how it
could be stopped, lied, for ! did
know
lie informed me that If would
make the least overture Of peace
he felt sure that Adams would ac.
cept 1t,
81 think, he said chat Adams
Is sorry for what has happened
You struck him, and he cannot re-
tract
"Aud he called me a liar" w
"You are both good shots add.
ed Price, "and If you FIRE together
you may both fail"
But dared not offer the hand Of
Cancellation, ] told him was rea-
dy
lie went back to Watkins and
pretty soon they measured of the
ground-l2 PAGES, We were to
stand back to back, those u PAGES
apart, We were to turn at the
word one, raise our pistols at two,
and the word three we were to FIRE,
! caught the eye Of Adams as took
my position, and was sure that no
angry passion dwelt therein For
an instant the impulse was with me
to throw down my pistol and offer
him my hand, but ! had not the
courage to do IT,
Our seconds hegitated as though