Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1896-08-25
HIS ONLY DUEL.
1t Was n Newspaper AFFAIR. and Both Ed
itors Received Charge.


1t Was a Newspaper AFFAIR. and Both Ed
itors Received n Charge.
The old editor had the inside track and
was doing the talking.
81 mover had more than one duel, he
began.
"You speak as II one we're not enough"
interrupted q listener.
1T was an ample sufficiency," con-
tinued the editor with q smile. II was at
she time Of its occurrence W years of ago
and the editor of the Smugville Vindl-
Gator. was also hot headed youth with
yoarn for gore and glory. In the county
adjoining wns 'loathesomo Contempt
rary' of mine, built on about the same
lines was, and IL wasn't more than a year
after we had been contemporaries until we
were in a fine row. He would write soath-
ing editorials, and so would I, and finally
we dropped our pens and took up pistols
that is, we agreed TO fight duel
" Fortunately for us we had friends who
were more sensible than we were, who
took charge of all the arrangements for
the bloody ARRAY. II was decided by them
that the duel should take place and that
we should fire two shots ut each other, the
weapons being double barrel shotguns and
the distance ten PAGES. That suited us OK
actly, for we were extremely bloodthirsty
and wanted each others gore in largo
quantities. The fight was to take place ut
O'Clock In the morning in "a secluded
spot, and VIC were there promptly with our
seconds. Our instructions were to fire the
first shot after counting three, and II one
or both survived another shot might be
fred as quickly as tho principal could got
his gun ready.
4 THAT made IL regular rough and
tumble for half the fight, and also made 1t
moro interesting. 1t isn't necessary for
me to go into details of what l thought
Just before the battle, mother, suffice it
To say thought writing scathing oditori.
ais was preferable to shotguns at 6 a. III.
However, we kept our nerve and took our
places ready for business. And think we
meant business, for we took aim right at
each other Then came the counting, and
finally the deciding three, and bang went
both guns at once. felt as II had
caught an entire carload of shot from my
face down, and l tumbled over on tho
grass. What had become of my opponent
did not greatly concern me at that supreme
moment, for l was wondering why was
not dead.
"ln u half minute the doctor was feeling
me, and after minute or two more he
said l had been miracuously saved, and
pulled me to my feet. Evidently my OPP
ponent had also been miraculously saved,
Tor he was standing about ten feet away
from me with his doctor, and the sight he
presented made me forget all about the
duel and break into ronrs Of laughter.
appeared to have the same effect on him,
for he began laughing at me. Then we
both got mad, and in five minutes wo had
licked seconds, doctors and everybody else
on hand and run them clean out of the
woods
This being accomplished, We shook
hands and took look Mt ourselves in a
glass, which had evidently been brought
for our benefit. Permit me to omit an
elaborate description Of what we looked
like Those COMPOUNDED seconds had loaded
our guns to the muzzle with printers ink,
and the way 1t was splattered over us
was enough 60 have made us laugh at first
and then TO lick the crowd that put the
job up on us. However, we had showed
We had sand, and the jokurs kept in hid
ing until we announced in our respective
papers that all was forgiven, and the
Ratchet was dead and buried. That was
my only duel, " concluded tho editor, land
am extremely glad that the guns were
loaded with ink instead of buckshot. -
Washington Star.