The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-12-05
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THE SEDUCTIVE SIX-SHOOTER
Incidents Which Show That Com
slant Use of 1t is Disease Which

From the New York Sun.

From the New York Sun,
Butchers are not allowed to serve on a
coroner's jury, l believe in some states,
presumably because the constant shedding
of blood hardens the human heart. Along
the same line of reasoning 1t is not too
much to say that with the constant hand
ling of firearms comes a desire to use them
on something or somebody. With much
use one becomes expert with the six
| shooter, and when in trouble, or in search
of it, such a one reaches instinctively for
his firearms without taking thought of
the consequences. Instinctively man de-
tends himself with that which is most
| convenient. A negro barber turns to his
razor, a cowboy to his cartridge belt
soldier to his sword, while the English
athlete puts up his hands. Another temp
| tation to use the gun comes with the feel
! ing of security that pervades the bosom of
| the expert He is reasonably sure of sue
| cess in a hand-to-hand fight with a novice.
! Having killed his man." the killer be-
| gins TO swagger, and at the first opportun-
! ity hastens to repeat the performance, Like
! the prize fighter who has won the belt,
he must keep on fighting or lose his repu-
| tation and finally he actually goes look
ing for trouble Killing becomes a dis
| ease. Not for the sake of killing merely
| does he do this, but because he loves the
! excitement of fighting. l asked Bob Ford,
| who had clasped left hands with a Colo
RADIO cowboy, emptied his six-shooter into
| the man and taken the contents of the
! cowboys gun into his system, If there was
not a suffocating dread of being torn by
| the bullet.
"Weu yes-at first" said he, but the
moment the shooting begins you become
drunk with the excitement of the fight and
| the smell of The powder, and all thought
| of danger blows away"
This fellow had been a quiet, modest
| youth up to the evil hour in which he
| was tempted to take the life of Jesse
| James, his friend and benefactor. James
| had taught Ford the use of the fascinating
/ forty-five, with which the pupil slew the
| teacher. That was the beginning of Fords
| end. He gradually grew in "cussedness''
until he had acquired the unenviahie rep
| utation of being a bad man and was in
| the end himself ignomlnously murdered.
Another instance In which the seductive
| six-shooter led a man astray is the case
of Frank Rand of Illinois. / say of Hi
nois because 1t was in that state. near the
| little town of Altimont, that he wandered
an inoffensive tramp, to a farmers house
| one morning in quest of food. The farm
| er lived In a little shack on the railroad,
| on a bit of ground alone. He wasn't po-
lite to the tramp, and the tramp resent
ed the insult. The farmer so forgot him
self as TO kick the tramp. and the tramp
pulled his gun and killed the farmer. A
gang of section men saw the smoke, heard
| the shot and saw the man fall. Lifting
the car TO the track they jumped into AL
timont and gave alarm.
The tramp saw the car go and guessed
the cause of it. He glanced at his six
shooter and felt certain security A"gen-
| tleman of the road" testified afterward
that he had tramped with Rand for a few
weeks and found him a most agreeable
companion, quiet and inoffensiye. He was
reasonably honest, the man said. The
only thing he had known Rand to steal
| was food and cartridges. If he could not
steal ammunition for his gun he would beg
money, go hungry and buy 1t. AS often
as they stopped to rest Rand took his six
shooter to pieces, cleaned it and put II to-
! gether again. He was a wonderful shot
He could kill farmers bulldog as far as
he could see him. He would shoot the
head from tame pigeon at the top of a
| country church and Kill brown birds on
the tops of telegraph poles. He never
missed whatever he aimed at.
SO now, when he saw men hurrying out
from the little town, afoot, on horseback.
and in top buggies, he made no doubt that
they were after him. He kicked out the
empty shell and put in fresh cartridge.
| Presently a horse leaped the low hedge,
and came straight for the tramp, who was
heading for some willows down by little
stream. The man on the horse called
on the man who was running across the
stubble to stop. For answer Rand turned
| slightly, but without Stacking his pace,
and aimed at the horseman. There was a
puff of smoke from the tramp's pistol the
horse plunged high and then fell dead in
the field, shot square between the eyes.
The rider got to his feet glanced at his
poor, dead horse, and ran after the fly
ing tramp. Others came up, saw the
wound In the horses head, and considered
It only a chance shot. No one thought
for a moment that Rand had aimed It so.
| In little while they chased the fugitive
out of the willows and across an open field
A man with a swift horse rode round the
field, dismounted and stood upon a little
culvert over which the tramp must pass.
Rand, running straight for the man who
held the bridge and double barreled shot
gun called to him and signalled to him
with his six-shooter. But the man held
his place. "Stand aside he shouted. The
man deliberately raised his shotgun. With
out stopping Rand cut loose al the man. He
threw up his hands, waved his gun above
his head, and then. Rand went by, top
pied over into the ditch. Stlll running, the
| outlaw heard a rife crack close behind
| him and the whine of a bullet that
whisted by. CHANGING back he saw a man
standing on the line fence aiming another
shot at him. Again the toy gun cracked
| and the man, who had his feet In the ton
crack of the fence, pitched forward into
the field.
When the pursuing party came up and
saw the two men hit as the horse had been
hit, plump between the eyes, their hearts
stood still. What devil was this, at the
crook of whose finger men dropped dead?
1t is all very well to go in pursuit of an
outlaw, a murderer, but few men care "a
face a fiend of this sort even to avenge the
death Of a neighbor or bring the guilty tc
book. Life is sweet. The pursuing party
parleyed and Rand ran away
A mile down the road he saw a boy riding
a good horse He stopped the boy and
told him hurriedly that a man had beer
shot down the road and that he was run.
ming for a doctor. TO hasten matters hi
borrowed the boys horse and sent the DO,
on to tell the people who were waiting Their,
about it. When. they had heard what tho
boy had to say they knew that Rand hac
five miles the start of them, that he coulc
change horses as often as he cared to. anC
so they gave up the chase. ] dare SAY
many OF them were glad of the excuse.