The daily morning journal and courier., 1897-06-08
A YELLVILLE HERO.
Some Experiences of a Fire Eating
 Newspaper Man.

Newspaper Man.
 State Senator McMullin, of Yell coun- ty, Ark, who fired leaden bullet at the unarmed body of Colonel J. N. Smithee, editor of "The Little Rock Gazette" in the latter's office Friday, will no doubt hear further from the ep- isode. He was brave man indeed, or else a reckless one, to have gone into the colonels office. There isn't more dangerous character in that state than Colonel Snithee. He is quite aged, but he is still a fighter. He is quick and impetuous, daring and intrepid, and would as soon go out on the field of honor with Winchesters at forty paces as to sit on the bank of stream and catch catfish, and he is passionate fond of the latter sport Or he would walk barefoot from one end of his state to the other to apologize for wrong, He writes like he talks and he fights like he writes. There is vigor and fire in both.
 Many years ago he was the editor of Little Rock paper that advocated the demonetization of silver. The proprie- tor of the sheet was Captain John D.. Adams, Who in those days, was one of the best-known river men in the coun- try. He was president of the Anchor Line steamers and was individual pro- prietor of the Kate Adams, steamboat named after his wife. A more elegant water craft never turned a bend. Cap tain Adams and his editor disagreed as to the utterances of the paper, The | quarrel grew. Eventually Smithee left | the office. That, however, didn't smooth matters or make the one forget ! that the other was scamp, or the oth- 1 CT believe that his opponent wasn't a coward. We'll, such sentiments as
 these, especially if given public utter
 ance, are not conducive to good health
 down in that country, which has given
 us the Hon. Powell Clayton, Senator 1 Jones, Opie Read and the Hon. Billie" Rider Not much! Both began send | ing each other daring messages. Friends attempted to interfere, but
 they were swept aside. There could be 1 but one settlement, and pistols were to
 be the instruments used in making it. ] One Sunday morning Colonel Smithee l and Captain Adams were seen walking | toward each other on the same side of l the street John Fletcher, who was then mayor saw them. The sidewalks
 were thronged with people. Four po- l licemen were standing within a few l yards The mayor ran to the middle of l the street and cried out in a dramatic I sort of way that there was going to be | trouble and for the crowd to disperse.
 But the crowd wasn't in dispersing
 mood. If there was going to be any fun 1 they wanted to see it. The two men ] kept advancing. MT. Fletcher became
 more excited. He pulled off his hat,
 waved it about his head and shouted:
 See here, men, if any of you fellows | get hurt you mustn't blame it to me.
 Git, I tell you-there's going to be trou-
 ble''--
 Two pistol shots rang out simultane- 1 ously. Colonel Smithee fell to the ground, having been shot through the hip. As he fell his pistol went out of
 his hand. He tried to pick it up, but it l lay too far away. Captain Adams ad- vanced
 "I ought to empty every one of these cartridges into your polluted body, sah, but I won't. I remember your elegant l family, sah!" said the captain, as he viewed his prOstrate foe, who, in half
 recumbent position was quietly smok- l ing a cigar. The crowd yelled it's ap- plause at this.
 1 Shoot, you white-livered cur you!" | shouted the colonel. Don't you let my l family stand in the way. Shoot now or l will make you when l get on my
 feet againn'
 About that time it occurred to the
 mayor that the law ought to say some
 thing more So with hat in hand he ad-
 vanced to the captain and in voice
 trembling with emotion said:
 Both brave and honorable men. But
 cannot let this thing go further, l
 command you, captain, in the name of
 the law to put up your pistol and go to
 your home. And here, officer" address
 ing a policeman, "call a carriage and
 see that the colonel is conveyed to his residence.
 This is a d-n nice thing" address | ing the crowd, "to take place here on
 the streets while our ladies are on their way to church. D-n disgraceful | gem 'men-d-d disgraceful!"
 | Colonel Smithee soon recovered from
 his wound and went west, where he be-
 came one of the leading writers on
 finance in Denver. Subsequently he
 moved to the Pacific coast and got fa-
 nous as an advocate of the white met
 al Later he returned to Little Rock
 and changed "The Gazette" from a
 sound money advocate to that of a rab-
 i'd silver sheet
 Captain Adams died five years ago
 and in his death the state lost one of its
 most progressive citizens. No braver truer man ever slipped a mint julep oI cutja watermelon.-Chica Times-Her. | aid.