The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-01-06
The Pistol Tnters.

ht IlStOA AOteEss
few days ago the Morning News
counted up the number of homi-
cides in Georgia during the Christ
mas holidays, and found there
were twenty. The enumeration was made
for the purpose of impressing upon the Of
hcers Of the law and the courts the I'M
perative necessity of vindicating the law
in every instance, and stamping out law
Iessness. The Christmas record is shame
full; horrible. 1t depends now upon the
courts and juries to wipe out the blot
upon the state. The press of the coun-
try is taking note that the blot is there,
and some of the newspapers are pointing
to it and telling prospective immigrants,
in the language of the New York Even
ing Post, that it is better to live in a cold
climate than to get shot in a warm eli
mate" The Post says also: 1T will be
of little use to talk about the sunny
south so long as the sun shines on so
many murders" The comments are rather
singing. But. in view of the facts, are
they unmerited? The law-loving ana
peaceful citizens of the state owe it to
themselves TO put a check to the lawless-
ness. They should not permit drunken,
disreputable pistol-toters to bring Georgia
into disrepute and mar her bright pros
poets for material progress.
The Charleston News and Courier says
there was but one indictment in the entire
state of South Carolina last year for car
rying concealed weapons, and yet, says
that paper, there is no public meeting
which is not attended by armed men. The
young men in the colleges are armed.
Many Of the boys carry pistols to the poh-
lie schools. Men and boys wear pistols
when they so to church. Voters carry
them to the polls. The evil is every
where" The News and Courier expresses
the opinion that more than 100 men were
killed or wounded in South Carolina dur
ing the past year as the result of the con.
cealed weapon habit. The law against
carrying concealed weapons is a dead let
ter in South Carolina. 1t is not enforced.
Neither officers of the law, grand iuries
nor courts attempt to abate the evil Is
not this a state of affairs that calls for
the strongest condemnation? Is not go
put the stamp of disapproval on the pis-
tol-carrying habit in. a very crude condi-
ton? Surely the time has come in all
parts of this country when people can
go about their daily affairs without feel
ing the need of being armed. If it is
not so then our civilization is not of such
a high degree as we declare it to be.
-s-~n-S-
Senator Carter ought not hastily press
that hot soup specification in his charges
against Judge Reese The information.
as far as it goes, is that as Judge Reese
was sitting at dinner a clumsy waiter
spilled a bowl of hot soup down his back;
whereupon Judge Reese "cussed." Judge
Reese, therefore, did only the most nat
ural thing in the world under the circum-
stances. If he had not "cussed," with a
deluge of hot soup smoking down his
spine. people would have had a right to
suspect that he was not susceptible TO
those emotions of human nature which
are known to be possessed by every we'll
balanced person. 1t is not difficult to be-
lieve that Senator Yancy Carter himself
would "cuss" if a bowl of hot SOUP were
precipitated down his back. II is, further
more, probable that every member of the
investigating committee would "cuss" I'M
der similar circumstances. Before the
committee and Senator Garter condemn
the judge upon this charge, let them have
a clumsy waiter come and spill hot soup
down their several backs; and then, If
they do not "cuss,' let them get after
the judge with a sharp stick for doing il.
The court of appeals Of New York has
decided that the rule requiring street car
conductors to furnish passengers with
change TO the amount of 81 only is all that
could reasonably be expected and that
conductor is justified in ejecting a pas
senger who refuses to offer anything less
than a IS bill