Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1898-11-14
A LESSON IN A BLOW.
AN ACT THAT THE HASTY MAN BIT
TERLY REPRINTED.

A Touching Incident That Forcibly |
Illustrates the Soundness of Dnvy |
Crccisc.t's Maxim. "Be Sure You
Are Right, Then Go Ahead"
There are times when success depends !
upon quicliness of action, and there are
other times when it is wise to make
haste slowly, particularly when one
considers the many things in his life
which no wishes he had left undone. 1t
is o sensible rule not to be hasty, for
the hasty man fashions many bitter
pill for his own consumption, and the
hair trigger temper is almost always a
boomerang to its unhappy possessor.
At the intersection Of Pennsylvania
and New York avenues one pleasant
afternoon there occurred an incident
that implanted in the kindly heart of
we'll known young Washington man
quality of shame that will unquestion-
ably serve as one Of the larger lessons
of his life. The young man, accompa-
H MED by the young woman who was to
u become his wife in a short time, was
3 standing close to the curbstone of the
q two avenues awaiting a Georgetown
q car.
The two were chatting merrily. The
Il girl was in high spirits, and her laugh
Il ter, the assonance of silver bells, was
q pleasant music. Suddenly the young
Il woman ceased her laughter; and looked,
& with fash of worriment in her express
& sion, in the direction of a fine looking
10,
ing ON the pavement, leaning slightly
& against an awning pole. Her escort
q perceiving the sudden change in her
manner and expression, also looked in
81 the same direction.
"Why does that man gaze at me so
Strangely said the girl. "He has been
looking at me with that same intent
q ness ever since we have been standing
81 here, and sometimes half smiling too. /
am sure I do not know him. What can
he mean?"
The young man with her flushed with
anger as he looked upon the man point
ed out by his fiancee. The man, with
big, clear, gray eyes, was still regard
ing the girl with a deep intentness of
expression, smile Pickering across at
the corners of his strong mouth. He
9 leaned easily against the awning pole
and carried a heavy cane loosely in his
left hand. The girl saw that her fiance
was becoming wrought up over the APP
parently persistent and hirtatious stare
of the man.
"Oh, never mind, she said. "Prob-
ably he thinks he knows me. Perhaps
indeed he has met me somewhere"
4 Nothing of the sort, was the re-
ply. 1.-The fellow is a masher, pure and
simple. He needs a lesson"
The object of the conversation kept
his gaze riveted upon the face Of the
young woman, even. when the latter
fance approached him menacingly. The
young fellow, powerful man, raised
his right arm, and, with all of his
force, struck the man with clear gray
eyes on the right side of the face with
a heavy open palm. The marks of his
fingers stood out redly on the cheek Of
the man he had struck.
"a "I'll teach you, you loafer, to oglC
young women on the street, " said the
young man as he delivered the blow.
The expression that appeared on the
face of the older man, Immediately he
felt the impact of the blow, was almost
inconceivably pathetic. He started, anC
then turned very pale.
Man. he said, in a very low tone
at am stone blind"
No one who witnessed the scene i
likely to forget it, nor can any Of TIN
witnesses think of the really pitiabl,
grief of the young chap who struck tn
blow without feeling for him. He fairl.
took the blind man in his arms in tn
frenzy of his excitement. The blind mai
generously made light Of it all, but h
could not mitigate the heavy humilia
tion of the hot headed young man.
81 heard the laughter of young wo
man, said the blind man quietly. 81
reminded me of the voice in merrimen
of girl knew before my sight wa
taken. That is why 1 turned in the di
rection whence the laughter came. "
Then a negro lad in the livery of
"buttons" emerged from the drug stor
into which his master had sent him o.
an errand, and, taking the blind maj
by the hand, led him carefully up Fiji
tenth street.
K The men and women who saw an
heard it all felt almost as sorry for til
naturally generous but foolishly impetu
GUS young man who had struck the bloV
as they did for the blind man.-Ez
change.