The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-07-12
IN A TIGHT PLACE.
Conduct of a Man Who Thought
Himself a Coward.
CFrom the Charleston News)


"All you've got to do to make JEFF
Davis jump into the Arkansas river Is
to point cOrncob pipe at him.
Recently some men on train were
tanning over this remark. made not long
ago by n personal and political adversary
of the senator from Arkansas. The trav-
elers seemed. to agree that they'd hate
to have anybody say anything like that
about them.
We'll. l don't know how true this re-
mark may be as applied to the Davis
person." observed Texan in the group.
but it is my opinion that such a re-
mark could be truthfully applied to very
few men. Most men are courageous In
tight pinches, even the men who imagine
deep down in their consciousness that
they are instinctively and inherently
cowardly.
Take. for example. the case of Judge
Freeman of Texas. Freeman imagined
fortunately. he said-been put to a test.
but he was dead certain that he would
crawfish in tight place and show him
self to the world as coward.
This was before he ever ran for Of
flee In Texas. When he first ran for Of
flee in Texas town a peculiarly vitri-
Ole editor of paper published in the
Texas town began to attack Freeman in
manner that could only mean blood.
Judge Freeman's friends got around
him and told him that he'd have to kill.
out OF Texas.
Freeman came to me in his trouble
IT feel like I'm going to show the
white feather in this business he said
to me. You know what I've often told
You I'm natural born coward. I've
got yellow streak. Just now the vel
low streak is working this way: I'm
more afraid of killing that fellow than
| am of getting killed myself. ! hate the
| business and I hate to think that If ii
comes to a show down I'll crawl
Two days after that the editor pub
lished another vile broadside against
Judge Freeman and then we all knew 4:
The editor left his office for home that
afternoon. He hadn't taken a dozen
steps before he caught sight of Judge
about sixty yards down the street Some
| body standing in the doorway called out
| to Judge Freeman at the same instant
and the judge caught sight of the editor
advancing upon him.
Both men drew and fired at the same
instant. But they were poor Shots both
| of them. and their bullets went wide
They continued to fire as they advanced
upon each other.
There was nary a sign of weakness
| in Freeman. On the contrary. he looked
perfectly cool. He was naturally hand
some man. and his face looked trans
| figured and fine in that intense moment.
| There were only four cartridges in
the editors gun and he fired all of
them without making hit. When he
had fired all four shots he threw his gun
/ on Inc ground. 10 indicate 10 MS ODpO-
nent that he was through with firing.
and that editor looked to me like man
| ready to rum
/ Judge Freeman still had two cart
ridges left in his gun. But when he saw
his enemy throw his pistol away, the big
heart of the man appeared. He lowered
his gun and stood in the middle of the
sidewalk, waiting
| 1.-The editor advanced upon him. SEEM
ingly for the purpose of thanking the
| Judge for his generosity in not contin-
uing the firing. and or making up. The
| Judge seeing this followed his enemy's
| example and threw away his gun, in
which the two cartridges remained. So
| there he stood. entirely unarmed.
| LAS soon as Freeman cast away his
| gun the editor, who had advanced close
to him. suddenly WHIPPED out bowie