The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1909-08-11
THE STRAY BULLET.


be recalled. Very often all of us
whose idea of conversation extends be-
yond the category of such phrases as:
pleasant weather we are having
''Fine"-"Fierce"- - Rot
ten'--"All right all right"-and the
rest of that rot make some statement
ttn the idea of humorous originality
which we see too late has hurt little
where it has hit the bulls eye of an
unexpected target
We are sorry but to apologize
would only make matters worse. The
remark once it has left our lips is as
uncomfortable as the bullet which has
left the mouth of a gun. We must re-
main silent and await the result.
If the man whom we have wounded
with a stray word speaks to us cor
daily the next day we feel greatly re-
lieved and if he cuts us on the street
we feel that we have wounded him
severely even though Internationally.
on the other hand, if we have fired
a bullet without taking the proper
precautions as to what target it would
find, we are responsible for the conse-
quenccs.
In one case there is no law to pun
ish us for remark which breaks a
heart Internationally. and in the other
there is no very adequate law which
Furnishes man who shoots indiscrimi-
nately without looking very closely at
uhe mark at which he is shooting.
We can not recall either the remark
or the bullet absolutely. We can
apologize for both, but we cannot alb
solutely heal the hurt which is made
by either.
The stray bullets which some people
fire cause death and untold suffering
upon the part Of those who fire them.
The stray remarks we make may
cause even more suffering and those
who have uttered them walk away
without the complete knowledge of
the harm which they have wrought.
There was a case recently in San
Francisco of a man who was shot
through the mouth. The bullet, in it's
course, carried with it one of the
mans teeth which was liberated and
which had been paining him very Sc
verely. The man who was shot had
lacked the nerve to go to a dentist but
the bullet did the dentists work by
carrying the tooth out of his head
There was another case in New
York in which woman fired a shot at
a man The bullet struck his fountain
pen-thereby showing that she was a
good shot--but it saved the mans life.
She Immediately begged his forgive
ness and that shows that her shot was
a STRAY bullet"
There is many a case in which q
man has called a man or woman
some name which has cut deep. If he
knows of the wound he has made he
will almost crawl on his hands and
knees to remedy it if he can.
Put if he deos not know, the wound
eankers and testers until it is past
healing. IL it is one of these stray
bullets that are continually being fired,
which occasionally strike a mark, the
wound is almost past healing before
help can be brought.
Not all of the apologies in the
world will atone for the life of the
friend who has been mistaken for a
deer in the woods or for the broken
heart of girl who has been made
fun Of by some man who has thought
more of his Chatter than he has of
his obligations as a gentleman.
In cases of this sort we can only
say that protection is better than a
cure. 1t is better to be considered an
ignoramus than a wit who hurts inno-
cent people every time he opens his
mouth.-Seattle Times.