The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1915-04-13
His Little
Boy S Pistol
By THOMAS R. DUNN

where else.
A stagecoach drew up In front Of u
tavern In small town where gun law
was the only law ON the statute book
But even that was an unwritten law.
for there was Nd statute hooks to write /
It In. A young man. dressed In the
ordinary business costume Of New
York or Chicago or Philadelphia or
any other eastern city. got out Of
the coach with the other passengers
and went into the tavern. He asked
II there were any letters for him. The
landlord handed him one. He read I.
and hunted through his pockets for his
cigar case. Not finding 1t ut once. he
took out seven articles while making
, the search. among them a small pistol.
Several men. denizens of the cOun-
try. were lounging about. among them
q red faced man with u stubble heard
! and as many scars on his face as a
German student member of a dueling
+. corps. This man caught sight Of the
! new arrivals pistol. and it at once ex
! cited his interest.
/ "Lemme see that. stranger" he said.
! The young man handed him the pis
tol, and he looked 1t over with evident
pleasure and amusement.
Purity. isn't itY he remarked.
! He continued to examine 1t. cooking
and unlocking 1t. Meanwhile the
stranger found his cigar case and. lean
ing a chair up on its hind legs against
the wall. sat down on 1t. resting his
heels on the front round and. lighting
q cigar. smoked.
what do you do with itF' inquired
the red faced man.
The stranger smoked on without
making any reply. His sang froid ex-
cited the attention Of the bystanders,
who commenced to move uneasily
away The man who asked the ques-
ton was Scar Joe. SO called from the
traces of his many fights. He was
not used to asking questions and re.
ceiving no reply. He cast single
glance at the stranger and went on
cooking and unlocking the revolver.
"Goin' to make birthday gift Of it
, to your little boy?" he asked
Still no reply.
"Will It shoot?" persisted Scar Joe.
This third question eliciting no reply,
the westerner took a quick aim at the
strangers cigar and fred. and cigar
and sparks left the smokers lips
He didn't turn pale. He didn't look
at Scar Joe reproachfuIly or fearfully
or any other way. He didn't look at
him at all. He simply took out anoth.
er cigar. lighted It and went on smok.
ing.
Does shoot, don't it, Shoots purity
straight. don't It? I wonder II I could
do It again!"
He fred a second shot with like 70
I suits The stranger remained a. i'm.
perturbable a. before. taking out an.
other cigar and lighting It with AZ lit.
tie apparent objection to this waste Of
! cigars as II he were loaded down with
J them Again Scar Joe sent 1t flying
4 amid shower Of sparks.
stranger" said the smoker In soft
voice. you're one Of the best shots
! ever saw That pistol I've brought
from the east as present for my wife
I've got another for my little girl that
I'll bet you can't hit silver dollar
with at ten yards"
"Lemme see It."
The stranger thrust his right hant
into his trousers pocket and graspet
something that he drew out SO clutchet
In his fist that 1t was not easy to dis
; Germ what it was. One of the locker
on. with better or quicker sight thai
nth IN yAf RI
thing about to happen, for he ducke'
" under a table. The stranger reaches
the thing out to his tormentor. 1t ex
4, ploded. and Scar Joe staggered back
= ward. at the same time putting hi
n. hand to his hip. The something Il
a the strangers fist exploded again. an
h. the westerner fell dead
a One would naturally suppose tina
those present would be chiefly interest
d. ed In the fallen man. So they wer
- till they were convinced that he ha
"a received his last scar Then all Of
!. sudden their minds concentrated on tn
~ thing In the stranger hands that ha
done the work. All eyes turned towar
him curiously. He had returned th
= explosive thing to his pocket
- Landlord" he said, I'D like SOM
y thing to eat before Co. My VIII
~ writes me that she'll send team fc
- me to be here at 2. It's now l. ~
40 just time for dinner"
~ say. stranger" said one presen
would you mind lettin' u see viii
that was you shot him within
p II know what II H." said the ma
y who had sought safety under the tabl
\ IT'S a bulldog. ! seen EN- befor
1t They're the ugliest weapon At sho
IN range they Ii goin'."
m The stranger took out Q short. THO
ne pistol with q very stocky barrel and q
20 lowed the party to examine Il.
m "was t'other one really q gift 4
r. your wife," asked one.
al Certainly. When was called -
70 she asked me to bring her q revolv
ny suitable for a woman"
"a While the stranger was dining d
. body Of his victim was being remove
to When his team arrived and he W
driving away one Of the crowd WI
had gathered to see him OF cried out
Much obleeged for gettin' rid Of Sc
a. Joe. He was gittin' to be a nuisance
q On the Identical spot where ii
BE- episode happened there IL now han
some hotel. lighted by electricity a
he having all the modern Improvements