The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1921-08-12
PISTOL PACKING.

Every good citizen hopes that the
coming disarmament conference at
Washington on Armistice day will be
fruitful Of good results, but one of the
great problems confronting America
today is not national but individual
disarmament. The pistol toting habit
appears to be growing; it is more
prevalent than ever before. Legisla'
ton is constantly being placed upon
the statute books in an effort to check
this evil, but there is not going to be
any real improvement until the nation
al and community leaders succeed in
creating a public sentiment that will
not tolerate pistol toting and that will
make swift and certain the application
of all the penalties provided by law
to those who do go about with an ar
senal in their pockets.
Too many men who carry gun
upon their person have murder in
their hearts. The most dangerous
man in the world is a coward with a
pistol. His first impulse at the initial
signs of danger is to shoot and to
shoot to kill. II the laws against car
rying concealed weapons were rgidly
enforced for year in Tennessee our
murder record, disgrace to our boast
ed civilization, would be reduced more
than half. Good citizens cannot afford
to carry pistols. They may think that
they are protected against the boot
Logger and the thug and the essentially
lawless who make practice of going
about armed, but in that they are mis-
taken. After all, even if armed to the
teeth they are at the mercy of this
lawless element which does not hest
tate at assassination if necessary to
remove a dangerous opponent.
The last legislature passed an
act that should be enforced to the let.
ter. That provides for the confsca-
Fe
ton of all pistols removed from pistol
packers. These guns should be de-
stroyed at once by the courts, and it is
very gratifying to know that Judge
Whitthorne has announced his deter
to promptly comply with the
law at every Opportunity. The Judge
is an enemy of the pistol carrier and
no pistol will be safe in his court.
Congress should pass the law so long
and earnestly and ably urged by Sen
atOr Shields of this state. The bill of
the senior Tennessee senator would
forbid interstate traffic IN pistols. 1t
is being assailed by the manufacture
ers of these deadly weapons who are
perfectly willing that the nations orgy
Of murder and assassination should
continue in order that they may reap
a financial harvest. 1t is against the
law in nearly every state of the union
TO sell pistols but as long as their in
terstate traffic is permitted the state
laws are practically dead letters. No
argument can be advanced against the
Shields bill by any good citizen who
values human life.
So many men have been killed in
American by officers of the law that
there is q sentiment against permit
ting them to go armed. In many of
the cities of England the police are
not permitted to carry deadly weap-
ons. The Herald is not prepared to
say that such drastic change should
be made in America, but ii does not
hesitate to declare that there are too
many men permitted to carry pistols
under the guise of peace officers" who
ought not to be trusted with them
No man should be commissioned as a
policeman, sheriff or deputy sheriff
unless he is absolutely fearless and
has such regard for human life that
he will not take il except as last
and final resort.