BRUTALITY OF THE DUEL. 371 



hammer, each cock of the hammer bringing into its proper 

 place the right nipple or peg for concussion on the respect 

 ive cartridges. I have been told (I never saw it so used) 

 that this deadly little weapon is made to come into play 

 in those brutal and bloody " difficulties," as they call them 

 they cannot, indeed, be called duels which, I regret 

 to say, so frequently disgrace society in the United States. 

 Supposing one free citizen to deem himself free to take 

 the life of another, and to enter at once, without counsel 

 or friendly and cool advice, into a " shooting difficulty," 

 he puts his hand, containing a six-barrel revolver, into his 

 bosom, cocked and ready for use, and walks out for the 

 purpose of meeting his victim. 



He sees his unconscious victim approaching, and, sud 

 denly confronting him, revolver, though concealed in his 

 hand, ready for momentary action, in order to ease his 

 shadow of conscience, he calls his victim a liar, and bids 

 him draw and defend himself. Supposing that the unpre 

 pared victim does not possess Sharp's little " pocket com- 

 peller," but has in a pocket a revolver, if, on the word to 

 draw, his hand attempts to do the office, his bloody anta 

 gonist shoots him dead before he can touch his weapon. 

 If, on the contrary, the supposed victim is duly prepared 

 for any emergency, and happens to have in his pocket 

 "Sharp's compeller," he temporises with his foe some 

 what in this fashion : " Gruess, neighbour, you ? re mighty 

 sharp on me, you air ; I do n't want none o' this. Carn't 

 we better fix it no how ? Jest you suppose now, if 't 

 warn't be best for you and I to see if we can't call in a 

 mediator ?" All this time the intended but unwilling-to- 

 be victim is apparently only fumbling nervously in the 

 pocket of his coat, but really he is bringing the muzzle of 

 his little compeller into the front corner of his pocket, and 



