Why a Woman
Kills When
Uses Man as a
AT last!" i
Tho woman Btnnds bnck.
Sho lookH at her hand. In it
Is a now rovolvcr Bho has
never fired ono before.
And nt her feet lies n
small, crumpled-up henj of
humanity tho dead alwnyB
seem to grow smnller-i-tho thing he
fore her wa8 onco a man. And sho
has killed hint with ono sure, straight
Hhotl
"Die as you deserve!" sho screams,
and then hIio looks nt tho thing of
steel In her hand.
For n moment sho is all nerve.
Then sho realizes. This thing in her
hand is n pistol, Bomothlng sho has
never used before. Yet at her first
shot she has hit tho bull's-eye she
has killed a man, Onco she would
have been afraid to take up n pistol;
now she has used It with deadly ef
fect. Once she couldn't have hit the
target. Now she has shot dead the
-nan she hates. Sho has killed him
vlth ono shot! Her aim has been ab
solutely truo to tho mark she meant
It to reach a man's heart!
Tho police records of Now York for
the past two years .reveal a dozen
cases In which women who had uover
handled firearms have shot and killed
men with unerring aim. In most
cases only ono shot wna Hred, n
further evidence of their deadly aim.
In tile cases In which more than ono
shot was fired tho other bullets went
wild, showing conclusively that a
woman's ability to shoot straight lies
In her Instinct to point straight and
pull tho trigger1 without taking aim,
says a writer in tho Now York World.
Their First Shot Fatal.
Ono of tho best known cases, that
Illustrates this Is the case ot Sara
Koten, a New York hospital nurse,
who shot and killed Dr. Martin Aus
pltz last June. Sho la accused of hav
ing for days before the shooting
nerved herself for the deed. Sho had
never handled a revolver In her life,
but when she finally made up her
mind to kill him, according to the
charge against her, she finished him
with one shot.
With ono shot Anlsla Louise Do
' 3lu.dy, a young French womun, who
had never used n revolver, killed Gus
tav Simon, a wealthy manufacturer at
No. 040 Broadway, In November of
tho preceding year. Sho had an argu
ment with him over monoy matters
and without warning shot, liltu through
tho heart.
Tho caso of Madeline Wassar Lang
lotz, who shot and killed her father
in August of the samo year, is still
fresh in tho memory of many. Her
father had killed her mother and was
about to attack her llttlo sister. Sho
picked up a revolver; sho had never
llred one before. But sho killed him
MOMHZ
Instantly. Sho waa acquitted by tho
coroncr'u Jury within a few hours of
tho crime.
Tho enso of Bertha Clacho, tho so
called "white slave," who Hhot and
killed Entll Oerdron, Is well remem
bered. Feeling that sho had been
abuBOil beyond endurance, she pur
chased a revolver and killed Gordron
with tho first and only bullot sho
fired front It.
Seem Never to Miss Their Aim,
Thoro aro many moro, nil of thorn
proving conclusively that tho woman
with a pistol almost nover mlssos her
mnu.
And why Is It?
J - -JW
Usually
She
Target
Why does tho woman with tho pis
to so seldom miss her aim? It is ab
solutely one chance In a thousand that
sho falls to shoot truo. Policemen tho
cotintry over will tell you this. Tho
frail, hysterical creature with the now
pistol which Bho nover dnrod touch
before so she will toll you Is far
nioro dangerous than tho best target
phot or the most dangerous thug or
highwayman that over held up a
passer-by.
Cowboys and bad men of tho west,
brought up to use Colts nnd Reming
tons as playthings, men who can
shoot off tho heads of rattlesnakes
from their ponies, iuIbb their men
tttno and again.
But a woman seems nover to miss
hers, afraid of tho revolver as sho Is. I
Ever seo a row In a cowboy saloon? 1
The room Is crowded with six-shooter
experts. Soiuobody shoots and then
everybody shoots. When llfty or sixty
shots have been fired the guns nre
empty, tho smoko clears away, tho
lamps are relighted and probably no
body 1ms been killed. Nearly all tho
shooters could hit a dlmo at i!G yards.
Yet ono angry, overwrought womnn,
who has never fired a pistol In her
life, brings down tho man she wants
to kill every time.
Men Rarely Hit Mark.
The averago American man knows
something about a revolver; but ho
can rarely hit anything with It. No
body over saw n policeman who could
shoot straight further than at n three
foot range. Thugs and hold-up men
know that time and again they got
away In a fusillade of bullets which
are just aB apt to kill somebody across
tho street or In tho next block as fo
bring down tho Intended targets. The'
Jesse James men with their pistols
wero no match for tho sturdy farmers
with their shotguns. You must bo an
oxpert to shoot straight with a revol
ver. It takes long practice and steady
nerves. You must know tho entlro
theory of tho gun.
Why la It then, that a woman, who
Is all nerves, trembling with excite
ment and rosontment, hits her mark
every tlmo? Alono nnd calm, were
sho practising with a pistol, sho would
bo ub npt to shoot herself as hit tho
target. Yet when sho Is nerved to It
she shoots Btralght every time.
There nro frequent outbreaks In tho
foreign colonics of tho country's largo
cities In which tho hot-tempered bring
some long-standing feud to a climax
at tho pistol point. Tho scene Is
usually a crowded dauco hall or a dim
alloy and tho men are massed -close.
But when tho police come they usual
ly find tho dead ail wounded surpris
ingly few, considering tho short range
and the number of shots fired from
so many weapons. The men who on-
gage In these rows have bundled wea
pons almost from Infancy. They come
front neighborhoods whero It Is cub
tomnry for all tho mnlea to bear arms
and uso them promptly when a per
sonal question arises,
Shoot Straight by Instinct.
Their women aro unarinod and un
familiar with tho steel that Is tho
badgo ot manhood In their social life.
But right In Now York thoro aro nl
wayB ponding two or three cases In
which a woman of this typo has taken
a pistol In her hand for tho first tlmo
to avongo hor ' wrongs nnd fired It
straight; nnd true.
Thoro is a curious psychology of pja-
tol shooting, Into which tho condi
tion of n womnn, strung to a high ner
vous tension, and her unfnmlllarity
with the weapon lit perfectly. In nn
Instant, uud by Instinct, slio In on n
par with tho greatest marksmen of
tho age. Were Hho to try to repeat
hor pcrformauro against tho biggest
of targets nt ton paces It would ho
safe to give any odds that Bho could
not hit it nt nil.
Tho theory of pistol shooting It
truo point, a steady hand ami the dis
charge of tho weapon at the Instant
of point when tho hand Is steady. Tho
pistol oxpert never runs his eyo along
tho sight until tho bright stool tip
tt tho barrel's end covers tho mark
ho wishes to puncture. Tho best shots
nmong tho cowboys will flro from the
hip almost as well as from tho shouh
dor. When thoy flro from nny posl-
tlon their Btcndy eyes aro on tho tar
get, not on the gun barrel.
Unerring Index Finger1.
If you a woman, for example will
select anything In tho room, n door
knob, tho head ln4n picture, a figure
In tho wall paper, and suddenly point
your Index finger at It you will find
by running your eyo along tho finger
that you have drawn a perfect lino on
tho mark. If you will take a paper
cutter In your hand, or a pocket knife,
or n stick, and try the snnte experi
ment, holding tho object nlong your In
dex finger, you will find your aim Is
almost, IT not quite ns good.
If you aro not nervous about a re
volver and will tnko an empty ono In
hand, to try tho samo trick, you will
discover to your surprlso that you
havo tho barrel end covorlng your tnr
get. Tho trick Is to point first and
sight afterward to see how accurately
you havo pointed. If you want to ex
tend this practice to target shooting
with a revolver flro when you point
nnd do your sighting after you havo
fired, if you do any Blghtlng nt nil.
The Blghtfl on a revolver aro a joke,
required by some tradition.
When you conto to try shooting on
tho point you will not bo aa BitccesBful
ns when you aimed tho empty pistol,
because your mind la divided between
tho effort to point straight and tho
speculation aB to what will happen
when you pull tho trigger. You will
bo thinking about tho jump of tho
weapon, Its "kick," nnd wondering
whothcr Hying powder wlU hit. you in
tho oyo, or how tho roport will affect
your ear drums. Tho nervous antici
pation of tho roport alone is npt to
destroy tho success ot your Instlnctlvo
point. Your hand trembles, too, and
you do not slioot at the Instant of
point, but delay long enough to let
your excited nerves wabhlo tho muz
zle. But If you could only forgot thnt
tho revolver would mako a nolso, or
kick, or that It had a bullet In It; If
tho weapon had a trigger with n light
pull that would ttot drag your point
from tho target, you could do some
very romarkablo shooting by depend
ing solely on tho Instinct which d'
rects your Indox finger when von
thrust it nt any object.
How Soldiers Are T.ught.
In tho United States urmv tin- nu n
aro trained to shoot with a revolver
on the point system. The ynldlur Is
Itifatructed to crook his elbow and
rnlso his weapon to n position bcsldo
his hcud with tho muzzle straight to
ward tho sky. This Is tho position
taken by tho pistol duelist whon he
Is wnltlng tho word to fire. At that
word tho soldier and the duollst aro
both taught to tlnjust or shovo tholr
weapons' toward tho target, pulling tho
ttiggor ub thoy do ho. This thrust or
shovo of tho weapon forward In an
effort to roach tho Ideal condition of
the Instlnctlvo point, which means
good shooting In proportion nB It Is ap
proximated. Tho cowboy who fires from tho hip
shoots on tho samo Bhovo of tho wea
pon forward. Tho motion is exactly
as if you wero trying to poke tho tar
got with tho rovolvcr muzzle, and you
pick out with your oyo tho point you
wish to poke. This Is tho samo trick
almost as thrusting with a straight
sword, tho bullet acting as tho nword
tip.
Now, tho explanation for tho In
credible mnrksmanshlp displayed by
an agitated womnn lies In the Instinct
to point straight. Sho has nover fired
n plutol bofore, and sho nover thinks
of aiming It. Sho does not think of
tho Jump or tho report. Sho is ton
agitated, too excited, loo hysterical, to
consider nny of these things. Sho doos
not even think about tho point. Sho
liolntB Instinctively, nB you will with
your Index finger. Her mind Is con
centrated with torrlblo Intensity on
the ono Iden of vengeance, of putting
n bullet Into tho hnted face or heart
before her. This Intensifies tho point
Instinct. And her nervouB tension Is
such thnt her hand, thrusting out a
pistol, Is as steady as tho proverbial
rock at tho Instant of shooting. Tho,
name nervous tension gives her fin
gers strength to pull tho stlffest trig
ger nt tho instant Bho points tho re
volver. Expert Shot for the Moment.
In short, for tho fraction of a sea
ond thlB woman who haB never fired
a pistol approaches tho Ideal condition
of the oxpert pistol shot a sure point,
n stendy hand, IndllTorenco to tho
jump or tho report and tho r.uro trig
ger pull. Usually tho roport Instantly
reduces this awful, Iron-nerved llguro
of vengennco to n limp, sobbing, tour
ful heup. Sometimes the brainstorm
lusts long enough for tho firing of Bev
ernl shots. If any mlsa It will usually
bo tho last ono or two fired.
In nny ovont, this samo woman who
has executed p.uch swiftly accurate
satisfaction for.' her Injuries could not
hit nny sort of a murk with her pistol
under anything like normal condl
tlonB. The chnncea nro that sho would
scream and drop tho weapon when It
was discharged, and her bullot would
bo likely to plerco tho sky or bury
itself in tho ground. In any ovont,
tho result would ho an accident.
- For tho same reason a hold-up
man is na dangerous as n mad dog.
Ho la usually tho cheapest, most con
teniptlblo typo of man to bo found In
alt the criminal class. Ho la apt to
bo frail, almost a weakling, hlo nerves
shattered with drugs and drink. Ho
Is nervous nnd afraid when ho stands
soino stout citizen up at tho point of
his revolver. If tho citizen resists, If
he starts for tho hold-up man, or
strikes nt him, tho thug Is upt to shoot
In sheer fenr, and fenr of that sort,
completely dominating u creature of
Biich a type, Is very apt to mako hint
point on Instinct nnd shoot deadly
straight,
But the avorago, normal man who
tries to shoot with a revolvor has
probably fired a fow times nnd Is
painfully conscious of tho fact that
ho can't hit a barn door. Ho tiiea to
aim, ho dolays too long with hla point.
His muzzle wabbles; tho bullet may
strike anywhere, liven whon pos
season wtin wratn, uw avorago
healthy, normal man has n nervous
. vHtom Btrong enough to resist tho
omploto control of himself by tho
I usslon which controls his actions
He still thinks, as ho ahootB, what ho
is doing, IIo has his attontlon partly
inverted to tho weapon. Add tho tur
get has a fair chance.
But tho overwrought woman who
thlnku sho Is dosporntoly wrongo
nover seems to iiiIkb.
A Half Shell Story.
Tho oystor hasn't risen a frnctlou
of an Inch In tho soclnl scale slnco'tho
I'aloozlc ago, No, Indood; but n an
other way Mr. Mum Oystor baa been
traveling In seveu-lenguo boots.
woolly-houdod, sun-worshipping, skin.
clothed, barefooted savngo of early
Britain waa tho firBt oyster enter,
lmnglno him; picture him on tho
beach, on tho sands, say, within Bight
of tho chnlk cllffa of Dover. Probably
first ttiod it on tho dog. Dog, o
courso, survived, thrived j then dogs
master tasted, opened hla eyes wido
nnd smacked his HpB. I'm-uin! Noth
Ing tnstlor than a headless mollusk
Trust Cnosar ns nn eplcuro, Best
thing ho found In Brltnlu was tho oys
tcr, and forthwith took him to Homo.
A FAIR
BY BERNICE
(Copyright, by J. U.
Tho Hut hud gone forth. James Al
len must rldo possessively around a
thousand owes beforo thcro should bo
added unto him tho fairest maid in all
tho Pecos valley, Mercreda Torres. So
ruled old Podro, Morcrcdn's father,
and Allen know thuModcB' and Per
sians' laws wero weak, wlnd-Bhnken
recdB bcsldo tho Bolld rock of Pedro's
grim determination.
Poor Jim! Ho did not ovon own tho
mustang on which to do tho riding.
Ab for tho owes Jim rushed from
cdro's presence In a sudden pasaton,
nnd tho tiny vlllugo of adobe houses
sot In tho ralddlo of Now Mexico
dropped into dim porspectlvo as Jim's
long, angry strides boro him towards
tho rango which rimmed tho valloy.
The full blaze of noon held tho bar
ren land in thrall. A dry wind whis
pered through tho withered grass and
shook tho ghoDtly ougebrush. Above
tho valloy a treeloss plain stretched
out to meet a turquolso Bky. Tho
white wool of a dozen flocks relieved
tho dullness of tho landscape.
When tho young man had walked
his passion off, ho faced tho situation
bravely nnd mado his patns.
Old Pedro had a double purpoao In
the- promulgation ot this edict. Jim
was n lawyer. Ho had gono to school
In Denver, hnd raked and scraped nnd
pinched to get his education, nnd hnd
planned to remain thoro to practice,
hut when tho tlmo enmo to loavo tho
alloy hlB widowed mothor had fallen
111 with a tedious malady, and Jim, of
course, stnyed with hor that she might
bo among hor people. Jim's mothor
was n Mexican, aB was Mercrcdas
father, though the other sldo of each
house canto from good Now England
stock, nnd Pedro, foarful of tho Yan
kee blood in each, sought to bind Jim
to tho valloy.
Tho young man opened up a modost
office In tho village and flung a shin-
Mercreda Squeazed His Hand.
Ing Bhlnglo to tho lazy brcozo that I
crept down from tho range. But foos
wero scarco as molars on a hen-farm.
Might ruled In tho vnlloy. Tito Moxi
cans and greasers settled their differ
ences with fluts and knivfiB, and Jim
nkod out Ills ncanty Income by work
ing nt tho dipping-station just outaldo
the village.
In u ycar'o tlmo Jim had gathorod
a hundred owes Into hiu tiny corral.
Fits of alternate hopo and do3pnlr hud
bridged tho interval. Whon a two
gave birth to twins, Morcreda straight
way predicted that an epidemic had
sot In, and rosy-flngerod Hopo plied
the calculating pencil on a doublo ba
sis. But whon n gay rnuchcro rodo
Into town, or a hlltho young cowboy
from the foothills swung through tho
village stroetB, despair hold Jim In Ub
parnlyzlng clutch.
But a great day dawned for Jim nnd
for Mercreda. It found tho forraor,
clad In buckskin punts and Jumper,
busy at tho dipplng-stntlon. Tho
flacks ot Tony Gomez flllod tho corrnlB
and wore struggling through tho annu
al dipping process to provent disease.
Jim, tho erudlto, held tho post of hon
or on a raised platform above the
Btenntlng vat. From tho yards below a
narrow enmo tea towards nun, up
which a steady stream of nheop was
forced by tho wily collies. JJm
dropped tho frlghtoned croaturcn ono
by ono Into the hot sulphur dip with
the nonchalance of n housewlfo shell
ing pens, and shouted orders to tho
Mexicans armed with throat hooka
who guided tho floundering sheep
through tho long, narrow vat towards
tho dripping pens.
From his olovatlon Jim saw a vast
(lock of lambs draw near outaldo tho
dipplng-stntlon, surrounded by snap
ping collies and dark-skinned borders,
A dURty horseman plunged Into view,
p. burly westornor, whoso nnmo wns
known to every sheepman on tho
range, and asked for tho owner of tho
station, Tho owner wbb absent from
tho valloy and thoro was no one to
represent him. Jim called old Gomoz,
who came forth with glowering face
tnd angry mlon. Tho stranger demand
ed immodlnto possession, Ho made tho
jtartllng statement thnt ho had con
tracted for tho station for tho entlro
week, nnd drew forth a written docu
ment to substantiate his claim. Ho
explained hla haste, and Insisted that
lbs Mexican should give way to his
tlockH, II? was under contract with
n score of ranchmen In Colorndo. A
FEE
I
C. CAUGHEY
Llpplncott Co.
special train wns to meet him at tho
nearest station, and the law required
that tho lambs should he dipped be
foro crossing tho stato line.
With molllfluont flow, ot Spanish
vowels, In striking contrast to his vol
canic mnnnor, old Gomez called upon
tho resldonta ot henvon to witness his
intention, nnd I he fires ot hell to
otornally consume him it he budged
an inch for a luridly modified Ynnkcc
Tho stockman coaxed, threatened, an
finally turned his pony'a head towards
the villngo for legal assistance.
Jim hurried homo to change his
clothes, and was quietly seated In his
ofllco when the stranger sputtered in.
Jim explained tho futility ot tho usual
legal process when tho ugly Moxlcnns
wero aroused und suggested a com
promise, to which tho stockman glad
ly consented. All day Jim enmped on
Gomez's trail. His native instinct, il
lumined by his Ynnkeo wit, w,on tho
day. With smooth worda and J20 tho
corrals wero cleared. Tho delighted
stockman slapped Jim on tho back
nnd told him to come to tho hotel,
thnt evening for his fco.
Jim hurried homo to consult with
hln mothor, and stopped ont tho way
to toll .Mercreda. "I ought to havo
G0," ho Insisted, "for it was worth
that to him."
Mercreda squoozed hla hand, and
his mother gazed proudly upon tho
man who could cam $G0 in a singlo
day.
Arrayed iu his bravest upparel, Jim
sullied forth, walking on nlr, but bo
foro ho reached tho llttlo dobo hotel
he gradually ucarcd tho earth again.
Ho wns obliged to stop and recall
Morcrcda's proud look and hla motlv
or's wonderment to keep hlB courngo
nt tho proper pitch. "What If tho
stockman should offer mo $5?" Jim
asked himself. A cold chill pierced
hla splno at the thought.
Tho stockman mot him with n cheer
ful greeting. "Well, sir," ho began,
hon thoy' were comfortably seated,
"what do 1 owe you? Lot's get tho
matter nettled."
Jim hesitated and cleared his throat.
"It saved you considerable, Blr," ho
vonturcd.
"I know it did, and 1 am willing to
pay for It," wna tho roply.
But Jim wan loath to enst tho die.
"I'll tell you what I'll do," said tho
stockman; "I'll JttBt spread out hero
on my kneo what I think (ho job 1b
worth, and you can toll mo It it is
satisfactory."
All hopo of ?G0 vanished, nnd Jim
wns mustering up his courage to fnco
Morcreda.
Tho Btockman drew a httgo wallet
from nn insido pocket and carefully
untied It. Jim watchod him moodily,
and buw him draw out a bill and
smootA it carefully upon his kneo;
another ono wnB added and nnothor,
until flvo ono-hundrod-dolhu bills lay
clinging together. "How'e that?"
asked tho Btockman laconically.
Jim could not roply nt onco, By n
Buddou metnmnrphoatB tho timid
sbcop dlppor wna transformed Into tho
successful young uttornoy. Hla hcud
wna held orect, n bright spot burned
in cither cheek, a blazo of triumph
Bhono In bin eyes. His palms pressed
hard against his rigid knees In u des
perate effort to appear calm and un
concornod. Presently hla power of
apooch returuod. "Botlor mako It an
other fifty," ho said, and thoro was n
ting In his voice nn it Now Moxlco
wero hiu.
"I'll do It Just for luck," roplled the
stockman.
Next morning whon Jim went out to
feed his (lock ho found it hnd boon
nugmonted by 900 owes, each bearing
on Us left our old Pedro's brand. A
trim muBtang was totnored near tho
gato. A scrap of papur clung to tho
brldlo, on which wns Kcrnwlcd In
Pedro's writing, "I ntek present to my
sou Jeem."
Jim swung himself Into tho saddle.
Twice round tho llttlo flock ho raced
and disappeared down tho road In u
cloud ot dust. Tho mustang Boomed
to know Its rldor'B mind, for when
thoy ronched tho hedge In front of
Podro'a cottage he leaped it like n
rabbit. A moment njoio and Jim
stood on tho tiny porch with his arms;
about Morcreda.
Polygot Walter Was American.
At a restaurant in tho Wall Btreet
district In Now York wlw-ro tho waltorH
nil apeak French and many of them
Germau there Ib a popular waiter who
is known to various regular customers
ub Franz, Frank and FranoolB. Ho
speaks German und French with oqunl
fluency, nnd on that account was tho
subject of n bet which he hnd to decldo
ycBterday. Ono man who had known
tho waiter for years said that Fran,
was a German, nnd another was Just,
us certain that ho wns French, nnd a
third said thut both men wero wrong
and that tltn linguist waiter undoubt
edly came from Alsutlu, or from thut
part of Switzerland where evory child
speaks throo lauguuges, each, with it.
foreign nccont. They wore nil sur
prlHod to hoar that Frank, as he pre
fers to bo called, was bom in the
'Eighth ward, nnd has nover boon
furthor from Now York than Wash
ington, Tho landed gentry of Great Britain
upifnd on fox and sing hunts four umT
a half million sterling a year $00,000
u day.
