"But," replied the minister, who in spite of his name seemed eager for the combat, "the Civil War was a national crime. Think of the hundreds of thousands of young men, North and South, who perished."
"Yes, Mr. Lamb, the war was a crime. And Jeff Davis and the other criminals ought to have been hanged, just as those stage-robbers ought to be."
"Don't you see, my friend," replied the minister, "that violence breeds violence?"
"Then," rather scornfully, "you think Will Cummins did wrong to defend his property?"
"He would have been alive to-day if he hadn't."
"But that's not the point. Will Cummins died for a principle. He believed in self-defense, and was not afraid to risk his life."
"Of course," said the minister, "I admit that he was a brave man. But Christ said, 'if any man take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also'—'turn the other cheek'—'resist not evil'—'they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.'"
"Well," said the Californian, "I don't dispute the fact that people who carry weapons are likely to get killed. What I say is, I admire a man who is not afraid of getting killed when he knows he's right. It may be just as honorable to perish with the sword as to be crucified."
This statement, savoring of the heresy that was introduced into American thought both by soldiers returning from the Civil War and by men returning from the lawless life of the West, rather shocked the minister, who was a good and sincere man. But he only said:
"Surely, you are a Christian?"