Opening of the 1866 editorial. The entire page is reproduced below.
Lest you think that the gun-control debate is a modern-day phenomenon, the following editorial appeared a mere 53,437 days ago, on page 4 of The New-York Times of April 30, 1866, under the headline “Carrying Firearms.â€
Homicide figures for 1865 and 1866 were not immediately available, but in 1868, according to the history tome “Gotham,†there were 48 murders in New York City.
Carrying Firearms
Nearly every day we are reminded by the report of some murderous affray that many men among us go armed, for we constantly hear of pistols being dropped on the floor at balls, or being exploded in very inconvenient ways. It appears, too, that Colt, and Remington, and all of the rest of the pistol-makers, have enormous factories and orders in abundance. We have recently known that a boy of 12 has his pantaloons made with a pistol pocket behind, in which he carries a loaded pistol; and this at a boarding-school filled with boys, who, we suppose, do or wish to do the same thing.
“Teaching the young idea [sic] how to shoot,†we have heard quoted, but that boarding-schools had come to this, we had not, until this revelation, supposed. Do the teachers know of this thing, and do they connive in it? If they do not know it they ought to; and we would advise parents to look into it, and learn whether shooting is to be a part of the scholastic course which may be practised on their own boys; or else we advise them to see that their boys are properly armed with the most approved and deadly pistol, and that there may be an equal chance at least of their shooting as of being shot.
It is only a few years ago that Miss Hosmer used to swagger with pistols in her belt, but it is not likely that the practice has become general with ladies. It may be so, but we may hope that it has not. Seriously, this pernicious practice is, we fear, on the increase. Who can be safe, when boys at school are furnished or allowed to carry loaded arms about their persons? Who that sits down in a car or hotel to get to his home or to wait for a friend can be sure he will not be taken to that home, or meet that friend a dead body?
It is not pleasant that this practice should prevail -â€" should be permitted. We have laws against it. Can our efficient police not be induced to apprehend one of these fools? Can our Judges not be prevailed upon to condemn one of them at least to imprisonment for life for shooting his friend, because he must enjoy the pleasure of playing with his pistol? Is the man's having been drunk any consolation to us after we are shot?
It is very clear that these horrible things could not happen if this practice was not permitted, and it is very clear that it can be and ought to be broken up. Any boy who carries a pistol should be at once ejected from any school or house or town â€" any man should be instantly punished to the full extent of the law â€" any woman, well â€" should be left severely alone by our sex at least.
We added paragraph breaks to the editorial to make it easier to read but otherwise did not alter it. The editorial can be seen in its original format beginning halfway down the fourth column in the document below. Thanks to Alec Tabak for finding this.
The New York Times, April 30, 1866 (PDF)The New York Times, April 30, 1866 (Text)
