La sentinelle de Thibodaux. [volume] (Thibodaux, La.) 1861-1866, 1866-03-31
The Dead Duck.

-
In the Richmond Times we find thu
following amusing shot ct dead dack'
Forney;
The President, a short time ago
usurped- one of the principal prerogatives
of the learned universities, to the great
delight of all respectable people, He
conferred the degree of ID. D." upon
Forney. Not that he declared that most
inscriptions "artful dodger' of the
press a doctor of Divinity but he
dubbed him a "Dead Duck" and as For
ney happens to be the first man ever thus
solemnly proclaimed by a President of the
United States to be o defunct water fowl,
the epithet has made him famous.
Since the publication Of this celebrated
letter recommending the deliberate intoxi-
cation of a certain theatrical STAR for
the purpose of extracting secrets from him
which he hoped would blast the honor of a
~defenceless woman, he has well merited
the title of I'D. Dr. as the abbreviation
of "D,rty Dog" but having been form
ally, upon a solemn anniversary occasion.
invested with the honorary degree Of
Dead Duck" by that title he will here
uiIo1 w pOp1lAAly uHu Hlotol iSoiy AuoWuf
We say Historically" for history does
sometimes hang such charactersi in chains,
as all will remember who have. read the
Vicar of Bray"
The President having handed Forney
down to posterity as a dead duck, the
question most difficult of solution is to de-
termine to what species Of the great family
of webfooted waterfowls does Forney be-
long. We thing the mystery one of very
easy solution. We entertain too profound
a respect for .'canyas-backs,' "mal-
lards," .'red- necks," .spfig-tails. ..black-
backs" and teal or summer ducks, to
class such a fshy, greedy bird as Forney
with any Of the excellent species.
Forney is a '.dead didapper,' and our
of the Presidents skill as a
quick shot is intensified when we recol- |
lect that it is next to impossible to kill |
this tishiest ndmost artful of ducks With
an ordinary gun.
Of all the family of .divers." the
= didapper" is the most dexterous at
diving and turning somersaults in the
water. He is avoracious and exceedingly
ishy little fellow, and bears the same ra-
.ationship to the great family Of ducks as
does to the editorial fraternity.
lie is perpetaally diving. and when he
under, no one can nuke the slightest
calculation us to the exact spot or moment
he will come to the surface, HAY
ng in our youngerrdays padded hours in
'ursIit of. and expended pounds of ANU
ition upon, this wary diver, we cannot
90 much commend that splendid shot
ON the portico of the White House
'hich "keeled" the political .%.didapper"
YER. M r
As the bird can never be killed when
Is eye is upon the sportsman. Fornev,
,e "didapper," undoubtedly met his 7.
re when be was looking ~intently at .Thad.
aid did not think Chat 1.-THE man
the other end of the avenue. kept a
IN, and shot fishy ducks upon National /
lniversaries. /
But the diyings and s~araersaults of '
orney. the faithless, are now at ar end. a
ne blind rage and insane abuse Of the g
resident, which de6les the pages Of the y
and Press, reminds us. of the !
asnodic Huttering of the .,dying di. .
pper,' as be flaps and quiyers c%onvul- c
'ely upon the surface. with a leayy
arge of Executive duck-shot in his a
ain.
I ears hence. the old men of Washington
tell their grandchildren how, one
!ght I'D February morning, .all in the
len filne," they saw President John !.
! shoot a foul, greedy. tishy little duck :
hit in front Of .ll4 White House, and. as :
ornithological hero of the nursery. the
lead didapper' will rank next to the d,
in ~cock robin" ].
OF