Daily press and Dakotaian. [volume] (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1875-1880, 1879-05-14
4 BLUE RIBBON INCIDENT:

al k10tD OF D U1oC1l1Os
!, In one of our Yankton boarding houses
there is now stopping q young man recently
from Pennsylvania, who wears a blue ribbon.
having been literally whipped into the es-
peusal Of tsmperance. The manner in which
it all transpired may be briefly related:
At the boarding house was an elderly
man, also q Pennsylvania, who was a few
days ago wearing q blue ribbon, which at
tracted the notice Of the young man Ac-
costing the bearer Of the ribbon, he called
him . fool. This was resented in . gentle
manly manner, the old man claiming the
right to wear his sign in the shape of a rib
bon, even if others preferred to display theirs
in their noses. The disputation finally end
ed, and supper was announced. Immediately
opposite the young man sat the young Key
stone. He had obtained a flaming broad
blue ribbon, and kept derisively pointing to
it, and doing his best to provoke and taunt
the advocate of temperance. Finally he was
informed that if he did not remove the rib
bon, it would be forcibly taken from HIM at
the conclusion of the evening repast ; that
he had no right to faint it in the faces of
others as a means Of insult. To this Ian.
guage the young man answered defantly,
claiming that he could whip any man in the
house.
After supper the young man again broach-
ed the subject, and dared the elder man to
capture his ribbon of blue, exhibiting a
%belligerent disposition, and assuming the
attitude Of = pugilist. To this the elder
man replied that if he did not imm ediately
doAf the ribbon, and cease his insults, some
body would get hurt, and it would not be
the speaker. This only Infatuated the half
intoxicated individual from the land of
Penn. and when he was on the point of in
augurating wah bloody wah! with the old
man, he was suddenly confronted by a 1.-THE
muscular figure, who sprang forward and
quick as thought snatched the blue ribbon
from the breast Of our would be pugilist, ex-
claiming: Hold on! You ID coward,
that man is my father. Fight me if that is
your game" The utterer of this language
at once received a stunning blow in the face
as the only response. Smarting under the
blow, and with the blood gushing from his
.nostrils, he then waded in, and in less than
q minute the young man from Pennsylvania
announced that he desired peace, displaying
as the result of the action, a f%rontispiece 90
damaged and disordered that It appeared
impossible to diecrlninate between it and a
rotten Irish beet.
Thus ended this part Of the difficulty. By
the aid of water, soap, brushes and clean
clothing the combatants succeeded in par.
TALLY restoring themselves, so that their
identity could be again established. When
this was done, the young man again sought
out the gentleman he.had insulted, and Of.
fersd an apology. He was met in a kindly
manner, and advised to sign the pledge and
wear a blue ribbon not in jest, but in earn
est. While they were thus employed in
conversation, the bell rang out its clear
ringing chimes, announcing the Temperance
meeting in the Congregational church. An
hour and a half later, a young man with 4
black eye, and with other marks of a fstic
encounter upon his person, walked up the
aisle, signed the Murphy pledge and now
sports a genuine blue ribbon. The encounter
leading to this result has been forgotten and
forgiven by the parties interested, who have
clasped hands across the bloody chasm, thus
proving that "alls we'll that ends WELL"