St. Paul daily globe., 1896-03-28
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HE'LL PLAY NO MORE jokes.
A Stearns County School Teacher Is
Taught a Lesson.

A stearns County School Teacher Is
Taught a Lesson.
Practical jokes are double -barreled at
times, and once in a while the second
barrel goes off backwards with much
more force than does the other for
wards. This is especially true when the
government Of the United States is
made a party to the joke. A Stearns
county school teacher is in a position
to verify the truth Of the propositions
here stated, for he has been hit by the
charge in the second barrel Of one of
these double-barreled jokes.
Something IKE month ago he was
having Nights fun with the boys in
the little Village of Albany, and they
put up asjobato play practical joke
on German saioonkeeper. The school
teacher went in and represented HIM
self as revenue officer, and wanted to
see his cigars to see that no imposition
was being practiced on the goven-
ment. He found that the stamps on the
boxes that had not yet been emptied
remained uncanceled. This, he is al
legged to have told the saloonkeeper,
was a violation Of the law, and sub
jected the offender to a severe penalty.
The Saloonkeeper explained that he
had always understood that the stamps
should not be Cancelled until the boxes
were empty, but the erstwhile revenue
officer" assured him that he was mis-
taken.
He next wanted to examine the beer
kegs in the cellar to see how the stamps
on these were being treated. Here he
also discovered great infraction of
one Of the most rigid laws of the gov
ernment. The stamps were not being
Cancelled right, the faucet having been
driven through the stamp before it had
been Cancelled.
The saloonkeeper was scared half to
death and wanted to know how he
could square the matter without being
arrested Finally the revenue officer
| told him that If he would promise to
be careful in the future, he would not
report him, but he should treat the
! crowd, some dozen or more who had
followed in to share in the net profits
of the trick. Of course the German
was now the happiest man in the world
and for this kind consideration on the
part of the representative of this glori-
GUS government he freely dished out
the booze.
| Later on the school teacher went into
another saloon and had a good laugh
over the manner in which the German
had been worked, but a friend of the
German, who happened to hear him tel
the story, reported the affair to the
SalOonkeeper who had been "bilked,'
and in turn Immediately reported it tc
the collector of internal revenue, Capt
Harries. The result Is that within 6
few days the collector has received E
check for $3.50 from the school teacher
and in letter enclosing the same hi
begs that 1t may be accepted by the
government IN lieu of prosecution, a:
he had no criminal intent in the matter
and was sffhply playing a little joke
He also promises to compensate the
German for all the free booze drank OF
the occasion, and for any other damage
that may have resulted to him.
Capt. Harries has recommended tt
the department that no steps be take1
to prosecute the matter further, so i
IS probable that nothing more will b.
done The incident will undoubtedly
serve as a lesson to one school teacher
to take the government as a side part
ner In no more practical jokes. Capt
Harries withheld his name, but stated