San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1897-11-22


experience, yet relieved to know that
her peril was past. 1t took few words
to tell her story. Beyond the fact that
the rear tire was badly punctured the
wheel was not much injured.
BISHOP WHlPPLE'S STORIES.
One of Them That Nonplused Stolid
Dignitaries of the Church.
Bishop Henry Benjamin Whipple, OF
Minnesota, is a great favorite in Eng
land, where he has become well known
to clergy and laity from His frequent
visits to the conferences and other gath
erings of the Protestant Episcopal
church. During the recent Lambeth
conference he preached in Westminster
Abbey, and a tremendous audience went
to hear him.
But the bishop is fully as popular as
a goodsstory teller. In the latter capac-
ity he has done effective missionary
work in converting the British mind to
an understanding and appreciation of
american humor. The following
story, as told by Bishop Whipple to
table of stolid English bishops, was re-
peated by one of his American friends
who heard it, and enjoyed the reception
the British auditors accorded the story
more than the fine flavor of the anec-
dote itself.
This is story" said the bishop, "of
the western frontier, and illustrates
the brevity of pioneer speech. Years
ago I had charge on the extreme
western line of civilization, and saw
great deal of wild frontier life. At that
time every man carried firearms on his
person and kept a rife or pistol within
easy reach of his bed at night.
"One night one of the coolest and
most courageous men on the frontier
was sleeping, as was his custom, with
his rife lying beside him on the bed.
He had the reputation of being dead
shot and it was well known that no
one had any chance when Dick once got
the drop on him."
'sWill you kindly explain what drop
means in that queer western usage?"
asked sedate bishop.
"Why, it means" said Bishop Whip
pie, that one man has another covered
by his gun-pistol, mean"
"You made use of the word gum in
advertently, of course, for pistol Is it
commonly so used in-ah-the states?"
"Not at all,s replied the Minnesotan.
"We say pistol but the people in the
west sometimes prefer the terser ex-
preston gun"
"And, excuse me-" said another dig
nitary, at the end of the table. but do
you mean by dead shot that the man
you get the drop on with your gun is
equal to dead man?"
Precisely" said Bishop Whipple.
''Well, as was about to remark,
Dick was awakened one night by
noise at his window. Slowly turning
his face toward the noise, so as not to
give warning to any possible enemy
there, he saw a mans head and shout
ders framed in the open window. Dick,
still as noiseless as serpent, reached
for his rifle. He raised it slowly over
his own body until the barrel was in
line with the intruder's head. Dick al
ways made sure of this point, that his
adversary was directly in front of his
weapon before using any palaver. He
so hated to waste ammunition"
"And, pray, what's 'palaver?" asked
a bishop who had not heard the same
word as used by the English themselves
in Africa.
ooh, 'palaver' means talk, generally
idle words.
"As soon as Dick felt that he had the
drop on his visitor he sung out:
"'Git!'
1.-THE robber looked up hastily, saw
instantly that the dead shot had him
covered with the rife, and replied
coolly:
"'You bet,' and dropped to the
ground and disappeared"
Not mitred head lost its dignity by
approaching the humor of the story.
There was painful silence for a mo-
ment. Then one member of the SOL
emn hierarchy said:
"What does git mean, bishop"
"Why, git is American for get and
means go away be off,"
"Ah, see," replied the Englishmar.
Then another Brftisher asked:
"And what. pray. does you bet
nean?"
''That," said Bishop Whipple, with
smile, sis a slang phrase meaning of
course or that the proposition is so
sure that you can bet on it,"
''Ah, very clevah, indeed" said an
other Anglican; "but what queer words
you Americans make use of. Do all
talk that way?"
The joke had escaped detection.-St
Louis Globe-Democrat.