The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-01-07
PUT IT ON BURDETTE.
HOW THE HUMORlST WAS MADE A
ScAPEGOAT IN AMHERST.
The Pitfalls That Lie About n Champagne
supper In a Temperance Town-The
Hotel Man Was "A Good Fellow, and He
Had to lie Saved at Any Cost.

HAD TO He saved at Any Cost.
1.-THE discussion about the sale of liquors
at the Princeton inn recalls an amusing
experience that had in strictly temper
Rnce college Town dozen or more years
ago, said man at the University club.
amherst was the college, and for several
years it had been "a prohibition town. The
lownspeople made a great effort to enforce
the excise law very strictly, and there were
times when they accused the college men
Df not being in sympathy with them. 1t
Is quite possible that the accusation had
rome foundation in fact. There are coca
Eions, as every college man knows, when
excise law must not be permitted To OBJ
! ttruct hospitality.
"We had small class society in my
senior year which was composed OF several
men from each of the regular fraternities,
| and 1t made u point of entertaining at sup
per such distinguished visitors as came TO
Amherst with the reputation of being good
| fellows Bob Burtlette, the humorist, was
the last guest of the club. Burdctte deliv-
cred II lecture at Amherst and our senior
society intimated that we should feel our
selves highly honored by his presence at a
| little supper after the lecture. Burdette
sent back word that the pleasure would be
his, and so the supper was ordered at n hotel
then very popular with the students. The
steward of the society was ordered to sec
| that a reasonable amount of champagne
should DO near at hand in case Burdette
or any one else was tempted to drink "a
glass.
"He was instructed not to compromise
the proprietor of the hotel in any way be-
cause he was a good fellow, and a convic-
tion of violating the excise law would
bring heavy fine and Imprisonment on
him. When the supper was served, Bur
dette was on hand and so was the cham
payne. For obvious reasons the hotel
walters were not asked to serve the wine.
When bottle was called for, the man who
sat at the head of the table opened the
folding doors behind him, stuck his hand
through and brought back bottle. No
ono knew who had placed it In his hand or
where the wine had been purchased, except
the member of the society who had acted
as the steward for this occasion.
1T was pleasant little supper Bur
dette told us some stories that were new,
and we told him some that he had never
heard Incidentally the champagne disap-
peared in the way Ii was intended to go,
and every one supposed that nothing fur
/
town for the west the next morning, and
week later the men who had entertained
him were surprised to receive subp1nas to
appear ut tho trial of the hotel keeper on
the charge of violating the excise law. 1t
developed later that a livery stable keeper
who had grudge against the hotel man
| had given the information on which the
complaint was based We were very much
| bored about the affair, and 1t was decided
| that the hotel keeper must be protected.
! As matter of fact, he was really limo
cent.
| "When the case was called, the first wit
ness summoned was n member of the So
| ciety who hailed from Chicago The prose-
! cutor learned from him that n supper had
! been given at this hotel on the evening
mentioned in the complaint to Mr.. Bur
| dettc.
| "'was any vino served9 asked the pros
| ecutor.
"'Yes
| "'What was it?'
"'It looked and tasted very much like
champagne
| "'Where did it come fromP'
"'Why, from behind the folding doors,
answered'thc Chicago man innocently.
! "'Who put it there?'
81 don't know. Perhaps Mr.. Burdette
did
| another senior was called and he
couldn't testify definitely about the cham
paPnc.
"Who brought it to the hotelY asked
the prosecutor.
| "'Perhaps Mr.. Burdette did, was his
reply.
"Ten more seniors were put on the
| stand, and as each ono in turn suggested
that Burdette was the wicked one the
smiles in the courtroom broadened and
the prosecutor got angry. BY persistent
questioning he brought out the fact that
at least dozen bottles of champagne had
been emptied at this supper, and from tho
evidence a guileless listener might have
concluded that Burdette had not only
brought the champagne, but had drunk
most of it. Every senior who testified
seemed to be anxious TO do what he could
to clear up the mystery, and each one gave
| his evidence in an ingenious fashion.
There was no possibility Of getting Bur-
dette to testify, and the prosecution failed
| to prove its case. The complaint was dis
| missed.
"The story was too good to keep, how
ever and it went all over the country.
| Whenever Burdotte was invited to sup
per after lecture, he was asked, Did you
bring your champagne with your 1t so
happened that three years after Burdette
lectured in Kansas City. Half way through
his lecture he saw ono of the men who had
entertained him at Amherst. He told the
story of that experience In pathetic fash
ion. After tho lecture the Amherst man
went up and shook hands with him.
"'Why did you all mako me the scape-
goat for that excise casef asked Burdette,
with an appreciative grin.
est was because we found after conf
pairing notes that every story you told us
that night was old, was tho reply.
"'Didp ( you know that / was church
deaconS' asked Burdette.
"'That simply aggravated the offense
and gave point to our retaliation, said the
Amherst man. He told me afterward TINT
Burdette's left eyclid dropped until 1t lay
| dead on his cheek for half a minute and
then the conversation was turned. So far
as know, Burdette hasn't been back to
Amherst since New York Sun.
One BAD Eject.