The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-09-14
Did Nancy DO Right?

IT was only a year or so ago that
all Kentucky was agitated by the
rival claims of two girls who
wanted 20 christen the battleship Ken
lucky. The CONFUSION was so intense
that every whiskey bottle in the state
was shaken to its foundations. and it
went on record for the first time in
history that two Kentucky colonels
actually refused to drink with each
other.
Illinois Is now i'm the throes of a
similar tempest. Governor Tanner de-
sired to appoint Miss Daisy Letter to
christen the battleship Illinois. Daisy
Letter is the third daughter of old man
Letter. Mrs. Curzon, you see, is the
oldest daughter. Nancy Letter comes
next n then comes Daisy. They say
she is a Daisy in every sense. Gov
ernor Tanner saw that she was ex-
ceptlonally fair to look upon and Daisy
was the girl for him-that is TO saw.
Daisy was the girl to christen the bat
tleship. He told her so. He told every
body else so. including the reporters.
They interviewed Daisy, they put her
picture in the papers, e~xpatiated on
her charms and graces. printed her
biography, told the size of her shoe.
the length of her nose, the shade and
texture of her hair. the value of her
tooth brush. the dimensions and quality
OF her pillow shams. They whooped IL
up for Daisy in wide-open Chicago
style. There was nothing too good for
nDigV IN fha rano4nrZH ,roaoI1.-
Few of the Chicago papers love Gov
Tanner-most of them spend all
their spare time m~etaphorically fling
ing dead cats over into the governors
yard-but they all agreed that he had
displayed wisdom, tact, judgment, all
the qualities Of a great and good gov
ernor in choosing Daisy to christen the
battleship.
Now IT seems that the governor the
other day, thinking II time to take
official action in the matter, sat down
and. fearing Daisy" was a pet. not a
real name, formally made out the ap-
pointment of Miss Letter." daughter of
L. u. Letter. Miss Letter. according
TO the usages of polite society, is the
oldest unmarried daughter, and that
means not Daisy, but Nancy. What
do Daisy and Nancy do? Daisy doesn't
do a thing-at least not publicly. She
nay have gone upstairs, banged her
chamber door shut and thrown herself
weeping and kicking on her immacu-
late bed-but this Is only an hypothesis
unsupported by any evidence. As for
Nancy, she calmly and v~irtuously
wrote the governor a letter of accept
ance. thanking him for the distin-
guished honor. and remaining his
truly. Miss Letter" Nancy wasn't
going to throw anything of that kin
over her shoulder. not Nancy. As the
elder sister Nancy was entitled to the
recognition anyhow. and how Daisy
could presume to think the governor
ever meant her passes Nancy's com
prehension.
Daisy and her p%artisans may feel
disappointed, but such are the vicissi-
tudes OF politics. Nancy gets the ONCE.
Nancy goes. If the governor really
made an error. of which Nancy prob
ably entertsins grave doubts, 1t is too
late TO correct IT now. 1t will teach
him a lesson in politeness-not to rec
ognize any but the Oldest unmarried
daughter in a family.
Did Nancy do right? There is a So
cial as well as an ethical side TO the
question. We submit IL to the careful
consideration OF polite society. Mean
while. IL is to be feared that there are
some vigorous hair-pulings in the
Hpusa NJ Ipifar