Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1901-02-14
AN ITINERANT JOKE.
There Ia Confusion After All az 10
who Is Really the Vic
tim of 1t.

This is true story of transferred
joke that involved several people IN
all sorts of farce comedy complica-
tions, says the Kansas City Journal.
1t revolves around the home products
show that was given in Convention
hall by the Manufacturers assocla-
ton. When the committee Of the
show decided to issue souvenir pro-
gramme the proceeds were donated to
the woman's auxiliary, which is cor
relative organization. The women
were to solicit advertisements, and
this they did. One of the features OF
the programme were the pictures OF
the officers of the Manufacturers as
ISOLATION, for which fee was charged.
The officers themselves cared little
about having their pictures in the
programme, but they nearly all con-
sented in order to help the women
out.
One officer of the association was
out of the city at the time and some
of his associates conceived the idea OF
inserting in the programme a picture
of the manufacturer that had been
taken a quarter of a century ago,
when he was a young chap, and the
clothes in which he had sat for the
picture were the ones in which he
had been married only few days be-
fore. This picture was very old-fash-
toned and represented the subject as
not quite up to date as regards the
fashion even at that time. 1t was, IN
fact, the sort of a picture that staid
old couples generally relegate to an
obscure part of the family album and
classify as an uncle who went to sea
and was never heard of again.
The picture was sent around to the
office of the women's auxiliary by the
iokers. with instructions to run in the
programme. This was done.
Here is the sequel A week ago the
manufacturer returned to town, and
on his desk was bill for the insertion
of the picture in the programme. He
looked up the book, and, sure enough
there was his picture, but, oh, now
changed Suspecting some joke, the
manufacturer wrote letter to the
women's auxiliary in which he said
such an insult had never been perpe-
trated on him before. He said that
the picture in the book was that or
his wife's first husband, and that to ask
II
him to pay for it was filling his cup OF
humiliation. He added: "My wife al
WAYS did love her first husband more
than she does me, and now to thlnK
that you want me to pay for that pic
ture is too much"
Having written the letter, he hunted
IN a friend whom he could trust and
instructed this friend to spread the re-
port that a horrible mistake had been
made by the jokers. When the wom-
ans auxiliary got the letter the Joke
was charged to them. They were horrl-
fed that so grave a mistake should have
been made as to publish a mans wife 8
first husbands picture instead OF the
living one, and then to have sent the
hill to the living one-it was too much,
also. The women decided to sitt the
matter to the bottom, and they hunted
ND the letter instructing them to IN
sert the picture, and learned that the
picture had been sent by the Manufac-
turers' association by way Of miser-
able laundering joke.
Upon the receipt of the letter and the
bill the friends began to doubt, and
after a consultation it was decided that
the wife of one Of them should call up
on the wife of the manufacturer and
ascertain to a certainty if the picture
really was that of her first husband.
Now the manufacturer who had been
chuckling in his sleeve all this time,
had posted his wife on the compl1ca-
tion. so that when the blushing better
half of one of the laundering friends
called upon her to automatically in
ouire about the picture Mrs. Manufac-
turer, with tears in her eyes, admitted
that it was that of her first husband,
and added that she wouldn't have cared
only she Loved him so much better than
anv of her other husbands. That set
tied it. When the friends learned OF
this they stood aghast at what they
had done. The joke was on them.
After the most earnest consideration
the friends came to the conclusion that
they could do nothing now to help mat
tiers save pay the bill and try to hush
things up. This the manufactures
heard with exceeding glee. But a hor-
rible thought crept into his mind.
What if his friends really did pay the
bill and hush things up, then there
always would be the impression in the
public mind that he was his wife's sec
ond husband, and then, too, he had
openly confessed in letter that his
wife had loved her first husband bet
ter, and this had been substantiated by
the wife herself in an interview with
the friends wife. What could he do 10
dissipate such a thought? Nothing
save to tell the truth This he decided
to do, and the next mail brought to the
women's auxiliary an explanatory let
ter from the manufacturer-and
check for the cost of the picture. A
dozen people now breathe easier, but
the question of whom the joke is on
is now being discussed.
THE SHIRT WAIST.