Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1912-12-07
Jack and Joe Traded Knives.

Jack and Joe TRACED NniVes.
Boys viii be boys and II is just as
much fun to do boyish pranks in the
later years of life as 1t Is when small;
at least IL seems so. We all like to
play hooky from business ono III q
while and make a sneak" Just as we
did when at school. The woods, the
feds and the streams are just as at.
tractive, probably not from a stand
point of curiosity as in days OF yore,
but from a point of appreciation.
Then it Is just as much fun TO swap
jackknives today as it was many
years ago and see who a soak the
other the hardest. There was a jack
knife trade pulled off a few months
ago which but few have heard of. 1t
was one between men of national rep
| uttion and involved two pieces of
cutlery which had been in use for
two decades.
The traders were none other than
| Uncle Joe Cannon, e%X-speaker of the
Dakota. When Governor Burke was
| down east on the "trip OF the seven
governors" Uncle Joe attended one of
the banquets given in honor of the
visiting executives from the west. 1t
happened upon that day an eastern
paper had dug up a cut of North Da-
kotas second governor, Andrew Burke
labeled it Gov. Burke of North Da-
kota' and fioated it.. The fact that it
was another breed of Irish entirely
and Governor Johns predecessor of
twenty years previous, made a hit
with all who understood the situation.
During the evening it was Gov.
Burke's lot to toast the newspaper
men and in a mirthful strain he used
me error of the newspaper in pub
fishing the wrong Mr.. Burke" to il
lustrate the contention that no de-
pendence could be placed il what was
% be seen in the newspapers. In
TACT he said it was up to the people
20 decide whether the newspaper was
right and he was a pretender to the
throne, or whether the newspaper was
wrong and he was the real article.
Mr.. Burke called attention to the fact
that Gov. Burke the First was a hand
some man while he himself was about
as homely a man as the fair state Of
North Dakota could produce, but he
had worn that face so long that he
had become used to it-and reconeil-
ed to it-and he considered the publ
cation of the picture of a handsome
man and the labelling of it as himself,
an aspersion of his we'll established
reputation for LONELINESS.
After Governor Burke had COM
aleted his remarks, Uncle Joe Can
non came forward and stated that he
was highly gratified to learn that
here was one MAJ in the United
states who was really as homely as
he, whereupon he presented the gov
ernor with a pocket knife which he
said he had been carrying for twenty
years for the purpose of presenting it
to such a man when found. He then
presented the knife. The governor
was equal to the occasion ard accept
/ ed the memento, Immediately produc-
I ing an old crippled blade, something
like those used in school days in
sight unseen trades, and presented
It to Uncle Joe, claiming he had car
ried it for fully twenty years looking
for the party who al equally homely
| with himself. Uncle Joe accepted and
the incident made a hit. The govern
or now carries Uncle Joe's knife in
the upper left pocket of his coat
next to his heart. 1t is really some
knife, too, and when one sees it, he
cannot restrain the feeling. that some
"steal trust" gave it to Uncle Joe for
the purpose of influencing him in con
gress. 1t has a pearl handle engraved
in flowers, and the inscription I'm
Gle Joe" 1t has all kinds OF blades, a
pair Of scissors, a brad and all the
equipment of a burglars ko, though
the one great requisite to make it
complete for a North Dakotan is lack
ing. 1t has not c0rck.screw. This
is probably accounted for by the pos.
! s:bility that Uncle Joe uses only the
pop cork" kind.
However Governor Burke prizes
this new acquisition highly, and it is
really a curiosity in cutlery, besides
from all appearances it is safe to say
the governor got the best of the bar
gain.