The Washington herald., 1918-06-09
Tbre.t. that Are Not threats.

Threats that Are Not Threats.
Joe Dove drives an auto for the ex-
press company.
One day q fence got in the way and
wouldn't move.
And being of lighter material than
the truck. the fence. got the worst
Of II.
The owner of the fence. William =.
Scherer, came out and demanded that
the damage be paid for. or else a new
fence be erected.
Joe came around the next day with
hammer and nails and proceeded to
repair the damage.
But the damage was such that more
than a hammer and nails were needed.
Scherer came out. Some harsh
words passed between him and Joe.
The result was that Scherer had Joe
arrested for threatening to brain him
with the hammer.
Joe denied It. He had his mother
for q witness and she testified that
Scherer provoked the boy by calling
him q bad name.
Both were calling names, It appeared
from the evidence.
If a threat was made. It was a candi-
tional one, the kind which the law
takes no particular notice of.
Therefore the court had nothing to
n hNnk g. H. - =
fence repair itself II II could.
Twas q shame.
"Jedge," said Eliza Murphy, "Ah
was engaged to dat man John Sut-
life. All loan him SO to buy me an
enga cement ring. He shot craps~wid
de- money. All axed him 70 II, en- he
tole me to go where de Kaiser Is
goin' wen he dies"
If you have lived in Washington
many summers" said the court, you
need have no fear of that place. The
heat won't bother you a bit"
Just imagine. II you can, a woman
who loved a man enough to use her
own money to buy an engagement
ring.
And. too, imagine a man who was
loved by woman like that, taking
her money and losing 1t In q crap
game.
1t is too bad that the punishment in
/ this case does not fit the crime.
This crime is not only larceny. It
| is worse than that. John almost
broke Eliza's heart. and he ought
to be punished for that, too.
But there is no provision in the law
to compensate a broken heart-or
punish an excess OF gall. either.
John sheepishly admitted that he
was guilty. He admitted that he
loved a crap game more than he
did Eliza.
There will be no wedding bells for
him. The only bell he will hear for
n month will be the dinner bell at
Occoquan. And besides he must pay
Eliza back her SO.
Those NeIghborhood spats.
You can't tell by a PERSONS name
what his color or nationality is.
For instance. Viola Cohen. She is
not what her name indicates.
Mary Chisholm complained to the
court that Viola smashed her In the
eye and split her lip.
All because, Mary said. Viola had
attacked her marriage certificate.
They live rather close together.
Hence the quarrel
People who live close together have
too much opportunity to find out IN
pleasant things about one another.
Especially in apartment houses
They are prolific scrap breeders.
Viola said that Mary was peekiug
in her window and she only pushed
E"r away.
gre was nothing going on in her
ment. Viola said. that she
lie ashamed for anyone to SEE.
May said that Viola came to
nj deliberately tried to get her
= scrap.
mess appeared for Mary and
q up the testimony that she
's1 offered.
50 the court fined Viola flo
IN she paid.
Some Imagination.
"Jedge, nah husband put a gun
up to NAH haid en- made me tele-
fun to de ondertakers. All said
dat dere was no dead people in de