Friday, August 7, 2015

The big Finnish teamster

The teamster took kindly to this proposal, and began to walk slowly through the long storehouse. He looked up and down, right and left, seeking the item for which he had struggled, in vain. Behind him marched the office force, hoping for a possible revelation. On and on, they trod, until suddenly, in a far, cold corner of the great shed, the Finnieman halted, gazed for a moment incredulously, and then dancing wildly, cried, "There he iss, there he iss." His great mittened hands grasped the fore-quarter of a "side of pork" and he chortled, "See," he said, "it iss the 'hook'—the 'pik' I vanted."

A roar of laughter went up from the office crew, as the first clerk gasped, "Well, I'll be doggoned! It was pork he wanted—his 'hook' was a hog and his 'pik' was a pig." Whereupon, John* joined in the hilarity and hugged his 'hook' in fiendish glee.