Uncle Fred

[Frank Daniel]

An old uncle with an odd sense of humour can cause a lot of worry too.
When my brother 'Jimmie' was three and a bit years old he was playing in the orchard behind our house where the clothes line ran from the laundry towards the lavatory up the back yard.
Mum had some sheets hanging on the line and one of them had a slight rip in it - about a foot long.
Jimmie put his head through the slit and proceeded to swing back and forth turning his body with each swing until such time as he couldn't run or swing any further. He'd almost choked himself.
Uncle Fred, grandma's brother happened along as Mum was pannicking in an attempt to cut the young fella free. Uncle saved him from suffocating with his pocket knife and all was well.
When uncle went home he saw grandma in town and told her that Jimmie Daniel had hanged hisself.
More panic, another disaster in our little town. Jimmie Daniel was a kind old gentleman, my fathers cousin aged in his sixties, whom grandma assumed was now the 'late Jimmie Daniels'
She spread the news like wild fire around the village, as not evryone had a phone connected and then rang my mother to tell her the sad news. Mum was distraught and rang uncle Fred to tell him of the disaster . . .
She swore she would kill old Fred next time he came out to the farm.

_________________
'Only half the lies I tell are the truth. . . '

[Neville Briggs]

Like they used to tell us Frank " Never assume "

[Jasper Brush]

Ha, ha,

Good yarn.

It is true in bygone days hardly anyone had a telephone.

It was Samuel Langhorne Clements who had this statement printed in the obituary column of the New York Journal 2nd June 1897.

The report of my death was an exaggeration.


Yep! That about sums it up.


Regards,


John

[Bob Pacey]

You are right John. I was told the other day that a body had been found on the beach near where I live and that the helicopter rescue service had been searching the area for survivors of a boating accident.

Got home to check the news that night and low and behold. There was the report of the helicopter rescue service testing out their new equipement.

Just like whispers some times.


Bob