A STANDING JOKE 



The news of the nature of the loss was a 

 perfect godsend to all who had any pretensions 

 to jocularity or had any character for humour 

 to keep up, for the display of which it afforded 

 unlimited opportunities ; sympathy, as I knew 

 it would be, was altogether out of the question. 

 Reference to it cropped up, quite spontaneous- 

 like, in all kinds of unexpected places, as a means 

 of providing " innocent merriment," and I had 

 to give many assurances that it was not the 

 mayoral chain that was missing. At a Chamber 

 of Commerce banquet I was called upon to 

 propose the health of the Lord Mayor of Bristol, 

 who was present, and, of course, had to trot out 

 all the nice things I could think of about the 

 notable city over whose destinies his lordship pre- 

 sided. As I paused for a moment after a flowery 

 tribute to its manifold attractions, the late Sir 

 George Reid, the then High Commissioner for 

 Australia, and afterwards M.P. for a Metropolitan 

 constituency, promply filled up the gap by a gentle 

 inquiry, accompanied by that mirth-provoking 

 chuckle which gave special point to his humorous 

 sallies, as to whether I had "ever lost anything at 

 Bristol ? ' ' The roar of appreciation which followed 

 was a tribute to the success of his interpellation, 

 and all I could reply was that time passed so 

 quickly at Bristol that there one never felt the 

 loss of it, which was strictly true, as I discovered 

 nothing till I reached Bath. 



This joke lasted until the termination of my 

 term of office, when in my valedictory speech on 

 laying down the Mayoralty I expressed my thanks 

 to all and sundry, and especially to Jordan, the 



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