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Show "D-m" a rrcfeno VcrJ, Czzrt, Ru!::. According to the decision of a London court udam" Is a profane word and the man who utters it, no matter how ingenious bis explanation, must saf-fer saf-fer the penalty provided for those who swear. The case in point is that of a London worklngman who evidently ought to have been a lawyer. He has just been fined 10 shillings for nsing profane and obscene language. In court the man. who acted as his own lawyer, stated that he only used the word 'dam." In syllogistic form this learned laborer's argument ar-gument ran thus: A dam is the fortieth part of a rnpee; the fortieth part of a rupee is not swearing. Therefore dam is not swearing. He told the bench be had spent some years in India, where he always used' the word. Then, again, he had dammed streams. He told tbe court that Lord Boeebery not long ago had told the old American riddle: - "Why don't you dam the Mississippi V1 to which the answer was.: ; ; "Because, dam it you can't" Still Lord Rosebery had not been haled before a court accused of using obscene language. The chairman chair-man explained that there, was considerable difference differ-ence in the various uses of the word. " 1 ! " , Then,' said the argumentative . laborer, "it is time a conference was held to revise the law andj avoid a misunderstanding." ! , In the end the laborer had to pay, a fine of 10 1 shillings for the privilege of having nsed the word, but he inay.find some consolation in the thought that i his pleading may lead to an improvement in the mat-ter mat-ter of legal definitions. . ; j |