MacNamara vs O'Reilly

This is from the Telescope newspaper in Bruce County, Ontario from August 30, 1906…

Robert MacNamara and Patrick O’Reilly, both of Eden Grove, were in town last Wednesday trying to get a little tangle straightened out before Mr. Jas. Toltou J.P. Both are Irish and when Irishmen take to scrapping it is pretty hard to tell who is the most to blame. In this case MacNamara was the complainant. His dog it seems killed certain chickens belonging to his neighbor O’Reilly. Mr. O’Reilly met him on the street and suggested that he should pay for the chickens. MacNamara said, “That’s all right, but since you know so much about my dog, perhaps you can tell me something about the coat that was taken out of my shop some time ago?”

Mr. O’Reilly construing this remark to be an insinuation that he had taken the coat, got madder than ever and threatened to punch his neighbor’s head. The coat referred to must have been a very valuable one, for Mr. MacNamara said he would not have taken $500 for it. When brought to close quarters Mr. MacNamara would not say that he accused Mr. O’Reilly of taking it, and he said that he had used the remark for the purpose of getting back at O’Reilly, good and strong, or something to that effect. Several witnesses were called, some women being among them, and at the close, the Magistrate imposed a fine of one dollar and costs. Mr. Klein appeared for the plaintiff and Mr. Robertson for the defendant.

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And that's the way it was.

Anyway... Humouroceros