A big-city lawyer was representing the railroad
in a
lawsuit filed
by an old rancher. The rancher’s prize bull
was missing from
the section through which the railroad passed. The
rancher only
wanted to be paid the fair value of the bull.
The case was scheduled to be tried before the justice of the
peace
in the back room of the general store. The city-slicker
attorney
for the railroad immediately cornered the rancher and
tried to get
him to settle out of court.
He did his best selling job, and
finally the rancher agreed to
take half of what he was asking.
After the rancher had signed the release and took the check,
the
young lawyer couldn’t resist gloating a little over his
success,
telling the rancher, „You are really a country hick, old
man, but I
put one over on you in there. I couldn’t have won the
case. The
engineer was asleep and the fireman was in the
caboose when the t
rain went through your ranch that morning. I
didn’t have one
witness to put on the stand. I bluffed you!“
The old rancher
replied, „Well, I’ll tell you young feller, I was a
little worried about
winning that case myself, because that
durned bull came home this
morning.“
