12 Pound Gold Nugget


In a mining district, Mrs. Brown presented her husband with a 12 pound baby 
boy. Mr. Brown was so delighted that he went to the newspaper office and told 
them that he had found a 12 pound gold nugget, as pure as any in America. 
Naturally, the newspaper sent a reporter to the house to get the story, as 
anyone would do, and everyone was prospecting for gold in the little town. This 
is what happened.

Reporter: "Does Mr. Brown live here?
She: "He does."
He:  "Is he in?"
She: "No."
He:  "I understand that he found a nugget of gold weighing 12 pounds."
She: (Seeing the joke) "Yes, he found one."
He:  "Can you show me the spot where he found it?"
She: "I'm afraid Mr. Brown would object as it is private."
He:  "Is the hole very far from here?"
She: "No, it is quite near."
He:  "Has Mr. Brown been working the claim long?"
She: "No, only about ten months."
He:  "Has he reached the bottom yet?"
She: "No, but he is very near."
He:  "Was Mr. Brown the first to work it?"
She: "Well, he thinks he was."
He:  "Has he been working the claim regularly since he found it?"
She: "No, but I told him last night it was time to start again."
He:  "I suppose he works it secretly?"
She: "Yes, mostly every night."
He:  "Do you help him?"
She: "I do my best."
He:  "Do you think he will sell the claim?"
She: "I doubt it, he gets so much pleasure out of working it."
He:  "Did he blast it out with nitroglycerine?"
She: "No, he used Vaseline and kept digging."
He:  "Has he widened the hole any?"
She: "Yes, a little."
He:  "How big is the hole?"
She: "Well, about normal size, I suppose."
He:  "Is he going to improve the mine any?"
She: "Yes, he said he was going to white wash the shaft tonight."
He:  "Does he work alone at night?"
She: "No, I hold it for him and we split 50/50."
He:  "Is he an expert at it."
She: "Well, he does good work."
He:  "Would you mind showing me the gold nugget?"
She: "Certainly." (Then she brought out the 12 pound baby boy and
     they carried the reporter to the hospital.)