The usual questions were asked and answered. He proved to be a carrier and had twenty-eight customers. A membership card was given the boy with instructions to call in thirty days and get the badge.
The boy left the office perfectly happy. In about a week he returned, walked to the desk and laid his membership card down, saying: “My mother says I can swear all I want to, and you have nothing to do with it. You must not tell me to stop swearing.”
The president turned around, looked at the boy for a moment, discovered he was unusually bright, and back behind his black eyes he showed the right kind of spirit indicating that if he made up his mind to do a thing he would do it.
“So your mother wants you to swear. Well, well, and she don’t want you to belong to any association unless we all swear. Well, you shall not be made unhappy. If your mother wants you to swear you shall have that pleasure. Does she swear?”
“Yes, sir, we all swear to beat the band,” he replied, and in a tone indicating that it was one of the pleasures of his home life.
“And don’t any of you think it wrong to swear?”
“Oh, no, father says he can swear and it gives force to his arguments. Mother says if I want to swear I can do it.”
“This association compels no one to stop swearing—the rule adopted by the boys simply says we don’t believe in it. And the officers wouldn’t for the world have you do anything to displease your parents.
“How many swear words do you know?”