The "Kick Butt" Language of Signs

Bismarck Weekly Tribune, April 1895

The following story was published in the Bismarck Weekly Tribune on April 26, 1895.

The Language of Signs.

A young provincial, newly arrived in Paris, got into a dispute with a boulevardier, who prided himself on his fine manners. The Parisian, wishing to carry off the thing with a high hand, pulled a glove out of his pocket and threw it at the stranger. The latter, astonished, inquired the meaning of the action. When it was explained to him that throwing a glove was equivalent to a slap in the face, the young provincial sat down, gravely drew off one of his boots and threw it at the back of his opponent.