The American owner of an Irish bar in New York flew across the Atlantic to Ireland on business.
As he walked down the stairs from the plane onto the runway at Dublin Airport, he noticed a small Irishman standing beside a long table with an assortment of Human Skulls.
“What are you doing?” asked the American, curious as to the meaning of the table of skulls.
“Oh, I’m selling skulls”, replied the Irishman.
“And what skulls do you have?” said the bar owner, now even more curious.
“Well”, said the Irishman, “I have the skulls of the most famous Irishmen that ever lived”.
“Really?”, said the bar owner. “That’s great! Give me some names”.
“Well”, said the Irishman, pointing to various skulls on the table.
“That one there is James Joyce, the famous author and playwright. That one there is St. Brendan, the Navigator. See the one just behind it, that’s Michael Collins the leader of the 1916 rising. Not forgetting of course the one over there on the right, that one there is Saint Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland… God bless his soul.”
“I’m sorry” said the American, “But did you say Saint Patrick?”
“That’s correct!” said the Irishman.
“I have to have that!” said the bar owner, “how much is it?”
“That one is $1,650” said the Irishman.
It was rather expensive, but what a rare find, and the American knew it would help to bring a lot of Irish Americans into his bar, and so he paid the Irishman $1,650.00 in cash.
The American flew back to New York and mounted his Skull on the wall in his Pub.
People came from all over America to view this famous skull. He made a fortune over a five year period and retired a very rich man.
Well, during his retirement, the American decided that he should go back to visit Ireland, the land that had made him a fortune.
And so the man flew back to Ireland, and while he was walking down the stairs off the plane at Dublin Airport, he saw the same Irishman at the bottom of the stairs.
“My goodness”, he said, “What are you doing?”
“Oh, I’m selling skulls”, replied the Irishman.
“And what skulls do you have today?” said the man.
“Well, I have the skulls of the most famous Irishmen that ever lived!!” said the Irishman.
“That’s great!” he said. “Give me some names!”
“Well!” said the Irishman, pointing to various skulls. “That one there is James Joyce, the famous author and playwright, that one there is St. Brendan, the Navigator, that’s Michael Collins the leader of the 1916 rising, and that one there is Saint Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland… God bless his soul..”
“I’m sorry” said the American, “But did you say Saint Patrick?”
“That’s Correct!” said the Irishman.
“Well!”, he continued, I was here almost 7 years ago and you sold me a Skull a little bit bigger than that one there, and you told me then that the skull was Saint Patrick.”
“Oh yes!” said the Irishman, “I remember you now!… you see… This is Saint Patrick when he was a wee boy!!”
Image used under a Collective Commons License from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Paul_C%C3%A9zanne,_Pyramid_of_Skulls,_c._1901.jpg