The William F. Cody Archive: Documenting the life and times of Buffalo Bill

Major Burke of the "Wild West" had a funny experience the other day. The wife of Nat Salisbury, during her lord and master's absence on a flying visit to America, brought off what in sporting parlance may be called a "double event"—in short had twins. The officers at the "Wild West" were delighted, but were in a short time told to their horror, that unless the children were registered within three days at the American Consulate, they would not be American, but only plain no-account Britons. Major Burke promptly purchased a railway ticket and made tracks for London. "What's the children's names?" asked the Consul there. "Names—names!" said Burke, "why they're not christened yet you know!" "Oh but we can't register them without there being names." Further inquiries elicited that Glasgow had an American Consul, and that there was no hurry about the registry anyway. And then the jovial major went out and kicked himself all over the Strand.