Their domestic tranquillity* had long been the talk of the town. A local newspaper reporter was inquiring as to the secret of their long and happy marriage.
"Well, it dates back to our honeymoon," explained the lady. "We visited the Grand Canyon and took a trip down to the bottom of the canyon by pack mule. We hadn't gone too far when my husband's mule stumbled."
"My husband quietly said 'That's once.' We proceeded a little farther when the mule stumbled again. Once more my husband quietly said, 'That's twice.' We hadn't gone a half-mile when the mule stumbled a third time."
"My husband promptly removed a revolver* from his pocket and shot him."
"I started to protest over his treatment of the mule when he looked at me and quietly said 'That's once.'"
*tranquillity：宁静
*revolver：左轮手枪
一对夫妇在庆祝他们的金婚纪念。镇上的邻居都交口称赞他们的家庭和睦，于是一位本地报纸的记者前来采访，以希探寻他们长久和睦婚姻的原因。
“这得从我们蜜月旅行说起，”太太解释道。“我们当时去大峡谷旅游，各骑一条驮骡行走在峡谷底部。走了不多远，我丈夫的驴绊了一跤。”
“我丈夫平静地说‘第一次’，继续走了一段后驴又绊了一跤，我丈夫依旧平静地说‘第二次’，当我们走了半英里，驴绊了第三次。”
我丈夫迅速掏出手枪射死了驴。我开始抱怨丈夫，不该这么对待驮骡。他平静地看着我，说“第一次”。
