Newspaper Headlines in, uh, English

[Gerald Cohen]

   There's a small Missouri town named Clever. Some 15-20 years ago
the police chief there was arrested, and the story in my town's local
paper (Rolla Daily News) carried the headline "Clever Police Chief
Arrested."

    I couldn't help thinking: "If he was so clever, what was he doing
getting arrested?" But I suppose I was the only one in Rolla who was
struck by the unintended ambiguity of the headline.

Gerald Cohen
University of Missouri-Rolla
(pronounced RAHluh)