A judge in his golden years decided¹ that retirement² had become too boring. So he volunteered as a librarian at his local library branch.

A week later, his supervisor³, a stern woman in her sixties, called him into her office.

She cleared her throat and said, "You know, I appreciate that when you were a judge you were stern with lawbreakers. And you carry that with you to your new job, which is commendable⁴. But when someone owes an overdue⁵ fine, you can't just..."

The judge interupted... "I had to throw the book at him or he would think I was soft."

"I know," said the librarian, "but the Oxford⁶ English Dictionary?"