Once there was a nineteen year old boy named Danny Dupe, who lived in a state where the drinking age was twenty-one. Danny wanted very much to go out drinking, and so, one night, he journeyed to the city, in search of a bar.

After searching for some time, he came to an establishment called "Joe's," and tried to walk in. But he was stopped at the door by a large man who said "You don't look twenty-one to me. Show me your college I.D., and then I'll let you in."

Now, Danny's college I.D. gave his true age, nineteen, so he walked away, in sorrow.

After several minutes, he came upon a street vendor, standing behind a table with a sign taped to it saying "False Identification." He asked the street vendor if it was possible to obtain a college I.D. saying he was twenty-one.

"Certainly," said the vendor. "All I require in exchange is your own, plus thirty dollars."

And so Danny gave him his own college I.D., plus thirty dollars.

But when he reappeared at "Joe's," and showed the card to the man, the man was not convinced. "You still seem young to me," he said. "Show me your driver's license."

And so Danny returned to the street vendor, and asked for a driver's license to go with the college I.D.

"Certainly," said the vendor. "All I require in exchange is your own, plus forty dollars."

And so Danny gave him his own driver's license, plus forty dollars.

But still, the man at the bar was skeptical. "I can't believe you're a day older than twenty. Show me your birth certificate."

So once again, Danny returned to the street vendor, this time asking for a birth certificate.

"Certainly," said the vendor. "All I require in exchange is your own, plus fifty dollars."

And so Danny gave him his own birth certificate, plus fifty dollars.

At long last, the man at the door of "Joe's" gave in. "I apologize," he said. "I guess you're older than you look."

Without waiting another second, Danny, happy as could be, finally entered the bar.

He drank and drank and drank, and got so drunk that when he left, hours later, he very soon passed out on the street. A police car pulled up and the officers inside noticed his collapsed body.

"Uh oh," said one policeman. "We better see who this fellow is, and get him home."

And so they searched through his pockets, and found the college I.D., and the driver's license, and the birth certificate. All identified the man as Barry Baleful. The policemen radioed to their head-quarters that they had picked up Barry Baleful, and were going to take him home. They asked the desk sergeant to find out where he lived. And so the sergeant typed that name into his computer, only to find out that Barry Baleful was a notorious criminal, who had recently escaped from prison.

And so, the next morning, when Danny woke up, he found that he had a terrible headache and that he was locked away, behind bars. No one would believe his protestations of his true identity.

Meanwhile, the street vendor, who was really Barry Baleful, decided to see how he could profit from the new identification that was now in his possession. He made his way to the house of Danny's parents, and waited till the middle of the night. When he was sure that everyone was home, and that they were all fast asleep, he set fire to the house, and watched it burn down, killing everyone inside.

The next day, he appeared at the offices of the family's insurance agent. He told them he was Danny Dupe, and showed them all his identification. They believed him, and promptly paid him thousands of dollars in claims.

Several years went by. Barry Baleful, posing as Danny Dupe, used the insurance money to open a business. He soon grew rich, and built for himself a luxurious office, with lavishly decorated walls, lush furniture, and a huge bar, equipped with a giant refrigerator in which to keep his stock of wines and liquors.

One day, he hired a poor, but beautiful girl named Betsy Bint to be his secretary. He treated her very cruelly, and constantly made improper advances on her, but she was too dependent on the job to quit.

Eventually, she grew so enraged by his treatment of her, that she drained her meager savings and purchased a pistol, and the next time he reached for her, she shot him in the head.

As soon as he fell to the floor, she grew terrified of the consequences of the crime she had just committed, and decided to do her best to cover it up. She dragged his body into the huge liquor refrigerator, and cancelled all his appointments for the next month. Every morning she came in to work, as if nothing had happened, and would not allow anyone who came by to see her boss.

Meanwhile, Barry Baleful's prison sentence finally ran out, and the real Danny Dupe was told that he was a free man. He immediately went to see his family, and discovered the horrible tragedy that had befallen them. Filled with grief, he tried to determine if he could find any trace of Danny Dupe.

Eventually, he found his way to the office. He walked into the reception area, and saw the lavish decorations, and the lush furnishings, and all the other trappings of wealth, and began to weep for his stolen destiny.

Betsy Bint, who was watching from behind her desk, was immediately attracted to him, and asked him what was wrong. He told her his whole story, and she was so shocked that she decided to confide her own crime.

"What shall we do?" Danny asked, hopelessly, but Betsy had a plan.

She asked Danny for his papers, which all read Barry Baleful, and switched them with those of the real Barry Baleful, which all read Danny Dupe. Then they took the body out of the refrigerator, allowed it to thaw, and called the police.

When the officers arrived, they told them that the dead man had burst in on them, trying to rob them. They said that Danny had managed to grab away the gun, and in the ensuing struggle had accidentally shot the intruder dead. The police, seeing that the dead man was the notorious criminal Barry Baleful, believed them, and left them in peace.

Danny and Betsy were soon married, and they moved into a large, comfortable house, with no bars or alcohol whatsoever.