with a nod to Ma Bell

I don't know just what brought this joke to mind, but in my mind it is.
It was a joke Mama had told me many, many years ago, when I was a teen.
At the time, she was seeing a man with a great sense of humor and I am sure the joke was his.
Now, I share it with you.

Once upon a time, two brothers, the Red King and the Blue King, ruled on neighboring hilltops. Between their kingdoms, in the valey, were cannabilistic savages known as the Yellow Fingers. These savages prevented any passage of personnel from one kingdom to the other, and for a while, that was fine.
The Red King became old and knew he was dying. He wanted only to see his brother, the Blue King, one more time.
But how to get the message to that kingdom?
The Red King called his knights to his side. "I must get an urgent message to the Blue King. Who will serve as the bravest knight and carry the message to my brother?"
The tallest of the knights stepped forward and accepted the quest. He suited up, mounted his horse, and off he galloped!
"Aiiyyy! Owwww! Arrrgggghhhhhh!" Those were his last words as the cannibals devoured him.
The Red King was crestfallen. What to do?
But his men were undaunted. One by one, ove the next few days, they took on the mission. One by one, they became meals for the cannibals in the valley. They even tried going in pairs, in quartets, with different types of armor, on different types of steeds, all to no avail.
After the loss of his last knight, the Red King was incredibly sad. Not only had he lost his last man of honor, but he was doomed to die with no last glance or speech with his brother.
Just then, one of the red-clad pages came timidly forward.
"Sire, I will be glad to try to get your message to the Blue King."
What? Was the old king's ears deceiving him? How could this simple Page have any chance of success when his brave knights had met with such a horrible fate?
Still... what choice did he have?
So, he allowed the Page to sally forth, on foot, from the Red Kingdom.
The Red King listened after the Page departed. And listened.
And heard no cries of pain! Heard no screams for mercy! He heard no sounds at all!
The next day, the Page returned, this time as part of the Blue King's retinue, having convinced the neighboring kingdom of the sincerity of his message.
Success!!!

And the moral is:
Let your Pages do the walking through the Yellow Fingers.

hahaha!