St. Cloud Democrat. [volume] (Saint Cloud, Stearns County, Minn.) 1858-1866, 1866-04-05
Letter frem Josh Rulings.


Mx DIAN Pass: j@s18 " 5sst.s aERe9@
You ask mo " how / like the lekturing
bizzness," and "whst success have met
WITH" and !" what il the .tru natur ov, the
lektur j hav bin dispensingi Z" s..
+ Briefly thus reply: ~ 7s:3 '32' ~ - ~
/ Two years ago I jined the band ~ 1ektur-
in marters, and hay s.tramp'd-trsmp'dl' g
ever sinse,, and o. near AZ kan rekolekt
now, think kant tell.
Mi lektur il an attempt tew DO comick.
?. Humor il hybrid, and Il q nice cross be-
tween sense and nonsense. IT. fill. 1 il
sa Idon't think it hsz ever bin we'll defined;
it il like the smell ov . flower, hard tsw d.
skribe.
Thare il just about az mulch real hunor
in the best ov geniuses az thare il juise in q
lennon; one squeeze takes it out, and thsre
Is nothing but seeds and skin left: ,,,s ~
It soon bekums hsckney'd d, and its authors
live prekariously for shout 8 years. on the
fust months ov their reputashun, and then
go in their holes and only cum out onst in a
while TO sun themselfs and be stupid. 2.
I hav known men tew tell good storys,
and then Spite them awl bi telling one poor
one. I,stS III 9@;zz.EgHs@s oisf a&t1 10 54at
.Thare il nothing the. world liz 20 slow. to
spPlaud az success, and nothing they are 90
smart at discovering o. = failure, 49,.
Mulch 'ov q humorist's success depends
upon the physick ov hiz agjence: man
who haz the dispepshee fust rate laffs under
protest, but if hiz dinner rides easy you kan
tickle him with q skoop-shoyel. T,6yf ,Y
Humor sumtimes Turks in the way thing
il ced, and hay seen men Who carried their
fun in the wrinkles fova their face. ef az
Nonsense ain't humor, it il only Jest.
Humor must hav sum truth in it, and q
good deal don't hurt it. .ts.,....... o..4 81
I have seen . fast rait, story, spite in be.
ing told, and hav seen poor story 30 well
told, that if the man had applied for it he
could hav had it patented and no questions
49, Il: + an apjenee, refuse tew b. tiekled, y
might az well talk ten 9 graveyard in the
ded' ov winter but II yu git them onst mel
low yu kan then stick yure thum into them
30 But mi opinyun is that thare amt no rule
for success with a;comick lektur.7 E-t,s5f
W A cold blooded philosophical lektur il just
az eazy az turning . grinstone; the aujence
are obliged tew hold their hatchets' on and
they are sure tew git ground out after q
while: but you kant tell manTwhens tew
laf; he knows what pleszes him, just a.
well az he knows what eats good W kant
play . burnt slapjack, nor one that ain't
well dun, onto him. Ats:: i'2g9@'tf s5'''Ft i'S5'
Il 2Thare amt nothing more straining tew q
humoriet than tow have tew. stop and ex-
hsy just e GOT thu hum to Boston i. put 2
epokes into the hub 81 fremont Temple the
two fust nights in Febuary: lektured Is
nights in Massachusetts u as,ss assf. i.:s'ftss
ia don't kno whether it Wsz success or
not: 4avl kno IS ifelt good myself: s4,su
Humorous lekturs, without the aid Of
canvass or pantomime, are tuff tew do. -
I think NOVEL shall1 either gitlup q philos-
ophical1 lektur on the cullert OF the Red Sea,
or tho hump on the oammsl's back, or quit
slekturing, ,s I'D. ,. ,,s,- 4 !
=; l. kan steal good philosophical lektulrr
out 81 sum library, but these cussed humur:-
GUS lekturs hav'so mutoh' original III them
(or ought to hsv) that yu. kant kslkulate on
them. Tor certain they are like twins, they
kant be had nor they kant be stopped. Gg.sI,,
T. Upon the whole, Is near Is i kan guess,
mi, opinyun Il that humor. Il d natral dis
.sease thl It i man kant ketch nor kant giv
tew enney boddy else. e JOSH B1r11Nas. s