New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1875-11-22

AT meeting OF the Church of England Tenn
perance Society, held III Manchester last month,
the Bishop Of that diocese in IL speech placing
himself among the supporters OF the Pernms-
sive bill, expressed an opinion that - the argu-
"ments for the bill, which are good, should
"not be mixed up with jokes, though these
care equally good This was thought
TO he particularly hard upon Sir VIII
frid Lawson who has q facetious way
of inflsing life into controversy. His
Lordship bad his doubts about side
splitting missionary anecdotes or jocose re-
marks in Bible Society speeches. Upon
this Mr.. Basil Wilberforco came to the rescue
of fun. lie ventured to say that the Temper
lance movement owed more to the felicitous
"iokes of SIR Wilfrid Lawson than perhaps it
lowed to anything else. When a horse got a
"jaded appetite, and they could not persuade
" him to eat his food OF corn, they sprnkled
here and there a few beans among The feed,
"and in trying to pick out the beans he man
"aged to consume the whole"
His Lordshp IN bis preference of "arsu-
"mentsr To Jokes seems TO have forgotten
that jokes may be arguments of the least
REPUTABLE character. Wit and humor have Il
terrible logic of their own. The jokes Of
Luther, the biting sarcasm of Erasmus
the rOlicking ridicule Of Rahelais, the
coarse good-natured hOmeliness OF Latimer,
did as much to reform the Church as all the
stately and serious folios OF controversial the
ology. Error however honest and even because
it is honest, has its laugbable side. There is
something inevitably absurd in the solcm-
uity of man who is under a gross
n l.
of convincing him of his mistake is to show
him by q clever rciuctio into what a slough Of
Stiffness he has plunged. IL IS very sad
doubtless, that men should get drunk; but
inasmuch As the world viii laugh at the fol,ies
of inebriety. that fact, as wen a. Others more
solemn. may properly be brought to bear upon
the awakening mind of tho hard drinker
If he ia making fool of himself,
why may not his follics be properly
exhibited, so that hc may see himself AZ others
see him Mr. Cough, who is one Of the most
efficient of temperance speakers, often treats
his audiences to a little comedy. If humor
may be used in sermons, as it often has been,
il certainly may be used in tectotal orat0ry.
We believe that sydney Smiths jokes in Tie
EdinJuygh Rerie,o did more to promote neccs-
sary reforms than all his sermons, which were
neither very bright nor very original
Something must be conceded to differences
of character aud temperament and position.
When the Bishop of Manchester makes cold
water speech, we expect it to be sober and
decorous; but when layman is called to
handle the same subject, why should
he not make people laugh on the
right side if he can We are not
much acquainted with Sir Wiltrid Lawson's
jokes, but we fancy that he il somewhat more
likely to reach the popular heart by unbend-
ing little, than if he planted himself upon
the dignity of his title, and never
FOR moment abandoned cast-iron
gravity of demeanor. There is n
"time to laugh" says q sacred writer;
dulce est desipere in loco, says profane one.
And the world, religious and irreligious. agrees
with both. Nobody ever thought the Rev.
Rowland Hill or the Rev. Peter Cartwright a
woiSe preacher because he would have his lit
tie joke ia the pulpit. Objections to humOr
applied to serious PURPOSES frequently arise