The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1878-02-20
IRISH HUMOR.
The Lecture by Hon. y. q. Cox Last
Might.

The Lecture by Hon. y. 8. Cox Last
Night.
A fair audience greeted Hon. s. S.
Cox in Washington Hall last night and
it was cordial in its support and applaud
ed in q manner which showed that his
best hits were thoroughly appreciated.
Mr.. Cox is no stranger to the Wheel
ing puplic and therefore his easy, grace
full style of delivery Is we'll known. Mr..
Cox carries his years jauntily and with
an unfurrowed brow and seems younger
than he was when here last.
"Humor," said Mr.. Cox, "is sort Of q
moisture. II comes from an old Greek
word meaning rain. In those days
doctors thought that the body had
various channels or veins OF feeling
hence the expressions "vein of humor,'
"yeln OF lsug hter," and "vein o. melan-
choly." Humor differs in persons as il
does in nations, and what would seem
funny 10 one is very serious to another.
It's law is, that it has no law. What ap-
pears ludicrous TO man Is the reverse to
a boy, and vice versa. When | was 8
boy at school, the greatest punishment
that could be inflicted on me was to be
forced TO sit between two girls. That
has all changed now. In Thibet,
when the ask man to drink, they
pull him by the left ear, but
/ hardly think that would be necessary,
even in strictly Murphy community.
Some nations seem TO have no sense OF
humor at all. Look at Holland. Two
towns in that country fought for two
hundred years over the question "Does
the codfs catch the hook or the hook
catch the codfsh2" American humor is
the conglomeration OF the humor OF all
nations; it is kind of mosaic, and what
would it do without the emerald? The
law which governs Americans comes
from EnglsLd, our marine law from
Russia; the hymns which we sing
were once sung on the banks
of the Euphrstes, and our humor Is
greatly tinctured by that of Ireland.
We must however 60 TO Ireland in order
to Judge of this fairly, and TO see the tree
whose foliage has shed pleasant shades
over so many nations. Even England
-sombre, savage and sour-hacking
away at the tree for centuries finds that,
like the sandal wood it gives to the ak
of the Saxon vandaI, its fragrance and
JUNCTION. All of our prejudices against
Ireland and it's people come
from England. You can always tell
true-Celt wherever he is found
or wherever he was born, by his form,
and scientists say that both Shakespeare
and Sir Isaac Newton were Cells. An
Irshmsn forgets his own personal iden-
tity through his versatile temperament
81 hate that woman" said a son OF Erin,
"because she changed me at birth for
another gentleman's child" Even as
Ireland during famine sends out gram
to England, SO does she give to that ma
ton her best humor and llghtnes5 OF
heart. An Irishwomsn who had been
married twice said to her second hus-
band: "Oh how happy James would
be if he were alive to see
what a fine man is in his place" An
English officer tells the story OF his lying
on the field at Alma badly wounded,
when some Irishmsn, with the good heart
possessed by all his race, bent over him
and said : Tell mo if you are dead. II
you are alive, this drop may help you"
He Is always getting his cart before his
horse, his jolly boat before his ship.
have seen statute which says that no
Irishman shall be allowed TO tasten his
plow to The tail of his horse,
From the Dogs and tumble down
hu,s and from her very misery does Ire
land send forth her humor. She is the
Mark Tapley of nations. She insnustes
the finger of humor into the grim skele-
ton Of death and causes it to laugh. But
as Lord Bacon said, "lreiand civil is
better than Ireland savage" Afte.
speaking of the great number of distln-
guishei men who came from Ireland,
Mr.. Cox went on 10 speak at length OF
her humor. Although it is aided by the
brogue in which tho words are uttered,
the humor itself is Transferable
into any language and will retain its
brightness. Who ever heard of an IRISH.
man who was like the Yankee that
wound Up his clock every day for fifteen
wears, and then found out that 1t was an
eight day clock The "hesd schools" of
Ireland were then p;cturesquely des.
cribed. One Of the branches taught was
the use of the shIllslah with its "widow
and orphan making qualities" One OF
this nationality kisses bis sweetheart
with bitter grace when he has
Just beaten her father and brother,
and gives to death q pathetic humor by
his treatment of the body. Every parish
is divided in itself, and in fact has as
much division rs it has multiplication.
The police have broken up the lighting
at Donny brook and other great fairs, but
they cannot eradicate it from the nation.
Lawrence Barrett told me an anecdote
of en- Irishman few days ago, Pat
had died IN New York, and when he
reached Heaven st. Peter asked him
where he was from. New York." was
his answer. "You can't fool me ssys
St. Peter, "and | wont let you in. Pat,
remembering that st. Peter had had
some little trouble himself when he
denied his Lord. went out and crowed
like rooster several times. stop that"
SAYS St. Peter. "you're making 1t
very inconvenient for me and you may
come IN at once and let bygones be
bygones" Two men were watching
hydraulic press, one says to the other
pat | wish you were IN there, it would
squeeze the devil out of you" "Bedad,"
saws the other, "If the devil was squeezed
out of you there'd be nothing left"
Bridget, who was that talking to
your"
my eldest brother, num-"
whats his nsme?"
Felix O'Mshony."
"Why, that's strange. How ia il that
his name is different from yours2"
''Oh well, mum, you see he's been mar
ried once"
The following advice was given to one
Of the poor scholars who wander through
the country, living on charity, during
school vacations, by his schoolmsster:
"Go to the top of high hill sbou. din.
ner time, look out for the biggest
smoke from the chlmneys, and
90 there for dinner, for where