Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1881-05-05
THE USE AND ABUSE OF FUN.

What should we be without the gift tt
brighten our existence on our earthly pill
grimage? A love of fun is most often fount
accompanied by cheerful and lively dispo
sition. We can imagine no drearier stat'
than that of an individual who, during th'
whole of his lifetime, can obtain no fun Of
pleasure, in the slightest degree, in his daily
intercourse with his fellow.creatures But il
is well.known fact that even of the best o.
things one can have too much. Even fun has
its limits, and more wearisome thing car
scarcely be imagined than an individual who
at the most inappropriate times, cannot re
frain from turning the most commonplace ol
conversation into fun and ridicule.
This is certainly a great failing; but ol
course there is graver aspect under which ii
can be regarded, viz, the love of ill.natured
fun. A laugh raised at the expense of q
well.meaning person is highly injudicious
and in many cases rarely forgotten. The
turning into ridicule of another persons
words and ideas is a most uncharitable and
hurtful habit, which, when long forgotten by
the speaker, rankles in the mind of the vic
tim. There is nothing more disagreeable to
very sensitive nature than the fear of being
made fun of and turned into ridicule, and
the very slightest inclination towards this un-
christian-like habit will cause the victim of it
such pain and shrinking that less sensitive
mind would scarcely deem possible. We
should be especially careful Of these sensitive
ones, especially as one can never tell the
harm careless word leveled in mere jest
IL T. ~,o1,1o, 10 tbo ,,,inI of tho
sitive one, and gives pernicious precedent to
the hearers of it. After all, this is failing
which happily is not general, and brings its
own punishment ; for those few who find real
pleasure in giving pain to others by i'll ma
tured and personal fun are rarely well spok-
en- of, even by those who profess to see no
harm in it. A sarcastic person may have
many admirers, but no real friends, as direct.
ly personal intercourse with them ceases, and
when ones back is turned, then one trembles
for ones own character. But this is spite
full and uncharitable fun, only resorted to by
those who, disgusted with and weary Of the
world, can find consolation in the endeavor to
convert others to their opinion.
:. There is one more abuse of fun which is
ueCeSSdIJ JuoG w IouSh uPouS oho "h'S"'
while the love of pure and holy things exists,
can never become habit mean the dan
ger that one has to guard against of speaking
in fun of sacred and holy things, or in any
way bringing them into ridicuIe. 1t may be
that, to really witty person, the inclination
to this irreverent practice has to be more
carefully guarded against than those whose
sense of wit is less keen. If witty speech
or joke is on our lips which would turn into
the slightest fun or ridicule things only to be
spoken or thought of with reverence, let the
words remain unspoken, let the witty SEN
tence be wasted, rather than be uttered to
fall perhaps on some untutored and wavering
mind, and prove stumbling block in that
mind for years and years after the words
we're uttered and forgotten. So much for the
abuse of this gift. When rightly used it is
an undenisble blessing to those who, with a
constant and ever.ready source of cheerful
ness and fun, can make lighter dali y trials
and difficulties, and even afford to help less
hopeful brother or sister on their earthly
journey.-Harper's Bazar.