Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1886-03-11
NO Fun IN BAD sPELLING.

uot nuiuDE0us - uot mduc tnbtc WHY
or more humorous by bad spelling. IL
n phrase possesses either wit or hu-
NOR its wit or humOr is more obvious.
its wit possesses n finer point and
more agreeable relish. its humor IS more
captivating il is choiceiy express
ed. II its syntax and ortho .raphy are
correct. II erratic departures from
accepted photographic standards con-
stiluted humor, the Chicago TrtbaRe
would be tn. funniest newspaper in the
country. A sort OF puzzle or conun-
drum possessing some interest may be
framed by the studied or ignorant mis-
placement of letters in written or
printed expression. But the studied or
illiterate errors in spelling do not i'm
prove-they rather impair-the point
and sense of an aphorism, jest or a
sarcasm.
A number of American humorists
have been distinguished by their abort
i've efforts to improve The quality Of the
fun which they produce'i by misspeil-
ing the words in which it was clothed.
Every such effort Of humorist, real
or spurious, is 4 mistake. r ,al humor
does not need to nc clothed in bad or
biography to give il the character Of
humor. Erroneous orihography will
not transmute spurious humor into
genuine humor.
Among the early alleged American
hulnorists were S ba Smith who wrote
political satires in Jackson's time in
the form oil letters purporting to eman-
ate from one M jor jack Downing" !"
and Judge Thomas q. Halliburton. OF
Nova Scotia, the author Of the ''Sam
Sick" letters, which were satires on
the social and popular manners of the
times. These Two writers adopted an
artificial and extravagant Yankee ver-
nacuiar phopetlca!ly spelled as the
garo in which their jests and sar-
casns were clothed. They came,
however, rather il the class of dialect
writers. like ID. Il. Locke ("Petroleum
V. Nasty }. than in the class OF funny
writers who feign illiteracy. The late
Charles +. Brown (.'Artemas Ward }
and Henry w. Shaw (''Josh Billings },
whose sudden death in California was
announced few days ago, have been
the recent most conspicuous masters
of hunior, winch they sought to render
more attractive by deliberate and afro
cious violations OF the pain laws OF
orthograpny. Shakespeare informs US
that,
To lid refined god. to paint the lily,
10 t, r ~ n p tri ume On the violet,
10 sm otu LIe &C /, to adj ano, her hue
Unto the rainbow, or with taper nght
ltaaI tnr
nish,
|, Is wasteful and ridiculous excess.
Tuese humorists reversed this pro-
cess OF attempting to make their pro-
ducti0ns more attractive. They dress
ed their wit in clownish and awkward
expression, they throw over it the cloak
OF ignorance and folly, in order to in
crease its zest and to make il more et-
fectlve. This was an error in taste
and Judgment OF prodigous magnitude.
George ii. Derby c'John Pheqix'). J.
spelled his words correctly and wrote
in Il style Of scholastic elegance. He
is among the first humorists in Ameri-
can literature. Mortimer H. Thomp-
son (..Doesticks' whose first humor.
Gus productions were OF meteoric bril-.
liancy, WAS correct in his photography
and syntax. the newspaper para.
graphic wits of the present day spell
well and study the utmost breyity and
sharpness OF style.
Inere is no real wit in "Artemas
Ward" or Josh Billings" which
would not be better if the words in
whicn it is phrased were correctly
spelled. Writing SO much rs task WORK,
these authors produced vast quantities
OF false wit. Disguised in taise spell
ing, spurious wit may not De distin-
gulshed by hurried readers from genu.
inc wit. But genuine wit does not need
to be clothed in wretciled orthography
to recommend it, as good wine needs
no bush. "
Isaac Barrow. one of the first of En-
| glish scholars and critics, has left us o
| description OF wit. Ii is in the quain,
style Of 200 years ago, but its quaint
ness is not an additional charm. In
| telling what wit is, he saws:
Sometimes IL lieth in pat 'allusion
to known story, or in seasonable ap
plication of trivial saving or in forg.
ing an opposite tale; sometimes il
playcth in words and phrases, taking
advantage from the ambiguity OF their
sense, or the affinity of their sound.
Sometimes it is wrapped in u dress o
4 humorous expression; sometimes i
lurketh under an odd similitlrle; some
times it is lodged in II sly question, ir
smart answer. in Il quIrkish reason
in IL shrewd intimation. in cunningll
divertIng or cleverly r,.toriing an OBJ
lection; sometimes it is couched in 1
bold scheme OF speech, in a tart irony
! in a usty hyperbole. in a stnr'lln!
metaphor. in u plausible reconciling o
contradictions, or in acute nonsense
sometimes cynical representation o
persons or things, II counterfeit sperch
a mimical look or gesture passeth To-
it; sometimes an affected simplicity
sometimes y presumptuous bluntnes
giyeth it being; sometimes it ariset
only from u lucky hitting upon what
strange; sometimes from craft.
wrest Of obvious matter to the pur
pose; often it consists in one know
not what and springeth up one Gil
hardly know how"
This is an itemized description c
wit. 1t is the most complete defini
ton of wit that was ever constructed
| 1t is rs full in detail as bill of sal,
for property. Nothing, perhaps, coul