Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1893-02-28
ANTIQUITY or JEsTs.



rhe Philosophy Of tho immortsIity Or
Jokes in This Mundsas world.
We often hear joke or jest referred to
e. veritabie Joe Miller,v as though
that well known writer Of facetfous re-
marks and bad puns were the source and
fountain head OF current wit and bumor.
Inc truth Is that Joe Miller, who was
veritablc parsonage, was used even in his
own day merely as sort OF supposititious
authority, nearly all the bad Jokes Of his
Time being credited to him. and later gen
erations having reached the conclusion
that he shone by original instead of by re-
fiected light.
But whether we choose to credit one the
DRY Or the other, to make Joe Miller a man
Of wit or a mere blockhead. il is true that
most Of the merry jests found In his book.
a. well as those credited to him by com
mon consent, are centuries older than his
.ime' and the peculiar thing abottt many
OF them is that they are common to every
known language Of the world. The only
thlngs that can compare with them In an
tiquity and universally are proverbs
which possess such strong family like
ness That they can be followed back for
ages, the same in substance, though differ
|
Inc truth Is that there is nothing newer
under the sun In the way Of jokes and puns
and jests than in anything else. The acct.
dental resemhlances OF the sound az words
having totally different meanings: the in
congruity Of ideas suddenly suggested; the
righteousness OF certain situations. incl
oents, IDEAS, actions and appearances--all
must have been the same or practicable the
hn 49, L..
70 those OF the most recent, the only linn
ftation being that Of a circumscribed 70
cabulary.
AT any rate. as far back as we can trace
the stream of literature, we find along its
shores fragments and scraps of humorous
and witty sayings, many Of which are in
current use today, and probably will con-
tinue to be as long as the human family
shall retain the sense of humor. 1t is well
known to classical scholars that some Of
the accepted bits Of jest and humor OF
the Nineteenth century are literal transla-
tions from the Greek comic dramatist,
Aristophanes, and that the Latin comic
poets are responsible for many of the jokes
which we retail today with as much zest
as though fresh from the makers hands.
No doubt II We had record Of the spoken
language of the primitive man, whoever
he may have been, we should find the
same things that have become familiar to
us in the known literature OF the world.
Jokes take on the character OF the peo-
pie among whom they become domesti-
Gated, becoming coarse or refined, as the
temperament of those who employ them de-
cides Scandinavian humor, for example.
has much of the spirit of the. Vikings,
much of the swing and crash Of the ham
mer of Thor. while the jests of Italy and
France are as keen and pointed as the
stiletto of the one or the rapier OF the other.
Some millionaire who is ambitious to
benefit his fellow men should offer large
reward for the invention of new lot Of
jests, the only condition being that they
should be equal in quality to the time
honored ones which have amused the world
so long. Perhaps the quest might be in
vain, like the search for the philosophers
stone, but the experiment would be at least
worth trying. San Francisco Chronicle