Milford chronicle., 1907-02-01
FAMOUS PUNsTERs.
Good Things Said by Canon Anger
and Archbishop Burney.

and Archbishop Burney.
The late Canon Anger whether vol
consider him as a biographer, a preach
er or man, was rather charming
than commanding personality, while
his life was as uneventful as that OF
any country clergyman. The canon's
friends, no dOubt-and he had a per.
feet genius for friendship-will enjoy
his recently published letters. Even
the puns in the letters need. you feel.
for their apt and adequate setting the
manner, voice and action of the canon.
Here are two or three excellent speci-
mems of this sort of wit, to which the
canon was as much addicted as Lamb
himself:
"Aingers made a canon" so it's said,
/ Because so very well he read.
All then" said Smith. demurely wink
Hes cannoned of the read. I'm think
ing"
! The chancellor had been less blamed
If some great preacher he had named.
'Ah, then" said Smith, not even blushin',
lie d then have cannoned off the cush-
ton."
Apropos of punning, Anger, in spite
Of being himself so inveterate a pun
ster, has said in a letter where he JUS
titles sallies of this sort in Hood all
that can be said against the habit:
TO hear of any ordinary man that
he makes puns is properly a warning
to avoid his society, for with the funny
man the verbal coincidence is every
thing. There is nothing underlying it
or beyond it. The ordinary pun is for
the most part profoundly depressing,
being generally an impertinence, but in
the hands Of Hood the pun becomes an
element in his fancy, his humor, his
ethical teaching, even his pathos. As
ordinarily experienced, the pun is the /
trreconcilable enemy of these things.
1t could not dwell with them in one !
house, Hood saw and was the first to
show that the pun might become even
their handmade"
The best pun in the volume, and, in
deed, the best pun have ever heard of
its kind, is not Hoods or Lambs or
Ainger's, but one of ArchdeacOn Bur-
ney's:
THE neatest thing 1 ever heard was
said by Archdeacon Burney the other
day at a meeting at Rochester, where a
list of subscriptions was being read
off: Mr.. -, $50 That's pretty good (
whispered Burney to his neighbor.
Cheetham, who, knowing
hat the giver was exceedingly rich,
1t ought to have been {
,50O sAb rofoino,l Tl,,-r, ~ ;,,.+,..4t--
he forgot the Oughtr"
wonder, by the way, if Archdeacon f
3urney had had in his mind a similar t
'un of Douglas Jerrold's. When the
riend of Micawber who was always t
eing helped out of pecuniary difficult il
les called for the third time on Doug t
IS JerrOld to ask for another subscrip-
ion, the wit inquired: p
well, how much does - want this I
meY G
Il think four and two naughts will t,
bout put him straight" I
''YOu. may put me down for one Of d
le naughts" Y
Here is a specimen of Ainger's i'm er
romptu epigrams, one on a child be- is
g born to his friend Haweis stimuli W
neously with the publication of his
Music and Morals" h,
Little baby Haweis, fl,
Playing with your corals, 70
Pa will mind your music
Who will mind your morals? sc
Anger, who was guest at the mar
age of Hawies to Miss Joy, bride. as Vi
minutive as her bridegroom, said u
he evidently didn't wish to be "a Joy pr
rever' and described their union as
fOrtuitous concurrence of atoms" III
find that the we'll known nonsense IT.
rse on Crockett's "Oleg Kelly" was gr
imprOmptu of the canon's: III
There was an old person of Delhi W
Who couldn't read Crockett's "Cleg ma
Kelly" col
When they said. ITS the fashion," an
He replied, in a passion, ~,
what then? So is Marie CorellIw AO'
fingers best known bon mot is prob ~
y that on the style prescribed to the WI
ltributors to the Dictionary Of Ma an an
nal Biography" His suggestion 81
S mo flowers, by request" Alto
her his biography leaves on you the
preston of a gentle soul who was d
absolutely ideal friend - London ceL