The Bon Homme County independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1904-1913, 1909-09-30

WHFH WITIAf WFTT.T
Are UsnaIly Qufck Witted.
The cleric will at all times be found
d good raconteur and quick to crack a
Joke, with It's sharp sting. too, IL nee
essary. Or course, when the jester is
a ruler, one must be satisfied with his
humor at all hazards, as was the au-
dience OF the faithful whom a Moslem
ruler spoke to one Friday from the
pulpit In the market place.
People, what shall l. preach to you
about to-dayT" I'VE do not know"
they replied. well, II you don't know
shall not tell you,'' and down he came
from the pulpit. There was no sermon
that Sabbath.
The next week the old inquiry was
made and the pc 4ple rejoined, 1--WE
know" when the royal preacher said,
"If you know, you do not need me to
tell you" And again an abrupt close
to the services.
The third week the people were more
wary, and replied, "Some OF us know
and some OF us do not know" And
now they expected to trap the man but
he was wiser than they thought. LET
those who know tell those who do not
know" came his u~tterance, and the
people were trapped instead.
1t must have been an Arab cleric
or a holy man who, passing a mosque,
heard an unpleasant voice reciting the
Koran. How much Is thy monthly al
lowanceT the sage inquired. ALLOW
ance!" replied the reader. why, /
get nothing" why, then" the sage
asked, 'dost thou take I'll this labor
on thyselfT II read" came the re-
joinder, for the sake Of God" "7ell,"
the sage answered, "for Gods sake
don't read any more!"
In the "Gulistan" are other illustra-
lions OF clerical wit; but what could
be more suggestive than the ~followtngf
A reader in a mosqle had so bad an
accent that his master, the chief sage,
said, "My good young man, we have
several old men who receive i've dinars
monthly for their services. l will give
thee ten dinars to go elsewhere" He
went away, but soon returned. why
didst thou send me awayT he said to
the sage. "In the place to which I
went they now desire that / shall take
twenty dinars and go away but l have
not consented" Don't accept" the
sage rejoined; "for after a while they
may offer thee fifty"
II ~ ID a hhln4nal x-fk a. n -lAoI olnVonvak ~
the Talmud and n .drash, entering In
to the discussions of the sages and APP
pealing to the people with magic pow
er, when dry disquisitions and homi-
lies without such spice would have
driven the people away.
A preacher in those olden days no
ticed that his audience seemed to be
asleep despite his e~loQuence. "Once,"
he cried, "there was a Jewess who had
100000 children" The people were all
wide awake now, and demanded to
know the woman's name. "Joehabed,"
was the response. WAS not her son
Moses equal to 100000 who came from
EgyptT' There was no lack OF atten-
tion for the rest Of the sermon
An English rabbi was asked by his
congregation IL there was any weighty
reason against having a clock In the
synagogue. "By no means" was the
reply. "Have your clock; but put it
outside the building, and then you car
tell how late you come to the service"
Two rabbis were passing the beauti-
full synagogue In which n Of them Of
fciated. "How i envy your said the
first. you must be In a paradise"
"IIold, friend" the second exclaimed.
I'm the original paradise there was
only one serpent; but In this congrega-
ton are many of them" 81