Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1914-05-15
DON'T EVER listen
TO VULGAR JOKES
Laughing at Risque Stories
Will Lower You In 9th
erS' Estimation.

A SHORT time ago while visiting
= an old friend, grandmother of
20, by the way, her little granddaugh.
ter came into the room, and, as she
was grinning very widely, we i'm
mediately asked her to tell us the
joke.
"oh, It's nothing much, grandma"
she said. II just heard a funnr
starry" and she looked, as thought,
inquiringly at me. So l said, well,
let's hear It'll"
But she hesitated a moment and
fidgeted until her grandmother asked
again to hear the story, and then
Mary begged to be let off, "for don't
think you'd like to hear it." she fin-
lshed.
My DEAR" said her grandmother,
mildly, "lf you could stand 1t 1 think
We can, too" and she made Mary tell
the joke.
Il didn't blame 16yearold Mary
for not wanting to tell her little story,
for it was decidedly vulgar joke
which she told us two of her school
boy friends had told a group of girls
of which she was one.
But the grandmother was wise and
did not scold the girl, for she knew
that Mary had been punished enough
In being forced to tell before me. Her
only advice was, Don't tell vulgar
jokes or laugh when others tell them
and never allow one Of your boy
friends to tell you story that is in
any way Objectionable"
And thought it might not come
amiss to pass her advice On to other
Marys of whom l know there ara
many, not only in school, but in the
business world as well.
There are youths and even older
men, am sorry to say, who seem
to take keen delight in telling a
risque story to girls, simply to see
whether they will fall for it" and
laugh, or take the wiser course and
fail to see the point.
A young girl cannot afford to lose
the respect of the men she knows,
and very sure way to drop consider.
ably in their estimation is to laugh at
these same risque stories.
But perhaps You will raise the OBJ
lection that you know only gentlemen,
and that gentlemen would scorn to
recount a second-rate story. But who
knows what daredevil spirit may
whisper it In the ear Of the perfect
little gentlemen who walks down the
sreet with you to tell you the story
he heard at the theater the other
night and which is perilously near the
danger mark?
And, then, there are the other
young fellows who go to the second
and third class theaters in search of
fun, who think these tales and jokes
some wit, you bet" and who
use them to enliven the conversation
and to show what up-to-date Chap.
pies" they are.
But the right sort Of a girl can
make it understood very easily that
she does not care for this sort of
thing, and instead of being rated as a
prude or prig these young chaps
will respect her all the more.
And it doesn't require such drastic
measures to let the men know that
risque jokes are dlstasteful, for moth
ing takes all the laugh out Of a joke
80 quickly as perfectly calm express
sion on the hearers face.
If the joke teller Is gentlemen,
he will know in a minute if he has
offended you, and If, he is not a gen.
tleman-well, 1t is better that you
make 1t plain to him that he must
either discontinue such stories or that
you do not care to have him to
speak to You at all.