Halifax Local Opinion. — 1892-11-29 (Halifax, West Yorkshire, England)

TRUE HUMOUR.  RIGINAL wit—that is, wit that is absolutely original— is scarce. The same thing may be said of original plays. In the language of an unknown poet:— "There is no witty man with name exalted But has his joke threadbare; There is no funny column, 'fresh' or 'salted,' But has some chestnut there," There is, however, an impromptu sort of repartee that comes natural and sudden, like powder out of a gun, which is the most irresistible of all forms of wit. There is a vast difference between wit and satire. The latter is the inferior article. In some persons satire passes for wit. The biting sarcasm, the keen gibe with the point dipped in burning gall, and the bitter retort are the coin they endeavour to circulate for the genuine metal. In others waggery is recognised as wit. The comical saying, the queer grimace, the dangerous art of mimicry—these are the admi,ration of a certain class who cannot appreciate anything better, and who cannot distinguish between buffoonery and real humour. Douglas Jerrold said, "Wit I have beard called a merchant prince, trading with the world, while waggery is a greengrocer making up small pennyworths for the local vulgar.' There are some people who maintain that punning is the lowest form of wit. This may be true of poor puns, but a really good pun is very attractive. Pans may be divided into two classes; they may be made in different ways, introduced by passing circumstances; or by references to bygone events; they may be thrown in anecdotically or contuadrumwise. It is to be observed that feeling, or pity, or commiseration, or grief should always stand in the way of a pun —that personal defects are not to be made available.  If a man is pathetically describing the funeral of his mother or sister or wife, it is not allowable to call it a " blackbarying party,' or to talk of a fit of " coffin ; nor must a weeping relative struggling to conceal his grief be likened to a coranatsnder of "private tears." _ __  Personal deformities or constitutional calamities are not always to be laid hold of. If anybody tells you that a dear friend has lost his sight, do not observe that it will make him more hospitable than ever, since now he would be glad to see any one. If a clergyman breaks his leg, do not remark that he is no longer a clergyman, but a lame man. Puns interrogatory are at times serviceable. You meet a man carrying a hare; ask him if it is his own hare or a wig. There you stump him. Why is a man murdering his mother in a garret a worthy person? Because he is above corna,itting a crime. Instances of this kind are ilinnmerable, and if you want to render your question particularly pointed, you are, after asking it once or  twice, to say, " D'ye give it up "—then favour your friends with a solution. Where there are three or four geologists of the party, if they talk of their scientific tours made to collect specimens, call the young ones "chips of the old block" ; and then inform them that claret is the best specimen of quartz in the world. If you fall in with a botanist who is holding forth, talk of the quarrels of flowers as a sequel to the loves of the plants, and say they decide their differences with pistils. But do not sacrifice everything to the pursuit of punning, or in the course of time you will acquire such a reputation for waggery that the whole company will burst into an immoderate fit of laughter if you only ask the servant for bread, or say "no " to the offer of a cutlet.  '