Answering Her According To Her Folly
A LADY having put to Canning the silly question, Why have they made the
spaces in the iron gate at Spring Gardens so narrow? he replied, O,
ma'am, because such very fat people used to go through (a reply
concerning which Tom Moore remarked that the person who does not relish
it can have no perception of real wit).
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An Original Attraction
FOOTE one evening announced, for representation at the Haymarket Theatre, The Fair Penitent, to be performed, for that night only, by a black lady of great accomplishments. ... An Outline
WHEN the Duke de Choiseul, who was a remarkably meagre-looking man, came to London to negotiate a peace, Charles Townshend, being asked whether the French government had sent the preliminaries of a treaty, answered, he did not know, but they had sen... An Ugly Dog
JERROLD had a favorite dog that followed him everywhere. One day in the country, a lady who was passing turned round and said, audibly, What an ugly little brute! whereupon Jerrold, addressing the lady, replied, Oh, madam! I wonder what he thinks ab... An Unanswerable Argument
A WELL-FED rector was advising a poor starving laborer to trust to Providence, and be satisfied with his lot. Ah! replied the needy man, I should be satisfied with his lot if I had it, but I can't get even a little. ... An Unconscious Insult
A FRENCHMAN, who had learned English, wished to lose no opportunity of saying something pretty. One evening he observed to Lady R., whose dress was fawn color, and that of her daughter pink, Milady, your daughter is de pink of beauty.--Ah, monsieur,... An Unconscious Postscript
GEORGE SELWYN once affirmed, in company, that no woman ever wrote a letter without a postscript. My next letter shall refute you! said Lady G----. Selwyn soon after received a letter from her ladyship, where, after her signature, stood: P.S. Who was... An Unequal Arrangement
TWO young Irishmen, wishing to live cheaply, and to divide their expenses, agreed the one to board, and the other to lodge. ... An Unexpected Cannonade
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IT was asked by a scholar why Master Thomas Hawkins did not marry Miss Blagrove; he was answered, He couldn't master her, so he missed her. ... An Unlikely Result
WHEN Sir Thomas More was brought a prisoner to the Tower, the lieutenant, who had formerly received many favors from him, offered him suche poore cheere as he had; to which the ex-chancellor replied, Assure yourself, master lieutenant, I do not misl... An Unre-hearsed Effect
A NOBLE lord, not over courageous, was once so far engaged in an affair of honor, as to be drawn to Hyde Park to fight a duel. But just as he arrived at the Porter's Lodge, an empty hearse came by; on which his lordship's antagonist called out to th... An Untaxed Luxury
A LADY having remarked in company that she thought there should be a tax on the single state; Yes, madam, rejoined an obstinate old bachelor, as on all other luxuries. ... An Upright Man
ERSKINE was once retained for a Mr. Bolt, whose character was impugned by Mr. Mingay, the counsel on the other side. Gentlemen, said Erskine, in reply, the plaintiff's counsel has taken unwarrantable liberties with my client's good name, representin... Answered At Once
A SCOTCH clergyman preaching a drowsy sermon, asked, What is the price of earthly pleasure? The deacon, a fat grocer, woke up hastily from a sound sleep, and cried out, lustily, Seven-and-sixpence a dozen! ... Answering Her According To Her Folly
A LADY having put to Canning the silly question, Why have they made the spaces in the iron gate at Spring Gardens so narrow? he replied, O, ma'am, because such very fat people used to go through (a reply concerning which Tom Moore remarked that the ... Anticipation
LORD AVONDALE, Chief Baron of the Exchequer, was much given to anticipation. A lawyer once observed in his presence, Coming through the market just now I saw a butcher, with his knife, going to kill a calf; at that moment a child ran across him, and... Any Change For The Better
A VERY plain actor being addressed on the stage, My lord, you change countenance; a young fellow in the pit cried, For heaven's sake, let him! ... Any Port In A Storm
A VERY worthy, though not particularly erudite, under-writer at Lloyd's was conversing one day with a friend on the subject of a ship they had mutually insured. His friend observed, Do you know that I suspect our ship is in jeopardy?--Well, I am gla... Arcadia
A FARM was lately advertised in a newspaper, in which all the beauty of the situation, fertility of the soil, and salubrity of the air were detailed in the richest flow of rural description, which was further enhanced with this,--N.B. There is not a... Artificial Heat
THE late Lord Kelly had a very red face. Pray, my lord, said Foote to him, come and look over my garden-wall,--my cucumbers are very backward. ... As Black As He Could Be Painted
A LITTLE boy one day came running home, and said, O father, I've just seen the blackest man that ever was!--How black was he, my son?--O, he was as black as black can be! why, father, charcoal would make a white mark on him! ... As You Like It
AN old sea captain used to say he didn't care how he dressed when abroad, because nobody knew him. And he didn't care how he dressed when at home, because everybody knew him. ... Aspiring Poverty
A ROMAN Catholic prelate requested Pugin, the architect, to furnish designs, etc., for a new church. It was to be very large, very handsome, and very cheap; the parties purposing to erect being very poor; in fact, having only L----.--Say thirty shil... Assurance And Insurance
STERNE, the author of the Sentimental Journey, who had the credit of treating his wife very ill, was one day talking to Garrick in a fine sentimental manner in praise of conjugal love and fidelity: The husband, said he, with amazing assurance, who b... At His Fingers' Ends
I SUPPOSE, said a quack, while feeling the pulse of his patient, that you think me a humbug?--Sir, replied the sick man, I perceive that you can discover a man's thoughts by your touch. ... Attending To A Wish
I WISH you would pay a little attention, sir! exclaimed a stage manager to a careless actor. Well, sir, so I am paying as little as I can! was the calm reply. ... Attired To Tire
SIR JOSEPH JEKYLL wrote the following impromptu, on observing a certain sergeant, well known for his prosiness, bustling into the Court of King's Bench, where he was engaged in a case:-- Behold the sergeant full of fire, Long shall his ... Auricular Confession
A CUNNING juryman addressed the clerk of the court when administering the oath, saying, Speak up; I cannot hear what you say.--Stop; are ...