A tramp, after a day or two in the hustling, bustling town of Denver, shook the Denver dust from his boots with a snarl.
"They must be durn lazy people in this town. Everywhere you turn they offer you work to do."
An Atlanta man tells of an amusing experience he had in a mountainous region in a southwestern state, where the inhabitants are notoriously shiftless. Arriving at a dilapidated shanty at the noon hour, he inquired as to the prospects for getting dinner.
The head of the family, who had been "resting" on a fallen tree in front of his dwelling, made reply to the effect that he "guessed Ma"d hev suthin" on to the table putty soon."
With this encouragement, the traveler dismounted. To his chagrin, however, he soon discovered that the food set before him was such that he could not possibly "make a meal." He made such excuses as he could for his lack of appet.i.te, and finally bethought himself of a kind of nourishment which he might venture to take, and which was sure to be found in any locality. He asked for some milk.
"Don"t have milk no more," said the head of the place. "The dawg"s dead."
"The dog!" cried the stranger. "What on earth has the dog to do with it?"
"Well," explained the host meditatively, "them cows don"t seem to know "nough to come up and be milked theirselves. The dog, he used to go for "em an" fetch "em up."--_Edwin Tarrisse_.
Some temptations come to the industrious, but all temptations attack the idle.--_Spurgeon_.
LEAP YEAR
A girl looked calmly at a caller one evening and remarked:
"George, as it is leap year--"
The caller turned pale.
"As it is leap year," she continued, "and you"ve been calling regularly now four nights a week for a long, long time, George, I propose--"
"I"m not in a position to marry on my salary Grace" George interrupted hurriedly.
"I know that, George," the girl pursued, "and so, as it is leap year, I thought I"d propose that you lay off and give some of the more eligible fellows a chance."--_L.F. Clarke_.
LEGISLATORS
Thomas B. Reed was one of the Legislative Committee sent to inspect an insane asylum. There was a dance on the night the committee spent in the investigation, and Mr. Reed took for a partner one of the fair unfortunates to whom he was introduced.
"I don"t remember having seen you here before," said she; "how long have you been in the asylum?"
"Oh, I only came down yesterday," said the gentleman, "as one of the Legislative Committee."
"Of course," returned the lady; "how stupid I am! However, I knew you were an inmate or a member of the Legislature the moment I looked at you. But how was I to know? It is so difficult to know which."
LIARS
There are three kinds of liars:
1. The man whom others can"t believe. He is harmless. Let him alone.
2. The man who can"t believe others. He has probably made a careful study of human nature. If you don"t put him in jail, he will find out that you are a hypocrite.
3. The man who can"t believe himself. He is a cautious individual.
Encourage him.
Two Irishmen were working on the roof of a building one day when one made a misstep and fell to the ground. The other leaned over and called:
"Are yez dead or alive, Mike?"
"Oi"m alive," said Mike feebly.
"Sure you"re such a liar Oi don"t know whether to belave yez or not."
"Well, then, Oi must be dead," said Mike, "for yez would never dare to call me a liar if Oi wor aloive."
FATHER (reprovingly)--"Do you know what happens to liars when they die?"
JOHNNY--"Yes, sir; they lie still."
A private, anxious to secure leave of absence, sought his captain with a most convincing tale about a sick wife breaking her heart for his absence. The officer, familiar with the soldier"s ways, replied:
"I am afraid you are not telling the truth. I have just received a letter from your wife urging me not to let you come home because you get drunk, break the furniture, and mistreat her shamefully."
The private saluted and started to leave the room. He paused at the door, asking: "Sor, may I speak to you, not as an officer, but as mon to mon?"
"Yes; what is it?"
"Well, sor, what I"m after sayin" is this," approaching the captain and lowering his voice. "You and I are two of the most iligant liars the Lord ever made. I"m not married at all."
A conductor and a brakeman on a Montana railroad differ as to the proper p.r.o.nunciation of the name Eurelia. Pa.s.sengers are often startled upon arrival at his station to hear the conductor yell:
"You"re a liar! You"re a liar!"