So the Statesman resolved that he too would be honest, and the result was
that he died of want.
The Wolf and the Lion
An Indian who had been driven out of a fertile valley by a White Settler,
said:
"Now that you have robbed me of my land, there is nothing for me to do
but issue invitations to a war-dance."
"I don't so much mind your dancing," said the White Settler, putting a
fresh cartridge into his rifle, "but if you attempt to make me dance you
will become a good Indian lamented by all who didn't know you. How did
_you_ get this land, anyhow?"
The Indian's claim was compromised for a plug hat and a tin horn.
The Hare and the Tortoise
Of two Writers one was brilliant but indolent; the other though dull,
industrious. They set out for the goal of fame with equal opportunities.
Before they died the brilliant one was detected in seventy languages as
the author of but two or three books of fiction and poetry, while the
other was honoured in the Bureau of Statistics of his native land as the
compiler of sixteen volumes of tabulated information relating to the
domestic hog.
The Milkmaid and Her Bucket
A Senator fell to musing as follows: "With the money which I shall get
for my vote in favour of the bill to subsidise cat-ranches, I can buy a
kit of burglar's tools and open a bank. The profit of that enterprise
will enable me to obtain a long, low, black schooner, raise a death's-
head flag and engage in commerce on the high seas. From my gains in that
business I can pay for the Presidency, which at $50,000 a year will give
me in four years--" but it took him so long to make the calculation that
the bill to subsidise cat-ranches passed without his vote, and he was
compelled to return to his constituents an honest man, tormented with a
clean conscience.
King Log and King Stork
The People being dissatisfied with a Democratic Legislature, which stole
no more than they had, elected a Republican one, which not only stole all
they had but exacted a promissory note for the balance due, secured by a
mortgage upon their hope of death.
The Wolf Who Would Be a Lion
A Foolish Fellow who had been told that he was a great man believed it,
and got himself appointed a Commissioner to the Interasylum Exposition of
Preserved Idiots. At the first meeting of the Board he was mistaken for
one of the exhibits, and the janitor was ordered to remove him to his
appropriate glass case.
"Alas!" he exclaimed as he was carried out, "why was I not content to
remain where the cut of my forehead is so common as to be known as the
Pacific Slope?"
The Monkey and the Nuts
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account