The Choice Humorous Works, Ludicrous Adventures, Bons Mots, Puns, and Hoaxes of Theodore HookHook, Theodore Edward
General
The Choice Humorous Works, Ludicrous Adventures, Bons Mots, Puns, and Hoaxes of Theodore Hook
Hook, Theodore Edward
English wit and humor
When the evening papers arrive, pounce upon three; keep one in your
hand reading, another under your arm, ready to relieve that; and sit
down upon a third. By this means you possess yourself of the opinions
of all parties, without being influenced by any one.
If you wish to dine early and cheap, order some cold meat just before
three o'clock--it will then be charged as luncheon; bread, pickles,
&c., gratis. Drink table-beer, because, as the Scotch gentleman said
of something very different, "It is vary pleasant, and costs nothing."
If you dine on the joint, get it first, and cut all the best parts
off, and help yourself to twice as much as you want, for fear you
should never see it again.
If you are inclined to read the newspaper when you have finished
your meat, make use of the cheese as a reading-desk; it is very
convenient, and, moreover, makes the paper smell of the cheese, and
the cheese taste of the paper.
If you come in, and see a man whom you know dining quietly by
himself, or two men dining sociably together, draw your chair to
their table and volunteer to join them. This they cannot well refuse,
although they may wish you at Old Scratch. Then call for the bill
of fare and order your dinner, which, as the others had half done
before your arrival, will not be served till they have quite finished
theirs. This will enable them to enjoy the gratification of seeing
you proceed through the whole of your meal, from soup to cheese
inclusive, while they are eating their fruit and sipping their wine.
If you drink tea, call for a "cup" of tea; when the waiter has
brought it, abuse him for its being too strong, and desire him to
fetch an empty cup and a small jug of boiling water; then divide the
tea into the two cups and fill up both with the water. By this method
you get two cups of tea for the price of one. N.B.--The milk and
sugar not charged for.
If you are a literary man, always write your books at the club--pen,
ink, and paper, gratis; a circumstance which of itself is likely to
make your productions profitable.
When there is a ballot, blackball everybody you do not happen to
know. If a candidate is not one of your own personal acquaintance, he
cannot be fit to come there.
If you are interested about a friend, post yourself directly in front
of his balloting box, and pester everybody, whether you know them or
not, to give him a vote; this, if pertinaciously adhered to, will
invariably settle his fate, one way or the other.
Always walk about the coffee-room with your hat on, to show your
own independence, and your respect for the numerous noblemen and
gentlemen who are sitting at dinner without theirs.
When you are alone in any of the rooms where writing materials are
deposited, help yourself to covers, note-paper, sealing-wax, and
black-lead pencils at discretion; they are as much yours as any other
member's, and as you contribute to pay for them, what difference can
it make whether you use them at the club or at home?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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