The Complete Works of Artemus Ward (HTML edition) — John Shaqi
The Complete Works of Artemus Ward (HTML edition)Ward, Artemus
General
The Complete Works of Artemus Ward (HTML edition)
Ward, Artemus
American wit and humor
My naburs is mourn harf crazy on the new-fangled ideas about
Sperrets. Sperretooul Sircles is held nitely & 4 or 5 long hared fellers
has settled here and gone into the Sperret biznis excloosively. A atemt
was made to git Mrs. A. Ward to embark into the Sperret biznis but the
atemt faled. 1 of the long hared fellers told her she was a ethereal
creeter & wood make a sweet mejium, whareupon she attact him with a mop
handle & drove him out of the house. I will hear obsarve that Mrs.
Ward is a invalerble womum--the partner of my goys & the shairer of my
sorrers. In my absunse she watchis my interests & things with a Eagle
Eye & when I return she welcums me in afectionate stile. Trooly it is
with us as it was with Mr. & Mrs. INGOMER in the Play, to whit,--
2 soles with but a single thawt 2 harts which beet as 1.
My naburs injooced me to attend a Sperretooul Sircle at Squire Smith's.
When I arrove I found the east room chock full includin all the old
maids in the villige & the long hared fellers a4sed. When I went in
I was salootid with "hear cums the benited man"-- "hear cums the
hory-heded unbeleever"-- "hear cums the skoffer at trooth, " etsettery,
etsettery.
Sez I, "my frens, it's troo I'm hear, & now bring on your Sperrets."
1 of the long hared fellers riz up and sed he would state a few
remarks. He sed man was a critter of intelleck & was movin on to a
Gole. Sum men had bigger intellecks than other men had and thay wood
git to the Gole the soonerest. Sum men was beests & wood never git into
the Gole at all. He sed the Erth was materiel but man was immaterial,
and hens man was different from the Erth. The Erth, continnered the
speaker, resolves round on its own axeltree onct in 24 hours, but as man
haint gut no axeltree he cant resolve. He sed the ethereal essunce of
the koordinate branchis of super-human natur becum mettymorfussed as
man progrest in harmonial coexistunce & eventooally anty humanized
theirselves & turned into reglar sperretuellers. (This was
versifferusly applauded by the cumpany, and as I make it a pint to get
along as pleasant as possible, I sung out "bully for you, old boy.")
The cumpany then drew round the table and the Sircle kommenst to go it.
Thay axed me if thare was an body in the Sperret land which I wood like
to convarse with. I sed if Bill Tompkins, who was onct my partner in
the show biznis, was sober, I should like to convarse with him a few
periods.
"Is the Sperret of William Tompkins present?" sed 1 of the long hared
chaps, and there was three knox on the table.
Sez I, "William, how goze it, Old Sweetness?"
"Pretty ruff, old hoss," he replide.
That was a pleasant way we had of addressin each other when he was in
the flesh.
"Air you in the show bizniz, William?" sed I.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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