The Wit and Humor of America, Volume II. (of X.)
The Wit and Humor of America, Volume II. (of X.)
A sprawling treasury of American humor from an era when wit was both weapon and grace. This second volume gathers jokes, sketches, essays, poems, and fables from writers tackling everything from high-society pretension to the absurdities of everyday life. The satire here still has teeth: George William Curtis skewers social climbers in 'Best Society,' while other contributors mine laughter from politics, love, money, and the eternal gap between what we say and what we mean. The humor runs the gamut from refined wordplay to broad farce, reflecting a nation that could laugh at its own eccentricities even as it raced into modernity. These are voices from Gilded Age parlors and frontier saloons, preserved like butterflies under glass. For readers who love early American literature, comic writing, or simply want to hear what made Americans chuckle a century ago, this collection offers a window into a world that believed laughter was civilized virtue.
Editions
X-Ray
“THE TWO NEW HOUSES BY CAROLYN WELLS Once on a Time, there were Two Men, each of whom decided to build for himself a Fine, New House. One Man, being of an Arrogant and Conceited Nature, took counsel of Nobody, but declared that he would build his House to suit himself. "For," said he, "since it is My House and I am to Live in It, why should I ask the Advice of my Neighbors as to its Construction?" While the House was Building, the Neighbors came often and Looked at it, and went away, Whispering and Wagging their Heads in Derision. But the Man paid no Heed, and continued to build his House as he Would. The Result was that, when completed, his House was lacking in Symmetry and Utility, and in a Hundred ways it was Unsatisfactory, and for each Defect there was a Neighbor who said, "Had you asked Me, I would have Warned you against that Error." The Other Man, who was of a Humble and Docile Mind, went to Each of his Neighbors in Turn, and asked Advice about the Building of his House. His Friends willingly and at Great Length gave him the Benefit of their Experiences and Opinions, and the Grateful Man undertook to Follow Out all their Directions. The Result was that his House, when finished, was a Hodge-Podge of Varying Styles and Contradictory Effects, and Exceedingly Uncomfortable and Inconvenient to Live In. MORALS:””
— Unknown
