Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 127, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 May 1910 — JOKE AS PERSIA SEES IT. [ARTICLE]

JOKE AS PERSIA SEES IT.

Qnalnt Stories from the East Both Interesting: and Witty. An exceedingly ugly man, says Jami, was once in the mosque, asking pardon of Allah for his sins, and praying to be delivered from the fires of hell. One who overheard his prayer said to him, writes Charles Johnston in Harper’s Weekly. “Wherefore, O friend, wouldbt thou cheat hell of such a countenance? Art thou reluctant to burn up a face like that?” Once again, the story writer tells us that a certain person with a hideous nose was once on a time wooing a woman. Describing himself to her, and trying to make an attractive picture, he said, “I am a man devofld of lightness and frivolity, and I am patient in bearing afflictions!” “Aye!” said the woman, “wert thou not patient in bearing of afflictions, thou hadst rwver endured thy nose these forty years!” All of which is more witty than kind. Hardly less sharp is this next

tale: Bahlul, we are told, once came into the presence of the famed Caliph of Bagdad, the good Haroun-al-Ra-schld. One of the viziers accosted him, saying. “Rejoice, O Bahlul, at these good things! The prince of the faithful has made thee ruler over apes and swine! ” . “Take my orders, then,” quickly retorted Bahlul, “for surely thou art ol my subjects! ” Again there is a spice of national hatred in such a tale as this: A Turk, says Jami, being asked which he would prefer, plunder in this world, or paradise hereafter, made answer this: “Let me to-day engage in pillage and carry off all that I can find; to-morrow I shall be willing to enter hell fire with Pharaoh the persecutor!” For some reason or other the Man of Jam seems to have a deep detestation of school teachers, if one may judge from the many sharp Jests he directs against them. For example, this: A teacher, he says, whose son had fallen ill and was at the point of death, bade them Bend for the washer of corpses to wash his son. “But,” they objected, “he is not dead yet!” “Never mind,” said the teacher; “he will be dead by the time they have finished washing him!” Again, they said to the son of another teacher. “What a pity thou art such a fool!” “Else were I no true son of my father!” he replied.