“Well, I’ll be darned,” said the American, “if that isn’t the most ridiculous sign I ever saw.”
“Jove, old man,” replied the Englishman, “that sign is all right, isn’t it? I don’t see anything the matter.”
“You don’t, eh? Well, then, you just sleep over it and see what you think of it in the morning.”
The next morning the Englishman came down beaming.
“I say, old man,” he said, wisely, “that was a funny sign to put up, for don’t you see the blacksmith might not be in after all, you know.”
A Question of Capacity
A gentleman in Ireland having built a large house was at a loss what to do with the rubbish. His steward advised him to have a pit dug large enough to contain it. “And what,” said the gentleman, “shall I do with the earth which is dug out of the pit?” To which the steward replied, “have the pit made large enough to hold all.”
An Unexpected Reception
One Sunday, during Mass in the chapel of the little village of Glengariff, three ladies of the Protestant faith were obliged to take shelter from one of those heavy summer showers which so frequently occur in the south of Ireland. The officiating priest, knowing who they were, and wishing to appear respectful to them, stooped down to his attendant, or clerk, who was on his knees, and whispered to him,—
“Three chairs for the Protestant ladies.”