It may be hard to believe but church folk in the 1800s and early 1900s actually had a sense of humor. Granted, they didn’t smile in photographs and they wore a lot of black but that doesn’t mean they didn’t like their jokes. The Presbyterian Witness, a newspaper published in the Maritimes pre-1925, is filled with lots of jokes. So here’s a taste of what was considered funny by the Presbyterians in 1910:
And here’s another one:
All we’re missing is the drumroll and the laugh track! Or perhaps the crickets.
If those two jokes didn’t quite convince you just how much those Presbyterians liked to laugh, here’s a poem about laughter found in The Presbyterian Witness on May 28, 1910:
A Laugh
A laugh is just like music
It freshens all the day.
It tips the peaks of life with light,
And drives the clouds away;
The soil grows glad that hears it,
And feels its courage strong
A laugh is just like sunshine
for cheering folks along.
A laugh is just like music,
It lingers in the air,
And where its melody is heard
The ills of life depart,
And happy thoughts come crowding
It’s joyful notes to greet-
A laugh is just like music
For making the life sweet
By “The Friend” (and yes, this was the name provided)
