An Old, Old Snow Joke

0 Conversations

Winter got to you yet?

Incompetence on the Roof

A snowman wearing a rather fetching hat
"The snow is deep," the Justice said;
"There's mighty mischief overhead."
"High talk, indeed!" his wife exclaimed;
"What, sir! shall Providence be blamed?"
The Justice, laughing, said, "Oh no!
I only meant the loads of snow
Upon the roofs. The barn is weak;
I greatly fear the roof will break.
So hand me up the spade, my dear,
I'll mount the barn, the roof to clear."
"No!" said the wife; "the barn is high,
And if you slip, and fall, and die,
How will my living be secured? –
Stephen, your life is not insured.

From 'The Green Mountain Justice' by Reverend Henry Reeves. Dunno when he wrote this, but it was printed in an anthology about 1890.

So yes, people worried about insurance and roofs back then. And, yes, of course both those people end up on the roof and in snowbanks. You don't think that joke is new, do you?

The Literary Corner Archive

Dmitri Gheorgheni

18.01.16 Front Page

Back Issue Page


Bookmark on your Personal Space


Conversations About This Entry

There are no Conversations for this Entry

Entry

A87865744

Infinite Improbability Drive

Infinite Improbability Drive

Read a random Edited Entry


References

h2g2 Entries

External Links

Not Panicking Ltd is not responsible for the content of external internet sites

Disclaimer

h2g2 is created by h2g2's users, who are members of the public. The views expressed are theirs and unless specifically stated are not those of the Not Panicking Ltd. Unlike Edited Entries, Entries have not been checked by an Editor. If you consider any Entry to be in breach of the site's House Rules, please register a complaint. For any other comments, please visit the Feedback page.

Write an Entry

"The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy is a wholly remarkable book. It has been compiled and recompiled many times and under many different editorships. It contains contributions from countless numbers of travellers and researchers."

Write an entry
Read more