an unrecorded meaning of the word "pun" -- 1811

[Wilson Gray]

On Jul 5, 2005, at 1:34 PM, Jonathan Lighter wrote:

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> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at YAHOO.COM>
> Subject:      Re: an unrecorded meaning of the word "pun" -- 1811
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> He was a Card, all right.
>
> No punn intended.
>
> JL
>
> George Thompson <george.thompson at NYU.EDU> wrote:
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> Sender: American Dialect Society
> Poster: George Thompson
> Subject: an unrecorded meaning of the word "pun" -- 1811
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>
> The passage below is from an 1811 newspaper; it's long, but in addition
> to its philological interest it is a reasonably entertaining glimpse of
> life in NYC in the good old days.
>
> The word "pun" is used to mean "joke" in the most general sense, or
> perhaps "prank". It appears in this sense both in the newspaper's
> story of the incident and also in the official police report that the
> paper prints. The word in the sense of a play upon words was more or
> less new in 1811, and likely to have been quite new in America. The
> police magitrate may have used it under a misunderstanding, and have
> been followed by the newspaper's editor. But in its part of the story
> the paper doesn't use any of the usual tricks that show that it is
> using a new word -- putting it in italics or within "", for instance --
> which would be an indication that the word or the sense was unfamiliar
> the editor and that he had picked it up from the magistrate's report.
>
> A serious pun. -- Since Thursday evening last, the citizens
> residing in the neighbourhood of Chapel and Anthony streets, have been
> much alarmed by a very large assemblage of people before the door of
> the house No. 142 Chapel-street, brought together from the
> circumstances which are detailed in the following hand-bill. The
> occupants of the house refusing to open the doors, the suspicions of
> the people increased, and such was their anxiety to ascertain the truth
> of the story, that we are informed numbers entered the yard with spades
> and shovels, and completely revolutionized the earth

"... completely revolutionized the earth ,,,"

Dug up the whole yard?

-Wilson Gray

> in order to find
> the murdered man, but to no effect. The Police, finding that the mob
> increased, and fearful that some mischievous consequences might ensue,
> determined upon a search, and last evening the doors were opened and
> the windows of the house illuminated. -- During the search, the mob,
> which by this time amounted to not less than two thousand persons,
> waiting with anxious expectation to hear the result, were in the course
> of an hour gratified with the report. Garrit Gilbert, Esq. one of the
> Police Justices, appeared on the stoop, and calling the attention of
> the citizens, stated, that after a thorough search from the cellar
> kitchen to the garret, in which every hole and avenue had been closely
> inspected, declared that no suspicious circumstances appeared; and in a
> neat and judicious harangue, exhorted the citizens to retire to their
> homes, which was pretty generally complied with; and the street in a
> short time resumed a quiet appearance.
> It is to be hoped from the serious consequences which had like
> to have followed this pun, that our modern quizzers, who appear to be
> so fond lately of playing tricks upon the community, will learn a
> lesson that will prove to their future advantage; for had not the
> proper authority taken this pun in hand as soon as they did, the lives
> and property of our citizens might have suffered serious consequences.
>
> NOTICE.
> A Rumor having gone abroad that a murder had been committed at
> No. 142 Chapel-street, on account of a coffin having been left there,
> which has caused a collection of people;
> For the satisfaction of the Citizens it is hereby declared that
> the circumstances have been investigated, and tat the following is the
> result, viz.
> A man by the name of HENRY CARD, applys (sic) to a Cabinet-
> Maker in Banker -street, to have a Coffin made for his wife to be
> buried in, and directed it to be sent to the corner of Anthony and
> Chapel-streets: the carriers of the Coffin took it to the place
> according to directions, but not finding any person here dead, and not
> wishing to carry it about the street, begged the favour of Katy Butler,
> who lives at No. 142 Chapel-street, to put it in her yard, until they
> could find how it was intended for.
> Some jealousy arising from the circumstance of the Coffin
> being covered up, which was done on account of the rain, it was
> surmised that some person had been Murderer there, which caused an
> investigation of the circumstance. The whole is now admitted by CARD,
> to be a PUNN of his own contrivance for the sake of some SPORT, and he
> is now a prisoner in the Debtors Goal for the price of the Coffin. The
> citizens are therefore requested peaceably to retire, and thereby
> prevent much trouble and anxiety to the inhabitants in the
> neighbourhood.
> By order of J. DE LA MONTAGNIE, One of the Police Magistrates.
> New-York Evening Post, August 9, 1811, p. 2, col. 4
>
> GAT
>
> George A. Thompson
> Author of A Documentary History of "The African Theatre", Northwestern
> Univ. Pr., 1998, but nothing much lately.
>
>
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