Josh Billings

Josh Billings
Josh Billings was the pen name of 19th-century American humorist Henry Wheeler Shaw. He was a famous humor writer and lecturer in the United States, perhaps second only to Mark Twain, during the latter half of the 19th century...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionNovelist
Date of Birth21 April 1818
CityLanesborough, MA
CountryUnited States of America
bird together bills
And now the lads and lasses, following the example of the birds, bill and coo together.
philosophy men laughing
It strains a man's philosophy the worst kind to laugh when he gets beat.
horse virtue discourse
...But why discourse Upon the Virtues of the Horse? They are too numerous to tell Save when you have a Horse to Sell.
broken secret bills
A secret ceases to be a secret if it is once confided - it is like a dollar bill, once broken, it is never a dollar again.
giving long luck
As long as we are lucky we attribute it to our smartness; our bad luck we give the gods credit for.
laughter hands hair
When you do laugh, open your mouth wide enough for the noise to get out without squealing, throw your head back as though you were going to be shaved, hold on to your false hair with both hands and then laugh till your soul gets thoroughly rested.
pay virtue easier
It is easier to be virtuous than it is to appear so, and it pays better.