A Green Old Age

1895

"A green old age" is a phrase often grossly abused. It is a literal translation of Virgil's description of Charon, the ferryman of the nether regions. The poet speaks of him as "Jam senior, sed cruda deo viridisque senectus" (somewhat aged, but his godship's old age was still fresh and green). This we might say of a hale sexagenarian, but to talk, as we do, of the green old age of a nonagenarian, however hale, is sheer nonsense. — Macmillan's Magazine.


He Struck the Right Chord

"No, I can never marry you. I do not love you, nor do I like your habits."
"Well — er — why not marry me and reform me afterward?"
Cards have been issued. — New York Recorder.