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The Pudding is in the Telling

Jack invited Juan to a jester club of which the former is a member.

After dinner, a voice echoed on the hall, “Number 23!” and there followed a raucous laughter.  Another voice barked “3!” and a louder round of laughter followed. This went on with other numbers and louder responses.

“What was that?” Juan asked. The strange proceedings confounded him.

“Oh, that’s simple. We all know each other’s repertoire of jokes, so we stop saying the actual joke and instead assign each with a number.  If we fancy a certain joke we simply say the number.”

“Oh, a brilliant idea.  Thanks Jack. I’ll give it a try.”  And before Jack can say another word, Juan shouted,  “Number 14!”

This time the dining hall fell into a deafening silence.

“What happened?” Juan asked greatly alarmed. “ Am I not allowed to tell a joke?”

“ Certainly, guests are allowed to tell a joke, Juan.”

“Is it a bad joke, then?”

“No. In fact it’s one of the best.”

“ Then, what’s the problem?

“Juan, it’s how you tell the joke.”

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