The subject of this sketch is a resident of New Orleans. His entire
life, almost, has been spent there. His name,--that of Aby,--is an
uncommon one and a short one, and with the short, very short, surname
of Joe prefixed, makes the whole an extraordinary short name. Joe C.
Aby has written much in the way of humor, under the rather curious name
of “Hoffenstein.” The larger portion of his productions have appeared
in the way of sketches, in the columns of that well known Southern
newspaper, the New Orleans Times-Democrat.
Joe C. Aby was born on the 23d day of July, 1858, and is consequently
one of the youngest of our American humorists. According to his own
story, he was in boyhood “a tame sort of individual. I was not vicious,
nor was I given to saying smart things, for the reason that my father,
whose kindly hand is now still in death, had a habit of hovering around
the rear portion of my anatomy with a strap, in order to impress upon
my tender mind the fact that it was not becoming in a small boy to get
‘too big for his old clothes.’ His theory was, that the seat of a boy’s
pants was the proper medium through which to reach the mind, and the
demonstrations of his theory were invariably successful.
“My school life was not at all remarkable, or different from that of
the average urchin. It consisted of thrashings, which I received from
the pedagogue for not knowing my lessons. He was a man who clung to
the motto: ‘Hit for the basement, let the rod fall where it may;’
but even while he was doing so, I felt that there was a destiny that
would model my end, despite his efforts to hammer it out of shape. At
the age of fourteen years I entered a collegiate institute, but at
sixteen, my career there was abruptly terminated by the right boot of
the principal, who foolishly believed that a student deserved immediate
expulsion, who was bold enough to attempt to punch the head of a German
professor. After my hasty exit from college, I migrated to Texas for
the benefit of my health.
“For seven or eight years I lived among the cattle ranches in the
southwestern portion of the Lone Star State. While in Texas I drifted
around promiscuously from one kind of business to another, until a
position was offered me, as a reporter, on the local staff of the
Houston Daily Post--a journalistic venture which has since proved a
success, and is now a leading paper in Texas. I made my appearance
as a journalist with the first issue of the paper. During my sojourn
on the staff of the paper, I dabbled somewhat in humorous writing,
which attracted some attention. Finally, I received an offer from the
New Orleans Times to join its staff of writers. This offer I accepted
at once, and returned to my native city. I remained with the Times
until its consolidation with the New Orleans Democrat was effected,
when I was offered a position on the local staff of the hyphenated
journal--The Times-Democrat. This offer I also accepted, and have since
served that paper.”
Under the _nom de plume_ of “Hoffenstein,” Mr. Aby has written much
that is not only funny, but ridiculously so. His Hoffenstein sketches
in the Times-Democrat have won for him a national reputation, and his
writings are reproduced in papers in various parts of the country. He
is a young man, unmarried, handsome and dignified. A volume of the
Hoffenstein sketches has been issued by a New York publishing house,
and has been flattered by a ready sale.