SOURCE: "Women Among Humorists," in The New York Times Book Review, January 20, 1900, p. 40.

In the following excerpt, the anonymous writer offers an account of a conversation at a literary gathering where one male guest argued that women may be "bright conversationalists" or have "sporadic flashes of fun" but lack a genuine sense of humor.

At a recent gathering of what Mark Twain would call "literary persons," of both sexes, one of the men present made the sweeping assertion that most, if not all, women were entirely devoid of a sense of humor.

"I consider that an unjust assertion," remarked a well-known woman writer who was present. "I am sure that I enjoy a good joke as well as my husband or any other man."

"That may be true enough" said the man who had just spoken, "but you do not make jokes in your conversation, or write them...