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Show Historic HistOl1tic HistoricHoaxes HistOl1ticHoaxes Hoaxesffi Hoaxes HoaxesBy ffi By ELMO SCOTT WATSON j WATSONj @ . , Wester Western " , Newspaper Newspapr ( ! UnionThe Union UnionThe The White ElephantTHE ElephantHE Elephant THE , " 'HE HE ' HE year 1884 is known in circusland circus- circus circusland - . land as the "white white " elephantS elephantear elephant } ear " P . T . Barnum had secured securedfrom securedfrom securedfrom from Slam a genuine sacred white whiteelephant whiteelephant whiteelephant elephant and it drew such crowds crowdsthat crowdsthat crowdsthat that one ot of his rivals decided he hemust hemust hemust must have a white elephant too . pachyderms He whitewashed one of his pachy . derms derm Berms < ; and renamed it the "Light Light " of ofA ofAiia ofAna A Aiia ua " The Tbe dazzling dazzlmg whiteness of ofthIs ofthis othis ( thIs beast , , set oft ocr off by its black velvet velvettrappmgs velvettrappings velvettrappings trappmgs trappings tar far outshone the rather ratherdmgy ratherdingy ratherdingy dmgy dingy whiteness of Barnum's Barnums ' genu genu- genuine genuine . - ine me animal arumal Barnum denounced It Itas itas itas as a fake , but to prove it genuine genuineItS genuineits genuineits ItS owners owncrs allowed visitors to touch touchits touchits touchits its trunk which had been enameledBut enameledBut enameled enameledBut But they didn't didnt ' dare enamel its itswhole Itswhole itswhole whole body ( the whitewash could be bescrubbed bescrubbed bescrubbed scrubbed off oft each night ) and there there- thereby thereby . - by hangs a tale At each perform perform.ance performance . ance the "Light Light " of Asia " was wasstrIpped wasstripped wasstripped strIpped of its trappings , placed on ona ona ona a platform plattonn and beside it stood a alearned alearned alearned learned "professor professor " " who gave a alecture alecture alecture lecture about the wonderful beast beastThe beastThe beastThe The crowds noticed that the "pro pro "pro- "professor "pro- "pro pro "professor "professor " - - fessor " skipped about as he gave gaveWs gavehis gavehis Ws his spiel and wondered why . The Thereason Thereason Thereason reason was that the elephant wanted wantedto wantedto wantedto to make friendly advances to the the"professor the"professor the"professor theprofessor "professor professor " " and he knew that if i ! he heallowed heallowed heallowed allowed the "Light Light " " . to rub agamst against agamsthIm againsthim againsthim hIm , the whitewash might rub off on onlus onhis onhis lus his black coatFor coatFor coat coatFor For some time the war of the therIval therival therival rIval "white white " elephants " went mer- mer merrily mer merrily - . rily nly on Then Barnum made a deal dealWIth dealwith dealwith WIth his competitor to withdraw the the"LIght the"Light the"Light theLight "LIght LIght " of Asia " The Tbe next season seasonthe seasonthe seasonthe the elephant was back on the road roadbut , , but this time in m its natural colors colorsEventually colorsEventually colorsEventually Eventually , , the "Light Light " of ASIa Asia"wound Asiawound " wound up its career as "Old Old " John John"one Johnone , , " one of the favorite 'bulls bulls ' * bulls " of the theRmglIng theRmgling theRinglmg RmglIng circus . . . The Lancaster School BoardIT'S BoardIT'S Board BoardTT'C TT'C TTC ' : nn oft nft m A t .1 1 . tale-that tale that t,1 t1 . , , , < U t sto sto- sto story - * ? IT'S ITS an repeated - - . - * ry about the school board m in Lan Lan- Lancaster Lancaster . - caster , , Ohio , . refusing to have the theschool theschool theschool school house used as the scene of a adebate adebate adebate debate on whether or not raIlroads raIlroadswere railroadswere railroadswere were practicable They are quoted quotedas as saying that "such such " things tIl1ngs as rail rail- railroads railroads . - roads and telegraphs are impossi impossi- impossibilities impossibilities . - bilities blhhes and rank rink r nk infidelity mfidehty . There IS ISnothmg isnothing isnothing nothmg nothing in m the Word of God about aboutthem aboutthem aboutthem ' them If God had designed tha that thatHis thatHis t HIS intelligent mtelligent creatures should shouldtravel shouldtravel shouldtravel travel at the frightful rate of 15 15mlles 15miles 15miles mlles miles an hour by steam He would wouldhave wouldhave wouldhave have foretold it through His Has holy holyprophets holyprophets holyprophets prophets It is a device of Satan to tolead tolead tolead lead immortal souls to HelL . " The tale is only ha half ! true In 1831 1831a a traveler from New York stopped stoppedat at a little log school house near nearSouth nearSouth nearSouth South Charleston Charlesttm in dark Clark county countyand countyand countyand and told the pupils about seeing a ademonstratIon ademonstration ademonstration demonstratIon of a new "fire fire " wag waggon waggon waggon gon " in m the East . . When the pupIls pupIlstook pupilstook pupilstook took the story home , their parents parentsbeing , bemg being conservative folk whose mmds minds mmdsweren't mindsweren't mindsweren't mindswerent weren't werent ' open to new ideas , said the theschool theschool theschool school house shouldn't shouldnt ' be used for forsuch forsuch forsuch such "trashy trashy " talk . . " So the school schoolboard schoolboard schoolboard board sent a note to the teacher teacherHervey , Hervey Scott Scott , , who was secretary of ofa ofa ' a debating debatmg society , . telling him he hev hewas hewas v . was as welcome to use the school house houseto houseto houseto to debate all proper questions , . but but"such but"such but"such butsuch , . "such such " things thmgs as railroads , , etc etc"Telegraphs etcTelegraphs " Telegraphs were NOT mentioned In IntheIr intheir intheir theIr note because the electric tele telegraph telegraph telegraph graph hadn't hadnt ' ' been invented yet yetTha yetThat yetThat Tha That t came 13 years la laterThe later laterThe ter terThe The story was tacked on to Lan Lancaster Lancaster Lancaster caster because Scott , . later edItor edItorof editorof editorof of a paper in that town , . printed prmted In InIt init init It a series of pioneer sketches In IneludIng ineluding ineluding eludIng tins tIl1S this yarn And that's thats ' why whycItIzens whycitizens whycitizens cItIzens of Lancaster ever SInce SIncehave sincehave smcehave have been denying denymg the storyhich story \\hich hich which whichcasts ' \ whichcasts hichcasts casts a reflection upon the intelli mtelli- mtelli intel intelligence i - . gence Bence of their forefa forefathers thers . r * . . The Dutch Mail"i MailZ Mail "i i Z WHEN " X tTHEN T HEN type in a print shop be becomes beYV beVV YV YVcomes comes all mixed mIed " , up that's thats that's"PI that's"p1 that's"pi thatspi ' "PI PI "p1 p1 " , " and it's its ' also grief gnef for the thenewspaper thenewspaper thenewspaper newspaper publisher if this happens happensJust happenslust happenslust Just lust befcie before befol e the paper is ready to fO po fOto poto foto to press But when it happened to toan toan toan an early English Enghsh editor , . he made madetbe madethe madethe tbe the best of a bad situation . . SIr SirRichard SirRichard I IRIchard RIchard Philhps PhillJps Phillips was his name and andhe andhe andhe he was . as editor of the Leicester Her Her- Herald Herald . - ald aId aldJust Just before press time one day , . a a"devil a"devil adevil "devil devil " " dropped a tray of type Just justas justas as it was about to be put into the ' , forms " There was no time to tostraIghten tostraighten tostraighten straIghten out all the ensuing ensumg mess messso , so Philhps PhIllIps assembled assemblcd the scattered scatteredtype scatteredtype scatteredtype type and printed prmted from it m In that con con- condition condition . - dition dltIon With Itas it v.a.s va.s vas was ' \as as \ . . a notice that thatthe thatthe thatthe the "Dutch Dutch " Mail Mall ' ( news from Hol Hol- Holland Holland . - land ) had been received too late to tobe tobe tobe be translated and was therefore be bemg beLug being mg Lug printed prmted just as receIvedThJrty receivedThirty received receivedThirty Thirty ThJrty years later latcr Phillips Phlll1ps is said saidto saidto saidto to have met a reader in Nottmgh'1m Nottmgh1m Nottingham Nottmgh'1mho Nottinghamwho Nottmghimwho ' who , \ho ho \ had carefully preserved hIS hIScopy hiscopy hiscopy copy of that paper He was stIll stIlltrymg stilltrying stilltrying trymg trying to find someone who cOl could couldtranslate couldtranslate d dtranslate translate the news from Hollandl Holland ! |