Daily Davenport gazette. [volume] (Davenport, Iowa) 1854-1855, 1854-11-04
parnum's speech On Hunbass.

raj Fair. BarnuD appears to glory ~ he
success hag enjoyed in decsivng his
fellow men. srkind naturally are credu-
Ilous and it i. only by coming frequently IN
contact with the world, peopled as It i with
such knayes as p T. Barnum, that they
learn TO mistrust their fellow creatures:--
II seems to be most fortunate c,rcum-
stance that should be selected to speak on
i Humbug, az looking on ladies', whose pro.
/ fession It peculiarly is, find i hard 70 e.
press mysclfin their presence. everything
lis humbug except our agricultural soc'ety--
that alone is not.
Humbup is generally defined "dece't or
,limpo,ition." A burglar who breaks into
your house, forger who cheats you OF your
nronerty. or a rascal, is not humbug; .
Ibumbue is an imposter; but in my opinion
the true meaning OF humbug is management
tact TO take an old truth and put in an at
ltractve form.
But no humbug is great with out truth at
THE bottom. The woolly horse was real
lity. He was born with woolly coat.
thought him in Cincinnati for $500, and sent
him on to Connecticut, but for long time
| doubted what | should do with him, and
feared that he would die on my hands. Just
at this time, in lS46, Col. Fremont and his
marty we're reported to have been lost
Iamonp the Rocky Mountains; the public
were greatly excited, but shortly news came
that he was safe. Now came the chance
for the woolly horse.
! II was duly announced that after three
ldays' chase upon the borders Of the River
u IaI ham canfurAd Inv the
lonarter.mas,er of Col. Fremont's party,
lwho tartook in a singular degree OF the ma
Iture Of the buffalo, antelope and camel
This story was so far true, that was my
self the quartermastcr who captured him,
and charged quarter for the sight. The
picture outside the exhibition depicted the
animal as jumping over ledge OF rocks
Now if the animal had really leaped a. seen
in the picture, he must have passed over
space Of five miles. To have believed that
| he could have survived such leap would
have been great humbug.
But Col. Fremont who understands no
humbug, but his own. arrested my scheme,
and prosecuted me for obtaining money I'M
der false pretences, as the horse was not
what it prof essed to be; but ! think
wrongly, as the people who saw 1t were
satisfied, and got the worth of their mon
ey -,
Now the scientific humbug should know
the precise moment 10 act, as did, or the
world would never have been blessed with
sight of wooiiy horse.
When the woolly horse arrived from Con-
nec,icut, he WAS put in a stable near Love-
lows Hotel. One Of the boardcrs who came
TO see him, recognized him as the ANNA Y
had seen at Bridgeport. "Good heavenC
cried he, Il have seen that animal before;
lit is really an extraordinary humbug." He
ltook M friend from the same hotel, and
after he had seen the animal, let him into
the secret, aud i'll succession thrsy-seven
persons were carried up, all Of whom took
the humbug in good humor, except the last
man.
| Nv ambition to be Prince Of Humbugs
will resign, but l hope the public will take
the will for the deed; can assure them that
If had been able to give them all the hum.
bngs have thought of they would have
| been satisfied.
| Before | went to England with Tom
Thumb, | had skeleton prepared from va
rious bones 1t was to have been made
feet high it was to have been buried year
or SO in Ohio, and then dug up by accident,
so that the public might learn that there
were giants Of old. The price vas to pay
the person who proposed to put the skeleton
together was 1925.
| But finding Tom Thumb more successful
than Thought, sent word not to proceed
with the skeleton. Ny manager, who new
er thought as highly of the scheme as it de-
served, sold the skeleton for $50 or $75.
Seven years afterward received from
| the South an account of gigantic skeleton
that had been found. Accompanying it
were the certificates Of scientific and medi-
cal men as to the commences. The owner
asked $40, 900 or s 600 a month; wrote
| to him il he brought it on | would take it if
| ] found il as represented. or would pay his
expenses if not; | found it was my own old
original humbug come back to me again; of
course ] refused il and ney or heard of it
aiterward
! New York, Nov !.
I The Crystal Palace was closed to-day
forever and can be visited during the reno
val Of the goods only.
| A Washington spondent of the 1'ri-
bune, telegraphs that the British Govern
ment, has issued orders to its naval officers
and diplomatic agents o abandon the Mos
quito Protectionate as far as Greytown is
concerned, the officers being directed not
to interfere in any way, except as to claims
for actual British subjects for demands for
damages IN the bombardment, which are to
| be taken note OF.
The Irish military regment-the Meagher
Grenadiers Of Jersey City--held an indigna-
ton meeting yesterday, and passed strong
resolutions rebuking the Catholic Priests
for their denunciation Of them oh Sunday
last.
Mr.. Mitchell spoke in reply to the attack
on him.
NEW YORK, Nov. 2.
Ai.,1s