Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1864-07-09
BY p. T. BARHUM.

III Z. BARNUM.
definition Of the rOrd HumJug- Warren
Of London Genin, the Hatter-- G0StiagS
BLaeking.
When | come to sit down earnestly to
fulfill my engagement; with ihe publishers OF
the MERCURY, TO write for them series OF
articles upon the 'Humbugs of the World,
l confess myself somewhat puzzled in regard
TO the true definition of that word. To
be sure, Webster says that humbug, as a
noun is an imposition under fair pretences'
aud as a verb, it is TO deceive; to impose
on With all due Difference TO Doctor Web
ster, submit that according 10 present
usage, this is not the only, nor even The
generally accepted definition OF that term.
We will suppose, for instance, that man
with fair prenlences' applies to wholesale
merchant for credit on large bill OF goods.
His far pfcnlences' comprehend an asser
tlon that b. is moral aud religious miu,a
member Of the church,, a man Of wealth, ect.
ect. 1t turns out that he is not worth q
dollar, but is u base, lying wretch, AL. i'm
posite aud cheat. lie is arrested aud
imprisoned, for obtaining property un
der false preleuces, or, as Webster says,
fair preteuces. He Is punished for his wi
lainy. The public do not call him hmm
bug they very properly te med hun swlu'
dler.
A man bearing the appearance Of gen
tleman in dress aud manners, purchases
property from you, and with fair pretenceS
obtains your confidence. You find, wbel
he has left, that be paid you with counter
felt bank notes, or a forged draft. This
man j: justly called 'forger', or counter
feiler' and If arrested, he is punished as
suchj but nobody thinks Of calling him
'humbug.'
A respectable-looking man sits by your
side in un omnibus or railcar. He con
verses huenly, and is evidently man OF
Intelligence and reading. He attracts your
attention by his fair pretencts'. Arriving
at your journeys eud you miss your watch
and your pockel-book Your fellow-pass
enger proves to be the THE. Everybody
calls him 'pickpocket, and notwithstand
ing his fair pretence', not u person in the
community calls him 'humbug
Two actors appear as stars at two
rival lheaters. They are equally talented.
equally pleasing. Que advertises himself
SIMPLY US atragedian. under his proper name
the other boasts that he is u prince, and
wears decorations presented by all the
potentates of the world, including the :"
King OF The Canibal Islands He is cor
rec'ly set down as a" humbug while this
term Is never applied to the other actor
But II the man who boasts of having re.
ceived foreign title is miserable actor.
and he gets up gift enterprises and bogus
entertainments. or pretends to devote ibe
proceeds of his tragic efforts, to some char
liable objects, without, in fact, doing So
he is then humbug 10 the offensive sense
of that word, for he is an 'impositor under
fair relences'
Two physicians reside in one of our fash
ionabe avenues. They were both educa'
led in the best medical colleges; each had
passed an examination received his diploma
aud dubbed an M ID. They are equally
skilled in the healing art. One rides quiet.
| ly about the city in bis gig or brougham
visiting his patients without noise or clamor
the other sallies out in his coach and four,
preceded by band Of music, and his car
rage and horses are covered with handbills
and pla gcards announcing his wonderful
cures. This man sproperly called quack
ard humbug. Why? Not because he
cheats and imposes upon the public, for he
does not, but because. as generally upder
stood, 'humbug' consists in putting on gilt.
tering appearance'-outside show-novel
expedents, by which to suddenly arrest
public attention, aud attract the public eye
L
aud ear.
Clergymen, lawyers, or physicians, who
should resort to such methods of attracting
the public, would not, for obvious reasons,
be apt to succeed Bankers, insurance a.
gents aud other, who aspire TO become the
cos todiaus of the money of their fellow men
would require different species of sdyer'
tising from this; but there are various trades
and occupations which need only notoriety
to insure success, always provided that when
cusomers are once attracted, they never
fail to get their money's-worth An honest
man thus who arrests public attention Will
be called 'humbug', but he is not q swim
dler or an impostor. If, however, after at
tracing crowds OF customers by his uniqu Q
displays. man foolishly fails to give them
full equivalent for their money, they
never patronize him second time, hut
they very properly denounce him as swim
dler, q cheat, and dmpostor', they do not,
however, call him 'humbug'. He fails,
not because be sdyertises his wares In an
outrs manner, but because, after attracting
crowds of patrons, be stupldly aud wicked
ly cheated them.