Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1876-10-27
The MOrk Of the Campaign Liar.

lhC uOIA VI bhc Chmphlku lihEs
The election contest is now so near its
close that ii may be presumed that the
Campaign Liars task ia onded, and so II is
fitting to review his performance during
the past few months, and see how he has
acquitted himself OF tho onerous duties
which his position as dofamor-extraordi-
nary for the Democracy imposed upon him.
Comparing his work with that Of previous
Presidential campaigns, II would seem
that he has lost nothing Of the unscrupu-
lousness and virulence OF his predecessors
but has improved somewhat in attention
to little details, and the artistic treatment
Of his subjects, so ms to throw about them
the greatest possible air Of probability.
His Imagination does not seem to develop
at all. The new creations he gave us were
very few and insignificant. lie has learned
singularly little, and has not turned that
little to good account. The old stories
about Temperance, Know-Nothingisn
Snobbism, and oppression of the poor man,
which have done duty for Democretic doe
trincs in so many campaigns, coldly fur
nshed forth the Liars table in this. They
showed the effect of age and use, however,
and were sent off the stage earlier than
| usual.
Then the liar set out to furbish up some
thing new, and better adapted to present
needs His first attempt was an effort to
stir up the Germans by the story that
| Hayes had voted to close the Centennial
| Grounds on Sunday. This did not look
like specially dangerous calumny one
way or the other, but some of Hayes
friends took the trouble to point out that,
Ms he had nothing in the world to do with
the Centennial management, he could not
have voted at all. That dropped.
In week or two the Campaign Liar
was up with another little lie about Hayes
having surrendered in a cownrdly manner
to private in Georgia regiment, during
the operations before Petersburg. Every
body jccred al so improbable yarn, and
somc one took the pains to point out that
Hayes was never engaged in the actions in
that neighborhood. That dropped.
ihcn the Si00 story was started. This
showed more ingenuity. Warned by pre-
: yious failures, there was more obscurity
mixed in with tho details. Time, place
, |
der the task of decisive refutation more
difficult. A hunt was made for the author
of the canard, which came unplcaaantly
, near tocapturing him, and that lie dropped
very fiat.
These signal defeats had no more effect
upon the robust temperament OF the Cam.
paign Liar than Granger malediciiona have
: upon the teative potato bug. lie seemed
to like them, in fact, they showed that he
: was attracting attention.
His next move was the elaborate fiction
5 on Governor Hayes tax returns. This
may he considered the most artistic BIT oi
r lying done by him during the campaign
l IThcre was more care and finish about it
more attention to detail; il allowed a ca
l pacity for figures, perception of probable
tiles not shown in any of his previous at
tempts. After all, the skill in its con
l Etruction was not so great rs that required
: to build dime novel, and its very circum
/, stantiality afforded the easiest means OF it
crushing refutation.
) Before this was disposed of, some loca
Q amateur liars tried their hand in small
: way with the story OF Governor Hayes be
: ing concerned in the cutting of the Putin
: Bay telegraph. We only mention this t'
g make the list complete, and to show b!
! contrast the difference between the frs
r attempts of green and inexperienced
3 Campaign Liar, snch as produced the tele
u graph story, and the skillful, masterl.
work of n veteran political falsiher, ms tn
author of the tax returns lie wns. On
IS was all crudity and imperfection, the othe
II was a very fair piece of campaign men
e dacity, entitling its author to aspire to
ls high place among Democratic editors.
H,r.N ctI,ara rnu,ui IN hp mont inneI hIl
e neither are especially creditable to thci
e designers and manufacturers. The lie
= Roy lie was nm expansion and enlargement
"a of the S40O descrter lie, and was fabricate
" with snme considerable attention todeiail'
u 1t was weaker than the original We, how
u, evor, because it venturcd to mention apo
o. cifc dates, places and names; this was Il
ii tai, for in Just five days after il Wa
spawned it was killed so dead that gSlvar
ee lam could not infuse twitch OF life into j
nj The latest and it may be presumed tn
IN last was the short-lived American AllianC
l. lie, brought forth with great labor Tue
rs day morning, only to be slaughtered rutl
a lessly Friday.
III These are in brief the achievements
nc the Campaign Liar during the Centenni
es Presidential campaign. AS specimens
OF the advance ement of the art they are N
s- encouraging. There is not TINT fertilit
9 of Imagination nor the breadth and tho
'" oughness of treatment that we would e
c., pcct OF them in the present general devC
us Opnent of the arts and sciences. None
~ them were at all we'll; they would II
ne wash; their texture was diaphanous.
,e- another four years does not show mark
re- Improvement in this branch OF art,
v; would be better for the Democrats to try
", get along without these gontleman's ASST
liu ance, since it does the party more har
&C. than good. Blade.