Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-04-25
MRS. HARMS IN HISTORY.
Men who Never Lfved--ThfnGs that
Never Happened or Happened Dit
ferently. and WOts Never Uttered.

lar versions of historical facts or sayings two
would be found on examination 10 be fictitious,
incorrect or unauthorized, but anybody who
will take the pains 70 investigate the subject
OF historic myths will be prepared TO admit its
substantial truth. Nor would the dictum only
apply to MEDIEVAL or classical times. No man
has attracted more attention than Napoleon
Bonaparte, yet the legend concerning him is In
were scores OF observers at the Congress OF
Vienna who recorded the history Of its
slightest events. No two OF them agree as TO
the manner OF the reception and announce
ment OF the news OF the escape from Elba
Our own civil war Is not so very far removed
yet within the week there has been an at
leG1pt TO revise and rewrite the history OF the
most important Of its early battles, on the
ground that the contemporary accounts We're
inventions. No political event during our ma
tional existence created IS much excitement
many versions are there In existence as to the
origin OF the plan and the method OF It's eXecu-
ton? Between the days when solitary cnront-
clers sat at their desks and invented attributes.
acts and nlotS for their heroes. and those when
ten thousand journals make lie their business
to s'cast light" on the events Of the mo men,
there Is really no differences very little dit
ference, SO far as that unfortunate Creature,
1.-THE average reader" is concerned and he finds
himself compelled to hold to a sort OF hislorl-
cal agnOsticism, neither denying the accuracy
fear that 1t might prove true, nor accepting
the accuracy Of any statement which seems
reasonable lest it should prove false
Al know now classical literature aoonnis In
myths and Representatives,. The Egyptian
Cecrops did not come from Egypt nor tho
PhGnician Cadmus from Phpntcia. e op
was not hunchback any more than "the ia
The story of Sappho's leap at Leucadia Is not
older than the period OF the Epicureans. Le-
onidass 1900 defenders Of Thermopylae" really
numbered 1000, or IL 600. 1t is at least doubt
full whether the tyrant Dionysius became
COr1nth1an schOolmaster, and Philips letter to
Aristotle about the education OF Alexander
was apocryphal. The tub OF Diogenes was not
tubs. as Pliny tells Us, were Of Gallo and not
OF Grectan orig1n-and though there were
lanterns at the time, there is no evidence that
ne employed one IN his famous quest, and that
an honest man. AS for the earlier history of
Rome, Niebuhr has rlddled 1t sufficiently, from
intern al evidence principally. while Sir George
the only trustworthy source or test is
external proof, Is Just about as deadly.
evidence, is founded On the testimony OF cred
ible witnesses. Unless these witnesses had
personal and immediate perception Of the acts
which they report unless they saw and heard
what they undertake to relate as having hap
pened, their evidence is not entitled to credit.
AS all original witnesses must be contemporary
with the events which they attest, 1t Is nece5-
sary condition for the credbility OF witness
that he be contemporary. though contempo-
rary Is not necessarily a credible witness Unless
therefore, historical account can be traced,
by probable proof, to the testimony of contempos
raries the first condition OF historical credioiIty
fails" No historical account OF Rome or the
Romans for more than four centuries after
the foundation Of the city fulills this condition.
T9e st So1k Of Ivy Containing the regal
thus tested, to no higher authority than Lord
Macaulay's Lays" The story OF Lucretfa's
virtues and Tarquin's outrage Is strongly I'm
q O
she was guilty, and committed suicide from
fear OF Judgment and reproach. Livy himself
did not know to what peoples the Horatti and
tall of the victor's sister being in love with one
OF the vanquished, and being killed by him.
was current in Greece tArcadia) at an
early earl period 1t is fairly doubted whether
when he put his sons TO death 1t was
with brutality rather than through strict
justice and patriotism. The story of Sc;evola's
long ago by the Greek Agatharcides an
Invention OF the family to give themselves a
patr1cian origin, and explain their surname.
IL IS pr poDa9e that Appius Ciaudius in the law
question: (Talking Of Roman law, it is curious
tnat while the original agrarian measures OF
the Gracch1 were not extravagant, but rather
days is popularity used as implying something
revolutionary and term OF stigma> much as
"demuren and cunning have come to convey
from term Of reproach to one OF honor.) AS
for the she-wolf that was the Little Buttercup
OF Romulus and Remus, Curtius's leap into the
chasm, CiGlia's swimming the Tiber, Hora-
1us's brave keeping OF the bridge, Coriolanus's
melooTamattc CAREER! According to Pliny
and Tac1tls Lars Porsenne took Rome: Hora-
tius Coolies, according to Polybius, was Killed;
this same historian Is significantly silent as to
the combat of Manlfus Toruuatus. and as for
Brennua;s aye Vicsis,' 1t was probably never
uttered While CamtlluS did not rout him and
80 save Rome from paying ransom. Romu-
lus's story In every essential feature is re-
production of the legend Of Cyrus and long
before tie Roman historians wrote the Phry-
g1an traditions recorded the exploit of Cur
Iesected and was probably Invented to excuse
the torture OF CarthagInian prisoners. The
suicide of Portia by swallowing live Goals is
another heroic mytn.an imposslbl!lty. Han
n1bai's retirement to Capua Is by many critics
regarded as no fault, but rather necessity,
and IL must be said that the latest researches
into his record as general give him a higher
Of the world and show that with very small
force he utterly routed the Romans, who were
alike inefficient, corrupt and demoralized. His
employment OF vinegar to melt the Alpine
rocks is a story that there need not be much
cempunct1on about rejecting, though 1T Is held
by some very respectable authorities that long
before him the Egyptians possessed knowledge
OF some powerful chemical agent equal to the
task Of softening rocks, else how could they
have done so rapidly In so tntractable ma
terial the wonderful carving revealed on cur
own CleOpatra's needle. Talking OF Cleopatra
and vinegar; 1t will readily be conceded that
liquor strong enough to dissolve pearls 1nssan-
taneOuSly would not have exercised a bene-
fetal effect on the coats OF the stomach. A
precisely similar story Is told about the mag.
n1hcent Sir Thomas Gresham. SCeptc5 have
even doubted the story of Cleopatra's asp at
tributiDg her death and the death of her at
PENDANTS TO poison. II the Germans are right,
Helen was about sixty at the time of the Tro.
jan war. Arch1medeS was too good mathe-
matician to talk Of moving the world with
lever were he given fnlcrum-so NJ. Ed0uard
Fournter asserts, on BulWer's authority; but
what Is more TO the purpose, according to
Plutarch, Archimedes did not specify any In
strument and asked for place to stand on
not fulcrum. BeliSartuS's blindness Is ano.
ther romance. and the dying speech Of Julian
tween. 'Thou hast conquered, Galllean"
and Sun, thou hast betrayed me,"-could not
have been uttered, considering the nature OF
bis wound (This remark applies to the 'dy-
Ing words OF BessaiX, at Mareng0. He was
shot through the heart, and as his division fell
Dack IN disorder the AuStrianS passed over his
body. We are inclined therefore, to accept
tie evidence OF the Dukes Of Ragusa.and Valmy
as against the declaration OF Napoleon at st.
Helena to OMeara. Apart from the fact that
Bonaparte Wasan accomplished liar ION gen.
eral principles" we know that one OF his
speciait1es was the manufacture OF .dytng
! Ae admitted TO Metterpiei,. that he
was me author OF Lannes's last words though
r,ved al ana osaer critics had already ar
tv oe the Hs co ue .lstration Of the unauthenti.
" y. WV --lmonly received verslon.)
70 the fables that encrust the history of