New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1884-03-30
SOvg HOLLOW NOCKERIES.

The white elephant is not white he Is not
seven gray Thus do we dispose OF the tradl-
tions of centuries These are the words of Mr..
Barpum as he stood for the first time in the pres
ence of the latest acquisition To his collection.
The remark recalls and attests the truth OF
WoIpolc's famous mot, Read me anything but
history. for history must be false" The white
elephant of history is white. But the truth is
that like the devil, he fails to conform to the
color that history assigns him.
is understood that like misconccption is
held all over the land from which the "white'
elephant came in regard to the meaning OF our
American Authorization " Hon. The Burmese
people entertain the opinion that Z" HON." slgnl-
fies that the man whose name carries that alilx
is necessarily and distnctiyely an honorable
man beyond his fellows. Hence if member OF
our Board of Aldermen should visit Burmah the
chances are that MOung TsaW.. kyah zoe, and
Shoay Att Hpaw and other well-knOwn citizens
of the country would bow themselves in rever-
ence before him, saying to one another: " Here Is
q an cminenty honorable American, CONSUME
amate flower of the Western civilization,
@panoplicd with the virtues rs with garment
The NEWCOMERS find that the white elephant
isn't white. The Burmese people might find
that an Hon. man is not uncOmmOnly honor
able. Tom Hood thought he discovered some
such variation between the real and apparent
meaning of the word seminary" The popular
conception of a seminary is an institution in
which young persons are instructed III sundry
branches Of learning. But Hood, after spend
ing more or less time investigating the English
educational system of his day, explained that
seminary was derived from semi half, and nary
nothing, and hence that seminary was not an
institution in which anything is taught, but
place of training in which they don't half teach
ANYTHING 1t is but charitable to assume that
the man who gave the name elevator to a
mechanical cOntrivance for ascent and descent
had no intention of adding to the worlds stock
of errors. Still he must have been aware that
during half of its active career an elevator
could only be properly defined as a contrivance
for lowering And then there is our friend Mr..
Turner, NJ. A. He has done mucl-several
volumes and some of them beautifully bound
to induce the hasty gcncralizer to come to the
conclusion that poet can be defined as person
who never happens TO write poetry. few
weeks ago an organization in this city chat calls
itself and is called The New York Free Trade
Club" gave dinner to gentlemen who call
themselves and are called Free Traders.
Among the speakers was Everett Z. Wheeler,
who was introduced as the president OF the
New-York Free Trade Club, and yet in the re-
port of his remarks as we find it i'll II recognized
Free Trade organ, occurs this expression; he
defined free trade not to mean untaXed trade.
That is to say, according to 80 good IN authority
...I
a. "A man who does not believe in free trade. Is
it any wonder, all things considered, that Juliet
was moved to cXclaim, What's in name y
For his eminent services IN dsposing of tho
misleading traditions of centuries" 50 far as
they relate to the color of the white elephant,
Mr.. Banum deserves the hearty thanks OF
every friend of the white winged migelof Truth
and Of comparative philology. Let him perse-