New-York tribune., 1886-11-07
ANECDOTAL CHESTNUTS

There are many curious things in cOntem-
porary literature, and not the least odd is the
| periodical repro luctiOn of anecdotes 40 vener.
able that their origin is lost in the mist. o,
antiquity The manner in which these hoary
literary chestnuts appear shows that there is
nothing fOrtutOus in their revisiting the pale
glImpsrs OF the moon, for they are always
neatly fitted with the costume of the period.
and are given a local habtatiOn and a name
calculated to attract the casual reader. As a
fair illustration of the class of stories referred
to may be mentioned that of the dog who
being troubled by aeas walked slowly into
pond until his tormentors were gradually
driven to his nose, which was the only part of
him uncovered, and how he finally dislodged
them from their last refuge. Now this story
appeared in a paper published not far from
New York, and it was related as something
which mad occurred in the neighborhood. and
recently. But the same story with slight
changes, can be TRACED as far back as the time
OF Hsop and the presumption is that the
fabulls: found i; floating about in his day, and
that it was already mature when he adapted il
to his purpose.
Chicago paper the other day gravely resur-
rected, trimmed, localized and printed
decreDlt old mummy of story about a college
student who made wager that he would 90 to
a gray eyard at night and plunge pitchfork
into grave; and who, having inadvertently
fastened his own cloak to the ground with the
fork, imagined himself detained by a ehostlv
hand, and so died of fright. That anecdote il
at least two hundred years old and NAV be
much more. 1t is possible that it may be found
In the GeStr RomanOrun,, and like man, other
archaic stories 1t may have come originally
from the Orient. But its antiquity is indubit-
able, and it is equally certain that it must have
been dug up and renovated with malice
prepense. The interesting question is. who |
does this queer resurrection business. and why |
is it done = 1t might be thought thar the |
present time offered news enor gh of every kind
to satisfy the most exigent. The modera
newspaper is so overcrowded that quantities of
interesting matter are perfOrce omitted every
lay. Yet In some mysterious way room il
IOund Tor these ob>Olescent yarns, and they
continue to crop up at intervals " th steadi-
lrss and persistence suggestive of n Deus er
ndchina I'D the fodn OF literary Wiggins. Is
here somewhere an antique anecdotal bureau
3 il run by people who Gull their storie, from
A~""P "'" "N""i"o "uu Ipdl, 4, VINO DllIage
lie magazines OF the medieval monks. who
evel in the musty chronicles of Froissart and
lOnstrelet and the old French Contours wbo
ollate from Baker and Stowe; VINO perbaps
escend further into the past and draw unon
he lnexhaustlble stores of AthenDus and Plinv -:
Tho with reckless hands rob Erasmus and
lOntaigne; and chuckle with sardop,c m;rtn 6
5 they witness the credulity with which n q
ineteenth century public accepts their made s
yer stories
The story published short time ago about !
an who was converted into q red-lot stotue il
IT disappearing never originated in the Ouio y
'untry region to which its paternity was q
crbed. Ii had al! the flavor of the Middle
ses abont it. 1t was just such a story as
ight be found In once famous old book en- 81
led "God's Revenge against Murther.p
Inllar stories used TO be printed by the old :,
ronclers. Stoves Survey has plenty of :,
EN-, told rs seriously and simply as is any
al Incident of tho present day. But this bore
, ear-marks OF the Bureau OF ADtioue Ii.
estnuts, and there, We have little doubt. il bs
IS turbished up. If some literary person OF
sure will undertake an inquiry into ttis T.,
tier, and trace the genesis OF the periodical y,
'cd0tal vampire which refuses to stay dead G,
Ter any circumstances, and rises. like In