Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-12-30
THE PUDDING LANE HOAX

NJ friend, Edward Noble, and had been
tdking OF the credulity Of people, and had
agreed that they-the people aforeSaid-liked
nothing so well as 20 be well hunbugged We
had In mind certain late occurrences, and, /
drew considerable satisfaction
from the reflection that we would have shown
much keener apprehension of fraud had we
been in the situation of the victims Sitting
among our books that hot afternoon, idly
hlking metaphysics, it came 20 pass that five
minutes after had agreed with my friend in
whole souled pity for humbug inviting man
kind, found myself opposing him-pretty
stoutly, too, considering il was July-and
presently declared that hatred aud fear OF
humbug was one Of the very strongest char
acteristics of the average man; that did not
believe he could go out into the street and
sell gold piece for "a pint of waluuts. Though
withal n duh fellow, Noble remarked that
while this was probably true vet after all IL
only went To prove his position; that ap-
preaching the boy with the gold and offering
such an exchange would lead him TO think the
genuine coin spurious and that he was hum
bugged out Of his bargain. This suggestion,
however, would have been beyond Mobiles
depth; probably ! made it myself, aud he
agreed with me
Neither my friend nor ! had ever been
popular at school did not care 10 be. SO
we had in manner struck up companion
ship between ourselves which continued after
college days, and will last through life Not
that we like each other particularly, but we
endure each other better than either could
any one else To me every one but Noble is
disagreeable and peculiar, and Noble is a
little peculiar. But we live together, endur-
ably, In the day, talking, idling, sleeping. or
doing something else equally improving"
and walking out in the night
IL may have been . in the afternoon when
the profound psychological reflections above
enunciated were uttered; il was near the
same hour the next morning, before the The
atre Royal, In our nightly ramble, that No
ble next broke silence by observing that he
believed we would try that. Believing for
both had been habit of mine, but Noble
had caughtit / put my hand into my trou-
sers pocket for a coin, but my friend inter
rupted by saying he did not propose we
should make the experiment on "A single hoy,
but upon all the people of the city. He pro
ceeded 10 develop his idea, and | added a
suggestion or two that much improved 1t.
As the first step, we drew up a brief adver-
tiseinent under street light, took it to the
leading newspaper rooms, and went home.
The morning papers contained the following:
notice.
The debts OF all persons who are OWN. will be
paid for them on presentation Of itemized state,
meuts Of sane, at &C Pudding lane. Cheauside on
Monday, Aug. u, between the hours OF . and
=. m.
From what we could judge in our nightly
rounds, from the many curious ewes directed
at our house and from paragraphs in the pa
pers, the notice made quite sensation from
its first appearance BY our order it CON
tinued to appear daily. Noble and mutually
declared our full intention of standing by our
proposition to pay every debt that should be
presented rs long as our fortunes should hold
out. Passing the day in our darkened house
Tor we were enamOred of night and strove
20 counterfeit her somber beauty when her
more brilliant rival held the field without
and stirring forth only during the hours
when most men sleep, II was not 10 be ex-
pected that we should see much stir. If in
deed any, following our strange announce
ment And vet some years of night walking
had made us adept at reading as an index
the midnight stragglers Of the street; and in
deed no class 50 thoroughly know what is do
ing IN all grades of society, from the homes
70 the Jails, as these. So, in joStling men on
the street, at the entrance To the theatres
and before the clubs, among all the tattle of
the latest book, politics, the favorite in
music or the drama, We heard always a word
about the Pudding lane notice
IL was the second night before we heard of
any expressions rs 10 the feeling with which
the proposition had been received generally.
Ny own conviction had been that the first
feeling would b. skepticisIn, and that the con-
tinued publication might induce some degree
OF confidence. But In this was wrong. By
the Close Of the second day il was not To be
doubted that the overwhelming belief was
that the proposal had been made in good faith.
The conclusion was that underneath the sur
face of the thing there was some scheme of
the originators for making money. As 10
Just how this was TO be done few guesxes were
ventured, but the almost unanimous opinion
was that 1t was a gigantic schems of fearless
SPECTATORS. In order To feel all the warm
tions of the public pulse we had allowed for
a period OF two weeks from the first appear
ance Of the notice till the day on which the
debts were to be paid.
The belief in the trustwurthiness of our
proposal continued throughout the third and
fourth days, though toward the close of the
fourth there was an appreciable weakening
Of confidence, If we did not misiudce the in
dications. But on the fifth day the tide set
backward Several promi-
nent financiers had declared that in no posi-
bic way could any capitalist or syndicate
fulfill the published offer and not be at sheer
loss for the full amounts. The public re-
hected that no name had been signed 10 the
notice; 1t was learned that the inmates OF ~
Pudding lane were unknown; some even de-
clared that the house was vacant In short.
ON the fifth day the public took its little
laugh, and settled down into the conviction
that the thing n humbug. Thereafter IL
was known rs the Pudding lane hoax.
There seemed to be no possibility Of any
change from this belief. IL seemed unanimous
and settled. Noble proposed that we take the
notice out Of the papers, as the game was
played; but this we concluded not to do,
though merely that we might fulfill our part.
We heard lizzie more said Of the matter for
the next weok; it seemed 70 have been for
gotten Indeed, Noble and scarcely spoke
Of IL ourselves-scarcely thought of 1t. So
the time passed till Aug. T. At breakfast,
near 10 O'Clock, Noble yawned that this was
the day ON which we were 10 pay the city's
debts, and that we had better see our LAWYER
as TO the disposition Of our property. Moth
ing more was said till between tine noon hour
and O'Clock, when 1t happened TINT step
ped To the window Ia draw the curtain
closer, for n careless servant had left it part
iy open, and CLEAN from tho street made
our gaslight pale. In arranging the drapery
casually glanced out, and noticed, 1t might
have been, score Of people standing ON the
opposite curb. This was unusual, for our
street Is quiet one, and said to Noble that
there was some excitement without. He in
stantly connected 1t with our experiment.
believed he was right, but attached little i'm
portance to the matter. Nevertheless, we re-
paired to another apartment, one window Of
which projected slightly over the street at q
height Ga perhaps twenty feet from the
ground In this We could watch unois
served
AT O'Clock there were two no., .oungihg
on the opposite side of the str. Inc crowd
of twenty had first seq, iau u,slerstd' The
two were presently . iieu "y tnree OF Tour
Others. who rahg, had stopped to joke
o .';,s mnoo.d had staid like r,ep who ex-
49,, small spectacle and stop to catch a
tr.-apse OF 1t, If they happen 10 be la no
haste. Occasionally one would start on. The
group continued TO grow slowly. AT I:I5
there was again a score. About this time |
glanced up and down the street, and counted
n dozen more In doorways Turning NV
a.. q