The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-08-13
ERRORS OF HISTORIANS.
Mythical Statements that Pass Cur
rent as Truths.

The African Prester John never had an
existence.
There never was such person as Pope
Joan, the so-called female pontif.
Portia did not swallow the burning
Goals. The whole story was certainly an
invention.
The stars are not innumerable. Less
than 5000 are all that can be seen on the
clearcst night.
William Tell did not found the Swiss
confederation, and the story of Gesler
has no historic basis
There is no historic authority for the
statement that little George Washington
cut down the cherry tree.
The ever-bUrning lamps found in an
cient t0mbs were were as real as the
mouse that gnawed King Soloman's staff.
The 'Man in the Iron Mask'' did not
wear mask of iron. 1t was of black
velvet, secured by steel springs.
Water does not swarm with animalculR
All forms of life are missing from rain,
spring water and good well water.
The wonderful Damascus blades that
cut bars of iron in two were not superior
to the Toledo blades made to-day.
The Pharaoh of the Exodus was not
drowned in the Red Sea. His mummy
has been found, the skull was split by a
battle-axe.
Francis l, after the battle of Pavia
did not say, 'All is lost save honor" The
expression he used was entirely different.
The organ of the Middle Ages, which,
when moved into the sunshine, played
tunes of itself, was playof the mediae-
val fancy.
Seneca was not a, half Christian philo-
sopher, but grasping money-lender and
til
Cesar did not say EFT tn. Brute" Eye
witnesses to the assassination deposed
that 'he died fighting, but silent, like a
wolf"
The mother of Coriolanus did not inter
cede with her son to spare Rome The
story has no better foundation than that
of Horatius.
Wellington, at Waterloo, did not say:
CUP, guards, and at them" The words
were put into his mouth by a lively En-
glish writer.
Charlemagne's paladins had no exist
ence, and the history of Charlemagne
himself is so clouded by myth as to be
utterly unreliable.
Richard III was not q hunchbaclx, but
a soldier of fine form, some pretension to
good looks and great personal strength
and courage.
Wolves were not extirpated in England
in the time of Edgar. Three hundred
years later rewards were paid by the king
for wolf scalps.
The round towers at Newport Is not
castle, nor was it built by Danish ex-
plorers. 1t was mill, Effected In the
early days of the colony.
Sir Isaac Newton was not q smoker, al
though he had the reputation of the
smoking philosopher He did not use
tobacco in any form.
Augustus was not the public benefac-
tor he is represented. He was the most
exacting tax collector the Roman world
had up to his time ever seen.
Blondel, the harper, did not discover
the prison of King Richard. Richard
paid his ransom, and the receipt for it is
among the Austrian archives.
Horatius never defended the bridge
The story was manufactured by the same
gifted author who gave the world the
account of Sc8volas heroism.
Pocahontas did not save the life of
John Smith. 1t has been ascertained that
this worthy man was the most able-bodied
prevaricator of his century.
The Bridge of Signs at Venice has no
romance worthy the name Most of the
unfOrtunates who cross il are petty
thieves who are sent to the workhouse.
Fair Rosamond was not poisoned by
Queen Eleanor, but after a long residence
as nun in the convent of Gadstow, died
greatly esteemed by her associates.
Tie luminous paintings said TO have
been common among the Japanese 200
years ago. were luminous only in the
imagination of the traveller who invented
them.
Alfred the Great did not visit the Dan
ish camp disguised as u minstrel There
is no good reason TO believe that he could
either play the harp or speak Danish
the maelstrOm is not Il whirlpool which
sucks ships down into the depths of the
ocean 1t is an eddy, which in fair
weather can be crossed in safety by any
vessel.
Columbus did not foretell an eclipse of
the moon to brighten the natives of Jamai-
ca into rendering him assistance There
was no eclipse of the moon at that time.
There was probably no such man as
Romulus The first historian who men
tions him lived at distance of time so
great as to throw extreme discredit on
the story
The news that Napoleon had escaped
from Elba was not communicated to the
allied sovereigns at ball in Vienna. 1t
came late one night and was given out
the next day.
Lucretia Borgia is not the bad woman
she is represented. Recent investigations
have shown that she suffered In reputa-
tion on account of the wickedness of her
kinfolks.
William Rufus was not accidently shot
by an arrow from the bow of William
Tyrrell. He was assassinated.
His body. when found, bore the
marks of three or tour sword-thrusts.
Queen Eleanor did not sucl- the poison
from her husbands wound as she did
not accompany him on the expedition
during which this incident is alleged to
have taken place.
Cromwell and Hampden did not ATTEMPT
to sail to America just before the out
break of the English Revolution A num-
Der of their friends did, but they had no
thought of going.
Diogenes never lived in tub The
story that he did so has no better origin
than a comment by biographer that ia
man so Grabbed ought to have been in a
tub like dog"
The prisoner of Chillon" did not suffer
in the cause of liberty He was trouble
some rogue sent to prison for mischief
making, and spent his term there In max
ing indecent verses.
Charles Y did not rehearse his own
funeral in his own lifetime. On the con
trary he disliked the thought of death so
much that all persons were forbidden TO
use the word in his presence.
The crew of lie Vengeur, the famous
French ship sunk by an English man-of-
war, did not cry Vive la Republique
They bawled for help, and the English
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