The herald., 1894-05-15
ELI PERKINS STILL At LARGE
Something Reminiscent About
Americas Greatest Liar.
He Was an Honest Boy, Industrious
and Quiet
He Started Out to BE an Historian but
Found 1t Ensier to Lie Than Tell
tho Truth and Turned
Humorist.

There is now in this city man who
has attained nstional-yes. world
wide-reputstion as a liar; jnst as an
easy-going, off-hand, extemporsneous
and very fluent liar.
A man, il you please, who lies simply
for the sake of lying, when the truth
would be better for most purpeses-b
not for his purpose; no, never. For he
has lied and lied, and gone into history
as Americas greatest liar, for the sole
purpose of making people laugh; and
people, as a general thing, don't laugh
at the truth they prefer lies, and whop-
pers at that. They forgive the liar free
ly and fully when their sides have done
shaking, even going 60 far as to praise
him for the righteousness of his lies,
and never forgetting to pay him for the
service. Along with the truth and the
and while it muat be said the world
runs largely to truth and tears in their
various degrees and phases, we want
the lies to balance things.
The eminent liar, VINO is now with us,
will be more easily recognized as ELI
Perkins" than as melville ID. Ian don, 7"
for he has lived as Lsndon and lied as
Perkins. Now, as this calling a man a
liar 30 repeatedly may be odious to
some, let us consider him as humorist.
Such, in fact, ne is. In his time he has
given to the public many choice piece
of wit and not little wisdom, wrapped
in rollicking humor and touching pathos.
For his wit and humor he utilized a
style of delivery peculiarly original and
decidedly taking, while much that he
writes would pass for satire, if the hui
NOR In it did hot overshadow that
quality. His writings have never been
embittered with the gall of sarcasm,
sugar-coated, to make them go down,
with thin layer of humor. They are
pure humor all through, favored with
wit.
Eli Perkins is now "a years of age
He was born in a little place called
Eaten, in Madieon county, New York,
in 1910, Of parents not so poor as they
were honest.
Were as good liar az Eli Perkins
was at my age might go on and tell
how, early in childhood, he developed a
taste for punning, storytelling and
joking, refusing to &c to school, playing
hockey to 90 swimming in the mill race,
sneaking of to fish for bullheads on
Sunday morning instead of attending
divine worship, playing all sorts of
pranks on hapless people, and acting in
every way just "a some people naturally
suppose that very young humorists do.
But, happily, have NO such tale to tell.
Eli Perkins was good little boy. He
attended school very diligently, and
stood at the head of his class. And in
course of time he went to Madison uni
versity and then shortly entered Uniea
college. He graduated in the same
year that he cast his first vote, and two
years later had conferred upon him the
honorary degree of Master of Arts.
Shortly after his leave of studies he
sailed away from his native land, and
for two years roamsd over Europe and
Asia. He visited all the places of the
old world worth visiting and stored his
mind with knowledge OF one kind and
another, with a view to the literary life,
which he fondly desired.
He returned to his home in 1868,
took pen in hand and wrote history
of the Franco-Pruseian war. 1t wcs
good history, we'll written. and well
thought of by literary people, but
there were no lies in it, and its author
did not obtain nuch fame through its
publication.
Up to this time he had never told
lie-that 10, lie that could bs laughed
at, or that amounted to anything.
Artemus Ward once took Mark Twain
to one side, whore they would not be
overheard, and said: Clemens, have
done too much fooling, written too
much nonsense. l am going to reform
and write something good, something
that will be benefit to somebody and
will last"
What, fer instance ?" asked Mark.
"a lie |"
In 1872 Melville D. Landon decided to
try the Same thing. He made conf
dant of Maj. Hugh Hastings Of the New
York Commercial Advertiser, and the
major told him to 90 down to Saratoga
when the season was on and open up
his batteries. The Com msrcial Adver-
tiser printed his weekly letters, and its
grew amazingly. The letters
were signed by Eli Perkins, and nobody
knew who that WAS. But they all
agreed that he Was cheerful and even
Infamous liar, which was only another
way of saying that he had made q
decided hit as humorist. The
letters kept up all summer. They made
the paper immensely popular. When
he was done with Saratoga, Eli Per-
kins went around a little, writing up
people and places in his weird style,
and then went to New York when Shell
don & Co. published his letters in book
form and called the book Eli Perkins at
Large. 1t took as well as the letters,
and made the name of Eli Perkins
household word.
In 1872 LaAdon took to the lecture
field, travelling all over the United
States. making money, telling old lies
and contributing new ones to the Chics-
go Tribune.
He roamed around the literary field.
as it were, gathering all sorts of flowers
and presenting the results of his labors
to the public as bouquets in the shape of
books and sketches.
A jolly conciet, / recall. was his des.
cription of the travels of New Years.
day calling party. The article was not
humorous, simply descriptive, at fret.
but as Eli began to tell OF many calls
tho Aom ~ was