The Washington weekly post., 1899-05-09

HOIt1s YET lilr AdlA ANAA1A-t~
in his relatively brief reign he has been
made the victim of two koaxss or the
most ridiculous character. Thus. accord
Ing to the dispatches from Berlin. 1t has
Just been discovered that the DR.. Esser
whom the Kaiser received with so much
distinction last Christmas under the i'm
preston that he was a great explorer,
decorating him with the second class OF
the Order of the Crown and inviting him
TO dinner. by way OF recognition of his
alleged services TO geographical science.
is nothing more nor less than an impostor.
who has never even seen the places OF
which he drew such vivid word-pictu-es
for the benefit OF the Emperor, the En-
press. and of their court.
Still more audacious was the hoax
played upon the Emperor in the second
year OF his reign. A party of negroes ar
rived in Berlin, in charge of Herr Ehler.
who gave it to be understood that they
were chiefs of one of the most important
tribes of East Africa. and representatives
Of the high and mighty Sultan of Man
dara, an African potentate whose do
minions were at least equal in i'm
portance TO those Of the Sultans
of Morocco and Zanzibar. On the
strength of this they were entertained
in the most elaborate manner by the
Emperor. Not only did he receive them
at his court with the honors reserved for
full-fiedged Ambassadors, but he made
himself responsible for all the expenses
in connection with their stay at Berlin,
while at the military reviews and state
functions which took place during their
stay in the Prussian capital they occu-
pied places in the front row. 1t was only
several weeks after they had left Berlin
on their return to Africa, loaded with
gifts and decorated with Prussian orders,
that Il suddenly became known that the
negroes thus honored were men Of abso-
lutely no rank or Importance in their own
country. and that, far from being chiefs
or dgnitaries, they were ordinary ne
groes, who had been assigned by the
chief of the wretched village Of Man.
dara, to which they belonged, to act as
porters for the conveyance of the bag
gage of Herr Ehler 10 the coast. Ehler
imagined that il would further his inter-
ests and increase the Importance Of his
explorations in the eyes of the authOri-
ties at Berlin If he took four Of the
finest-looking of his black porters back
with him to Germany. Partly through
ignorance of the people on board the
steamer, and partly owing to the crowded
character of the steerage and informed
late cabins, they received saloon pas
sages. and thus it happened that by the
time they reached Europe an exaggerated
impression had been formed on board
with regard TO their rank and Importance.
On landing at Hamburg the local authori-
ties took 1t for granted that the men
must necessarily be dignitaries OF the
highest grade, and as this impression re-
suited in Herr Ehler being treated with
exceptional consideration and gaining all
sorts of official and diplomatic privileges.
he was careful not to disabuse the Prus-
sian government, or to reveal the true
condition of affairs.
A Dangerous Joke.
There were probably times during the
course of his stay at Berlin when he must
have considered that the joke had gone too
far. and have been alarmed as to the pos
sibility of the revelation of the real state
Of affairs But he trusted TO his luck,
which had never deserted him during all
the perilous adventures which he mad en-
oountered in the course of his African
travels; and then, too, ne remembered
that he had been classmate Of the En-
peror at Bonn and the lattecs companion
in many a merry student prank, so that
lie felt pretty certain that ne could rely
upon being treated by his sovereign with
a certain degree of leniency in the eveEt
of exposure
| have never heard what punishment
the Kaiser meted out % Ehler beyond
quietly erasing his name and those of his
negro attendants from the roster of the
Prussian orders of knighthOOd TO which
they had beer appointed. But Oh the
whole it was probably fortunate tnat the
explorer and his negroes were Oh the
high seas, and not on German vessel
when the Emperor discovered how ne had
been fooled. For if there is one thing
to which this brilliant and go-ahead SOW
ereign is susceptible, it is 20 ridicule, ana.
he was intensely irritated by the tun
which was poked at him in the German
end foreign newspapers in connection with
the affair.
There was no need. however. for his
being sensitive about the matter. For he
Is far frcm being the only ruler who has
been thus hoaxed. There is an old French
proverb which runs as follows: "a beau
mentir qui Went de loin7 Gle who comes
from afar is in an advantageous posi-
liOil ~ lCil JB oiiN SNO6A oFaAi~S~A S@@-
plorers, as we'll as people hailing from
exotic countries, are In consequence al
ways regarded with certain degree CT
suspicion by stay-at-Eomes. Thus il may
be remembered that when the African
explorer, Paul du Chaillu. first announced
the existence of the gorilla on his return
from the West Coast of Africa, he was
denounced as liar by one of the gentle
men seated on the platform in London
from which he was delivering his address,
Du Chaillu promptly proceeded 10 krock
down the individual who had expressed
doubts as TO his Veracity, a course of ac-
tion which, while il aroused a consider
able amount Of applause, old not tend 10
convince skepticS as to the existence of
the gorilla The African travellers who
! first reported the existence Of race OF
| pigTnies in the interior of Africa, and also
| 10 the south of the Atlas Range, in Nor
occo, were regarded as quite as big liars
as Du Chaillu until their assertions were
/ proved to be true many years later. and
were il not for the scars which young
/ Savage Landor is able 10 show, there are
| few people who would accord any Gre
dence 10 the story OF the extraordinary,
and at first sight improbable, torturcs 10
which he was subjected by the Thibetans
/ couple OF years ago. There are other
| instances. however. in which the skepti-
cism with which travellers tales are re-
ceiyed has been justified. Thus every one
/ Is aware of the extraordinary hoax play
/ ed recently, not only upon the English
public. but likewise upon some Of the
shrewdest newspaper men and cleVerest
gecgraphers and explorers OF Europe. by
/ the sol-disant DE Rougemont," whose
fantastic stories Of his alleged adventures
during the thirty years which he falsely
claims 10 have spent among the abOngi-
mes IN the interior OF Australia, remote
from civilization. are still running !n one
| OF the most popular Of London magazine
and remain the most attractive feature
OF the latter. although the man is shown
beyond doubt 10 be 4 fraud OF the mos;
colossal character.
Prince Hsnry's Mythical Explorations
There is a good deal Of justihable doubt
! too, with regard 10 the authenticity Of
the geographical explorations which
Prince Henry OF Orleans claims 20 hav.
made. and which many insist were oIit,
as mythical as the explorations Of IN,
German, DR. Ezser, mentioned at the be
ginning OF this letter as having hoaxef
the Kaiser. IL may be remembered that