El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-11-23

I
the photograph was at its height. a
number of years ago. the New York
Graphic came out with a grave an
nouncement to the effect that Edison
had discovered a process for converting
water into wine and ordinary earth in
to cereal-like food. Newspapers all
over the country accepted the state
ment as true. printing editorials on the
subject which were subsequently re-
produced by the Graphic under the de-
risive head They Bite"
How Hook Made Berners Street
Famous.
| One of the most famous of its kind
was the Berners street hoax. perpetrat-
| ed by Theodore Hook. One day. in the
year 1909. he was walking with friend
| through Berners sereet in London. and
remark was made upon the excep-
tional uuietness OF the neighborhood.
Hook always ready for bet and
| Jest though frequently the latter had
no small ingredient of malice. pointed
out the house of a respectable shop
keepers window on the opposite side of
the way the door of which bore her
name on a plate. and offered a wager
that he would wake the modest dwell
ing within a week the most talked of
house in London
The wager being accepted Hook went
home and devoted the next four days to
writing several hundred letters. signed
with the widows name. to tradesmen
and persons of various conditions of
life. Then he hired house opposite
the widows residence. and from the
front windows he and his friend en-
joyed the subsequent proceedings.
which were remarkable enough. mas
much as, on the day appointed for the
NIB To-
so peaceful. became just the busiest
and noisiest place in the metropolis.
Vans loaded with pianos, undertakers'
carts with coffins. vehicles bringing
every imaginable kind of merchandise
jammed the little thoroughfare. Pas
try cooks with wedding cakes. butchers
with meats. and greengrocers \ with
their produce pushed and scrambled.
The throng was dense. In the midst
of il the Lord Mayor drove up in his
state coach, followed by member OF
the cabinet. a governor of the Bank of
England. the Lord hief Justice. the
Archbishop of Canterbury. and finally |
his Royal Highness the Commander |
in-Chief. |
The tradesmen. of course. had been |
drawn by imaginary orders. but the in |
genuity exercised in the composition OF |
the letters which fetched the great per- |
In the case of the Lord 1
Mayor. for instance. an appeal repre-
sentin gthat the writer was dying. and
that she had a communication to make
on oath which could only be addressed
to the Lord Mayor in person. was the
bait that served. Incidentally to the
affair. a great deal of damag was done.
some persons being hurt. while casks
of ale. sent for delivery were broken
I'm no CT cd
loafers who joined the mob.
A Famous Bull Movement in the Cat
Market.
Somewhat similar in character. and
happily less injurious 20 the victims.
was the cat hoax. perpetrated in the
English town of Chester. News had
Just been received that Napoleon Bona II
Darte was to be taken to the Island of
St. Helena. and popular interest in the (;
natter was necessarily great. 1t was
n August 1915. and handbills were dis
Throughout the city. stating
hat the island was dreadfully infested I
With rats. and that the government {
lad determined to clean them out. The
advertiser had been appointed to pur- I
base cats and kittens for this purpose. I
nd he offered sixteen shillings for I
very full-grown tom-cat. ten shil1ings
or every adult female puss. and half 7
crown for every thriving kitten that $
ould swill milk. pursue a ball OF S
bread. or fasten its fangs in dying (
mousse" "
Now the chief element of success in e
hoax is that il shall be new. Such a
n advertisement would excite sus- d
icion at once nowadays. but up to '
hat time no cheat of the kind had n
cen attempted II was absolutely {
To- &c on l.
The address given by the advertiser e
'as that, of an empty house. to which r
hree Thousand or more cats were Il
rought on the appointed day u
Mythical Literary Treasures.
In 1910 was published the catalogue F
Z the Fortsas Library. alleged to be O
ne collection oft he late Count j. N A. il
ortsas. of Binche. in Belgium. The d
brary was to be offered for sale ac- c
ording to the announcement. and II
ontained only fifty-two books. But Il
very one of these books was absolute p
unique So peculiar had been the n
I'd of the late count that. II the title y
I one of his books turned up in any fl
ublished catalogue he discarded 1t IL
/ once though he might have paid its n
eight in gold for it,
The Titles of the fifty-two works II
the Fortsas collection were W
lntalizing and orders for their pur- &
nase came from all parts of Europe. b
he Princess de Ligne ordered number s.
,rty-eight at any price-a book en- o
tied A Catalogue More Than Curious r.
the Love Affairs of the Prince de
igne. II was a period OF excitement
n librarians and bibliophiles all over y
urope. who contended with each 9TH e
r by all sorts of strateeems for the h
OF the literary treasures s