The Washington herald., 1907-07-28

peace In the newspaper world or Amer
/ lea. That was when there was only one
paper in Boston and not another on the
continent When the second journal was
started in Boston an editorial war was
Immediately precipitated. As long as
/ personal Journalism prevailed the rivalry
among newspapers took the form of edl-
torial abuse of the enemy, but when the
modern newspaper came into being. the
battle ground was removed from the edi-
torial page to the news columns and the
circulation statement. The deliberate
newspaper hoax was born OF the bitter
fight between newspapers Of one class
and another in the old days. The inten-
tionai fake" as a wholly untrue or
grossly exaggerated news item is called
4 in newspaper slang. WAS born Of the de-
sire Of the reporters to keep up with
the demand for news. and at the same
time escape the tiresome "1eg-work" nee
essary to find It,
Richard a. Locke wrote the first great
newspaper hoax for the New York Sun
/ II, appeared January 10 1883. The article
{
ment TO the Edinburgh Philosophical
Journal Il described a wonderful tele-
scope which had been invented by the
eminent astronomer. Sir John HerscheI.
and set forth that Sir John had taken
his telescope 70 the Cape of Good Hope
ana there leveIed it on the moon. The in
habltants Of the moon were plainly to
be seen, being half way between a man
and an orang-outang. and having wings
+ ike "a bat. The article was replete with
technical phrases and had the stamp OF
scientific style.
Next day the staid sixpeHny Press swal-
lowed tie bait, hook and all One editor
declared that he also had received dis
patches telling Of Sir johns great dis
cOyeTieS in the moon. which would be
given to the public as soon IS possible
The editor of the Albany Advertiser de-
cl4red he read 'wt tn Unspeakable emo
lions Of pleasure and establishment" Of
the Herschel discoveries in an Edinburgh
scientific journal The hoax deceived
many men Of science and was quite gem
orally accepted by the multitude until il
was exposed by the elder James Gordon
Bennett OF the Herald.
Nine years later Edgar Allen Poe was
employed on the staff OF the New York
sun. and he was responsible for the sec
0nd great hoax IN that paper It appeared
one morning under startling headlines:
Astounding News by Express via Nor
f0lk! The Atlantic 8Crossed in Three
Days, Signal Triumph Of Mr. Monck
Masons Flying Machinet" The article
told Of the adventures Of Mr. Mason and
seven others who set out from England
in the steering balloon Victoria" and
safely passed over 70 Virginia In seventy
1--WE hours This story was also generally
believed by the public. but the otner new
papers bad begun to fear the inventive
genius Of tie sun staff, and they did not
bite
The deliberate setting Of a trap 10 catch
another paper stealing news IS a legacy
from the sedate Sixpennv Press. and was
used before Mr.. Bennett corrupted and
reformed the journalism Of the States.
The ship Ajax was due from Europe. The
Louisville Courier printed a postscript an
nouncing the arrival of the vessel. and
giving a summary Of the news Of Europe
which she had brought ever. a few
copies Of this paper were left on the door
steps in the neighborhod Of the rival
Journal Office Then the regular edition OF
the Courier was printed without the Ajax
news. The Journal found the papers.
suspected nothing. and printed in large
display the supposed transatlantic news
received by the Ajax. OF course the A jax
had not come, and the news was faxed.
Many similar incidents are told Of tricks
worked by newspapers Of TODAY to trap
a pirate sheet
When Horace Greelcy's New Yorl, Trib-
une was young and good copy" was
hard TO get its distinguished editor
sought 70 cater 10 the literary tastes Of
lis readers by publishing serially Mr..
Dickens novel "Barnaby Rudge" This
was al well enough except that Robert
Bonner had been put TO great expense
10 get "Barnaby Rudge" for the New
FORK Ledger, then the leading weekly
story paper Of the country. The Ledger.
Ike all weekly magazines. was dated
three or four days ahead, a copy dated
saturday being on sale the preceding
Wednesday Mr. Greeley's paper pub
lished the weekly installment of the
novel on Thursdays Mr. Bonner loudly
objected. Mr.. Greeleys paper calmly re-
piled that Mr. Bonner's charges were all
sard, for was not the story published in
The Tribune Of date two DAYS earlier
than that of the Ledger? Instead Of the
Tribune being guilty of theft the Ledger
was plainly the offender. Whereupon
Mr.. Bonner wrote a fake" chapter of
'Banaby Rudge" in which he turned
characters upside down and knocked the
plot salley-west. The Tribune faithfully
reprinted it. Then the Ledger exposed
the steal and the Tribune was Caught
with the goods
Hoaxes Of Iatter-day journalism as
distinguished from the ordinary news
fake Of commerce. have been gotten up
merely for fun. The most prolific source
of "whoppers' for twenty years was Joe
Mulhatton, commercial traveller in the
Middle West until a few years age. Null
hatton sloried in the reputation Of being
the biggest liar in the world. and he
would go to any extent to save that rep-
utation One Of his best known hoaxes
was the working monkey story.
He declared that Dir. James Guthrie. a
prominent farmer Of Shelbyville, Ky. had
solved the labor problem by putting mon
keys to work breaking hemp. Mr.. Guthrie
had been IN Africa, where he found a
family OF monkeys in which the initiative
faculty was highly developed. They were
strong and healthy, and Mr.. Guthrie
brought. several Of them back to Ken
tuc5y. It was necessary only to show the
Monkey how to break hemp, and he would
Immediately initiate the process and keen
UP the work until forced to stop. There
was no loaing on the job, no talking or
smOklng-the monkeys were much su
periOr to men. The country credited the
story. and A;r. Guthrie received many let
ters from people who wanted information