The humbugs of the world [Paperback]

Phineas Taylor Barnum (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 3, 2009

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: and grows less and less so in proportion to the spresd of real Christianity. .This religion promotes good sense, actual knowledge, contentment with what we cannot help, and the exclusive use of intelligent means for increasing human happiness and decreasing human sorrow. And whenever the time shall come when men are kind and just and honest; when they only want what is fair and right, judge only on real and true evidence, and take nothing for granted, then there will be no place left for any humbugs, either harmless or hurtful." Chapter n. DEFINITION OF THE WORD HUMBUG. WARREN OF LONDON. GENIN, THE HATTER. GOSLING'S BLACKING. Upon a careful consideration of my undertaking to give an account of the " Humbugs of the World," I find myself somewht puzzled in regard to the true definition of that word. To be sure, Webster says that humbug, as a noun, is an " imposition under fair pretences ; " and as a verb, it is " to deceive ; to impose on." With all due deference to Doctor Webster, I submit that, according to present usage, this is not the only, nor even the generally accepted definition of that term. We will suppose, for instance, that a man with " fair pretences " applies to a wholesale merchant for credit jn a largebill of goods. His " fair pretences " comjrehend an assertion that he is a moral and religious man, a member of the church, a man of wealth, etc., etc. It turns out that he is not worth a dollar, but is a base, lying wretch, an impostor and a cheat. He is arrested and imprisoned " for obtaining property under falso pretences " or, as Webster says, " fair pretences." He is punished for his villainy. The public do not call him a " humbug; " they very properly term him a swindler. A man, bearing the appearance of a gentleman in djess and manners, purchases ...

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: General Books LLC (August 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1458923533
• ISBN-13: 978-1458923530
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)

Customer Reviews

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A classic review of snake oil salesmen and other charlatans, December 19, 2005

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This review is from: Humbugs of the World (Paperback)

Phineas Taylor Barnum (July 5, 1810 - April 7, 1891), American showman who is best remembered for his entertaining hoaxes and for founding the circus that eventually became Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus.

In Brooklyn, New York in 1871, he established "P.T. Barnum's Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan, and Circus", a traveling amalgamation of circus, menagerie and museum of "freaks", which by 1872 was billing itself as "The Greatest Show on Earth".

There's a sucker born every minute" is a phrase often credited to P.T. Barnum. However, when Barnum's biographer tried to track down when Barnum had uttered this phrase, all of Barnum's friends and acquaintances told him it was out of character. Barnum's credo was more along the lines of "there's a customer born every minute" -- he wanted to find ways to draw new customers in all the time because competition was fierce and people bored easily

Barnum wrote several books, including The Humbugs of the World (1865), Struggles and Triumphs (1869), and his Autobiography (first in 1854, and later editions including 1869).

Barnum is a treat to read and is never boring! I highly recommend his books.