The Humbugs of the World [Paperback]

Originally published in 1866, this book explores somes of the most bizarre hoaxes, adverts and scams of the nineteenth century.A tour of hoaxes, tricks and outrageous gimmicks, this book is the product of the American showman P. T. Barnum (181091), now famous for observing that 'every crowd has a silver lining'. First published in 1866, it provides an entertaining glimpse into the bizarre world of Victorian 'humbug'.A tour of hoaxes, tricks and outrageous gimmicks, this book is the product of the American showman P. T. Barnum (181091), now famous for observing that 'every crowd has a silver lining'. First published in 1866, it provides an entertaining glimpse into the bizarre world of Victorian 'humbug'.Ebenezer Scrooge's cry of 'Humbug!' is well known throughout the English-speaking world. But what did he mean? In this entertaining book, P. T. Barnum (181091), defines 'humbug' as 'glittering appearances by which to suddenly arrest public attention, and attract the public eye and ear'. A showman himself and the creator of 'The Greatest Show on Earth', Barnum was famous for his own tricks, and describes here some of the most fascinating and outrageous examples perpetrated in his time. He explores the cases of Mr Warren, who wrote an advertisement in enormous letters on the pyramids of Giza, and the Fox daughters, who caused a stir among spiritualists in New York when they held seances with tapping spirits  in fact their own cracking knee joints. First published in 1866, this tour of Victorian humbug, fraud, superstition and quackery will appeal to social historians and readers interested in nineteenth-century popular culture.Publisher's note; Introduction; Part I. Personal Reminiscences: 1. General view of the subject; 2. Definition of the word humbug; 3. Monsieur Mangin, the French humbug; 4. Old Grizzly Adams; 5. The golden pigeons; 6. The whales, the angel fish, and the golden pigeon; 7. Pease's horehound candy; 8. Brandreth's pills; Part II. The Spiritualistsl²