Collected in a book called _The Travels of Baron Munchausen_ is a series
of the most extravagant stories imaginable. No one can possibly believe
them to be true, and yet when we are reading them they do not appear so
absurdly ridiculous as they seem afterward when we think of them. The
book is said to have been written by a German named Rudolph Erich Raspe,
but we cannot be sure of it, as there are no proofs. It is said, too,
that there was a German officer, a Baron Hieronymous Karl Friedrich
Munchausen who lived in the early part of the eighteenth century and who
told such marvelous stories that he was very popular among his fellow
officers and that his stories have been collected in a book. The book
appeared first in 1793, and some have believed that it was written to
ridicule the books of travel which had appeared from time to time, some
of which contained narratives not much less incredible than some of the
Baron's fanciful tales. It is probable, however, that the book is merely
a collection of very old stories with many newer ones included among
them, and that it was written solely for entertainment.
The Baron always insists upon the strict truthfulness and accuracy of
his stories and grows quite indignant when his veracity is questioned.
To verify his words he printed the following notice at the beginning of
his book:
_TO THE PUBLIC:_--Having heard, for the first time, that my adventures
have been doubted, and looked upon as jokes, I feel bound to come
forward, and vindicate my character _for veracity_, by paying three
shillings at the Mansion House of this great city for the affidavits
hereto appended.
This I have been forced into in regard of my own honor, although I have
retired for many years from public and private life; and I hope that
this, my last edition, will place me in a proper light with my readers.