AN ABUSE
Observer, Rōrahi XI, Putanga 717, 24 Mahuru 1892, Page 12
Mō tēnei niupepa
AN ABUSE
THE STOBiY OF A STEAMSHIP MONQBOLZo.
It is extremely common now-a-daya to find many what are really advertisements pure and simple served up to the public in the guise of attractively- written articles, usually headed in some very taking manner. This has been brought about by the fact that the old-fashioned style of advertisement writing will not do much good to any but the newspaper or magazine proprietors. How often have we all been drawn into careful perusal of some glowing account of hair-breath escape, interesting political essay, or something else calculated to arrest attention, to find at the end, alas ! that the article is nothing but what is vulgarly termed a patent medicine 'fake.' Eeaders are gradually becoming more and more wary, and, woman-like, instinctively, glance at the conclusion of suspicious looking articles before reading j but even then they are sometimes decoyed into their perusal. To assute oneself of the extent to which this system of advertising is now carried on, let the reader take up almost any newspaper and mark the paragraphs which are really news in the proper sense of the term, and those, which are in reality nothing but mere puffs. The reader will in the majority of instances find that nearly always there are about an equal number of each. If not exactly so, the advertisement division has it. But. there is one form in which advertising in paragraph form is both interesting and certainly legitimate — that is, in such cases as where the goods advertised are intro~ duced fairly in, say, an account descriptive of methods of manufacture, means by which adulterations or shams in manu-^ facture and the like can be detected;, above all, particular care being taken to. avoid any unpleasant or unjust remarks, regarding the goods produced by opposition manufacturers. It is in such praise-, worthy manner that Shakiand's Baking Powdeb is kept before readers of this, journal, and will be so until everyone in the colony has tried a tin of the ' Moa '• brand, a trade mark which most happily if phonetically pronounces what will be the result if tried. More will be required most assuredly, and the readers of the advice regarding that important compound baking powder which is now/ found in every household where food,, cakes and pastry are desired,, will find themselves well possessed, of some useful knowledge of what they are in the habit of using. Why with the' Moa ' brand even the traditionary newly wedded wife who is supposed in everyinstance to bring forward the traditionary cake of constitution most indigestible ; yes,, even she will produce a most delightful cake which will make her husband thenceforward a decided unbeliever of the traditionary joke 3 regarding newly- wedded foils, and even of the traditionary mother-in-, law.
