The Facts of Death

In May of 1897, the editors of the New York Journal got wind that Mark Twain was ill. This information turned out not to be correct. In a letter to the Journal correspondent who contacted him about the matter, Twain assured him that it was certainly the illness of a cousin with the Clemens surname that had led to the confusion. As an aside, the last line of the letter is often misquoted out of ignorance or for humorous emphasis.

“I can understand perfectly how the report of my illness got about, I have even heard on good authority that I was dead. James Ross Clemens, a cousin of mine, was seriously ill two or three weeks ago in London, but is well now. The report of my illness grew out of his illness.

The report of my death was an exaggeration.”

The dictionary defines "hearsay" as rumors and claims or information that is unsubstantiated.

But when those rumors about are about death or dying, one might call them "hearse say."