Were you Fuhled?

In answer to Tuesday's most-asked question: No, a consortium of mattress manufacturers is not coming to town.

That means the 3,000 jobs paying $130,000 cash and unbelievable benefits are, in fact, unbelievable.

The yarn that ate up front-page space in yesterday's Press? Borrowing a term from mattress makers everywhere, the story was fabricated. It was a prevarication of profound proportions. And it was an annual excursion into what we hope is just good, clean fun, even for readers who swallowed the tale hook, line and sinker.

This is the 10th consecutive year we've gone fishing on April Fools' Day. Staff writer April Fuhl made her debut on April 1, 2005, with a story headlined, "Spring ca$h crop harvested," and subheadlined: "Experts are shocked to find that money really does grow on trees." The story of a money tree being discovered in Kootenai County was accompanied by a doctored photo of an otherwise bare tree bearing bills. According to the caption: "This money tree was discovered Thursday on the Rathdrum Prairie. Larger bills seem to be closer to the top."

We remember that story with relish, although it's more like rancid mustard to staffers in our circulation department. Hundreds of readers called in that day, and most, but not all, were able to chuckle when they learned that they'd been pranked.

Every year since then on 4/1, Ms. Fuhl has gleefully fanned the flames of folly. And every year, some readers get burned. So it was yesterday with the spoof on North Idaho's work ethic.

Those looking for deep meaning in our motives are bound to be disappointed. We suppose there's something to be said for questioning everything you read, particularly these days, when bogus info masquerading as fact abounds on the Internet.

But the truth is, we put a lot of stock in the power of laughter, and that's our annual April 1 objective. When smiles crack the granite countenances of angry people or vaporize the gloom of sad expressions, magic happens. Peace prevails, more gets done and everything looks a little brighter and better. You feel like you own a money tree.