The age-herald., 1900-11-17
SKETCHES FROM
 EVERYDAY LIFE

Bishop Hendrix of Kansas City who re- l gently visited Birmingham, has in his pos | session the original Journal of John Wes- l ley, made at Savannah in 1736 and 1737 This is a lie book small enough to slip in the pocket. The entries are in wesley's own handwriting and were made from | hour to hour. From the notes in this little book he wrote out in a somewhat extended form what is known as John Wesley's Journal.
 This original note book is well preserved and the writing is 1egible. Each day be- gins with the entry: "Rose at a. m, pri- vate prayers and meditation" Then hour by hour follow the events of the day his thoughts and impressions He would re- tire about or 10 o'clock
 John Wesley was truly a wonderful man. The fact that he began the days work at o'clock in the morning would establish this if he u.s.n nothing else But there was never an idle moment with him. He was always employed and besides the many sermons he preached he wrote about 400 | volumes during his life. With him origi- mated the Iuea of the Sunday-schoo1, and nearly all of the great enterprises of the | modern church had their germ or sugges-
 
 tion of what can be accomplished by cease less industry.
 Birmingham is tight shoe to it's popula- tion-there is not room enough for the members The Birmingham shoe was built for foot that has outgrown it. and the result is that people are crowded and cramped and uncomfortable The stua- tion is like the old woman who lived in d shoe and who had so many children she knew not what to do
 What every one is waiting and hoping for is that the shoe may burst and give the people heel and toe room. This is bound to happen in course of time Some day there WI be a loud hurrah and noise, and it will be found that the city has burst it's linn it's and become place of 00UJ0 people in- stead of 65, ,0OO
 Old towns like an old shoe, are easier to live in than the new. A new place has to be broken in to it's people or the people to it, while in ap old community everything has found it's place, and all Jog along comfort ably and at ease. Every one knows noth- ing unusual is going to happen, every one knows all about every one else. Strangers are so rare to excite interest; peace and quiet reign supreme, and you may hark, hark, but not even the dogs will bark, though the beggars come to town.
 A new city is of necessity d place of noise and confusion. The town is filled with strangers from the four quarters of the earth. and an old citizen attracts the same curiosity and speculative interest as the stranger in the old community. Everything ;,, rT,1. town cannot grow as fast as the people, and the result is crowdlng and discomfort. Everyone is too busy to enjoy life.
 Of course each to his taste Those that are fond of old shoe life can go to an old town and live in quiet and comfort. But nine men out of ten will prefer a new shoe to an old one, and thus 1t Is that all roads lead to Birmingham, which is a new shoe warranted to last. It is, however, rather a dusty shoe at present
 
 'It Is a pity" said a citizen yesterday "to invite a distinguished man to lecture and have 8 crowd of sixty-five people for an audience. Yet this is what recently hap pened in a hall not thousand miles from Birmingham. A famous man who came there from a distance at considerable ex- pense and gave lecture for charitable pur- poses had about half company for an audience In his time thousands have lis tened and obeyed when he spoke and spoke words that put them to great h&rdships and caused them to risk great danger. Yet when time came when he spoke to cause pleasure and entertainment there were not enough people in the hall to break the echo from the walls.
 "A theatre or large hall always appears more empty with a small audience than when it is really vacant. The rows of unoc- cupied seats are like vacant chairs at a banquet. They speak with pathetic elo- quence of the absent ones. It would tainly make the actor or orator feel bet ter if public halls had a drop curtain in the hall itself which could be let down and thus shut off the vacant part of the hall, some what the idea of a dining table which can be stretched or closed up to accom- modate whatever number is desired.
 Another odd incident about lectures is that no one has ever yet been able to place the lecturers table to his satisfaction, just as no one has ever been able to place hat comfortably on another mans head. Both the hat and the table always need some slight adjustment.
 Speaking of small audiences" he con- tinued recalls story told on Mark Twain. He was featuring at a town out west and before the lecture was over he got telegram from another lecturer who was to lecture there the following night, asking him to make certain announce ment to the audience.
 Mark wrote him in reply that he was just about to make the announcement to the audience when he got up and went out.'
 
 Another Outbreak.