The age-herald., 1900-12-27
IN HOTEL LORBIES
 AND ELSEWHERE

Thou wilt quarrel and get to law, thy affairs will go wrong and thou wilt travel. or change and meet very bad fortune; keep myself quiet"
 "A child born on this day will be rash, headstrong and unsteady, and nearly al- ways in some mischief; if a female, un- happy in marriage or perhaps will not marry at all."
 Astrologer Raphaels prophecies for Fri- day, December 2S, 1900:
 This day is unfortunate for all pur- poses"
 Thou art threatened with heavy losses, this being thy birthday; see that thou dost not speculate or run any risks with thy money; look to thy health, else it may suf- fer"
 "A child born on this day should keep in employ; it will be extravagant, careless and generally poor; if female, very un- fortunate in wedlock."
 
 "In no land of the world could there be three days more beautiful, consecutiYely or widely seperated, than were Christmas eve. Christmas Day and the day following yesterday" said man who has travelled much.
 "The weather was faultless in its won derfully brilliant sunshine and its clear. bracing atmosphere. There was not a cloud to be seen, day or night, and over coats and heavy wraps were unnecessary. Yesterday working men were seen in the streets in their shirt sleeves, and but for a certain chilliness in the air the day might have been borrowed from early May
 Probably not a person in the valley mentally associates Christmas with bright sunlight; most of us think of 1t asa day of rain and slush and general disagree ableness to outward seeming; a few asso- ciate 1t with snow and frost-all have the impression of lowering clouds and unbrok- en gloominess outdoors. And so this Christmas has been beautiful beyond all our dreams of fair Christmases. Probably there is not a person in this valley who experienced here three such radiant days that included Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and St. Stephens day; and maybe not one now living here will ever have such delightful experience again
 Thus the Christmas just gone takes it's place in local history; and it is also record ed as the busiest Christmas in trade ever known by this people. and, alas! the wild est, most lawiess, and most degradingly licentious in respect to the morals of the peoplei
 'rhe incomparabIe splendor of our De- cember sun lighted unexampled prosperity, and it also lighted unexampled vice?
 
 A co-worker in the efforts of the Alabama Historical Society to prosper in its high work said in a leisure moment yesterday: ''The State seems to have taken to heart the exposure of it's record of what we call illiteracy. That Is sign of good things to come but what is public education in its largest meaning? Institutional, you say? Yes, institutional, and the saving feature Of our social life is multiplication of in- stitutions. What would the Protestants be without the Epworth League, the Brother hood of St. Andrew, and so on? What would the Catholics be without their sub organizations, their charity, their hospi- tals, and the like? Who does not know that the Womans Club, the Commercial Club and all of that class of sub-organiza- tions are better for Birmingham than the Mayor and Aldermen? So let us stand pat for our social institutions, the free public school among them. Some need help from one source and some from another.
 This is what I want to say: The Gen. eral Assembly of 1878 created a commission of five members to investigate and report on the practicability of collecting data for an adequate history of the State That work has been well done. The report Is now in the printers hands. have seen the MS. The sources and materials are of the most satisfactory character. Has od, cator? Certainly nothing is more impor- tant to public education in Alabama today that correct history of the State. We have made fairly good provision for teach ing our youths logarimths physiology, botany, geology, elocution and the whole known curriculum of scholastic subjects, but what use did their forefathers make of knowledge? The excellency of knowi- edge is, it gives wisdom to those who have it.. said King Solomon. History assuredly repeats itself. Therefore let us study his- tory, to cultivate in our hearts devotion to truth and love of valor Let us have public monument here in Alabama to the truth and the valor that has been lived up to by our forefathers. Let us build up an institution Sad call it the State Depart ment of History Why not? No man can say he is educated to the length of his tether. He falls short very much.
 
 "Go ahead with your primary schools; give peace and plenty to your University. but give to the hungry grown people who pay the taxes, make new constitutions for the State and compose the clubs, the militia and the church congregations a fair chance to continue their education. Build up right now by legislative enact ment a State Department of History Give it some little money necessary to live on, and it will demonstrate for itself its power an educator AS things have been, the best man in Alabama could hope for no reward after his ftful season of work here had closed, Death that stilled the throbbing of his true heart. death that spread its pail over his mighty brain, closed his fame for ever and ever! It that fate due to him? No; let the people forbid