The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-11-07
COMMENTS ON MEN AND
 MATTERS OF THE WORLD

made themselves famous in literature are not entitled to their honors. The old con- troversy regarding Bacon and Shake speare has been threshed over so many times that 1t has become frightfully tedious, especially to those who cannot be convinced that the Bard of Avon did not write his famous plays. Another au- thor who has been accused many times of plagiarizing is Edgar Allen Poe. Since he wrote a masterpiece called The Raven disgruntled critics rise up now and then in an effort to prove that he stole the poem from some one else. One will say that he stole the idea, another the words, another the meter, and still another the refrain. One of the best known discussions in regard to the au- thentcty of "The Raven was that over a newspaper poem which appeared about the time Poe wrote "The Raven" It ia similar to Poes masterpiece. Now comes another array of carpers who claim to have found the original of ''The Raven
 in a Chinese poem written by Chia about two thousand years before the Christian era. But what good does all this discussion? Even if Poe did not origi- nate "The Raven," he was certainly cap able of doing so. No one cares to ques- ton his genius, and he was the only man who could give the poem to the world in its finished form.
 President Roosevelt is keeping remark ably quiet these days. After the result
 f,, York he has just cause to ruminate in- stead of talk, but even before that time he suddenly stopped saying much to the papers on current topics. Perhaps he thinks that he has dispensed enough hot air for this year and will attend strictly to business now that congress will soon be in session. During the past six months MT. Roosevelt has certainly done enough talking to last awhile. What with his political speeches, his numerous address, es on public occasions. and his sermons on godliness, he has turned out a vast number of words And what is more in- teresting he has said very little after all. It was a stupendous feat of generalizing with no commitments. But MT. Roosevelt is either a most unlucky individual or else a most independent one, for he is always doing something to stir up talk in the country Everyone was preparing to stop discussing the Washington dinner when he must give another start to the para graphers by entertaining negro sailors in the White House. When it Is not the race question it is race suicide or something else, and so the President manages to keep his name in the papers very near ly all the time.
 Newspaper writers are already prepar- ing to lay Tom Johnson away the shelf. For many months the Clevelandite has been a live topic for discussion, but now he has become a back number of the most pronounced type. As an evil dence of this nothing further Is needed than a glance at the captions of edi- torials like "The Death of Johnson" "Johnsons Fall" and "The Last of the Circus" That circus tent and the big red automobile seem to have been too much for voters and they turned to the quiet dignity of Uncle Mark. They might perhaps have stood for the tent but the automobile was too much and both taken together were staggering dose. After all it pays a politician to make show of dignity if he has it not, and con- servative methods always appeal strong est to the people, Although rant and blz- arre methods will always draw crowds they do not always draw voters and this seems to have been the case in Ohio. Johnson is picturesque figure in Amer ican life and he made a strong fight in the Buckeye state, but he does not seem to be the man of the hour-of this hour at any rate. P. c.