The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1903-07-01

IR THOMAS Upton says that
~ his efforts to lift the cup this
- year will cost him more than 3d.
100000. This is a neat little sum to spend
on any kind Of sport but Sir Thomas is a
wealthy man and can well afford to spend
even more for the purpose of satisfying
his sporting proclivities. Some malicious
persons have accused the doughty yachts
man of getting his moneys worth In free
advertising. which he finds Of great assis-
lance in booming his tea trade, but be
that as 1t may, he is a true sportsman
and a pleasant one and there are many
people in this country who would be glad
TO see him win the coveted trophy.
Another advantage of the great race will
be the strengthening of the ties of friend
ship between England and the United
States. Sir Thomas is by far the most
popular yacht oyner who has ever con-
tested honors with this country and
should he lose, which seems very prob
able, he will take his defeat with a good
grace.
Many humorous stories have been told
of the effect on illiterate minds of such
of Goethes Faust" By far the most
comieal feature of a performance of
Faust Is the manner In which the col
ored part Of the audiences greets the ap-
pearance of his Satanic Majesty. Negroes
always flock to the galleries to see this
play and seem to take boundless delight
In the lurid antics of the devil. In the
audience bursts forth into frequent ex-
pressions of fear or wonder.
During the recent presentation of 1.-THE
Last Days of Pompeii'' in Birmingham the
terror of the populace fleeing before We
suvius' wrath was very realistic during
the first few nights. The supernumer-
aries picked up about town to play the
parts of Pompeiian citizens had probably
never officiated In such a capacity be-
fore and were not prepared for the thun-
derous upheaval which inaugnrated the
eruption. When the fireworks began to
boom and the rockets to shoot slxyward
they were seized with a panic and made
mad break for safety, which the audi
ence considered very fine piece of act
ing. The regular employees of the show
ran after the fleeing "supes' and succeed
ed in stopping them before they had got
ten beyond the confines of the scenic
city.
The story Is told that a maid servant
in London went to see Dante at Drury
Lane theatre. On her return the mis-
tress asked how she enjoyed the play
"Oh, num-" she answered, 1T was so
'orrid to see such a lot Of nice gentle
men all 'ot in ELL" On one occasion
Sir Henry Irving was rehearsing Faust"
The stage manager became exasperated
at the lack of interest displayed by the
supernumeraries and exclaimed wrath
fully, Gentlemen, kindly remember that
you are not on Hamstead Heath. but in
hell"
Preparations are now being made in
England for the great tariff struggle
which will begin In the autumn. The
nations Of the world are looking on with
marked degree of interest and Uncle
Sam is an especially attentive spectator.
The English politicians are looking for
ward to battle Of giants, with Cham
berlain and Balfour as the leaders. Judg-
ing from public opinion in England Mr..
Chamberlain will have very poor chances
for success In his new departure of pro-
lection. There seems to be a general
prejudice against upsetting the old order
of things and a desire to stick to free
troda Ae a 1rornfnart ufnolfst y,arcbant
stated in an interview IN Washington yes
terday the English people are afraid that
the new policy will increase the cost of
bread without giving the working man
an increase of wages.
An interesting feature Of the campaign