The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-09-08

! tivity in the German empire. In fact so- cialism is spreading more rapidly in the old world than in the new. This Is per- haps on account of the economic condi- tions existing in European countries which. happily are unknown in this coun- try. The only material for socialism to work on in the United States is the war of capital and labor, and perhaps certain features of our political system. but neither is yet an evil enough pronounced to cause very grave alarm for the nations future welfare.
 Bishop Joyce of Minneapolis favors ee- tablshing a chair of common sense in theological schools. His suggestion would apply equally well to all educational in- stitutions in the country. As he points out, young men are frequently handi- capped in the race of life by too much book learning It has been often remarked that the bookworms at college and those who are remarkable for their scholastic attachments are frequently sadly lacking in common sense. Too close application to studies develops the dreamer a creat- ure utterly helpless in the maelstrom of life, where all is stern reality. Although the bishops suggestion has an element of humor there Is no doubt that such a chair would be a great benefit Of course it would be difficult matter to teach common sense by the usual pedagogic methods, but the idea is to give a young student an opportunity to absorb more practical views of life instead of cramming his mind with the lumber classic of dead languages, abstruse sciences and impossi- ble philosophy.
 Next year the "Divine sarah' will ap- pear in new play by the Marquis de Castellane, entitled "The Feast of Death" The name is sufficiently grue- some in itself and the story is of that creepy variety which delights the artis- tic soul of Bernhardt The time is that of the revolution and the hero is a cap tain of the national guard who is con- fined in the Lazarre prison under a sen- tence of death. Just before he goes to greet Dame Guillotine he obtains perrnis- sion to give a feast in his cell to which his wife and several friends are invited Bernhardt plays the part of the wife. '"The Feast of Death" is in one act andis prose. The merits of the play remain to be tested but it is safe to say that Bernhardt will be able to make it suf- ficiently interesting by the magic of her consummate acting.
 After being heralded by a great deal of humorous discussion the pneumatic
 
 ton man has patented a device called a "pneumatic gum which will revolu- tionize the game if 1t proves successful. The gun consists mainly of rubber tube slightly larger than an average baseball and a storage tank of compressed air The ball Is shot out of this tube and by holding the nozzle" one can direct the sphere to any desired part of the plate. Curves are produced by a mysterious cap at the rear of the tube which im- parts a twisting motion. Four foot curves upshoots of foot or more, ins. out drops and all kinds of "puzzlers' can be produced with ease. It will be consol- ing news for quaking human twirlers that the new machine is not designed for service in games. It will merely be used for practicing batters. The pitch ing director" who will operate the ma- chine, will be supplied with ball with which to watch the bases but the mo- ment the machine shoots "bender" into home the ball in his hand becomes dead As a trainer of batters there is no doubt that the pitching machine will be a bowling success but during game it would never be able to awaken any am- ount of enthusiasm among the fans. It is too mechanical There would be no possible hope for the uncanny thing to become rattled of Ego to pieces and throw the game away. Therefore it is probable that the human pitcher will be undisturbed by his new rival for some time to come. P. C.