The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-11-06
COMMENTSON MEN AND
 MATTERS OF THE WORLD

some for pay, some for pittance and some most gladly for nothing at all It has been estimated that there are 23,OO0 per sons in the United States who write steadily for all kinds of publications, but this seems to be far below the real num- Der who thirst for literary honors and emoluments In every city. town. vil- lage, and hamlet in the country it is safe to say there are persons turning out copy. Some of 1t is good, but most of it is bad. Even at this, those who are suc- cessfu make a great army while those who fall could not be counted. Also it is said that publishing houses turned out s0,00O books last year. At this rate we will have to leave the task of reading them to future generation, and we would be well rid of the job, for most of these productions belong to that class sometimes called popular" Unhappy editors of magazines are buried beneath tons of manuscripts so that it is won der how any escape from the deluge. All this refers to Literature" In addition no estimate can be made of the vast amount of copy that flows into newspa- per offices It would not be a bad idea for us to stop awhile until we can find some worthy successor to Walter Scott. We now have enough material on hand to last awhile.
 Charming old Salem in Massachusetts is about to lose some of it's charm through the whistle nuisance. Blowing factory and locomotive whistles about town has become so nerve-wracking that many peo- pie have been driven to live elsewhere. and as a result real estate has greatly depreciated in value. Heretofore Salem has been considered an ideal residence town, but the racket is proving too much for a long suffering public. Efforts to have the noise abated having proved fu- prospective residents hesitate. Whistles are nuisances anywhere now. especially when law abiding persons are trying to sleep, and there is no excuse for their remaining. Every toiler could have a watch or clock to tell when working hours begin and no one else cares a rap about the matter. Some whistles sound pleasing to the ear from a dis tance but when 1t is a question of poe try or snoring the hard worked public prefer to snore.
 After a careful comparison it seems that the American people are far superior to Englishmen in producing slang. The latest inventions of London swells are flat and insipid when contrasted with our own vigorous vernacular. It is also silly in the extreme. For instance, drawing room stars say "diskie' for disgusting; 'expie" for expensive,' and ''teagie" is a teagown. How is that for an exhibition of British intellectually in high life? Here is indeed a fertile field for Henri Watterson and he may yet delve there with his caustic pen. Slang on this side the water is useful. It is expressive, strong. and healthy. Frequently enables one to say more in two words than he could say in a whole sentence of cor rect English. American slang is not ele- gant but it has been the means of press- ing many truths home and will probably never depart from our national life, but if we ever get down to saying ''undies' for underwear and ''cossies'' for corsets it is time to stop. If possible that is the limit May our classic vocabulary on this side the water never deteriorate into such drivel. P. c.