The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-10-07
COMMENTS ON MEN AND
 MATTERS OF THE WORLD

Conan Doyle has brought his famous de- teetive. Sherlock Holmes, back te life again and the reading public is glad. AL though some critics are inclined to laugh at the Doctors weakness in returning to q character whose career has presum- ablv ended forever, they are a disagree ahle class of people. anyway and those who have poured over Doyle's tales with hated breath cherish no i'll will toward the author for restoring his detective to further usefulness in ferreting out pre- nosterous crime Many good judges of contemporary literature believe that the character of Sherlock Holmes has never been eoualed in fiction He is delightful lv impossible but when giving his deduc- lions to pr. Watson we are so lost in wonder at his ingenuity that we never stop to think how absurd he would be in real life. The modern detective has no obliging author to manufacture easily solved but complicated crimes And yet if is the element of realism in the Sher- lock Holmes stories that make them pow erful. The language is calm, collected and formal There is no attempt at em- bellishment and 1t Is this consummate art of Doyle that leads us too willingly astray. From the beginning of his career until his temporary demise Holmes has been a great detective and we are look ing forward to more wonderful feats in this his new life. Along with Coequelin, Dupin. and Wilke Collins soft spoken lover of flowers Sherlock Holmes stands supreme in detective literature. The first installment of the new Sherlock Holmes stories is now appearing in Golfers weekly.
 A recent merger of three southern mag azines has awakened a hope that the souths great magazine may be a near possibility. The Alkahest of Atlanta has been consolidated with the Florida Maga- Inc and Things and Thoughts" The Alkahest is the most successful monthly magazine that has ever been published in the south. It is now eight years old and has an extensive patronage Under the able direction of Andrew Mcconnell, the Allzahest has lived in spite of strong mis- givings for its future. As both the other publications concerned seem on solid foundations prospects are particularly bright for a monthly magazine that will compare favorably with the leading east ern periodicals. The south needs a great magazine and needs it badly. We have never yet been able to realize this hope but constant efforts are being made and the Century" of the south may be real ity sooner than we expect
 
 We hear much of the athletic girl or rather we did, for since last winter she has not been so popular in America. A tackled the athletic girl in the London Mail with what results remains to be seen. This healthy young lady has been criticised before but has continued her triumphant career uninterrupted. Certain beauty doctors told her that she was de- stroying her womanly beauty by too vlo- lent exercise; that her figure was becom- ing masculine, her arms knotty with mus cles; and last but not least, that her feet were growing larger every day. Although unperceived at the time these warnings seem to have had some effect for we do not hear so much about the athletic girl now as was the case two winters ago. After all the average woman will think twice before exchanging her feminine charms for rugged health and strength. No one denies that exercise is beneficial for every person, be he young or old, but the ordinary man does not like the idea of mating with an aggressive female who boasts of her bicepts and can easily throw him out of the window if necessary. Yet young girl can devote herself to athlet- ies without developing into one of these alarming creatures. What man admires above al things is a womanly woman