The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-08-06
COMMENTS ON MEN AND
 MATTERS OF THE WORLD

made the mistake of their lives in nom. mating an octogenarian for the vice presidency who is s1 years old, but Is still able to caucus all night without get ting cross. As matter of fact MT. Root did not have anything to say and a careful survey of his speech shows that he did not tell the world anything new.
 Bishop Potter is being criticised for taking part in the opening of the Subway tavern in New York. Although 1t Is pro- posed to make this resort model saloon, where intemperance will not be to1erat- ed; where the mind may be cultivated and men and women may both enjoy the pleasures of a modest club house, the bishop has brought down upon his head the protests of several distinguished brothers of the cloth. Bishop Potter says that the saloon Is the poor mans club and he is right in the premises, but hu- nanity is prone to abuse some of it's most valued privileges. On the face of thinga it would appear that the bishop has a herculean task before him when he un- dertakes to elevate saloons to a plano where they will not be run for money. 
 The New York Times waxes vitupera. tive over the Vardaman-R Roosevelt-Payn postoffce contl oversy. That esteemed rIllow of journalism denounces the gover- nor of Mississippi as blaekguard and says that the proposal to name the new town "Rlackguardville" would be appro- priate and would do credit to the sound sense of Mssissippians. But Governor Vardaman seems to have a few friends in his state who will not be induced to for sake him by the heated argument of the New York Times. The tilt is interesting to people outside Mississippi who can watch the fur fly without themselves be- ing in danger
 The University of Chicago Is not an in- stitution that will long remain out of ths public eye What her professors don't know and won't do is not worth knowing or doing The latest project to emanate from those classic halls, permeated by the odor of Standard oil, is that of Professor Starr head of the anthropological depart- rent, who announces that he will live with the Japanese two years and with the Chinese four years. The preponder- ance of time in favor Of the "chinks'' is due to his desire to search for mys- terious white race in the heart of China. Report says that the professor is culti- vating a que almond eyes and a taste for chop suey He says that he will be real Chinaman and a real Japanese but the chances are that when he returns from his six years sojourn he will not have forgotten the value of a press inter- view.
 Calamity howlers are abroad in the land. These gentry seldom rest and never go on vacation. They cannot resist the pleasure of announcing dire events of the future and human destines are so as- sorted that they manage to flourish. The calamity howler feeds on fatalsm and superstition and the people he affrights rever dream that they are confirmed pes- simists. The cptimist Is seldom daunted by the eroaker but the man who is sure that his fortunes will come 10 grief lends willing ear. The crop croaker is ex- ceedingly active just now, as concerns the spring wheat crop and the cotton crop in some sections, while the democrats are pleased to learn that there are a few oroakers in the ranks of the republicans. P. c.