The Birmingham age-herald., 1904-05-28

1 HE cold water treatment is prov lCY Ing very effective in the Oregon state penitentiary. The cold water treatment differs from the cold water "cure," practiced by humane sold iers of Uncle Sam in the Philippines in that the treatment" is effective without being brutal. It has been found that turning the hose on refractory con- vict puts him in good humor instantly and. moreover does not injure his body or degrade his spirits. Nothing conduees more to make criminal desperate than the lash, and the time will come some day in the future, no doubt, when whip ping will be abolished in all penitentiar- les Strange as it may seem, the con- vict stands in mortal dread of the hose when the lash Is not formidable enough to make him obedient. One application of cold water Is frequently enough to last until his term is served out. Coru water can be used for many purposes in addition to bathing and spelling fine whisky.
 l Richard Harding Davis is coming home again without having tasted the dangers of war. Viewed superficially, his trip to the far east as special correspondent for Golfers Weekly seems to have been something of a fiasco, as he was bot l tied up' in Tokio and there he stayed. When he departed from home there was much footing of horns and now that he is returning there is some doubt express ed as to the wars ability to get along without him, but Mir. Davis wrote some very clever articles describing scenes in the Japanese capital and he still has the satisfaction of knowing that he could have covered himself with glory if he had only been able to get on the firing line.
 l Just now there is a great controversy being waged as to whether the late John James Ingalls wrote the poem, "Oppor- ttunity" This discussion is no doubt due to the perversity of human nature which 1 is loath to give the credit of a great achievement to one man without hint ing that he stole his idea from another. | While 1t is true that Ingalls, was not known as a poet and this Is the only poem attributed to him, there are never theless many poets of one poem," and he could we'll belong to that class. In view of the fact that Mrs. Ingalls, her self vouches for the authorship of "Op- portunity," critics should cease loosing sleep over the matter and accept her word in good faith We have the poem. no matter who wrote it, and should be satisfied with that.
 At this season of the year the falling circus tent Is menace that is not often considered amid the delights of feeding peanuts to the elephant and watching the clown ride his trick mule Yet in a windstorm the circus tent is a dangerous thing It Is stable enough when the elements are not at war, but in a storm it may be blown down without a mo- ments warning. Already this season several accidents of the kind have hap pened in various parts of the country, notably when the Barnum & Bailey tent was almost wrecked in Washington and the Roosevelt children displayed their strenuous coolness in the face of danger As the greatest danger from falling circus tent is the panic which always results among the people. it is probable that so long as we have the circus we will have to take our chances of being hurt under the canvas.
 Another bod carrier has inherited a fortune. Somehow bod carriers washer women and day laborers are always hay