davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
concernInn Weed cuttina.

''The weed cutting ordinance is a good one in many respects" said resident of the North Highlands yesterday. but there is. certainly one unfavorable re- suit
 From a view of the improvement in the appearance of things it Is excellent and from q sanitary point of view ac- cept the decision of those who make the test But here Is my objection: The mos quitoes naturally like a cool, shady and damp place in which to live, and the lots thiekly covered with weeds fill every re- quirement for breeding. By the time this season of the year is at hand the weed beds are thlekly inhabited and when the growth is removed the inhabitants must seek new place. I know it to be fact that a great number of them, when they do move, take up their abode in the residences and make life miserable. I have undergone the ordeal and know all about it.
 Everybody cannot have wire screens. so why not cut the weeds before they become tall and rank. say about a month or five weeks earlier. This cutting would hinder the growth of the fennels con- sderably and stop the breeding of the pests to a large extent"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
rroune From Trans

"An amusing incident happened in the lobby here this morning." said a clerk of one of the hotels last night.
 You notice on the register that on the first day of each month we transfer the names of all our regular guests to the page bearing the first date of the new month. At the head of the list of trans fers and in the column usually bearing the residence of the guest Is written the abbreviation of trans for transferred
 "One of the young sports of the town happened in this morning and looking over the register saw this long list of transfers all frdfn the same town he evidently thought Walking away from the desk he took seat in the lobby In a position commanding a full view of the elevator and all exits from the hotel
 After waiting for some time, as if expecting something to happen. he again approached the desk and asked if that theatrical troupe from Trans was still in the house.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
Lockhart VindiCated.

Emil Lesser is not a man who is easily deceived in any manner, and when he sees and talks with German immigrants he knows how they have been treated by their employers. He went to Lockhart himself and he there talked with "one hundred" all newly arrived. He found no peon among them. He found no one dissatisfied with his lot He found no one who complained that the situation in the big lumber camps had been misrepre- sented.
 The scandalous and damaging stories which have been sent broadcast over the country concerning affairs at Lock hart seems to have been the results of overworked imagnations on the part of few vagrants from Lockhart and of a space writer or two at Pensacola. When hoboes and space writers meet a yarn of some sort is pretty sure to be the outcome, and the recent stories were therefore normal and natural. They were, however. baseless. Mr. Lesser did right to seek the truth at the fountain source, and his prompt report will go far towards undoing the mischief concocted at Pensacola.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
STRENUOUS MR BRYAN.

From the New York World
 MT. William Jennings Bryan is one year, four months and twenty-two days younger than President Roosevelt. He was 3S when he first ran for President He also is in his way strenuous.
 Admiring reporters describe MT. Bryan as being fresh as daisy" when he ad- dressed the Irish club in London. though the members of his party were Jagged by an exhaustng tour of the east. and MT. Bryan himself had undergone hospitality in fifteen British cities within the week.
 MT. Bryan is evidently in his best form and very active. In the peace conference he was "a leader among leaders" It Is promptly explained that he met Mir. Croker by accident, not pre-arrangement The New York Times correspondent posi- lively states that MT. Bryan will go be- fore the country on three issues" These are stated thus
 He will stand for tariff revision, for leg islation to curb and regulate the trusts and for the establishment of an under standing that the F'illpinos shall be all lowed to govern themselves as soon as 1t appears that they are fit for self-govern- ment.
 The Times quotes 'one of MT. Bryans closest friends" as saying that Mir Bryan put into his recent interview "his last word about the silver question" He "left the past behind him with the few words about 1t that that interview contains" :" One might have supposed that these flew words reached out for MT. Bryan's past and brought it with a jerk right into his present.
 Still, as a man who can "do things in dog days, MT. Bryan is well worth watch ing.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
American Cotton.

Something over year ago a com mission was appointed by the cotton spinners of Lancashire to look the world over and to report what prospect there might be for a supply of cotton in the years to come. At least they wished to see a way around the dom inance of America in the worlds cot ton market, and the commission was appointed to find that way.
 To make a long story short, the commission has reported. In sub stance. their report states that cotton production Is actually declining in Egypt. The zenith in that country has been passed. In the East Indies the prospect is not glowing. All the cot ton that can be grown in the Far East will be needed. America. say the com mission of experts, must continue to be the chief source of supply, the place of growth of the worlds commercial crop. This they reported after visit ing all the cotton-growing countries, and giving the subject the most care full thought.
 The commission further reported that so far as the soil and climate is concerned the crop in this country can be even trebled. the only difficulty in the way being one of labor, and that is capable of improvement under the pressure of good prices for the staple. Millions of acres, they say, could be put under the blow, and the use of more fertilizers and better cultivation would double the average yield, which now stands at 200 pounds per acre.
 The report comes from sources will ing to see cotton grown elsewhere than in America, and it will be widely ac- cepted as final. But whether 1t is or not America will go on growing the worlds cotton, and our farmers will supply al the cotton the world needs, always provided the world will pay 10 cents pound for it. The growing of cotton at less price Is a story of the past, and it will not be repeated.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
OUR LITTLE BROTHERS, BIRDS.

Evelyn Underhill in London Outlook.
 We came presently to another depart ment. and here tho angel hid his face and was silent, for the counter was GOV cred with the stiff limbs and torn cloth ing of his little brothers the birds. There was notice above the door: Five hun dred genuine ospreys much below cost to clear"
 He said, Do all women. then, love murder in July2"
 l answered, You are quite mistaken. We are very kind-hearted and cannot bear to cause suffering. but We owe 1t as q duty to society to make ourselves as pretty as we can"
 The angel was almost amused.
 That is really a very curious illusioni" he remarked. How can the decaying body of a mutilated osprey add to the beauty of even the visual world?7
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
POINTED PARAGRAPHS.

From the Chicago News
 Half our troubles are the offspring of fear.
 A mean man usually rejoices because of his meanness.
 Kissing may be dangerous but we are not race of towards.
 The chronic boaster is target for many an unkicked kick.
 Eve ate the apple because there were no ice cream parlors open.
 We would have more ideal cities but for the scarcity of ideal citizens.
 It Is so much easier to be a critic than it is to draw a salary for being one
 If you have an aim in life. you can't afford to waste any time hating people. No true woman ever takes off her hat without putting up her hand to ascertain if her back hair is all right
 Our idea of a hypocrite is a man who says he is glad he's bald or woman who says she wishes she had red hair.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
TOGO AND THE PHOTOGRAPHER.

Mary Crawford Fraser in the World s
 Work.
 Last autumn Admiral Togo's humility led him into what he considered q terri ble piece of extravaganza. The court pho tographer. MarulSi, had once taken his portrait. and everybody was buying It. naturally enough. Togo saw himself in all the shop windows and was very much troubled He walked into Maruki's one morning and called for the head of the firm, who arrived with smiles and bows to welcome his ilustrious client. but the Admirars face was stern. "I am shocked to find" he said, ''that people are buy ing my photograph. It is very wrong that they should spend money on the portrait of such a stupid person l wish to have the negative so that you may print no more copies
 Marulxi twho told me the story himselO, was making a fine harvest off the pie lures, and had no desire to part with 1t. Your Excellency will have to pay for the negative" he explained. q know" the Admiral replied sadly What do you ask for it?'
 Maruki considered for a moment and then named what he thought would be a prohibtive price-twenty yen. Togo sighed That is a great sum for a poor man like me to pay-but I must have the negative" So he counted out the money and carried off the picture.
 You ought to have presented 1t to himr I cried indignantly when I heard the story
 Business is business was MT. Ma rllxfs reply
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
WHAT TAE HoMEcoMERs SAW
Intense American Spirit That the Aver age New Yorker Knows Little Of.

Joseph 4. .Altsneler in Harper's Weekly. It has been charged often by the west and the south that the New Yorker lives in a little world of his own. and neither knows nor cares what the rest of the country it thinking and doing. If a New Yorker will take the trouble to visit the west or the south he will find that the charge contains large percentage of truth
 The state of Kentucky, which Is of both the west and the south, but inelining more largely to the latter. has just given a homecoming week to the half million or more of sons and daughters who have wandered from the land of their birth, and among those who returned for brief stay were a number who have lived long in New York.
 What pleased the homecomers most was the intense American spirit through out the whole valley. and this American spirit was the finest thing there. It showed itself is the pride that the people have in their own country, and their con- fidence that it is the best.
 The people, too, were more American in looks as well as in spirit There is a great new hotel in Louisville, and every body passes through it. As l sat in the lobby with old friends l was proud of my countrymen. saw a finer looking crowd than one ever sees in New York. taller. fairer and cleaner cut of feature. both men and women. This was the native stock it was not pulled down by the floods of a darker and more stunted growth that Europe is pouring upon New York In common with the other home corners felt with renewed force what a lucky thing It is for the average man to be born an American.
 The homecomers returned to New York with increased optimism and fresh in spiration, drawn from the mighty west and south. the republican heart of America
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
Chicago Cor. of the New York World

10lcdBO GOT. or Iue NBN 1OIk W OIlu
 @ oUIs A. GoURDAIN, the emaef-
 HS ated, luminous-eyed, parchment
 - skinned boaster, who has sue
 ceeded in keeping himself before the pub
 lie for upward of three weeks by trying
 to get himself reincarcerated in prison,
 has an interesting history He claims
 many things that doubtless are not true. He is offended because the authorities
 refuse to send him to prison while he Is
 out on bail. and talks of building private
 jail himself, that he may serve time for
 evil transactions. The most interesting
 thing that is laid up to him is the way
 in which he nearly put the Louisiana state
 lottery out of business by counterfelt- ing the tickets of that notorious con- cern.
 The history of the man, as outlined by
 himself, commences with his birth 40 years ago at Thibideau, La. At r he en-
 tered the banking and commission busi-
 ness of his brother. He was a son. he says, of a colonel in the famous Louisiana Tigers, a crack military organization of
 the south. Incidentally. he does not make this boast when he is in the south, be- cause of bodily harm that might come to him.
 Twenty years ago he was a clerk in
 New Orleans. in the employ of the Louis jana state lottery. At that time the lot
 tery was running wide open, because stringent laws had not been enacted
 against it. Gourdain got $15 week. This
 did not satisfy him and he quit the busi-
 ness and outlined plan to man who
 had a little capital It was to run fake opposition lottery.
 They hired a room. printed few million lottery tickets purporting to be or the Louisiana grand lottery. and sent them
 out to all parts of the country in s2o pack ages. These packages were directed to men in each community who were told to sell them and keep 20 per cent or the
 money and forward the balance to Gour-
 dain before the date of the alleged draw ing
 In each package was one ticket In separate envelope. An accompanying nose
 stated that this ticket was intended for some man fin the community whose draw
 ing of a large prize would cause sen sation and make customers for the lot tery The agent was told to keep a half interest in the ticket himself. The result was that the agent would keep the whole ticket and forward the money to Gour- dain From this scheme Gourdain made s25O .000 before the police raided him and drove him out.
 Ii was when Gourdain's money was run ming low that he evolved his scheme and
 formed a combination with John H. Dal- ton. Chicago man, and a New Orleans
 man, who since has risen to such prom hence in the community that his name has
 ceased to be mentioned in this eonnec-
 ton.
 Gourdain came to Chicago and negot-
 ated with printer for the manufacture of 100000 lottery tickets counterfeiting
 those of the Louisiana >State company. This was in 1892.
 DNtons history up to that time is un- knowA He was German who had changeN his name. and mystery shrouded his past. Nourdain> established headqnar- ters in New York, Chicago and New Or leans taking charge of the eastern of-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
IN HOTEL LOBBIEs
seaboard Officials Here.

The following officials of the seaboard Ar Line arrived in Birmingham yester- day and will remain here until tomorrow Vice President E. F. Cost. General Pas. senger Agent c. B. Ryan and Assistant General Passenger Agent w. E. Chris. tan.
 MT. Cost is in charge of the traffic department and while his headquarters are at Portsmouth, Va, he naturally visits the Birmingham district frequently. where he is well-knoWn and always welcome General Passenger Agent Ryan had not been in Birmingham for some time past He said last night that he remarked wonderful improvement in the city. "Bir- mingham seems to be growing rapidly It is developing on broad lines and is sure to impress visitors most favorably.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
WOMEN AND MIRRORS.

From the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
 "We carry lots of women clear to the top floor or at least several floors up and then they take the next elevator down without going three steps away from the elevator,' declared the operator of one of the lifts" in big office build ing yesterday.
 NO, 1t isn't because they like to ride in the elevators particularly. Why do they do 1t? To get the use of the mirrors, of course. See those mirrors on either side of the elevator? That's what at tracts them. A bit of wind will strike them as they turn the corner by a big building and then they imagine that their hair is badly disarranged and make for the nearest mirror, which is in the eleva- tor
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
RoosEvELTs POST CARD CRAZE

From the New York Press.
 Miss Ethel Roosevelt has finished her sixteenth book of postal cards and is about to begin on a collection which has come from her big sister, Mrs Nicholas Longworth, who has sent souvenirs al- most daily since she arrived on the other side Cards pile in on Mrs. Roosevelt from friends abroad and even from the consuls and diplomatic officers These treasures are divided between Miss Ethel and the two young boys. She has beaten her brothers in the race of arranging books. She has several sets of war pie lures from China and Japan and a hun- dred or more cards showing types in the Orient and the South Pacific archipelago
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
HYsTERIA IN RELIEF GIFTS.

From a San Francisco Correspondent of
 the New York Evening Post.
 At first the army officers in charge of the distribution of clothing opened only the cases that had been sent by clothing stores and manufacturers. There were also liberal contributions of shoes from re- tail and wholesale houses. As thesenwere easily handled. and showed excellent judg- ment in selection, they were disposed of first. Then came the sorting of individual contributions. These were sent in every variety of package, some even in fine leather grips and handbags. A great deal Of chldren's clothing of very fine ma terial was received. but has not been, and Is not likely to be, distributed. A few children of the refugees clad in such garments would present amazing con- trasts with their neighbors'.
 The same may be said of several tons of women's clothing. Much of 1t would be only suitable for wear either at the opera, a ball. or some similar entertain ment. Some of the gowns that were evi- dently sent by wealthy women are of Paris importation and have been very little worn. There are boxes of silk stock ings of every shade in the prism. There are even silk tights that were undoubt- edly sent by kind-hearted. if light-headed, chorus girls. There are also other bits of fnery appropriate only for the stage
 In the matter of hats there is the same magnificent disregard of the fitness of things Opera hats came with and with out cloaks. Millinery creations for street wear that are fairly canopied with plumes were damned in boxes with odds and ends of extravagant finery. There was no stint of lace and handsome embroid- cry, and many of the hysterically gen. erous are undoubtedly regreuing their moment of blind impulse
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
old-Time Honor.

A gentleman who had just returned last night nor the last few months, !" said he, tine muck rakers have been at their work and have exposed to the eyes of the world the fact @ that there no longer exists any honor among our pub lie servants that the eagerness for the acquisition of the filthy lucre has caused to be forgotten those simple principles of honesty that we all learned at our mothers knees. In nearly every paper that comes out there is some new scandal of the yellow journalism style to delight the depraved and bring sorrow to those who place character above all
 From frequent reading of these scath- ing comments on the lives of prominent men I had become quite A cynic and had about gotten to the point where l believed that all I saw was true. About this time l took q trip to the country and boarded for two weeks in farm house with the most delightful old couple l have ever met. True they were un- educated and simple in their tastes, but l have never seen q higher conception of the meaning of the words honor and duty than that placed on them by these old people. and not only these but all the neighbors as well. Such a thing as a thief Is unknown there, and the thought of locking up the house at night never seems to occur to the old people. Honest, straightforward and upright they live their lives to themselves working for their daily bread and loving each other with all the love of which they are cap able. Cynic? Why, l wouldn't be a cynic now for anything. There is some goodness in the world after all, and l have made up my mind to go out and live where it can be found. Back to the country for
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

chief crime they will be punished for when the hour of settlement comes. It will assuredly come, for no revolution goes backward. and the revolution in Russia is now well started. It will go on, and before long Russia will come out rejuvenated, free and secure. The powerless and paralyzed Russia of to- day will become a giant full of strength and good aspirations, and she will be accorded a high place among the na- tions.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
HER BATHING SUIT.

rom Puck.
 It is a scrawny nightmare That ugliness enwreathes. And yet thing of beauty That sweetest music breathes. Ii all depends on whether It's hanging limp and flat Upon the line, or dimpling
 Upon Muriel's anat,
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
Hark! peace!
Armour Peach Settlement.

The Gadsden Times-News says the Armour lines, controlling the refrigera- tor cars needed in peach shipments, have dozen agents in the field en- gagged in settling claims on account of the neglect to furnish cars promptly and in sufficient numbers. The cars were contracted for but they came not. "The peaches.' says the TimesNews, "were taken to the tracks Then the shippers waited. Days passed and no cars came. Weeks passed. The fruit was decaying. What was once worth thousands of dollars was now merely putrid heap" The Chattanooga Southern expected to handle 800 cars, but shipments on 1t were cut down to 150 cars. Between Jamestown and Menlo, says the Times-News, peaches routed in big lots because there were no cars in which to ship them.
 The Armour lines are, however set ting all claims as fast as actual losses can be ascertained. This stops litiga- tion, makes good all losses without de- lay, and will prove beneficial in every respect. The policy of the Armour people is a wise one. and 1t is doing no little to soften the asperity which had arsien over the neglect in furnish ing cars according to contract. Prompt settlements are bringing peace and dol triff
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
Great City.

T have been takin ga trip through the south" said George Crutchfield of Rich mond, "and I find Birmingham the most progressive city in this section of the country. In view of the youth of Bir- hingham, it Is simply a marvel. It will be, before many years the largest city in the south. except New Orleans"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
NO EXCURSION TICKET.

FTom PUCK,
 Been away-Let me see, About No- goodson-when l left he was going from bad to worse, and
 Staidhome-It subsequently, developed that he had no return coupon.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

Dollar campaign subscriptions have come to stay, and any increase above one dollar from any individual should be drowned down The trusts are of course at liberty to chip in two dollars each
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

Upton Sinclair is the nominee of the socialists in the congressional district that Grover Cleveland lives in, but he does not expect to see his name on the Cleveland ballot.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

The physician who charged the Marshall Field estate $25,000 for seven days attendance simply adopted the rule of charging all the traffic would bear.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02
WHo2
e New York Mail.

From the New York Mail
 The czar condemns the revolutonists to death and the revolutionists condemn the ezar to death. The game Is to see who gets there first.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

Roger Sullivan, the machine man of Illinois. should be accompanied into obseurity by MT. Tom Taggart of In- diana and the Hon. Gumshoe Bill Stone of Missouri.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

A lecturer at the University of Wis consin declared that woman could not be free so long as she wears petticoats. Another bloomer period impends.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

The army is doing the revolution act at Syeaborg in Finland. and when the army goes over to the people autoe- racy is as good as dead.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-08-02

Uncle Joe Cannon's boom is increas- ing in size The republicans will ac- cept any one whom they think can save them from overthrow.