davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
STEAMBOAT DAYS RETURNING.
Epoch In city's Development Due to
 Organized Movement.
Jew York Evening Post.

From the New York Evening Post.
 The demonstration that a boat can still pass between Missouris two chief cities has. indeed been hailed with more tu- bilation than the recent discovery of the Northwest passage. "The cruise of the steamer Lora" says the Kansas City Star. "has put Kansas City on the map as a water city This trial trip, insignificant in itself, yet marks an epoch in the devel- opment of this industrial center of the southwest" If that is so, it Is an epoch brought about by an organized movement. The Lora's trip was not due to casual en- terprise on the part of a steamboat owner. The merchants and shippers of Kansas City were fairly drummed into supportir the new line by a few enthusiasts led by Lawrence NJ. Jones' and the same promo- {, ter is out now to ask support In running the same boats into the winter months.
 The promised revival of steamboat traf- fic on the western rivers is exactly of piece with the recent activity in canal building and improvement in the east. Kansas City promotes an experimental steamboat line for the same reason that New York voted for a deepened Erie ca nal-in order to secure railroad freight rates based upon water competition. The tremendous river and canal traffic of the early days was allowed to decline on the
 
 would supply the needs of commerce. The first steamboat, as the oldest resident was disturbed on his sick bed to recall, came to Kansas City seventy years ago, but the halcyon days of the Missouri were from 1S49 till the outbreak of the civil war. There were then over fifty packets In reg ular service from St. Louis to Sioux City, and as many more tramp steamers from the Ohio, and various other tributaries of the Mississippi, which made occasional trips up the Missouri. Much of the early western immigration went by this route, and the boats on their return trips carried valuable cargoes of furs and buffalo robes from Montana.
 What has happened on the Missouri has evidently happened on the western rivers generally. though the picturesqueness of old steamboat days has not entirely van ished from our American life. MT. How els, if memory serves, wrote in a vein of delightful enthusiasm of a steamboat jour- ney down the Ohio, taken within the last two or three years He found most of the charm, with few or none of the dis comforts, which Dickens discovered on similar trip some forty years earlier.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04

IT IS but proper that Pittsburg, head
 quarters for soot and sub-center of high life, should develop the auto heart which Is the very latest and most up-to-date complaint in the category of human ills Of course one cannot have the auto heart unless one has an auto, and one can not have an auto unless one has the price, and one who has the price Is bound to be swell, so the auto heart will be far more exclusive than appendi- citis ever dared to be. Only the best peo- pie will have it, and 1t will be a topic of conversation confined to ultra circles. Physicians in Pittsburg declare that the auto heart in that celebrated town is due to the constant vibrations of the machine passing over cobblestones, but 1t Is quite possible that motorists In other cities where there are no cobbestones may have the privilege of developing auto hearts. The disease will bring considerable eclat in It's train.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
Advance of the GoIl Weevil.

Dr. Hunter, the boil weevil expert of the federal department of agriculture, announces that the insect has invaded three counties in Arkansas. These three counties lie along the border of Louisiana, a state that harbors the pest from one end to the other.
 In the southern part of Louisiana weevils have appeared three miles east of Marksville in Avoyelles parish. This establishes them within twenty-five miles of Wilkinson county Mississippi, and the chances are that Concordia parish will be infested by them before frost comes. Concordia parish lies on the Mississippi river directly opposite Wilkinson county. Mississippi The line of march to Alabama and the sea will probably lie through Wilkinson county, or rather the advance insects will enter the east at that point.
 The weevil schedule across the state of Mississippi has not been published, and the experts are free to make esti- mates On it. The state is just about 175 miles in width, and if the insect is stayed at all by the big river it may not reach the Alabama line until 1910.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04

ing. I read In a paper recently that a similar occurrence happened in a law court in Texas. A lawyer was addressing the jury in a most empassioned speech and every few seconds the door to the court room would slam something like this one I suppose. He stood 1t for awhile, but at last the limit was reached Breaking off in the middle of sentence he says 'D-n that door. 'D-n 1t again. says the judge, proceed, Mir Blank. and the door was immediately fixed.
 q don't expect any of our Judges or lawyers would allow their feelings to overcome them to the extent of publicly execratlng a nuisance. but if anything could justify such a breach of etiquette that door would.
 "It surprises me to think how long people will suffer the annoyance and inconvenience to be met with every day and everywhere when the remedy for them Is so close at hand If the judge were to order that dor fastened back until 1t was repaired you would find a carpenter at work in less than an hour. These things jar my nerves, and Oliver Wendell Holmes says it is as had to tap a nerve as an artery
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
Ask the Pollceman.

The variety of questions asked the policemen during the day Is at times amusing said the officer stationed at the Woodward corner yesterday.
 "The general public seems to think that we know everything and should be prepar- ed to answer all sorts of queries. The people think we ought to know the resi- dence of every man, woman and child in the city and should have all other add- tional information that might at any time be required by the lnqustive public.
 "A woman wanted to know yesterday where Mrs. Sarah Jane Green lived When I told her that I knew no such person, much less her residence. she seemed to be offended and wanted to know why I didn't know. that she thought my business was 10 know these things and tell the people.
 "A man this morning, apparently gaz- ing at the large sign on the corner post of the Woodward building, wanted to know where he could find drug store. The man this morning who wanted to hHuN WutIt lO lHu the ldll IIbWll- Marx building this morning showed equal lack of observation. This man was look ing across the street at the Brown-Marx building at the time he asked the ques- tion.
 Hardly five minutes pass during the day but that we are asked some question and majority of these questions are so A we are almost tempted to protest, yet we must answer all of them politely and patiently"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
New Character In Slang.

George NJ. Conan, the young author of "Forty-Five Minutes From Broadway" which will be seen at the Jefferson thea tre Saturday, matinee and night has created a character even more quaint, original and funny than the now famous "Unknown" in Little Johnny Jones'" Mir. Conan calls him Kid Burns and he is played by a clever young chap named Scott Welsh.
 The Kid Is pugillstic young man with more Bowery slang at the end of his tongue than George Ade was won't to create in a whole volume of fables. He is an honest sort is the kid" and he sticks to young scamp about town when the latter becomes a millionaire. This throws him among strange people and surroundings, and the utterances of his disgust that it Is possible to find so many "Reubens'' only "FortyFive Minutes From Broadway" brought joy unconfned to the large audiences during the New York run, to whom it was a decided novelty.
 You gotta talk baby talk to desc guys" was his conclusion when the suburbanites could not understand him.
 She's an actress I believe said some one in reference to the hero's fiance. You're the only one what believes it," observes Burns.
 "Deres a lot O guys In Boston dat don't believe Corbett ever licked Sulli- van,' he accepts as good reason to be doubtful. He asks the butler to open wine for his prospective mistress. Shes sim ply daffy over that foolish water he explains. He declares that the will he finds and attempts to read is simply filled with 'reverse English and he has so little respect for the Rochelleites that he declares at a dinner hell pull few old jokes and be de life of de dining room'
 Kid Burns " slang has now become classics in every city where "Forty-Five Minutes From Broadway" has been pre- sented
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
THE RED CROSS KNIGHT.

By Edmund Spenser. A gentle knight was prickng on the plain, Yclad In mighty arms and silver shield. Wherein old dints of deep wounds did re-
 main,
 The cruel marks of many a bloody field: Yet arms till that time did he never
 wield His angry steed did chide his foaming bit. As much disdaining to the curb to yield: Full jolly knight he seem'd, and fair did
 sit, AS one for knightly guests and fierce enc
 counters fit. And on his breast a bloody cross he bore. The dear remembrance of his dying
 lord, For whose sweet sake that glorious badge
 he wore,
 And dead. as living. ever him ador'd: { Upon his shield the like was also scor'd. For sovereign hope, which in his help he
 had. Right. faithful true he was in deed and
 word: But of his cheer did seem too solemn sad: Yet nothing did he dread, but ever was
 ydrad. Upon a great advanture he was bond, That greatest Gloriana to him gave (That greatest glorious Queen of Faery
 Lond)
 To win him worship and her grace to
 have,
 Which of all earthly things he most did
 crave. And ever. as he rode his heart did yearn To prove his puissance in battle brave; Upon his foe, and his new force to learn; Upon his foe. dragon horrible and stern
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
MusterIous Prize Cup.

A solid silver cup. awarded to E, A. Long in 1870 by the West Alabama Az rlcultural and Mechanical association as a prize for the best, saddle and harness horse In some contest, is in the possession of the police. According to the statements of the oldest police officers, such an as- sociation is unknown. and the contest in which this cup was awarded some thirty six years ago, is forgotten.
 The cup was sezed when an old negro woman was arrested for endeavoring to pawn it. She testified that one of the street workers some years ago left it at her house. and that this man declared that ha found 1t in trash can Of the city. The cup will be held pending the finding of the rightful owner. No one con nected with the police department knows F. A. Long and as stated. the associa- tion, and the horse exhibition in the year 1870 cannot be placed Probably the as- sociation has passed out of existence. The cup is a beautiful work of art. It is of solid silver.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04

neighborhood as if fence were built about it. The San Juan Hill' district, verging on lower Amsterdam avenue, is one of these centers; others are in Fifty-third street along the T. road. in Fifty-ninth street from Ninth avenue eastward almost a block, in Ninety ninth street from Columbus avenue to Central Park, and in One Hundred and Thirty-fourth street from Lenox avenue to Seventh. The beginnings of a new colony in One Hundred and Thirtyfifth street between Seventh avenue and Lenox have been the occa- sion of recent agitation in connec- tion with the operations of the Afro American Realty company"
 These changes are evident to the most casual observer, and to them must be attributed the incerasing racial friction in New York. That city may be said to be on the verge of a race rot at all times, and u N,iee are expectant and alsrt at al in the neighborhoods of tho .ro To- nies. The New York mo .ent is ut the forerunner of similar nifts in i, @ negro population in the next decade or two
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
COOPERATION.

From the Richmond Dispatch.
 Several months ago the employees of shirt manufacturing concern in Trenton. N. J., went on strike for higher wages and the recognition of their union. The strike was never settled and the strikers have brought to public attention plan of relief. They have started up fac tory on their own account and began business yesterday on the cooperative basis, having organized themselves into a corporation, secured a charter and pre- pared themselves to compete directly with the trade of the concern which formerly gave them employment. They gave d pub lie reception on Saturday. which was at tended by members of the same craft from New York. Philadelphia and other cities, and it Is said that the concern starts out with good prospects,.
 This emphasizes the fact recently stated in the Times Dispatch that there is nothing in the laws of the land to hinder such cooperation, and there is no need to resort to socialistic government in order to secure it. Any number of work ingmen may form a cooperative assoca- ton whenever they please to do so, and labor together for their common benefit, each receiving his part of the earnings. In this way labor would get the full fruits of it's industry without having to share with the capitalists
 But there is another side to the aues- ton If those who work in the factory are to receive all the profits they must .J. all he ric iclc nd no profits they will receive nothing for their work; whereas under the other plan the capitalist assumes all the risks and pays the workman his Wages whether there be profits or losses.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
THE COST OF LIVING.

From the Montgomery Advertiser.
 A Binghampton (N. Y) woman, whose husbands salary Is $l500 a year con tributes to Harper's Bazaar a state ment of the family expenses which foots up LAO in all. This Is pretty close shaw irg, but as she puts down s425 for cloth ing for the family it is evident that economy Is not her best virtue.
 Then comes a woman living in Newark whose husband has a salry of SLIGO and her bill of costs amounts to the entire. salary. But this one only allows $175 for clothing for the family, which i5 s25O a year less than the other woman allows, showing a wide difference of opinion as to the money that should be spent for clothes.
 There is no doubt about the cost of living in cities having materially in- creased within the last few years in all most every particular. Comfortable and servcable clothing has not increased In value in proportion to other articles of actual need, bu: with that exception almost or quite everything else has ad- vaneed very materially. Rents. provis- ions fuel and almost every other ne- cessary expense have scared upwards In most instances wages have also ad- varced. though no. in proportion to the advances in living expenses, but this advance does not apply to fixed salaries. These have not kept pace with the cost of living and the recipients of small an- nual salaries are the ones who most feel and suffer from the advance in living expenses. If prices continue to ad- varce and the pay of employees remains stationary the problem of living bids fair to be an acute one in the near fu- ture.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
Constitutional Amendments.

The constitution of Louisiana was adopted eight years ago. Like the Ala. bama constitution, it was not regarded as perfection, and it's amendment was made easy and feasible. This was done in order to keep it in touch with public sentiment and the condition of the state. The Alabama constitution makers did likewise, and they placed the fact on record
 In 1904 fifteen amendments to the Louisiana constitution were submitted to the people and eight were adopted. At every state election in Louisiana since the adoption of the constitution constitutional amendments have been laid before the people, and in the cleo tion of next month twelve will be voted on.
 In this way the Louisiana constitu- tion is kept up to the demands of a prosperous state, and an expensive constitutional convention is avoided. It brings to the people the principle of the referendum, and that is ever a popular feature because it Is govern ment by the people acting directly for themselves, and not through middle men.
 The submission of dozen constitu- tional amendments to the people of Alabama would be welcomed, and this is what the delegates of 1901 antici- pated and prepared the way for. The Black Belt built the constitution of 1901, and it would have us believe it perfect. This is, alas, asking too much. It is far from it. It needs amendments sadly, and as our legisla- lures meet four years apart a good crop of them should be submitted. Give the people, in other words, a chance to say what they want. Do not distrust them.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
REPUBLICAN, KICKER.

From the Emporla (Kan) Gazette.
 We have been invited to send dollar contribution to the republican campaign fund that is being raised by popular subscription, and to which President Roosevelt recently subscribed. We would like to have our dollar in such select company all right but we've done all the contributing we intend to this year We have recently completed building a house at cost of something over $4OOO, ana for every foot of lumber, every pane Of glass, every sack of cement, every pound of nails, and in fact for nearly every bit of material that went into 1t we made good, liberal contribution through the trusts that control them, and we guess we have done our share. It may be treason for a republican newspaper to talk ths way. but facts are facts, and 1t sort of relieves our conscience to tell the truth about the trusts once in a while. We'll just let the several trusts to which we have had to pay unwilling tribute in the past year pay our dollar for us. We need it and they don't.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
JUMBLE OF LANGUAGES.
r, tha Cbica oo JournaI

From the Chicago Journal.
 There are towns in Hungary, and small towns, too, where from seven to ten idioms are constantly being used. On the Galcian frontier there is in lovely val ley the old town of Eperjes The number of its inhabitants does not exceed 12000. To this day the good people of Eperjes are in the habit of talking or being talked to in six different languages and several dialects. An ordinary household will in- clude a slovak man-servant, Hungarian chambermaid What is still more remark ale each grade of society will tenacously cling to its own language for centuries.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
Driving Club.

"The organization of the Birmingham Driving club means good deal in the way of advancing the horse interest of this city" remarked a prominent citizen of Birmingham this morning. MT. John l.. Kaul Is president, John L. Parker, vice. president, and R. M. Williams sec retary.
 'It is the purpose of the members of this Driving club to participate in special amateur driving races which have been arranged for the coming state fair, and which will be participated In by members of the driving clubs of Birmingham, Montgomery, Selma, Nashville, Memphis and other cities The Birmingham club will entertain the visiting club men dur ing the fair at their club rooms at the state fair grounds, which are now being fitted up. The membership of the newly organized club is growing very fast and is now composed of a majority of the well known men of Birmingham who are noted as horse lovers
 Tn my opinion the organization of the Driving club here will do a great deal toward the building up a sentiment for fast driving horses and a higher class of horses in this city, by the people who are able to keep them. I hope to see the new club permanent institution, and wish 1t success. There is no reason why there should not be as many smart and fast driving horses in Birmingham as in Montgomery, or Selma, or Nashville. ur any other southern city. Our people arc Just as able to own fancy driving horses as the people of any community and there Is no doubt that a plentltude beautiful and fast horses is not only an attractive feature of a ctys social and home life. but they are a big advertise ment"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
From the Chicago Tribune.

From the Chicago Tribune.
 \N THIN the memory of quite WY youthful people the darkness of
 w central or tropical Africa was an established fact, But since the days of Livingstone, Stanley, Spoke and Burton the light these first explorers turned on these vast forests, swamps and plains has grown and spread, revealing many strange things. The headwaters of the Nile-for many centuries lost in mys- tery-are now so thoroughly explored that an enterprising tourist company proposes to open a route which shall safely and not too uncomfortably transport the Af- rican traveller via the Red sea and the wonderful Uganda railway to Victoria Nyanza (second only to Lake Superior in size as a fresh water lake), and thence back to Egypt by the overland route to Gondokoro and by the Nile steamers to Cairo.
 The trip, when ultimately arranged, will be one of the most interesting in the world but by no means one of the easiest. MT. Freshfield, the well-known mountain climber, who last year attempted, but unsuccessful an ascent of Ruwenzori, one of the greatest of Central African noun tains, returns with encouraging accounts of the possibilities of ascending that peak Rising as 1t does 14,O0O feet above the sur- rounding plateau, Ruwenzorl must com mand an unsurpassable view, including vistas of those great lakes. Victoria and Albert. But MT. Freshfield neglects to say that he returned to Entebbe, the capital of Uganda and principal outpost of civ ilization, with three different kinds of fever at the same time. having lost forty pounds in weight on this trip. Having gone
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
FATHER.s WATERLoo.

An awful racket shook the place.
 The neighbors hurried out An asked each other quickly what The battle wuz about My ma sat cryin' in chair,
 An didn't dare to look Oh there wuz lots a-going on
 When father fired the cook. He jerked his coat right off an swore He'd show her who wuz boss. But when he started out he failed To calkerlate the loss For Mamie shied a plate at him
 An then she grabbed a stick, An there wuz cuss words spoke-enough To make a preacher sick. While some of them wuz daddy's. still lot wuz said by Name. But anyway. my mother, she
 Gave father all the blame Another plate whizzed by poor pa An then he waded in The way that kitchen wuz tore up, IL surely wuz sin. When all the smoke had cleared away My daddy's eye wuz black, His tie was wrapped around his neck, His coat ripped up the back. But Mamie looked as fresh an strong As when the light began. An vowed she'd lick the stuffffing out Of any mortal man. When fathers wounds were bandaged up An ma had dried her eyes She said such conduct on his part Just filled her with surprise. Pa snapped, Now that's woman's
 wayi
 Who got me in this mess? I didn't like to tell him then,
 But Mamie did, l guess.
 There is only one cinch-and that is death.
 A good way to be happy is to forget that you are you,
 A mans heart beats 92, 100 times a day,
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-04
REFLECTIONS OF A BACHELOR.

From the New York Press
 It's mighty funny how much prettler a girl always is in her photograph.
 It keeps lots of folk terribly poor dress ing well enough to make people think they aren't.
 If man Is sentenced to jail, he can serve his term, but he has to die to get over belrg redheaded.
 A queer thing Is the way women enter about how other women aren't truthful about their ages.
 About the only person who doesn't seem to think a candidate for office is liar and a thief Is his mother.