davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

yelled and wearing a dress of very cheap material, the suppliant said to those who remonstrated with her:
 T shall not uncover the head which I have covered for Christs sake; I shall not change the garment which I have put on for my Saviour's glory'
 Her humility had it's immediate reward, for Serena herself came forward to meet and greet her. seated her at her side on the golden throne, and calling her court around her, said:
 Behold this woman, who could be sur rounded by all that wealth could buy, yet for Christs sake renounces all the vani- ties of this world"
 Serena herself declined the gifts offered to her, and forbade any of her courtiers or servants to accept any. At her request the emperor at once gave orders to the rulers of his provinces to sell Melania's $ estates and remit the proceeds to her.
 We were all stupefed with amaze- ment," comments Gerontius
 Melania and her husband left Rome be- fore Alaric captured it and went to their Sicilian estate. The troubles of the times delayed the sale of their possessions for years. As fast as they could they spent their wealth in building and en- dowing churches, monasteries nunneries, hospitals. and endowing and adorning their altars with vessels of gold and silver
 They relieved the necessities of thou sands of the poor and needful, sending vessels and messengers with money and necessares for them and to the hermts and monks of Egypt Jerusalem and An uoch. After twenty-seven years of con- tinuous effort they had at last reduced their once colossal fortune to the rem nant of a small estate in Spain. They then went to Jerusalem, where they ended their days and were buried in monastic retreat which they had built and en- dowed
 Gerontius never could give the number of slaves that Melania at one time owned, but stated that in two years eight thou sand were liberated. He states that her annual income was one hundred and twenty thousand pounds weight of gold. equal to more than thirty millions of United States gold coin and, taking the purchasing power of specie in the sixth century A. D., fully equal, it is estimated, to $175,000,000 today.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
Mayors Namesake.

''The most popular race horse in Mont gomery at present." said a Birmingham man yesterday who had just returned from visit to the fair in progress at the Capital City, lis known as Mayor Ward
 So far the horse has won the ma jority of races in which he was entered, and in those in which he failed he made such determined effort that he won the applause of the spectators.
 Why the owner of the horse should have named him in honor of Birmingham's s chief executive is more than l can say. discovered on inquiry that the horses owner lives in Indiana, and is not even acquainted with Mayor Ward Some one told me that the animals characteristics prompted the name He is full of ginger all the time and goes at his work with the determination to win out. The horse is good one, and while some times he behaves bad off the track, he is strictly business when in harness"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
sMokELEsS POWDER.
1t Is Really No Powder at All, Says
 Magazine Writer.

What is smokeless powder?" asks A. w. Rolker in Appleton's Magazine for November, and proceeds to answer his question Ut is the modern high explo- sive which has superseded the old-style black powder, even as electricity has superseded gas. and which is used not only in the field for sporting purposes, but is used exclusively for the shoulder arms of the army and the navy as well as for the machine guns, the rapid-fire guns, and the huge rifles on the decks of our battleships and within the works of our Notifications. Practically 1t Is nothing but mixture of gun cotton and alcohol and ether, or acetone, or else acetone with gun cotton and nitrogylc- erin-the two strongest explosives known and blended into new compound which is at least double as strong as the common black powder, explodes without giving off smoke, and, once finished, not merely loses the dangerous characteris- tics of it's dreaded ingredients but Is so safe that you might give a hatful Of the powder intended for the sixteen-inch Sandy Hook gun to a baby to play with. He might pound 1t with a hammer to his hearts content, or you yourself might place it on an anvil and bring forty pound sledge down on 1t. It would merely squash like so much soap or putty. So concussion-proof is this powder that you might drop a house on heap of fifty tons of it and it would not explode. So proof is 1t against explosion by fire that vou might place a stick of cannon powder on a saucer in your bedroom, light 1t with a match and go to bed by a flicker ing, sizzling light as if given off by burn ing fat In short. you simply cannot ex- plode this powder unless you go to the trouble of confining 1t, and even then you can explode it only by using full minate of mercury detonator.
 ''The quickest way to picture smoke less powder is to dismiss all ideas of the ordinary black gunpowder so familiar to everyone The color of the modern pow der is not black at all. but has the shade of dark amber. In the sense of a powder being a finely divided solid, smokeless powder is no powder at all It consists of grains varying according to the cali bers of the guns for which they are de- signed For use in revolvers, rifles and sporting guns, the grains resemble the tiny perforated glass beads of the sort used in old-time needlework. For the machine guns the rapid-fire guns, and the heavy rifles of battleships and forts, the grains are cylindrical in shape, vary ing in size from third of an inch in diameter and half an inch in length to three -fourths of an inch in diameter and about two inches in length-each grain, in order to increase the area exposed to ignition being perforated equidistantly and longitudinally with from one to six holes, big as knitting needles, depending upon the size of the grain"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
THE FOOD FADpIST.

From the Philadelphia Ledger.
 The desire for health Is not a fad, but a normal ambition. The faddists appear when they conceive the notion that only certain diet, happily agreeable to them selves, and certain mode of living, also found to conform to their personal de- sires, tend to the maintenance of health Of course, the prejudice against impure food Is the mere concomitant of common sense, and not a fad at all It could be wished of the food faddist that he would eat that which appeals to him, and do 1t in silence. If a preparation that to the ordinary sense suggests excelsior con- stitutes what seems to him a proper breakfast, no one would deprive him of it. It Is only ihed of him that he re- frain from t Tort to foist upon his neighbor his air brand of fodder; re- frain from tsg into print with en- comiums iup d. regimen that robe life of gastr>no. joy.
 The con nl... statement that dyspepsia is the Ii ational disease has nothing to sus- tain it In the average collection of pao- pie about table men and women will oe observed to be eating what pleases them They do this without sign of pain or even discomfort. Here and there is the dyspeptic, devoted much to the pamper- ing of stomach made poor. but through indulgence in ordinary wholesome foods but from eating too much or too little or at irregular intervals. He is welcome to all the pampering that may be neces- sary, but it is fair that he dismiss the notion that the collective stomachs of a generation are his especial care.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
Cruelty to Animals.

"There are many things tolerated in this city" said a visitor which elsewhere would be punishable by law
 ''I am told you have society for the prevention of cruelty to anmals, and yet I see people carrying chickens along the streets, holding them by the feet, and the poor things heads either hanging down and being smothered, or else they are struggling to keep their heads erect. That is cruelty of the most brutal sort. because it is done out of sheer disre- gard for the suffering of the victim.
 A day or two ago I saw a wagon load ed with goats coming down Second ave- nue. The animals were pitched into the body of the wagon in a regular hggledy piggledy fashion, some with their heads dangling over the end or sides of tho wagon, and others lying on their back with feet up in the air. The roaring and bleating of that load of animals was something awful. while the driver. as if fearing arrest, drove along at a furious rate.
 'I could mention other sights I wit messed, but think these two are enough to prove my statement
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
College Spirit.

'The most contagious thing in the world" said young lady yesterday, 'fs the spirit displayed by old college men when football game Is beirg played in a city in which no college is located
 "In the morning, before the game is played, the rejoicing and jtvlality. the waving of pennants and the shouting of the college yells is confined chiefly to those men who have been within the pale of university. But in the afternoon, when the college men have shouted them selves hoarse, you will invariably sec and hear hundreds of men, women and chil- dren initiating them. They shout and wave a gay ribbon. and even endeavor to break in 8 yell.
 Now watch what I tell you next Fri day when Sewanee and Auburn play foot ball in Birmingham. The city will be as a great college of two rival factions There are great many college men in Bir- mingham, and their spirit is very con- tagious''
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
IN HOTEL LOBBIES
Cotton Crop Report.

w. l.. Pryor, special field agent for the United States department of agriculture, is in Birmingham. lis duties are to re- port the condition of the cotton crop in the territory to which he has been as- signed. which comprises the states of Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee.
 There will be no more condition re- ports issued this season." said MT. Pryor the next report will be a quantitive esti- mate issued about December 10. l am gathering data for the report now, and am also ascertalning the condition of the other principal crops and their probable production. From here will go to South and Central Alabama
 MT Pryor is Mississppian The other recently appointed agent in the south is F. w. Fist of Calera, Ala, who reports for the states of Arkansas. Louisiana and the territories
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
POINTED PARAGRAPHS.
Chica go llly News.

From the Chica go tily News.
 Tho man who lma as for money seldom becomes round-lsho red from carrying what he. gets.
 But few women can manage Irritation without pumping up against a lot of troublesome complications.
 If we could only see ourselves as others see us-but we lcant, so there's no use worrying about it.
 Most men are forgotten shortly after they die and a great many are forgotten before the unde rtaker gets them.
 There Is no reason why men shouldn't t love their enemies as they love them selves. especially if they happen to be their own worsTt enemies
 The first thing a woman does after be- ing introduced 10 man is to look at his hands for the tsrpose of finding out whether he works or not.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
The City's Growth.

"Everybody remarks Brmingnam's growth" said a man about town. "The crowds on the streets, the thousands of new faces, the congestion Tt the union passenger station all indicate that Bir- mingham is a great big city. Its growth has been greater, l think, in the past six months than in any period of two years previous. Now, if l were to ask for a single sign of Birmngham's increase in population l would point to the fact that on Monday night not only were the four theatres crowded. but the large audi torium of the High school was also filled on the occasion of the Linde concert in the Lyceum course. This would not have been the case a. year ago"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
RECIPES FOR MODERN USE.

From Life.
 Novel-Take one homely girl. a trip to Europe, a Chautauqua course in fiction and typewriter, and stir vigorously to- gether. Add publishers, puffs to suit, enough reading notices to awaken inter- est. and set in an open place to simmer Serve with sugar and spice and devour quickly, or it will spoil on your hands.
 Home-Put a man and a woman in a frame building and add children to suit Run a few cooks through the kitchen and out, sprinkle with doctors and dress makers visits, bills and scraps of various kinds, and bring to a boil. When cool, serve slowly during a lifetime.
 Fad-Take large body of people wait ing for something new. Go out and cut a fresh fool idea. Sprinkle 1t over them and knead well. Serve when red hot. If allowed to cool off will be spoiled.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
Sions of a Hard Winter.

Up in Pennsylvania lives an editor who edits the Tyrone Herald as a means of livelihood and watches nature for weather signs as a means of pas time and recreation. He says without reserve or qualification that the com ing winter is to be the hardest one in twenty years. Listen to him when he tells us how he knows. He says:
 "The corn husks are foot and half thick, and all the stalks lean to the west
 ''The geese ducks and chickens are growing a coat of fur under their feathers, and are rubbing borax on their feat to harden them up.
 "All the one-eyed owls are leaving the country a month earlier than usual. and the bob-tailed squirrels are laying in sweet potatoes, as well as nuts for win- ter provisions.
 "The farmer who has taken the trouble to investigate has found that all the toadstools on the old logs have wrinkles on them. The last time that this hap pened we had winter weather that froze the handles of blows.
 Rabbits are sitting around with humped-up look to them, and field mice have wrinkles in their tails
 The Tyrone weather prophet con cludes that these things mean that the weather in Pennsylvania will be 20 degrees below zero from November through to May with few or no modih- cations. Let us hope that sort of weather will not cross the Potomac with an eye to a prolonged sojourn in the south.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
SILENCE.

By Thomas Hood. There is silence where hath been no sound:
 There is silence where no sound may be; Tn the cold grave-under the deep, deep sea,
 Or in wide desert, where not life Is found Which hath been mute, and still must sleep profound No voice is hushed-no life treads si- lently But clouds and cloudy shadows wander free,
 That never spoke over the idle ground But in green ruins, in the desolate walls Of antique palaces. where Man hath been, Though the dun fox or wild hyena calls, And owls that fit continually between, Shriek to the echo, and the low winds
 moan.
 There the true Silence is self-oonscous and alone
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
REMARKABLE KENTUCKY BIRD.

From the Henderson (ky.) Journal.
 Samuel Bumpus, who resides near La fayette. Ky. about one mile from the state line, lost his barn and contents by fire.
 While MT. Bumpus' barn was burning a bird flew through the fire and 1t lit in his hand and was not burned in the least. The bird is dove colored, with a white breast and white wings, measures three feet six inches from tip to tip and has a bill like a hawk. No one knows what kind of bird it is, and the negroes are badly scared and say the Lord sent the bird as a signal that the world is coming to an end.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
Wabash Authorizes Increase.

Toledo, O., October 23.-At a special meeting of the stockholders of the Wa bash Railroad company, held today, ar engagements were made for an issue of per cent fifty-year refunding mortgage bonds and all It's notes and equipment obligations, the remainder to be used for betterments. The stockholders also au- thorized an increase of the capital stock of the company by the amount of s16,- BOO 0OO
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Do you think marriage reforms a man I don't know; but wife always makes a good detect tiva
 Hattie Arnold. who Is ample and weighty, to MT. Bulger. who is dubious and not sent3mental-Let mo sit on your lap dear Love is ever blind. MT. Bulgerj gruffly-He may be blind. but he's nc going to have his leg broke, I'll tell you that.
 Miss mold. as the target in the bur lesque ts of markmanship-If you should pot me by accident, darling, would YOU miss me?
 MT. Bulger-No. but if I miss you by accident I wili shoot you. Reformed etling? Yes, I know-Roose- welt is spelle ME and President Is just IT.
 MT. Bulger Q Miss Arnold-What do you weigh?
 She, very y3 One hundred and twen- ty pounds.
 He-English ney?
 Miss Arnold es I was left an orphan Mir Bulg"rN t did you do with 1t?
 ts
 Miss Al 1i i a child I was far from well, but they put me on a diet of goats milk and l gain ed ten pounds a week? MT Bulger-EH CT since?
 JOHN KENDRICK BANGS
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

From the Kansas City Star.
 When a Council Grave, Kan, woman was asked, When did you first become acquainted with your husband?" she an- swered: "The first time I asked him for money after we were married"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
ROOSEVELT WAY.

From the Dallas News.
 Having bossed the political work in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Maryland and several other states. the President writes to California that he has made 1t an in violable rule mot to interfere in local contests.''
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
THE MODERN MAGAZINE.

It's brimming full of fancy ads. Of many kinds of things, Of shaving soap and whisky straight And books and diamond rings; Of auto cars and real estate And medicines that cure Most all the forms of fell disease A mortal can endure. Has ads to catch a woman's eye Of preparations that Will make her beautiful, if not If lean. will make her fat: Bold ads. of union underwear To shock modest man, And ads. of every sort of food That's put inside a can.
 T The cereals are prominent, Likewise the ads. of men Who'll sell you any thing, I wis, For payments now and then. The clothing merchant pleads with you In letters big and black, While many other dealers shout The luxuries you lack. The mine promoter spreads his net "A chance for sudden wealth. The quack who makes bogus pill Says. Here's the road to health" A wilderness of bargains do Confound a readers wits, From fountain pens and smelling salts To guns and hunting kits. Pure reading matter you will find Securely fixed between The advertising supplements. And scant enough, I wean. As any publisher will say, Who's strictly up to date The ads are there to catch you and The middle parts the bait When balloonist wants to go higher
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
INDEX OF PROGRESS.

From the Boston Globe. Incidentally, the succession of big fires in the business district of Birmingham
 Ala, show how prosperous the city is and how marvellous her growth has been.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The Cuban insurrectos are beginning to ask each other what they have gained by the change in government.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The President has decided to see Panama himself. He has accepted the tales of travellers until he has become tired of them, and he is going to Pan anna to use his own eyes.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

In the last six months 6S2, ,560 immi- grants arrived in this country, and the south is trying to get small slice of the great stream.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

A stuffed aux sold for $2100 the other day, and stuffed aul1s may keep on selling for that figure, for all the majority of mankind cares.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Ex.Senator Burton says he goes to jail as a matter of principle. Principles that have to be vindicated in that way should be repealed.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Now, that the play is gone, we might as well confess that "The Woman In the Case" is yellow journal story re- vamped by the industrious MT. Fitch.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The country is full of unreformed spoilers.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24
ADRIFT WITH THE TIMES

he throws off ballast. It is a good rule to apply in life when mans habits arc excess baggage. Mr. Hug, who died recently. "bore a good name" Many man wears union suit who is not union man. There is no rest on the seventh day for the man who reads his Sunday paper.
 A RULE. . Be happy as you work each day, Of labor take your All. And should you have no work to do, Be cen more happy still It is tough luck to hc a 1unaiic In Cuba Burton paid his laundry bill. before go- ing to Jail, which is more than most men would have done under the circumstances. He won't have te change so often now.
 THE SUM OF IT. Be glad to live A little while,
 Tho fortune may
 Not deign to smile
 Take what you get
 And be content,
 Nor e'er regret
 The troubles sent.
 For life is but
 A fleeting breath
 birth announced
 And then death THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE A pretty woman pretty often gets man into pretty mess. A Kansas farmer had plenty of minced veal because his calf ate dynamite and then exploded.
 DID YOU EVER?
 Look here, summeri
 Didn't we
 Say last month to
 Twenty-three?
 Yet-your conduct
 Gives me pain
 Here you are
 Right back again, A Birmingham man can get a drink in 123 places. The chump who says "expo" for expo- sition is ready for the Jamestown show. Don't you feel miserable with them on this sort of weather? Looks like an early spring.
 PAUL COOK.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Tom Lawson is selling his horses and hounds so that he may give an mind to literature, his fayorite pursuit.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The big criminals are sharing con victions with the little criminals. The new fashion was set at Findlay, o.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Chicago claims ten of the sixteen recently awarded Carnegie hero med als. Her baseball players must have secured them.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

When submarine boats go to the bottom they forget about return trip to the surface.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Emperor William came very near skipping somebody on the wrist TOT that book of memoirs.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Kansas has a mule that drinks beer and chews tobacco. He may swear, too, but not in English.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The goose-bone experts say we ara to have cold winter.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Ambitious district attorneys are hit ting Standard Oil on slight proyoca- ton.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Standard oil is apt to develop 8 branch office in Lhassa next.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The Carnegie heroes are not expect ed to wear the medals awarded 10 them.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

President Roosevelts courage is even equal to daily trips to dentist.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The salaries of Yale professors have been raised to the level of minor league baseball players.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Remarkably quiet In Russia, as re- gards bombs.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

It is Becker, the boy mayor, that Is making Milwaukee famous. not beer.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Russias Mark Twain is named Solo mon Rabinovitch, and he is said to know joke when he sees one.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Premier Clemenceau is not church. man, but he is an opportunist, and he may favor compromises that will lift the government over obstacles pre- sented by the separation law.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Clemenceau has long been the power behind the throne, and now he comes directly into the limelight.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Chicago is fully convinced chat base ball is the national gJme
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Secretary Taft is strong drawing card as a speaker. Everybody wants to see the cabinets most versatile
  member.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

Anything seems to be fair in New York's campaign for governor.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-10-24

The New York Central railroad al, most tainted when it was fined $10S,- 900 for giving rebates to the sugar trust