davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
HOW INDIANS POISON ARROWS.

From the Denver Field and Farm.
 An old Cherokee Indian recently gave away the secret how the Indians of olden times used to poison their arrowheads for war purposes or for killing bears. They took a fresh deer liver, fastened it to a long pole, and then went to certain places where they knew they would find rattle snakes in abundance. About midday the rattlers are all out of their dens. coiled up in the cooking sun. The bucks would poke the first rattler they found with the liver on the long pole. rattler, unlike common snakes, always shows fight In preference to escaping. The snake would thus repeatedly strike at the liver with its fangs until it's poison was all used up, whereupon it would quit striking and try slowly to move on. The bucks would then hunt up another rattler and repeat the performance, keeping up the work until the liver was well soaked with snake poison. Then the pole was carried home and fastened somewhere in an upright position until the liver be- came as dry as a bone. The liver was then pounded to a fine powder and placed in buckskin bag, to be used as needed for their arrows. This powder would stick like glue to any moistened surface and was death to any creature which it entered on arrows.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
BILLIrIG'S NEW YACHT.
Expected To Be Fastest Yacht-WiII
 Be Ready in February.

From the New York Times.
 c. K. G. Billings new turbine yacht Vanadis which Is being built at Ramage & Fergusons yard, at Leith, Scotland, will be completed and ready for delivery in the middle of February She will be the largest steam yacht ever built to American order abroad, and Is expected to be one of the most luxuriously fur nished craft afloat. She will be brought to America for 1Ir. Billings early in April, and will be ready for his use Tn American waters in the early part of May, with the opening of the next yacht ing season.
 The overall length of the Vanadis is 277 feet, while on the water line she meas ures 232 feet [ inches, has a beam of 31 feet T inches. and draws 19 feet. She will be equipped with three turbine en- zines, each of which is expected to de- velop 5000 horsepower, while her boilers will be of Scotch manufacture. She is expected to have a higher speed capacity than either H. H. Rogers Kanawha or Frank M Smiths Hauoli
 She has a high freeboard, with ample cabin accommodations and a large prom enade deck forward She will carry six boats, with a high speed motor craft and a touring car aboard.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
CHINESE FIRE WORSHIP.

From the Chicago Daily News.
 Among other ancient customs now dis appearing in China is that of worshiplng the god of fire. The Hongkong corre- spondent of Shanghai newspaper wrote last summer:
 "All those who reside in the south of China know that at this time of the year, during the stifing days of August, the people for long years have been accus- toned to worship the god of fire, and at the same time to indulge in certain cere- monies. of which fire forms a part, in order to minister to the wandering souls of those who have not found a decent burial, or those whose relatives are too poor or too indifferent to attend to their wants in the neither world. Of course. all this Is very expensive, and in some cases is also dangerous to the well being of the town; for, not infrequently, fires reward those who are thus devoted to worship, and they get bigger blaze than they have bargained for.
 "The officials always issue grandmoth- erly admonitions, which are yearly couched in the same language, and are often written in doggerel verse. When they have done this they assume that their duty has been accomplished. Until this year no very marked difference has been shown in the way things are done. though for the last two or three years the newspapers have denounced this fool ish waste of energy and money.
 This year. however, in Canton, the rulers of the most popular and important section of the city have met and have de- cided that in the future. they will discon- tinue the old custom. That it has been condemned blythe most influential sec ton of Canton will give the whole thing a blow from which 1t will never proper ly recover. and 1t only needs time before it may disappear altogether"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
THE ARMY "hoUsEWIFE.r

From the Washington Cor. New York
 World.
 Here are what the new recruits will start their army life with, according to an order issued by General Bell, as chief of staff: Razor, shaving brush, hair brush medium comb (whatever that is), shoe brush. whisk broom, toothbrush, housewife. two towels, black shoe polish, russet shoe polish, cake of soap.
 The item ''housewife't seems to have aroused special interest. Quite & num- Der of recruits have written to mention their preference-some leaning toward blondes and others toward brunettes. Some have announced that they are al- ready supplied. One asked If he could exchange One mans wife wrote an in- dignant protest.
 On receipt of the wife's letter the de- partment hastened to explain that a housewife in the army is a neat pack age containing needles and thread, pins, buttons and things.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
STOPPED TO WIPE HIS GLASSES.

From the Outlook.
 That man Roosevelt is the bravest man I ever saw. He is awful near sighted, and has his pockets full of diff ferent kinds of eyeglasses and spectacles he has one set for reading, one for ordi- nary outdoor work, and one for shoot ing. We were going up narrow trail I was ahead-when I saw a big grizzly trotting down, not over a hundred yards away, jumped back and told MT. Roose- welt. Most any other man would first have thought of his gun, but Roosevelt stopped, felt around until he found the glasses that he wanted, took off the pair he had on, wiped the other pair, and adjusted them on his nose; and then, with the grizzly coming along at good clip and only a few yards away on the narrow trail. he took time to get a good aim and shot him dead. man that takes time to change his eyeglasses when a grizzly Is charging him is mighty brave"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
Remaininq In Washington.

Fewer congressman left Washington to spend Christmas at home this year than usual' said F. w. Whitson of the District of Columbia, now registered at the Birmingham.
 Some people in jest say it is because the free pass has been abolished. The members of Congress receive 50 per cent more salary than formerly, and can bet ter afford to travel and pay their fare than when free passes were had for the asking. But even if the salary had not been increased no congressman would hesitate to go home for Christmas on account of the expense The reason why so many senators and representatives remain in Washington is because the so- cial life of the national capital grows more attractive every year. The majority of Congressmen have their families with them in Washington"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
THE KAISER AND THE FOX.

From the Westminster Gazette.
 The Kaiser's courstesy in always rais- ing his hat when he saw fox was not inspired, as some cynics suggest, by the fact that we now import foxes from Ger many to replace the victims of the secret vulpicide to which keen game preservers are addicted. Although not so promi- nent in Teutonic folklore as the hare. the fox is still looked upon as mystic anil nal throughout Sweden and north Ger many. In many districts Reynard has long been regarded by the peasants as so sacred that his name must not be pro- nounced, and he is alluded to by some such euphemistic title as 'blue foot' or "he who goes to the forest.''
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
The New Year.

Manufacturers and merchants, whole sale and retail, will be busy from now until January 1 taking account of Stocks" said a jobber. This years bus mess has been, taking all in all, satisfac- tory. Neither retailers nor wholesalers, at any rate, will have reason to com plain If trade is as good in 1908 as it has been in 1907.
 ''The week between Christmas and New Years is always quiet in commercial cir cles, and the first part of January is usu- ally dull, but indications point clearly to fair amount of activity the latter part of next month. The farmers of Ala bama are prosperous and the Birming- ham district is in sound condition. Those furnaces now idle are almost sure to re- sume operations early in the year. Iron stocks are light and buying movement even of moderate dimensions will affect favorably every branch of business.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
The Steel Plant.

For some years steel making at Ens- ley was in the experimental stage" said a pioneer of the Birmingham district, but as Is well known, 1t Is no longer an experiment. When the Schley-Gates syndicate acquired control of the Tennes- see company, the officials that were placed in charge of the properties real ized that the steel plant had to be rebuilt They started at once to construct new and large open-hearth furnaces. Four of these furnaces have been completed and are making even finer records than were anticipated. Under the United States Steel corporation ownership two addition al large furnaces are being built, and gradually the Il old steel furnaces will be replaced by furnaces of the modern and approved type. As rail maker the Ensley plant is now a splendid success. It is probably the first steel making property the steel corporation has ac- quired that does not have to be pulled down and built over again. This fact alone must cause the new owners to be all the better satisfied with their entrance into the Birmingham district
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
Over a Million Tons a Day

The production of coal last year was 4,OOO OOO tons or something over 8 million tons a day. Of this great amount 63,O00,000 tons was anthracite, leaving the soft coal production at 341, 100000 tons. This was not quite a million tons day; but at the rate at which production has been increas' ing it is safe to say that the bitumin' pus product of the present year will be shown to have been over million tons a day. Up to October 23 it was impossible to mine enough of 1t to go round. and the mines are all busy at present.
 The growth of the soft coal ton mage is remarkable. It Is just about .six times greater than the hard coal pro,duct Many a man can remember when the soft coal trade was out ranked by it's hard coal rival, but that day has long been history only
 The four great coal states are Penn sylvania, West Virginia, Illinois and Ohio, and just below the Big Four stand another Four that are each and all fighting for fifth place. The pro- duction of the Lesser Four ia 1906 was as follows:
 Indiana l2,O92,b6O tons
 Colorado ......... l0,Uo, 42l tons
 Kentucky .... ...... 9,6o3647 tons
 It will be seen that Alabama has . comfortable margin, but unless steps are taken to utilize the open Warrior one of our rivals may outstrip us. There is no duty that relates more closely to the development of this district than the use of the Warrior in floating coal and coke to the gulf. In the course of two years there will be slackwater navigation the year round from many mines to the gulf and the men who first take advantage of low rates to tidewater will not only reap harvest but they will aid Alabama in keeping fifth place in the list of coal-producing staates.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
RISING ABOVE TROUBLE.
From Harper's Bazaar.

From Harpers Bazaar
 The worldly law is as strong as the spir- itual law, for those who go under or who conquer when troubles come. Once go under, and troubles pile so on top of you that nobody can pull you out. Now and then some one in whom the Christ spirit is strong will stop to help you, but the world will pass you by, thinking, per- haps, that you like the bed you have made for yourself. and that 1t is better to let you stay there! But rise, and all the world will be helping you, because the world loves courage. The courageous spirit inspires enthusiasm. faith and at tracts to itself remedial forces. Rise above trouble. then. and the world will be on your side, not because the world is sell fish, but because courage and sweetness and patience are inspirations in them selves.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
Wardinq eff Pneumonia

Dr. Evans, the health commissioner of Chicago, alarmed at the rapid
 growth of pneumonia and consump- ton, urges the people of that city to adopt the walking habit as means of keeping off both diseases. He pre-. scribes it as the best known means. Walk more and ride less, he says to the people in his care. No one who lives within two miles of his place of business should ride, he goes on to say. By getting up 40 minutes earlier
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE.

From the Westminster Gazette.
 Lord Dunedin, the lord president of the court of session, has apparently an insa- liable thirst for knowledge. When he was studying Rumanian three years ago much was said of the idea of a man of 55 learning a new language. This winter the lord president Is one of the non-ma- circulation students at Edinburgh uni versity, where he is attending special course of lectures on German literature. Lord Dunedin Is a brilliant conversations alist' a keen sportsman and incidentally before he was a lord was one of the first M. P.'s to arrive at the house on a bioYcle
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
Alabama Alumni of Yale.

''The presence in the city of the Yale Glee club" stated a citizen yesterday, reminds me that there are many grad uates of that institution in Birmingham and Alabama. In Birmingham the fol- lowing gentlemen are Yale graduates: Judge A. A. Coleman, w. I. Grubb, George H. Clark. Paul Savage w. J. Wynn and G. H. Davis. In Tuscaloosa, the fol- lowing are Yale graduates: A. J. Vande- graft, Prof. E. T. Buchner of the Uni versity of Alabama, and A. G. Shook. In Montgomery the following are graduates of Yale: w. F. Thetford. Jr., Gaston Gunter. Bibb Graves and Benjamin Fitz- patrick. In Maylene there are two grad uates-G. l.. Chamberlain and G. F. Pe- ters There are others in the state, too, and the above are only those I can re- call without effort"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
REFLECTIONS OF A BACHELOR

From the New York Press.
 A man calls 1t being reasonable when he wants dinner to be on time though he never is.
 A girl is pretty smart to make her fa- ther take her side by having her mother take the other.
 There's hardly anything so monotonous to a man as staying home with his fam fly except travelling with it.
 A useful thing about girls going to boarding school is the way she learns there to like the things to eat at home.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
About Persons.

Henry McDavid. prominent Demop- oils attorney, is registered in the city c. A. Weis of Decatur, is at the. New Morris.
 F. M. Leannis of Hardwood is regis tered at the New Morris.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

The ticket of the new Lawson peo- ples party Is to be Roosevelt and John A. Johnson, both Americans. But Johnson has already bolted the ticket, for he is an active supporter of Will liam J. Bryan.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26
INEVITABLE.

From Harpers Weekly.
 "so Nelson Is dead. What killed him?"
 You know he had one foot in the grave?"
 Yes"
 well. some one pulled his leg"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Chairs and fists are used to drive home arguments in the lower house of the Reichsrath In Vienna, and Wash ington holds no monopoly of that form of debate.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Senator Depew finds the presidential situation lively-so lively that he has concluded to wait and see which way the cat Is going to jump before ex- pressing himself.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

We have 116 per cent more islands than we thought we had, and Spain never know she was afflicted with them. Where ignorance is bliss, etc.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

A central bank of issue controlled, if not owned, by Wall street would make the last state of Uncle Sam worse than his first.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

It is believed Bob Evans is booked to be vice admiral if he takes the fleet safely through the Straits of Magellan,
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

The third term shows now a resid- uum of mere talk and not much more. A third term by proxy is all that is left of it.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

A high-altitude railroad proposes to bring to Denver carload of snow to keep the democratic national con- vention cool and calm.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Business is brisk today at Trini- dad, where Bob Evans fleet is billed to stay four days.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

An Englishman is fond of a de- ceased wife's sister, but Pittsburg man is fonder of an affinity.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Gaseous mines are easily located after a disaster occurs in them.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

The tackles on the white fleet are now asking each other. at the Port of Spain, Is it hot enough for you?"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

When Mr.. Bryan leaves the stump and goes to the lecture platform pure and simple his terms are still $500 per.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

The days are growing longer, but it is a matter of faith at present. You cannot see them do it.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

With the day after Christmas comes the work of framing New Years reso- lutions.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

High finance needs a cleaning house more than a clearing house.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Chicago has a deficit and fine sleigh ing, and 1t is not altogether inconsola- ble.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Cuba should organize a Three Mill lion club, for she now has 2,026,284 population.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

Wanted, a murderer who does not walk with a firm step to the gallows.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

London has had an auction of pre- historic bones, and New York turns to family skeletons to get even.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

The big white fleet is holding close ly to schedule,
The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-12-26

It was an ideal Christmas day and the streets were as Sunday-like as they were noisy on Christmas Eve.
The L'Anse sentinel., 1907-06-01
the OATS CROP.
Il Can BE sown ProfitabIy on q Piece
Of Ground That 10 Foul.


A piece Of ground that is foul can
be cleaned in no easier manner than
to SOW oats and clover early In tho
spring. During the growing season,
oats and clover get ahead of the weeds
and smother them out. The crop is
cut before those weeds which do de-
velop mature seed. II oats are re-
moved at once and the land pastured,
there is not much danger Of weeds de-
veloping freely. II, however, the weeds
do get start, the field can be moved
before the seed natures and the clover
allowed to produce crop the next
year.
In many cases It may be desirable
to plow the land as soon as the oats
are harvested, turning under the
weeds. When they start again, few
weeks later the ground may be disked
and any development prevented. This
can be repeated as often as necessary
until cold weather arrives. The fol-
lowing year the field can be planted to
corn and thoroughly cultivated, or II
In a winter wheat region, can be seed
ed to that grain the same autumn. BY
the end of the second year, a field
treated In this way, no matter how
foul, will be practically free from all
ANIMALS.
Another important item, says
Orange Judd Farmer. is the effect Of
the oats crop on the mechanical con.
dition of the soil. This, Of course, will
depend somewhat upon the condition
of the ground and when the seeds are
put in. If the work started early, be-
fore the ground dried out, the mechan.
ical condition of the soil is not i'm.
proved, as the tendency would be to
cause caking. However, good farm
ers nowadays do not work their land
when it contains an excess Of moist.
ure. Consequently, as rule, the land
speedily works up fine and mellow.
Then the roots Of the oats supply con-
siderable humus, so that 1t is usually
friable and more easily worked than
1t was before the crop was grown
upon It, II, as should be done when
the price Of seed is reasonable, clover
lS put In with the oats, the nitrogen
content of the soil will be increased
and also the supply of vegetable mat
ter. This being true. the growing Of
the oats crop Is an exceedingly impor-
tant item in crop rotation.
While the bulk of the oats crop will
always be threshed and fed in that
manner or marketed a larger proper
tion could be used more economically IL
fed in the sheaf. In this form, par
ticularly IL the crop is cut little on
the green order and dried thoroughly,
an abundance Of high-grade feed is
obtained II portion Of the oats
crop from drought, excessive moist
ure, or some other cause, happens to
be little light or uneven. it can be
utilized to excellent advantage as
sheaf oats.
The L'Anse sentinel., 1907-06-01
SETTING strawberry Plants.

They should be set every IS inches
in rows three and one-half feet apart.
Maintain clean cultivation until frost
comes. When the ground is first
frozen cover the plants with almost
any litter. oo free from weed seed az
possible. Uncover in the spring after
tho frost is out and before the plants
heat and mold. Leave the mulch be-
tween the rows until after picking Is
over. Immediately after the last
picking NOW the field and burn or
haul of the litter and commence cult
vaticn, and continue as before until
frost comes. There is some tedious
work connected with the renewing Of
the field for each succeeding crop, 20
that one must sit down to rest and
refresh himself. The. victory lies in
the getting up and continuing again.
The L'Anse sentinel., 1907-06-01

A GRAND total of 1879 new govern.
"A mental positions was created by
congress at its last session, with $S.'
S51,759 in salaries. Most of the in
crease is taken up by an addition OF
6,439 coast and field artillerymen
1,541 seamen and 4,770 additional EN-.
ployes in the postal service, leaving
a net increase of but 500 for all other
branches of the public service.
All the various acts of the last ses.
sion created 1898 new government
positions, but at the same time 5,674
places were abolished.
Final figures show the total appro.
priations at the last session Of con-
gress were ss20,7sS, S,143.S0. In addi.
ton authority was given to make
contracts aggregating s67,934,349. In
this way the total expenditures al.
lowed fell but little below the billion.
dollar mark, being s9SS,732,492.
The total appropriations by the
Fifty-ninth congress were $1,S00,3S7,.
328.96. Those of the second session
The L'Anse sentinel., 1907-06-01
Washington Day by Day
News Gathered Here and There
at the National Capital

in all the subjects the experts repre-
sent. Capt. Hobson will do the hand
shaking and political solidiHcation
act.
Alabama people happen to know
that Mrs. Hobson Is one OF the best
women politicians in Washington.
She drove with him over every coun.
ty in the district. They got acquaint.
ed with everybody, explained their
desire to go to congress, convinced
folks that they we're justified in 1t.
and when primary day came bore of
the nomination in triumph over Mr..
Bankhead, who had held the seat for
20 years.
Other representatives are casting
envious eyes on this Hobson pro-
gramme and are beginning to prepare
applications for the use Of govern.
ment experts. If the departments al
low the enterprise to be generally
copied there will be dearth of ex-
perts and the scientific departments
have to conscript them before long.