davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
HrsroRIC GROUND.
The siciiiaa vespers and ALesd, Kindly
 Light.1

Q
 Memphis Commercial Appeal.
 A correspondent asks what were the sicilian vespers. About syv yssrs yha,, ago the Normals controlled Sicily. Tney tSs tSse1 Ansio.sasons ssi,ss n in England: Their Seets. The siciiians formed a. secret society. q sort of Mania, and when tne xsspsr wss an ps5Ii sprisnss Gans sfoIowed % by in history. All the French were killed. Ss ast shs asbso sHrsns aSa ssat PSai rule until the soft climate. of the con uuered country conquered them, Tor 1t made the fibre of their nature, coars- smid snsa sSe 0ranas storms and shows % of the re gion around the Baltic, delicate and :, Sicily is the scene Of Fs%aness rSt of der Etna was y1lcan's furnace Near the Straits of Messina were Scylia and Sharybdis. Tn q small island north 1,ds is in Sicily. From that island Home .se- cured great harvests of grain and wine.
 h paisrmo is the largest modsrn are the most perfect preserved ruins of Grecian and Roman temples and
 hs sises s.G are the spy few columns and foundations of pai-
 In Sicily once journeyed Cardinal sws strsts of aaS ahaSassna RSe Ri ths inc sfssi.oR Lead. Kindly Light :"
 Virgil wrote of the beichings of Etna and we were youngsters the descrip- tion was cited as the kind of thing to avoid In using figures of speech.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
NAMES OF RAILROADS.
Growth and ExpamsiOa Have Made
 MaMy of Them Inappropriate.

Growth and ExpansiOa Have Made
 Mamy of Them Inappropriate.
 Philadelphia Ledger.
 Did 1t ever occur to you,"- asked the Assistant Passenger Agent "how inappropriately many of the railroads of the country are named. Some of them have far. outgrown the modest titles with which they started. and others have never realized the grand ambitions of their infancy. Take the New York, New Haven and Hartford for instance. New Haven and Hart ford are now mere way stations. Hart ford isn't even on the main line. Il had taken the name of the New York and New England. one of the smaller concerns which 1t gobbled up about fifteen years ago; but, of course, mere exactness Is trifiing in comparison with the inconvenience of such a change. In Boston they call 1t the Consolidated Road, which is proper enough. In New York it is the New Haven Line, which Is as fitting as it would be to call the Pennsylvania Company the Trenton Road.
 New York City and Hudson River is all right for the parent corporation but it is wretchedly inadequate for the giant system which consists of doZ- en roads in as many States, the cars Of which are marked New York Gen. tral Lines. The Hudson River end of the line is only a trifing part of the huge mileage. and those two words could we'll be dropped. The case of the Pennsylvania Is similar. It, too has thousands of miles of tracks out side the State from which it takes its name.
 "The name of the Delaware, Lacka- wanna and Western omits mention oi the chief terminus of the road-New York. The word Erie isn't particular iy descriptive but the title is lots more descriptive than the former cumber- some one-New York, Lake Erie and Western. The Philadelphia and Read ing has far outgrown the limits orig finally set for it. so have the Louis ville and Nashville, the Baltimore and Ohio, the Chesapeake and Ohio, the Chicago and Alton. the Chicago and Alton. the Chicago and Rock Island the Chicago. Burlington and Quincy the Chicago. Milwaukee and St. Paul the Illinois Central and a lot of oth- CTS. Atchison. Topeka and Santa Fe are insignificant points on a magnih- cent road that stretches from Chicago to San Francisco.
 Some names. however, are an anti climax. The Missouri Pacific never gets a whiff of the salt sea breeze; the St Louis and San Francisco doesn't come within a thousand miles of living ur to its announcement"
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
A PROMISED REVIVAL.

The whole of Alabama may well feel interested in the news that regular steamboat trafic has been established between Mobile and Tuscaloosa for an industrial item of such magnitude has, perhaps. not appeared in the Alabama press during the past six months. There is cause for qualification in the announcement, because it was made and the trade established, before the Warrior locks had been fully compIet- ed. The greater part of the govern ment's work on the system of locks has been finished and the eagerness of business men to enter into enter- prises. for the building up of the river trade. indicates a great commer- cial revival when the locks are finally finished.
 Alabama's great commercial sin of omission has been the neglect of her splendid waterways. The State shut it's eyes to It's own great advantage. The rivers of Alabama have done more to secure cheap freight rates and to regu- late rates than all the politicians and Legislatures the State ever had. The town situated on a navigable river was sure Of low rate, which neither the Legislature nor the railroad could add to or take from. But Alabama sat idly by and watched the river trade all but die out.
 But new day is dawning. The first glad tidings comes from Tusca- loosa. As & compliment to this an nouncement it Is only necessary to re- call that men of large capital have already formed companies for devel- oping and exploiting the river trade with barges and steamboats.
 In the course of time the govern ment will do its full duty to the Ala bama rivers and a guarded and watched navigation, through locks where they are needed and deepened channels where deepening will do the most good is one of the promises of the future.
 It. is possible that the golden days of the river win be revived and per- haps exceeded in the new era. Trav- cling by steamboat may again be- come popular and fashionable. And why not. unless hurry Is absolutely necessary? Those who have tried 1t will bear witness to the truth that no pleasanter journey Is to be had than a steamboat trip down the Ala bama river. In older days the cuisine of the steamboat had its own unique peculiar reputation. The time is to come again when the generous and delightfully prepared meals aboard the river steamers will tempt jaded appe- tites and tired city dwellers. Those who know steamboat cooking will be the first to sing it's praises.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
conrUIsonr EDUCATION.

Alabama is moving forward. slowly but inevitably. to compulsory educa- tion. It is hardly to be doubted that the next Legislature win establish compulsory education by a plain and formal statute.
 In the meanrhiie through the Child Labor Law the State has a modified compulsory education law. The new Inspector of Jaiis and Cotton Mills. pr. Bush, has announced that 1t Is his purpose to vigorously enforce the act and to enforce especially the pro- visions relating to compulsory educa- tion. This means that every child of school age in the cotton mills towns will be compelled to attend school at least eight weeks. out of the year. Under the new educational conditions in Alabama there Is no community. not even a cotton mill town. where there is not more than eight weeks of free and open school.
 The enforcement of the school pro- vision of the Child Labor Law will be the first step towards compulsory education and It's enforcement will bs heartily approved throughout the State. The unfortunate children of inefficient parents should not be made to suffer and undergo any more sac riices than are necessary because of the deficiencies of their parents If the interference of the law was ever called for. it is called for by the worthlessness of that father, only too common in cotton mill towns, who spends his days in idisness and eats his bread out of the grinding labor of young and tender children. ,.5.
 If the enforcement of that law re- moves the child, from the cotton mill to the school house and forces the worthless father to connect with some job, the Child Labor Law will have more good effects and good points than have been believed of 1t. The men most interested in securing eff fective child labor legislation were frankly disappointed in the act finai- ly passed by the Legislature. It Is possible that pr. Busi's enforcement will show it of more value than was believed at the time of it's passage.
 The Legislature all but passed a compulsory education law at the last session, but it could newer screw its courage to the sticking point. The lawmakers were afraid of the man on the little farm in the hills who would continue to take his children away from school to work his crops when they needed working.
 It is safe to predict that compulsory education is no farther ahead of us than the next session of the Legisla. ture. ..r
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
REGGIo, THE LOST CITY.
It Was 2,0OO Years old and HnndsOm,
 and Prosperous.


 and Prosperous.
 Baltimore Sun.
 Regio, called Reggie de Calabria. was the capital of the province of the same name. It was an archiepiscopal see and had a population of 16,000 in- habitants.
 It was one of the oldest settlements in Italy, and in antiquity Its name was Rhegium. It was originally a Euboean colony and was peopled in 72S B. C., by fugitive Messenians. It rose to great prosperity in the old days, but suffered from war and in SS7 B. C., was captured by Dionysius l., of Syra- cuse. and destroyed,
 It was again captured in 27O by the Romans, and 1t underwent many vieis- situdes of conquest in the Middle Ages. TotIia, the Goth. captured 1t in 549 A. D.. the Saracens did likewise in SIS, the Pisans In 1905. Robert Guiscard in 106O and the Turks in 1852, and again in 1897.
 After the great earthquake in 17s3 the town was almost entirely rebuilt, and 1t presented a more modern aspect than some of the other towns and had wide streets which were studded with numerous handsome villas. It had a beautiful cathedral which dated from the seventeenth century, and 1t pos- sessed numerous other handsome build ings, among them the Capella del Sac ramento, highly decorated with colored marble, the Strada delle Caserme, and | adjacent to 1t the Civic Museum. which | contained a fine collection of terra oct | tas, lamps, statuettes and vases. tn- cIuding a few very antique specimens | with curious ornamentation. Above the cathedral and hack of iS
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

courteous treatment that gentleman always receives from the southern people. but he himself would prob- ably be among the first 70 discourage sycophancy and shopping over. AS The Herald says. if there is any of that to be done let the Republicans have the job. Democrats can ret along without ow-towing to Mir. Taft or any other high oficial. present or perspective. Southern men would dis credit themselves if they should fail to show to Mir. Taft the attention ana courtesy due to man of his stand. ing. character and ability: they will discredit themselves much worse if they do any siobbering acts over him.
 We are free to confess that we have been somewhat surprised to see some of the most intelligent news- papers of the North apparently of the opinion that the reception given MT Taft down here Is an evidence of Democratic disintegration. Here, for example is The Hartford courant, . genuine New England Republican paper. concluding some editorial com- ments on Taft and his reception with the words: "Everybody knows what happens to solid ice when the sum- shine gets q. fair chance at it. Take a look at the Solid South four years from now" It is plain that The courant expects the Democratic South to melt ana crumbie away before Taft's administration just az the ice melts before the warm sun. Our es- teemed Yankee contemporary will do we'll not to bet any money on that proposition. At least it will do well to put off the betting for a year or two.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
NO SHOPPING OVER.

Our friend of Southwest Georgia, The Albany Herald. is not a believer In the slop-over process It says:
 If there is to be any sycophantic stopping over when President elect Taft Is being entertained as an hon ored guest in Atlanta next week, let some Republican do it. But 1t were better to cut out stopping over stunts altogether GeorRians - Democratic Georgians-can welcome the Presi- dent-elect and say nice things of him and to him without indulEing In any thing that savors of toadyism.
 That is the way to talk about it Mir. Taft is certainly entitled to the
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
Whof fhs State Papers
 Are Saying and Doing

Some "Isusting' Done. Pine Belt News.
 So far the Conner adminisGration has been unable to bust" the railroads. but 1t has succeeded in busting" the State treasury. .s
 Headland's Troubles. They. are still having trouble over in Georgia over near beer. This town has been having trouble over near pronibi- tion. Its Eightieth Year. Talladega Reporter.
 The Montgomery Advertiser has en- great newspaper. and long may Major Screws and MT. Glass be at Its head. Christmas ea Big sandy.
 Christmas on Big Sandy passed with- put any special happening to mar. the holiday. notwith standing large zens ot this section. Several fights oc- cured in different localities, but no damage worth mentioning resulted.
 werth the Money to fave Herea
 1t Is estimated in Montgomery that ssns tor so r6is is nas aa Ssy pense about S7 for each person living In the city. while in Elba we get equal- ly as good public service at . cost of s2 per capita.
 4 Mighty Uprising. Florence Times.
 The South is on the threshold of a mighty up-rising in material improve ment. We have just begun to realize the wealth of our undeveloped mate rial resources. and how far behind the times we are in utilizing them. In Alabama we need thousands of miles of new railroads and hundreds of mines are in primary condition of develop ment. Alabamians have a great work before them. and every inspiration to go forward.
 A Former AlabamAan. Florence Herald
 The Herald editor is in receipt of a from and by his old-time friend, Hon, Q. c. Ludwig, of Little Rock. Ark. The book Is one of especial at..active- ness, being splendidly illustrated, Lud- wis was born and reared in Decatur Ala, and will be remembered by many who read this. He went to Arkansas in his early manhood. was for long more in store for him. After attain ing considerable literary eminence he entered politics and his rapid strides to success by easy effort has seemed remarkable. He Is for the third time Secretary of State in Arkansas, has been prominently mentioned for Cover nor. but has decided to enter the Con- Ludwig is second only to Jen Davis in popularity in Arkansas. but he Is very much superior to Davis in man. hood character and intellect.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

probate by the Surrogate of Nassau County, the heirs of the testator brought an action in the Supreme Court to have 1t 1udlcially construed, and by the decision of Justice Marean the property reyerts to them. Justice Ma rean says:
 On general principles 1t Is better that the hungry living should be fed than that dead mems graves should have flowers on them There Is no vital rea- son then why the law should be strained to support such dispositions of property as that made in the will In question.
 have reached the conclusion thar the will in question so far as it dis poses of the testator's estate to the Trinity Church is void because It yio- lates the statute against perpetutfes.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
RepudiatIOnu Due.

Sets-ass= 1luleS.
 The Times would like to see the lisi published of the Birmingham delega' tion that went to Augusta to invite Taft to pay visit to the Magic City This paper thinks that there is due about a half dozen or so repudiationi of the claims of MT. Rufus N Rhodes that his sentiments met the approval of the whole delegation when he de- clarei that the election of MT. Taft was considered a ''benediction from God Almighty" by Alabama and the South.
 dent of the Birmingham Ledger Co. is out declaring that ME. Rhodes did not speak for him. Now comes the Montgomery Journal and recalls that Judge S. D Weakley was a member of the delegation and wants to know if Judge Weekley endorses the Senti- wants to hear from Editor Barrett next and then on down the line. Ala bama Democrats. that is Democrats of the Black Belt kind at least. want to know for their future use just who thinks with MT. Rhodes and who do not It may be quite interesting In the years to come to remember when and where the parting of ways came.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

It is distinctly encouraging to note that Congress has at last mustered up enough independence to administer . rebuke tG Roosevelt, even though it was mild one. If that body would assert itself as it could and should dc 1t would teach him his place in the government and see that he kept it. Courtesy and consideration appear to be wasted on one of his sort.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

The paragraphers used to refer to Pennsylvania as the "Quaystone State" when Matthew Stanley Quay was bossing its and now The Hart ford courant thinks the proper name would be PenrosesyIvania as a tribute to another corrupt politician who is bossing it. Good old William Penn had his faults, as other human beings have. but we doubt if his widest fancy ever conceived or imagined such political and official degredation as exists in the State he founded in the wilderness. Bribery. graft and all other forms of political and oficial corruption have reached a point where we no longer have cause to feel sur prised at anything we hear from that quarter. The courtant's designation fits very nicely.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
sTARTLING PROPOSITION.
AhOut Marriage Prevention Advanced
 By Governor of Nebraska.

03 GObGEnOt VI RGOEN@A&s
 Lincoln (Neb.) dispatch.
 Governor Shallenberger. in his mes sage to the Nebraska Legislature to- day. declares that he believes no new or radical Legislation is needed at the present time, but that energy should be directed toward amending, improv- ing or correcting the existing laws. He admits that tho banking laws of Nebraska might be improved, and as- serts that 1t Is a reflection upon our American civilization and business methods to longer fail to provide an insurance guaranty fund and banking law which will make every dollar de- posted in a Nebraska bank absolutely sure of being returned to It's lawful owner when 1t shall be demanded.
 After calling attention to the in- crease fin insane patients and convicts, Governor Shallenberger, in his mes sage, asserted that society was justi- fled in adopting laws for protection. He said 'careless and ill-advised mar riages have had great deal to do with increasing the dependent classes and in producing untold misery.
 Tn order to prevent the confirmed criminal and the incurable insane from producing offspring, suggest that you give careful consideration to the ne- necessity of passing a law providing for the. sterilization of that class of people,"
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
This Date in fistOry
January II.

l7S5-Seat of United States govern ment located at New York.
 1S15-Cumberland Island, Georgia, taken by the British
 Is25-Bayard Taylor. noted author, born in Chester county Pennsylvania. Died December Is. 1878.
 1S61-Alabama seeded from the Union.
 IS62-The Burnside expedition sailed from Fortress Monroe.
 lS71-First elections for the Pro- vinciaI Legislature were held in Man itoba.
 1887 - Anglo American arbitration treaty signed at Washington.
 19O4-John Young Brown. former Governor of Kentucky, died. Born June 2s. 183A
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

They are still speculating over the cause of Charles P Taft's withdrawal from the senatorial race in Ohio. Real ly the cause of 1t is not so important as Is the fact that he is out of the way of a better man.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
SWORN CIRCULATION.

The Montgomery Advertiser guarantees It's mdvertisers (and makes 1t part of the com tract when requested) that its daily circu- tation is larger than that of any morning newspaper printed in A1abaYna--and that It's Sunday edition has the largest circulation of any edition of any newspaper printed in Alabama without exception.
 The figures for December printed below represent the actual net circulation, all re- turns having been deducted.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
SELFISH WILL IS VOID.

Court Says It's Better That Hungry Be
 Fed Than Graves Have Flowers. New York Sun.
 Justice Marean. in the Supreme Court, Brooklyn, yesterday handed down decision declaring as void the will of the late Thomas Driscoll of Nassau County, who died october, 1907, and left his entire estate, valued at $10.oo0. to Trinity Church at Rockaway, in trust 'to invest and keep invested the same and to collect the income de. rived therefrom and devote 1t in caring for my burial plot connected with the said church"
 After the admission OG the will to
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

The statement that Roosevelt now has a rifle that will penetrate a steel plate is one of the latest additions to our stock of knowledge on a tire. some subject.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

orrvills Wright puts a damper on some of the enthusiastic flyers when he says that he doesn't believe that any kind of flying machines will ever take the place of trains and boats. That is discouraging to those who seem to think that flying is about to supercede all other forms of locomo- ton.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11

We suspect that some of our breth- ren up North who have been com plaining of the lack of rain and cold are getting a fair share of both these dave
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
Fair Exchange.

Houston Post.
 Mir. Roosevelt says he hopes to bag A white Ehinoceros in Africa. Good luck to him. The country Is ready to ex- change it's white elephant for a white raInoceros any old time.
The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-11
Lestsrs To the Ediesr
THE CHARACTER or

Cerrespondcnt Recalls Cen. Claiborne's Opinion of Him. Editor The Advertiser:
 public Is taking mt Interest a in % your letters of General Woodward: Too long the people of Alabama have neglected their own history and the history .cf the the s6oriEinss ass who were d'spiaced by
 Yo1f readers win recall what Gen eral Woodward says apout Weather ford. ana the reluctance with which he Colonel Pickett states that Weather of women and children at Fort Mimms. but. when he failed to restrain the war, riors. left the field and was several nS,, dren sn' we're ws kiiied. Mheh '"s "o
 Claiborne. in his Notes on the War in the South" says: Among the nrss ish Commissioners was the since ce:- ebrated Weatherford."
 Again, His father was an itinerant pedler, sordid. trsacherous and re; savage of the tribe of the Seminoles. He partook of the bad qualities of both his parents, and engrafted, on the stock he inherited from others. many treachery and thirst for blood. he combines lust, gluttony, and devo- ton to every species of criminal ca-
 There is . foot note which says: ''The reader should be apprIzed that this was written at a time when some prejudice might have infected the
 S Colonel Picketrs account makes Weatherfora the son of an English trader among the Indians. by one of the daughters of the celebrated Alex McGflayry. who was himself about three -fourths white.
 believe Colonel Pickett's statement is true. But we had as well hear all the witnesses while the case is before us.
 There is much more that might be quoted, but I will not take up your space with it. Yours, etc,
 An Interested Reader,