davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
Literature for the Children.

Washington boys ought to be glad
that they do not live in New York The
authorities of the public library in that
city have decided not to issue the works
of Oliver Optic, Horatio Alger, and
John T. Trowbridge to their juvenile
readers. Up to the present time no
formal reason for this action has been
announced There has, however, been
a storm Of protest The staid and emi-
nently respectable New York Herald
ridicules the exclusion. and even in con-
servative Boston the wisdom of the ac-
ton is openly questioned.
One wonders what sort Of an age we
are coming into when Oliver Optic is
no longer considered fit author for the
boys to read. Perhaps there is litera-
ture nowadays which is more rhetorical,
more philosophical, more uplifting, more
soul-sustaining. There are not, however,
any books more genuinely human, more
entertaining, or which sugar-coat moral
more delightfully."- than the books which
Oliver Optic used to write The pres
ent generation of boys may not know
the volumes as thoroughly as their
fathers did. but if they do not, they have
missed something Not to have en-
joyed Through by Daylight" "On
Time" and all the railroad stories, to
say nothing of the romances of the boys
who developed sturdy qualities under
adverse conditions, is equivalent to going
through a desert without an oasis.
To think, too, that Alger and Trow-
bridge are also on the Objectionable list
Who is to take their places? Henty, per-
haps, with his long-winded and not al
ways accurate historical tales! Henty,
however, is an Englishman, and these
excluded authors had good American
blood in their veins. We know that
there are any number of writers who
would like to have the field of juvenile
literature all to themselves, but we
hope that in Washington they will
not be successful in banishing the books
of Oliver Optic, Horatio Alger, and
John Trowbridge from the library
shelves.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
Bera, Oh
The Major Outgrown.

From the London World.
Private H. Barter, who has just join
ed the First Battalion Grenadier Guards,
is only eighteen years of age, but stands
six feet eight and a quarter inches in
his stockings. and is still growing. He is
said to be the tallest soldier in the Brit
ish army.
My father, who is a Devonshire farm
er, is" he says, six feet five inches and
my mother is five feet ten inches, so
think it must be hereditary. l have lived
nearly all my life in the country. l am
doing two hours a day in a gymnasium
and about three hours drill, so that in a
month or two 1 ought to reach six feet
nine and one-half inches. I have smoked
since 1 was fourteen, or 1 do not know
how tall 1 should have been"
Formerly Maj. Oswald Ames, of the
Second Life Guards, who is six feet seven
and one-half inches, was said to be the
tallest soldier in the army.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
Money Well Expended.

1t will be worth while for the District
Commissioners. when they go before
the Appropriations Committee with es-
Inmates for parks and Fairgrounds, to
iortify themselves with the interesting
and important data which the Federal
government has compiled from the re-
turns of the recent census. This shows
that the expenditures under the head of
'Rccrcation" during the year 1908 in
various cities we're. as follows: New
York. $4,000: Boston. 10000; Chi
caeo. Sl,.3zoooo; Philadelphia. $4,000 !;
CIc,c,and. $1,000; Pittsburg, $4,000,
and St. Louis. ScQ5,ooO.
The amounts which other cities have
invested in parks, Fairgrounds. and gar
dcn~ arc simply enormous, aggregating
many hundreds Of millions OF dollars.
These arc municipalities. too, in which
the people vote and. therefore, have a
Voice in the management OF local affairs.
They afford d striking example OF the
sentiment. NOW almost universal, that
money expended for parks and play
grounds is a wise investment. They
present. also, contrast to the National
Capital. where a few thousands are given
more or les grudg'ngly each year. In
Chicago d, high d. per cent Of the
value Of the park plant Is annually spent
in il upkccp, and tie average eNpendi-
.u-c c,crywilrrc is much more generous
than in Washington.
1t is one OF the pleasing features Of
modern municipal progress that provi-
sion for the children through rccrea-
trsn grounds j. recognized as valuable
ractar in d c1tl'~ growth. Washington
cannot afford to lag behind in this great
work. and certainly the example which
- being set by other cities ought to have
il favorable effect upon Congress.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
The Humble but Valuable Peanut.

From James Whitcomb Rilcy's de-
lrghtfuI recitation on the peanut to
forty-page official publication of the De
partmcnt Of Agriculture on the same
subject is a far cry. As 4 matter of
fact, We are more prone TO consider the
peanut as a subject of humor rather
than accord it the place which it has
actually earned in the commercial world.
1t is humble and unobtrusive product,
associated in the common mind with the
fruit stand and the circus Let US, how
ever, bear public tribute to its real
worth.
First OF all, it is but justice to the
peanut to state that the 'goober" and
the peanut are not one and the same
The 'goober,' we are informed by ex-
pert scientists, is an allied species having
no true stem and only one pea in each
pod. Having thus differentiated the
real and genuine from the lowly and
the make-believe, we are perfectly will
ing to accept the statement that the
peanut is a plant which originally came
from tropical America. 1t is of noble
and distinguished origin, and belongs
to the ''goober" class only as a work
horse is akin to Maud s. or Sal
vador. 1t is not, as many people imag-
inc, native of the United States, but
came in with other colonists before the
Revolution.
The value of the commercial peanut
crop of the United States is now nearly
$I5ooo,ooo. Surely this fact entities the
peanut TO consideration. 1t is no longer
merely supplied to the pedestrian on the
streets, the traveller in the cars, or the
children at the ZOO Thousands of,
bushels are shelled annually for use in
the manufacture of confections and food
products. II has an especial value in
revitalizing waste lands, and soils that
. will not produce more than one-fourth
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
WINS BET ON LONG LIFE.
WaEered $I5O,OOO He Would Live
10 Years and Gets S213,OOO.

Detroit COrrcSpOndence New York Press
letter received by former Senator
Thomas w Palmer, on his eighty-frst
birthday, made public this afternoon,
reveals curious incident in the career
OF the statesman, in which he practical
ly bet $1,000 he would live to be seven
ty-fivc years old. The head Of an in
surance company had been after the Sen
ator for a 10000 policy for a long time
Finally. about seventeen years ago, ne
obtained the Senator's consent. but his
company refused the risk The Senator
was then sixty-four years old and the
premium would have been $3.50 a year
The company figured that he could not
possibly live long enough to pay in the
amount the policy would call for.
The Senator didn't need the policy
particularly. for ne was wealthy, and
still is. He proceeded to wager $50
"0 with several insurance companies
for no company would take the entire
amount aIone-that he would live more
than eleven years. The wagers took the
form OF an income policy. For the
amount the Senator deposited he received
an income OF $l9,OO year for life.
whether he lived one year or a hundred.
He gave long odds for a man of his age,
for II he died the next day his estate
would lose the entire amount. and if he
died in a year it would lose s1S7.5n
But the Senator has drawn $212,jOO on
the bet and is hale ana hearty and is
still winning. When nc dies the original
deposits will be returned TO his estate.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
TAFT PLAYS GOLF
WITH A DEMOCRAT
Wins His Game Against
Martin W. LittletOn.

Augusta, Ga, March 15.-For the first
time since he arrived here, the President
failed to-day to get even a formal re-
port from Washington on the Mexican
situation and he seemed to enjoy the SEN
sation of being without information.
All the news that came to hand during
the day was contained in the press dis J
patches. These were without startling
features and they therefore provoked nP
Executive comment
As a result of this absence Of dis
,urbing events abroad. the President ide-
voted his whole day to relaxation }and
pleasure, and he enjoyed it, perhaps,
more than any days rest since hiss ar
rival.
The morning was given over to the golf
game, in which he defeated Martin W
I-ittleton. Of New York. by a NARROW but
decisive margin. In the afternoon he mo-
tored for forty miles into the country,
and tonight he played hrdget Repre-
sentative DalZcIl came to Augusta TO-DAY,
but did not remain at the Presidents ho-
tel long. He had been stopping at Aiken,
5. c. and said that he had run over tn
pay his respects to the executive. The
two met just as the President came from
the golf links.
dent, where did you come from? Did
you como down here to tel me that
you were going to support reciDror-
Not bit of it, replied the CON
gressman. NO reciprocity for mine
With that they parted, with the un-
Outstanding that they would met
after lunch. Soon after lunch how
ever the President drove away in his
automobile. Mr.. Dalzell also left. and
this seemed to close the incident. If
the two met later. nothing was said
about it.
The President to-day paid no at
tontion to the report that Secretary
Knox would shortly resign as head Of
the Stat" department, to he suCcoCdCl
by Attorney General Wickcrsham.
The same report had former Senator
Carter Of Montana, slated to succeed
the Attorney General
Two departures Of the day we-"
those Of Miss Helen Taft and John
~ Rockefeller. Tho Presidents
daughter went to Washington and Mr..
Rockefeller was said to have gone {"
New York. He has been in Augusta
since the middle of February.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
REVISING THE COMMANDMENTS
Bishop Williams, of Detroit. Makes
Personal Statement.

Communication in the Living Church.
May I ask the courtesy of your col
umns for a hrief statement on a matter
of personal privilege?
A story has been going the rounds Of
the secular press that the Bishop of
Michigan is proposing to revise the Ten
Commandments for modern use" or Ito
hlUe-pencil the Ten Commandments for
modern use" II has even been asserted
that l am trying to upset the Ten Com
mandments." The whole foundation of
this absurd story is as follows:
a local newspaper sent to me the other
day a reporter who did not know what
the Ten commandments were or where
they were to be found. He brought a
clipping which stated that the Convoca-
ton of Canterbury had appointed the
Dean Of Winchester to prepare a short
ened form of the Ten Commandments
abbreviatng especially the second, fourth
and tenth. He asked me what this state
ment meant I told him that it probably
meant using the imperative clauses only
Of the three commandments mentioned
Thou shalt not make to thySeIf any
craven image Remember that thou
keep holy the Sabbath day and Thou
shalt not COvet." | impressed upon him
that this did not mean a revision of the
Biblical version. but only of the form
used in the Catechism and possibly in
the antc-Communion service When asked
for an opinion upon this ahbreviation,
replied that ! had none. Being further
pressed for such an opinion. I told him
that the matter was of little consequence.
but possibly such a shortened form might
be convenient for the purpose of reCita
ton in church or for memorizing This
interview was reported with the glaring
headlines. Bishop Williams Blue-pencils
the Ten Commandments for Modern Use"
and the matter was reported throughout
the country by some press association
in the absurd and sensational form men,
toned. Yours sincerely.
CHARLES d. WILLIAMS.
Episcopal Rooms Detroit, February Il 1911.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
American Adventures in Mexico.

There is no doubt that the insurrec-
ton in Mexico is aided and abetted by
American adventuFers. While it is true
that the name of Oscar c. Creighton
does not appear in the Harvard dircc-
tory, and while the statement that he
is a Harvard graduate may have been
inserted in the dispatch to give an
academic halo to his introduction as the
leader of Mexican rebels, it is undoubt-
cdy a fact that he is an American. All
the telegraphic accounts of the uprising
are filled with the names of Americans,
and the latest >advices are that fifteen
citizens of the United States may have
been summarily shot
Little sympathy will be wasted upon
these soldiers of fortune Certainly We
would have no consideration for any
Mexicans who crossed the border line
into Texas or California and wrecked
trains, blew up bridges, or leveled their
guns at the officers who were endeavor-
ing to preserve peace and order The
Americans who have crossed over into
Mexico are in the same category. They
are lawless marauders, and they have no
business bearing arms against an estab-
lishcd government. They have not even
the excuse of participating in a revolu-
ton for the cause of freedom President
Dlaz may be an autocrat and a dictator,
but he must be given credit for having
evolved Mexico out OF chaotic and
barbarian state into a country where
life and property have been secure
where good laws have been enacted and
enforced. and where the largest amount
OF liberty consistent with environment
has been accorded.
There does not seem to be any law
which will reach these American adven-
turers except the law of summary pun
iShment which the Mexican government
has invoked Under Our own statutes
an American citizen who enlists in this
country TO serve in a war in a country
with which we are at peace is guilty OF
a breach of neutrality and would be fined
$4,000 and imprisoned for ten years. 1t
would be difficult to prove that these
lawless characters enlisted on this side
of the border, but none the less there
ought to be some way in which they can
be held responsible for their total disre
gard of their duty to their own country
and their violation of the laws of
friendly nation
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
A New Presidential Responsibility.

In discussing the recent opinion OF the
United States Supreme Court affirming
the constitutionaIity Of the corporation
tax law, the fact has been overlooked
that an enormous responsibility has been
placed upon the President Of the United
States
The act invests the government with
the powcr-reaching to the innennost
circles OF finance and commerce-to en-
force publicity on the part of 262,4oo
corporations having a capital of $52,37I,-
b2o.z52. At first it was provided
that the official reports should be public
records and open to inspection, but, later,
the rules under which they were to be
examined were left to the discretion OF
he President The men who were sue
cessful in securing this modification will.
no doubt. discover that in centering their
hopes for a continued privacy upon the
decisions Of one man they were taking
long chances. The power that this gives
the Executive in the vast field of COM
merCc and finance is far-reaching, So
far as President TAFT is concerned, there
/, little to fear. He is, above all things,
conservative and judicial. 1t IS possible,
however, that some future occupant of
the White House may he lacking in these
essential traits. and. either through i'm
pulse or radicalism, might exercise the
discretion vested in him with neither
m.lsdnrn nor irdrr1nrt
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
INCOME TAX DEFEATED.
Evident that Constitutional Amend
ment Cannot Be Adopted.
LN-,.,, H.

ment Cannot Be Adopted.
From the Philadelphia Press
Arkansas, West Virginia. and New
Hampshire must be added to the list of
States which in one legislative branch
or both have refused to approve the Fed
eral income tax amendment. This makes
nine States against the amendment the
others being Louisiana, New York, Con-
nectiCut Virginia, Massachusetts, and
Rhode Island
The rejection of the amendment by
twelve States will kill it, and counting
as against it the States which have de-
liberately refused to consider the amend
ment it is beaten already. However,
some of these States may yet approve
and even those who have turned it down
may reconsider. Still, as inaction is as
fatal as adverse action the prospects Of
the amendment getting through are just
now not very bright.
The Northeastern States, which would
have to pay much the larger share of the
ern States oppose it because Of its appre-
hended interference with State taxation
They do not like the Federal government
coming into their jurisdiction and levy
ing taxes for the national Treasury,
which they think more justly belong to
the treasury of the State OF the tax
payers residence
The concurring vote of three -fourths
of the States on any proposition to amend
the Constitution is hard to get. Twenty
four State legislatures. including that of
Kentucky, whose Endorsement was irreg-
ular. have pronounced in favor Of the
amendment. There are more yet to be
heard from, but the necessary three
fourths vote is still far of
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
AN OHIO DOCTORS VIEWS.
Some Comments Upon n Report in
The Washington Herald.

Editor The Washington Herald:
AcCidently securing copy of The
Washington Herald in this Ohio town. I
read the remarks made by man calling
himself DR.. Snow before the Washington
Anti -Vivisection Society. l have had an
experience of sixteen years in the active
practice of medicine, and l wish to state,
from the results of my experience in life
or death combats with deadly diseases,
that any man making such statements
as those made by DR.. Snow is either
grossly ignorant or grossly untruthful.
l do not like vivisection myself: in fact
it is personally very distastful to me,
and l believe that every bit of Unnec-
essary experimentation and all operations
without an anaesthetic should be pro-
hibited; but we must utilize animals to
a large extent for serum production, un-
less we prefer to sacrifice our sick, and
particularly our sick children. In my ex-
perience as a practicing physician 1 have
many times had a particularly malignant
and deadly form of diphtheria in a COM
munity of ignorant and helpless foreign
ers, who were in absolute ignorance of
the most elementary principles of nursing
and sanitation. Many times the child
had been sick for several days before
doctor was called, and death was more
frequent result than recovery. Now, it
is an absolute fact that the coming into
general use of anti-toxin has cut down
the fatalities fully three-fourths among
these people In my own practice l have
not lost one case that had been given
anti-toxin. With these results in my own
and other doctors experience, no amount
of bare assertion from men without ex-
perience will have any weight with me.
VIM. NJ GREGORY, NJ. d.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
VIEWS AND
INTERVIEWS
American Women Practical.


Owing to the fact that in America
servants are hard to obtain" said Mrs.
York Miller, the well-known author, of
London, when recently seen here at the
New Willard, demand high wages, and
are often totally incompetent, even the
wealthy woman in America has been
trained from an early age to do her own
household work, and, in fact, often does
much of it herself.
I'm England a man with $500 a year
probably keeps two maids, and the
daughters of the house are not taught
to work or to manage a home. Conse-
quently, they grow up knowing little
or nothing OF household matters. The
daughters of a man in the same position
in America would do the work them
selves.
The American girl fits herself for TAX
ing care of herself. She learns some
amount of money her father may possess,
by which, if necessary. she can earn a
good living. The girl in certain ultra
wealthy circles of American society
would perhaps be about equal in the
matter OF education with her parallel
in England, who has been taught merely
by a GOvernesS or at private school
where she may study or not. according
to her taste, but, on the whole, the
American of a certain standard is better
informed than the English woman of
the same standard"
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
The Passing of AppIeJack.

Prom the Lancaster Examine-
Applejack is a back number in Pennsyi-
vania. There was a time when the
good old Presbyterian deacons and elders
of York County made enough applejack
as they said-"to supply themselves and
the rest of the congregation" but that
time is gone. 1t is almost gone in New
Jersey. also, the last of the applejack
producing States.
The main point is this-the raising OF
apples at forty cents per bushel pays,
and If the price discourages the making
of applejack, all the better. Let the dis
tillers plant orchards of their own If the
value of apples is too great for them.
The wholesome fact is that the coun-
try is eating more apples and drink
ing less of their distilled juice.
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
San Francisco Shirt.

Though the San FranciscanS do not
talk earthquakes. or cOncede earthquakes,
a considerable number Of them have
paid that whimsical phenomenon the
tribute of respect implied by moving
from their adored city" said Joseph r.
Cassidy. Of San Francisco. who is at
the Riggs.
Across the bay. in Oakland and
Berkeley, it is said that the shocks are
not felt. SO many San Francisco bust
ness men have established their
called the 'dormitories of San Francisco.
and father. confident that mother and
the children are safe. grows more and
more intolerant Of the Eastern visitor
who insists upon harping upon earth
quakes in preference to fires.
There is San Francisco face for
such tactless Investigators. the express
sion at the first question being one OF
polite blankness. indicative OF a child
like lack OF comprehension. If the ques-
toner be persistent. a degree Of con-
temptuous impatienCe distorts the feat
Ures. The third stage-they say who
have tempted fate-is a vehement declara-
ton that the first fire that broke out
might have been controlled if stubborn
old woman. dcfyinC the orders Of the
firemcn. had not insisted upon cooking a
dish of ham and eggs over stove that
communicated with a defective Chin
ney
They cant he downed. these San
Franciscans, and they know what they're
after"
The Washington herald., 1911-03-16
Wanted a Double Dose.

Some years ago said J. NJ. Martin
cf Lexington. Ky, who is at the Riggs,
'T was driving out from Lexington one
afternoon and I came upon an old negro
seated upon A two-wheeled cart loaded
with garden truck. He was disconsoiate:
his mule was haIky and could not he
moved. ! exhausted my energy. and We
were about to give up when a veterinary
surgeon came driving up in his gig. He
wasn't much of a horse doctor-more Of
depester than anything else. l asked
him if he could help the Did darky out of
his trouble. He said sure he could.
He opened his satchel and filed his
hvpodermic syringe with a mixture Of
dope from several bottles and squirted
the dose into vein on the mules neck
"The old negro stood on one side, half
afraid. but watching the proceedings
with interest. For a few minutes moth
ing happened. Then the mule shook
himself, threw back his ears. and looked
behind him to see where that strange
feeling Of vim and vigor had come from.
Suddenly he let out a tremendous bray,
made Jump of about ten feet, and went
down the road at a 2:40 gait. the cart
rattling behind him and the garden truck
flying out in every direction.
THE old darky stood for a moment
paralyzed with astonishment. Then he
looked at the fast-disappearing mule and
then ct the vet. Finally he gasped:
For the Lawd's sake, boss, what
was dat stuff you squirted in dat mule?'
THAT was elixir of life. uncle re-
piled the horse doctor. Tt makes them
get a move on every time
We'll, please, Mist Doctor pleaded
the old man with tears in his eyes,
won't you squirt a dose of dat stuff into
me? Better make it two doses, cause
Use got to cotch dat dern mule fore he
passes Miss Smiths bo'd'n-hOuse.'