davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers. Fixing Henry VI.
More Precincts Needed

Jere c. King, who framed the Greater Birmingham bill and steered it until it became law, has rendered the people of this city another great service by preparing a precinct plan that will obviate the difficulties in voting that have attended elections in recent years. Precincts 21 and 37 would, under his plan, be reformed by the Board of Revenue into eight pre- cincts, thus reducing the possible vote in each precinct to 800. Old ward lines are closely followed in the King plan.
 The plan will be laid before the Board of Revenue, where 1t no doubt will receive due consideration. A division of city precincts in accord ance with the growth of population has long been inevitable, and the hope is that the Board of Revenue will. meet and solve the problem at the present time. When the precincts are divided the man who is ready to ex- cuse himself from voting will certain ly be deprived of the plea that he has mo time to stand in line," for 800 votes can, without crowding, be cast in a polling place.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
IN HOTEL LOBBIES
Disappointed but satisfied

pr. J. M. Miller of Carbon Hill while in Birmingham yesterday, stated that it was quite possible to be disappointed and necessary witness in a case at home" he said. 'I was unable to attend the meeting of the state democratic executive com- mittee of which I am a member. 1 was extremely disappointed on that account, because I had a keen desire to aid in the movement furthering the candidacy Of Congressman Oscar w. Underwood for the presidency. But on reading The Age-Her- aid this morning, I became aware of the fact that I could have done little in addi- tion to what was accomplished. There fore, l became reconciled and satisfied. The work of the committee was well done. indeed. l believe the plan adopted splen- did one.
 T note that the representatives of the black belt counties are trihe nettled on account of the committees action in ref erence to county representation in the state convention. I can't find reason for criticizing them for their efforts to make population the basis of representation. This morning, one of those who were prominent in the fight in behalf of the interests of the black belt stated that the counties affected would get what they wanted after all.' Of course, this feeling will eventually wear away. The days of illegal voting and padding election returns have no place in the present, but I can't blame the men for their determination to wage a more successful fight when the convention meets"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22

From the Washington Post.
 With Congress in an investiga ting mood it may be possible soon to bring about the establishment Of a commission to inquire carefully into the important question, What is love worth? The department of agriculture has already investigated the question, What is whisky? and it is now high time that an inquiry into the value of love be set on foot. Inasmuch as the problem is of legal character 1t might be well to place the investigation under the supervision of the department of jus tice.
 Love, as well as money, is understood to make the world go round. It is as i'm portant 10 the nation as the currency problem. In fact, the two subjects are so closely allied that 1t is frequently impos- sible to separate them. In the New York courts at the present time young wom- an is asking s25,OO0 damages for breach of promise of marriage She contends that William de Lorenzo's love was worth not one penny less than the sum she named.
 The question which naturally arises is whether De Lorenzo's love is worth more than the love of some other man. Other girls, suing for breach of promise. have fixed the price of love at sums varying from $lOO to $e000 GOO What eligible bache- lors would ike to know is whether there is not some standard at which the value of love can be fixed. Their predicament is similar to that of the business interests under the sherman law. The business men say they do not know just how far they can go under the law. The bachelors may know how far they can go, but cer- tain1y they do not know the exact legal plenalty for their offense.
 It is a serious question whether the value of love should be fixed on the basis of the quality of the lover or the loved. Should the social standing of the man be taken into consideration, or should the sum be fixed according to the social status of the lady? It has been contended that the love of a poor man is as valuable, if not more So. than the love of a rich man. It has likewise been argued that a poor girl values loves as highly as rich girl How, then, should the price of love be graduated2
 The love of ficlSle man certainly is not so valuable as the love of faithful man, yet the former is appraised higher in the courts. Surely something should be done about this. Here is an opportunity for an
 investigation that cannot be ignored by the sleuths of Congress.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
No Breach of Russian Relations

Both houses of Congress ratified the Presidents notice of abrogation of the treaty with Russia, the treaty of 1892, and the incident will soon pass from the public mind. The treaty itself stands until December 31, 1912, and before that time no doubt new treaty will have been negotiated. A former minister of commerce of Rus sia declares that the treaty was old fashioned and primitive. He seems to think there should be commercial treaty and political treaty also.
 In Russia the subject attracts small attention. The Moscow papers ignore the subject altogether. The Russian people take no little of our raw cot ton, but outside of that our trade re- lations with Russia are not great. No improvement of trade in any direc- tion is anticipated.
 Before the present treaty expires a new treaty will no doubt be nego- tiated that will avoid discriminations on account of race or religion. What is good for one American under it will be good for another, and that is all America need stand for in a Russian fraofv
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
Schedule K Under Fire

President Taft has had an unhappy time with Schedule K. He first ad- fnitted that his indorsement of it at Winona as a part of the best tariff ever devised was written between stations" and now his tariff board has told him that the schedule is pro- hibitive, and that under 1t ''it costs 100 per cent more to make cloth from yarn in the United States than it does in England or France" The report of his own board compels him to sur render Schedule K as utterly indefen- sible. He urges a general reduction of it's rates.
 This is an unconditional surrender, and so far as it goes it is a vindica- tion of Chairman Underwood and the democratic party. But Schedule K is but one out of IA in the tariff. The schedules go from A to N, inclusive, and all the rest were framed for prof its just as Schedule K was. All are indefensible, and all will be revised by the democrats of the House, led by Oscar Underwood. "The prohibitive duties of Schedule K," says the Presi- dent, eliminate the possibility of foreign competition even in time of scarcity, from a temptation to monop- oly and conspiracies to control do- mestic prices, and are much in excess of the difference in cost of production here and abroad" What is confessed ly true of Schedule K is true of all the other schedules, for all were made up on common plan--protection for profits. All students of political economy knew the nature of Schedule K before the report of the tariff board was presented, and all other in- telligent citizens felt it on, if not in, their bones.
 Can a confession save the republi-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
From the Louisville courier-Journal.

TOlli lne LOulSNllle COulleT-JOuTndl.
 T REDERIG GLAHE, described as
 one of Chicagos 20 greatest men, \ died the other day. leaving an es- tate of $2O0,00O, the foundations of which were laid when he 'invented' the free lunch. It is stated in Chicago that "Fred's Beer Tnnnel'' at the west end of the Madison street bridge was the first place at which food was served free with drinks. Glahe originated the theory that it was possible for a saloonkeeper to give his customers a sandwich with a drink and still make money. and his increasing profits and fortune bore him out.
 While many persons may smile at the use of the word "benefactor in connec- ton with the late MT. Glahe, it can hardly be contended that the invention of free lunch did not confer very genuine benefits upon frequenters of retail liquor establish ments. Few abstainers go to a barroom for luncheon nowadays in comparison with the number who take an alcoholic bever- age with their food yet there is a pretty substantial trade with patrons of "bus- ness mems lunch" an evolution of free lunch, who drink ,buttermlk or soft drink, of some kind with luncheon. Many of these patrons are men who have learned that working efficiency is inn proved by abandoning the use of alcohol during working hours. Others who take
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
BALTIMoRE's INSPIRATIONS

From the New York Sun.
 With the possible exception of its hunger for the democratic national convention of next year, the inspiration of Baltimore center on the oyster. The Sun of that city is full of disquisitions on it's planting, cul- tivation and harvesting and charged with defiance of those who would limit it's propagation and distribution.
 In all this wealth of pronunclamento, however, appears not the faintest symp- tom of protest against the watering of the Chesapeake bay bivalve and it's conver sion by that means into a tasteless and unwholesome mouthful Innocent and un- suspecting lovers of the oyster still sit on high stools in assorted oyster commits sariats ,and finding their food quite des- titute of flavor, proceed to deluge it with condiments-tomato catsup, horse radlsh, tabasco etc, and at last find some titil- lating fllip that comments the resultant mess to their jaded palates.
 The oyster as nature makes it is a for gotten thing We might as well eat the tomato catsup straight"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
The Get-Together Spirit

During the past five years Birming ham has made substantial progress in the get-together spirit" said a member of the Chamber of Commerce.
 When I first took up my residence in this city about II years ago there seemed to be little or no public spirit here. The Commercial club, the prede- cessor of the Chamber of Commerce, did valuable. work in it's endeavor to foster something like civic pride, but it has been only in the last few years that we have had large results from con certed action.
 What Birmingham needs more than anything else at this time is an elegant up to date, fire proof hotel. l have faith in the Chamber of Commerce com mittee now at work on a hotel project and believe that something will ma terialize. There can be no question about a $1. 900 hotel being profitable from an investment point of view
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
INVENTOR OF FREE LUNCH

a drink with their luncheon are less af- fected by the consumption of alcohol than they would be if they took drink or two now and again without food, and many of them reduce their daily consumption by forming the habit of limiting them con.
 Free lunch served at all times of day with drinks tends to lessen the evil eff feet of potations. It is doubtful if any considerable number of abstainers are tempted into barrooms by the opportunity to get fried oyster a boiled egg or a sandwich with each drink except a schooner" and through that temptation form the habit of drinking.
 Free lunch has probably ruined fewer dgestions than quick lunch Of course, quick lunch does not have to be boiled and may be wholesome in itself, but un- fortunately the American habit is to bolt it, whereas the fried oyster and crackers eaten with a small beer'' are usually eaten more deliberately.
 When and how the late MT. Glahe be- came listed as among Chicago's 20 great est men does not appear, but his ''inven- tion" was doubtless more benign than the effects of the resourcefulness of some of Chicago's richest men who have ar rived at their eminence by controlling commodities which Mir Glahe gave away, and by creating artificial prices for them.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
A Great Orchestra

The Minneapolis Symphony. which has been engaged for Birmingham s next music festival-May and 1, ranks among the foremost orchestras in, this country said member of the musical set.
 "The Bost1n Symphony Is accorded first place, but it never comes further south than Washington The 90 artists composing the Boston organization are said to be better paid than any musi- clans in the world. The Theodore Thomas of Chicago and the Minneapolis are close seconds. Emil Oberhoffer, the conductor of the latter orchestra, is said to have no superior. He has been the leader of the organization from it's beginning, and has had the loyal and liberal support of the people of Minne- apolis in building up this symphony band to it's remarkably high standard of excellence.
 The Minneapolis orchestra has so players, gathered from the musical cen salary. Rehearsals are held daily, which fact accounts largely for the per feet ensemble of the orchestra. The Minneapolis Symphony is now in it's ninth year. and is maintained by an annual guarantee fund of $65000. Its record of POP concerts given during a period of B weeks. It will come south next spring for the first time."
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
Turkeys and Cotton

"Though it is quite probable" said Anthony Henderson, a prosperous farmer of Lamar county, that some one more learned than l will come forward in dispute, l do not hesitate to state my opinion, which is based on long years of observation, that the turkey crop and the cotton crop have their fat and lean years simultan- eouiy.
 This year, for instance, there Is so much cotton that we will be fortunate to receive Sh cents a pound for 1t next spring, and so many turkeys that we are paid considerably less for them than last season. This not necessarily implies that the merchant will charge his customers less than last season, but he is paying us smaller price, at any rate. Last year, on the other hand, was an excellent year for turkeys. The crop was small, the demand brisk and the prices good And last season, as is remembered, the cotton crop was small and we received an excellent price for our staple The reason for this com cidence is simple The prices for cot ton and turkey last season excited the farmers into raising more of both this year than the market really needs. Therefore the prices have slumped.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
MIR. UNDERWOOD INTERVENE

From the Providence Journal
 In an interview at New York. Represen- tative Underwood talks sensiblys about his own possible nomination for the presi- dency. He is not an avowed candidate, because such candidates have to go about the country, he says, and l''spend a lot of time in headquarters work and In personal affairs.'. He proposes to stick to bnsl- ness at Washington and exert such in huence as he possesses to persuade the democratic party to keep it's promises; but he knows that his Alabama friends have decided to present his name to the convention ,and he will be proud and happy if he should be chosen. MT. Under wood, however, will not injure his cause by remaining at the capital and attending strictly to his duties.
 Upon the record of the House during the recent session depends very largely the chance of democratic success next year, and there is evidently no leader at the present time better capable of holding his fellow democrats in line than the tactful chairman of the ways and means com mittee. Mr. Underwood on being asked whether the House will take pains to pass the bills in which the President is spe- cially interested, properly reminded the interviewer that MT. Taft belongs to the executive, not the legislative branch of the government He says the House will be glad to receive information on any sub feet from the President. but when it comes to the writing of bills we will do the writing" That is what the framers of the constitution intended.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
Boil WeeYil Regulations

State Entomologist Hinds has form ulated quarantine rules for the com ing year. Alabama is now in the boll weevil belt and these rules are de- signed to delay as. long as possible the onward flight of the insects. It is not expected that they will stop their flight eastward. They may op- crate to gain little more time here and there before the depredations be- come inevitable.
 It is very plain that the black belt and the wiregrass counties will soon be included in the infested area. It is not plain that the mineral district will soon be infested, and if it is not, the Tennessee valley may escape in festation long time.
 One-half of Alabama may, in other words, escape visitation of the pest several years, while the half lying be- low Calera must get ready for all the ills that the Mexican interloper can inflict. Dr. Hinds' circular should be studied by all shippers and all mer- chants, for a faithful observance of it may give whole counties an addi- tional year of freedom from the weevils that seek, first of all, the green bolls of the cotton plant
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
The Iron Market

The pig iron market continues firm. Rogers, Brown & Co., in their Cincin- nati report of this week, say in part:
 Everything in the iron trade is tend ing in the right direction and the road is still leading upward. Buying of pig iron continues in good volume, although there is less range in prices and the market is firm. Figures at less than $10 in the south have disappeared and in some cases advances over $l0 are being made.
 Some eastern Pennsylvania furnaces are so well booked up for the first and second quarters of next year that an advance in price has also been reg istered at that point.
 Prices on steel are holding well at recent advance and further advances are looked for.
 Furnace stocks are being steadily depleted In the face of increasing ship ments and it is felt this will steadily continue. So far business done during December has been satisfactory and it appears that the holiday time will be productive of more business than it is usually the custom to count upon dur ing that period
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
His Elements of Strength

ship in the House of Representatives last summer made him a towering figure in national politics.
 It is one thing to be stateman and another thing to be politician. MT. Underwood is both. He is a states man of large breadth of view and a sagacious politician of the clean cut type. The legislator who proposes and carries through constructive measures and the executive who ad- ministers successfully nations gov vernment must be trained alike in the art of politics and in the science of statesmanship.
 Underwood, as chairman of the ways and means committee and as the official leader of the democratic party in Congress, has demonstrated excep- tional equipment and extraordinary capacity. He is the best all round man in public life in this country to- day, and the people have not been slow in recognizing his potential quail ities. His commanding position in the House has made him the logical candidate for the democratic presiden- tial nomination. He is discussed as a presidential probability in every part of the country. While he has not avowed himself a candidate, when Alabama presents his name in the na- tional convention it will be the signal for spontaneous demonstration.
 Underwood's cause has not been promoted by brass band or red fire methods. There is nothing of the spectacular in Underwood's make up, and his friends are not of the vocifer- ous class. But the growing strength of Underwood as presidential quan- tity is in evidence every day.
 According to present indications MT. Taft is to be the republican nom inee next year. Underwood can beat Taft. He can beat any man that the republicans might possibly nominate. He can carry New York. Several other democratic candidates are esteemed by the people, but could any demo- crat, except Underwood, carry New York? And New York will be as nec- essary for democratic victory in 1912 as it has been in all the years past.
 The masses of the people as well as the large business interests trust Un- derwood. They appreciate thoroughly his honesty of purpose and his grit. This democratic leader stands for something definite, but he is far re- moved from radicalism. His tempera- ment is ideal, and at the present time there is not another man in this broad land who would fill the role of chief magistrate with such eminent satis- faction to the public as Oscar Under wood.
 Alabama is not only proud of such son, but every true Alabamian is heart and soul for him, and will give him that support which is impelled by real faith in his ultimate triumph.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
LITTLE OLD LOG CABIN IN THE LANE

By Will S. Hays.
 I am getting old and feeble now, l cannot |. work no more,
 have laid the rusty bladed hoe to rest, Ole massa and ole. mis am dead, they're
 sleepin' side by side,
 Their spirits now-are roaming with the
 blest;
 The scene am changed about the place,
 the darkies am all gone,
 I'll never hear them singin in the cane. And I'se the only one that's left with this
 old dog of mine,
 In the little old log cabin in the lane. There was happy time for me, twas many years ago, When the darkies used to gather round the door, When they used to dance and sing at night, I played the old banjo But alas. l cannot play it any more, The hinges they gofusted. and the door has fallen down, The roof let's in the sunshine and the rain, And the only friend I've got now Is this good old dog of mine, In the little old log cabin in the lane.  The footpath now is covered o'er that led us round the hill, f And the fences all are going to decay, And the creek is all dried up where we used to go to mill, The time has turned it's course another way I ain't got long to stay here, and what little time l got I'll try to be contented to remain, | Till death shall call my dog and me to find better home Than the little old log cabin in the lane. Chorus
 The chimneys fallin' down an the roof | Is cavin' in, | I ain't got long around here to remain, But the angels watches over me wherkIi l lays down to sleep
 In the little old log cabin in the lane.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22
WANTED TT DONE RIGHT

From the Cleveland Plained Dealer.
 You may say whatsyou please about the wild and. woolly southwest" said a travelling man, but I know some of the people there have ideas about the usages in society. I was at a hotel table in Texas, .not Kong ago, where most of the guests were of the rough, drinking type. An old fellow and his son were sitting to- gether. and all at once somebody called the son liar. Son didn't shoot-he just grabbed his table knife and started for his detractor. Well, sir, in less than minute his father grabbed him by the col lar and forced him back into his chair.
 Amt you got no manners?' he hissed into the ear of the angry youth. What have I taught ye?'
 " He called me liar!' howled the boy, brandishing his weapon.
 Sposn he did, sonny? went on the father. 'Ain't you got no table manners Put down that there knife an use yer forkl
 "They know how to teach children eti- quette in the southwest and don't you ror- get it."