The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-09-02
LETTERS TO EDITOR
Unappreciative of Underwood
he Editor of The Age Herald.

To the Editor of The Age Herald
 It does not seem to me that the people of our district are enthusiastic over Underwood as they should be- The men tion Of his name in a public meeting the other night elicted some applause, but 1t struck me as being half hearted. and not the stirring demonstration 1t should have been. The people of this district have been surfeited with heroes somewhat in the recent campaign-pro prohibition heroes, nt-prohbition heroes, and dispensary heroes. And the members of these va rious cohorts have heaped unstinted praise upon the heads of the other mem bers of the same cohort and condemna- ton without stint upon the heads of those of the other cohorts. Vigorous appeals to interest side and sentiment on the other have been made in the recent campaign by these gaiaxies of warriors on this all absorbing question.
 But the superlatives of this campaign should not be allowed to bedim higher glory of our fellow towEsmen, tTnder- wood. who is shortly to return to our midst after challenging the attention of the country to his remarkably sane and logical views on the tariff question: Un-
 
 to command respect for the south in other parts of the country, I believe. than any politician since the war. His freedom from the bombastic utterances and gilt terng generalzations so characteristic of most southern leaders have won respect for himself and for the section he repre- seEts II is time the south were realizing that mere flow of words does not make statesman am the last person in the world hplittla I like Tha southern people are devoted to It. but they have too long adhered to an oratory divorced from facts and figures, and have cheered to the echo any man who would tell them that the southern people were the chosen people of God and that they possessed the noble characteristics of courtesy and hospitality. and that, there fore, to proong their honor and further propagate these characteristics he should be elected their representative in Con- gress. Underwood is not of that type presume he is patriotic. He should be. But he has not made his expressions of patriotism his only stock in trade.
 Underwood has the technique of gov ernment. So has Woodrow Wilson. In derwood in Congress corresponds with the modern efficiency expert in industrial af- is the only really telling kind of states manship today. It takes man with only a smattering of learning usually of the classics or so long considered as the only worthy kind for a gentleman in the south to make an appealing and interesting talk dealing in generalties: but il takes man of brains and depth to marshal facts and figures and point convincinglv to the scientific details of such a maze of intricacies and perplexites as the tariff
 I think. therefore. that the Birmingham papers should begin a campaign of edu- cation by more fully acquainting the peo- pie of the district with just what Under- wood has accomplished. If they knew as much as they ought to, they could not withhold their admiration from the man, and would give him the most rousing wei come ever given public man in the new south I believe he Is the strongest rep resentative the new south ever had.
 Some months ago when Underwood was appointed chairman of the ways and means committee. the Boston Transcript. in commenting on the fact. said: The new chairman of the ways and means committee is from the state of Alabama. which holds the record for illiteracy Cor words to that effect. We are not accus- toned to looking to this locality for our leaders In governmental matters" Will the people of this locality let such re- marks go unchallenged when we have such an excellent opportunity to deal our selves four aces and take the pot? Very truly, R. E. NOLAN.
 Birmingham, August 31, 1911.