The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-04-05
THE GORDIAN KNOT
BY ETHE l. ARMIES "The Story of Coal and Iron in AInba ma"

"This problem of the damage suit busi- aess is without question the greatest problem present-day civilization is con cerned with" said a Birmingham attor- ney. whose firm handles a large percen- tage of the legitimate damage-suit cases brought up in the local courts.
 More law books treat of this one suh- feet than most any other. It concerns every interest under the sun-industrial, agricultural. mercantile, transportation, mining, manufacturing, home building law-making-ev everything.
 ''When an open discussion, free, un- biased, frank and accurate, is carried on in the public prints, it strikes the most vital and significant points of our life and our business activity today
 "The very heart of modern civilization is affected in more or less degree by the certain treatment given this great prob lem in the press.
 "Yes. it's right to hit the fakirs. Drive out every fake lawyer in the business, every scalawag and every shyster. They can't be hit hard enough. But on the other hand keep the distinction between
 
 damage suit clear and plain.
 White Light of Publicity
 "The great danger, Ivs noticed in the courts, right now, is that local jury under the present situation is liable to get an impression that all damage suits now being tried in Birmingham are like iy to be fake suits. The damage suit fSt industrial world today is frequently the one and only means of redress and jus tice that a man is likely to get. That is all that I wanted to suggest Simply note the distinction between the two and the fact that there are always two sides 10 a question:
 That there are two sides to the question Is an undeniabe fact. Rascality is a two headed dragon.
 No sooner are the heads chopped off than-quick-there they are again. And again the scimtar But the fight calls out the people It concerns the people. It's their business.
 How can they act if they are not in- formed? Who does not scorn a cad in any and every walk of life?
 Going on the theory that a pinch of il illustration is worth pound of argument, here are some illustrations of few cad like proceedings of recent date, on the part of general public and also the shyster lawyer.
 Again-"A Woman in It"
 Said a prominent merchant; Not long since woman here in Birmingham sued the street ear company for several thou sand dollars because she stood 40 min utes waiting for a car. On that particu- lar day and time there was a fire in town that seriously handicapped the street car service. That was not taken into consideration at all. however. Noth- ing is taken into consideration with ntreet car company by the general public
 They'll sue. for everything and for nothing. Why. 1 was on a ear going out to Ensley not long ago and a woman got up and walked to the rear platform to say something to a boy. While she was talking-and she took her time about it. another passenger got her seat. She came back and-well, she raised Cain. She'd paid for the seat and it was hersn she said, and she'd sue the company Sure enough, she did sue. She never got anything that I heard of, but l suppose the company was out for costs for de- fending it just the same and the county was out.
 Then another time I saw a woman and her daughter on an East Lake car hand a couple of late transfers to the con ductor. When he gave them back they abused him roundly and the elder wonan n said: I'll report you. sr.' The conduc- tor replied: You'll have to report,