The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-09-17

land of the Methwold estate between June F and July 14, and in spite of the long drought they give splendid testimony of the possibilities of England as tobacco producing country.
 Some of the seedlings which were only two inches high when put in the ground by Major Whitmore, now show luxuriant leaves, in one case 2S inches long by IA inches wide. This was plant of the Virginia variety It is estimated that these plants average, under proper at tention, fully 1000 pounds of good leaf tobacco to the acre, as they are very herdy and thrive even among the roots of wild trees.
 The Turkish specimens have also grown uXriously, some of them measuring as much as seven feet inches in height and being crowned with beautiful lilac tinted flowers. While the barren soil of Norfolk seems to be admirably adapted tc the growth of tobacco, the experi- plants would always flourish as they have this year. although the season has not been generally favorable, and the lateness of planting was another disadvantage.
 The commercial value of the experi- ment, therefore, still remains to be de- termined, but active measures in behalf of the new industry have already been
 
 A tobacco specialist is to be sent to America shortly by the development com nissioners on a tour of inquiry to this end. He will travel by motor car through the tobacco lands of the United States, visiting all the principal plantations be- tween Florida and Canada. He will then return over the same route to observe the harvesting, drying, and rehandling pl ocesses. On his return government farm may be established in one of the northern counties to test the possibilities of tobacco growing as a commercial Brit ish industry.
 l have just had long talk with Miss Kate Stevens. principal of one of Lon dons greatest schools for girls, who has returned from America where she handed message to President Taft at Washington and attended the national education convention at San Francisco as delegate of the British National Union of Teachers.
 Miss Stevens is very enthusiastic over the United States.
 "The American people," she said, "are keenly alive to the advantages of edu- cation, and are determined that their children shall have every educational advantage. They are quite ready to make sacrifices to that end. They will vote money for schools and insist on having the very best teachers and methods, because their own children attend the schools whereas here in England the children of clerks and the middle classes generally are sent to private schools And their parents grudge paying the rates for public elementary schools The American is much more ready than we are to try new educational plans, and is also more ready to scrap one plan for what ap- pears to be a better one long before we should consider that the old one had had fair trial.
 "Another think that struck me was the number of teachers and people engaged in educational work who will gather to- gether for educational purposes such as summer schools, institutes, and meetings. number of teachers find that they are not so fully equipped as they would ike to be- and they take advantage of -helr holidays to attend summer schools or go tos the universities to modernize then work and improve themselves.
 This is more easy to do in the states than in England because the vacations are much longer. In the large cities the salaries of teachers are higher than ours, but they are discounted by the greater cost of living. Yet in spite of that think on the whole the pay of the American
 A motion of vital importance to the
 A motion of vital importance to the trade of the British nation will be brought forward at the annual conference of the Miners Federation of Great Britain, which will be held at Southport durinis the first week in October.
 The conference will be asked to declare itself in favor of minimum wage ror miners to be secured by means of gem