davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
CITY WITH roo MANY HOUSES

In Harper's for August, w. d. How
ellis, writing of the Spanish city of To-
ledo, points out the interesting fact that
the population has decreased from 100000
to 1900, so that every one has his own
house.
I'm Toledo now each family lives, Eng
lish fashion, in q house of It's own, while
In all the other continent 1t mostly dwells
in a fiat. This is because the population
has fallen from 100000 to 5000. and the
houses have not shared its decay, but
remain habitable for numbers immensely
beyond those of the households. In the
summer the family lives on the first floor.
which the patio and the cistern under 1t
filled by the rains keep cool; in the winter
1t retreats to the upper chambers. which
the sun is supposed to warm, and which
are at any rate dry even on cloudy days
The rents would be thought low in New
In Toledo; but the wages are small; 50
month for man servant and $3.50 for
a maid. If the Toledans from high to
low, are extravagant in anything, 1t is
dress, but dress for the outside, not the
inside, which does not show, as our guide
ironically explained. If they skimp them
selves on food, they pay the penalty in
fever as one might think but there is a
great deal of consumption; and, as we
could not help seeing everywhere In the
| streets, there were many blind, who
seemed oftenest to have suffered from
smallpox"
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
Electoral Figures in July

The tangle involved in the republi-
can tickets in Kansas, Pennsylvania,
West Virginia, California and South
Dakota is simply inexplicable. 1t is
indeed without a parallel in American
politics, and the voters in those states
may decide that the best way out con-
sists in casting pluralities for Wilson
and Marshall. 1t is the true remedy
and perhaps the only remedy that will
prevent the downfall of the entire
electoral system.
AS things now stand the only states
that Taft can count as reasonably GER
tain are Iowa, 13 electors; Michigan,
ID; Minnesota, IL; New Hampshire,
4; Oregon, 5; Rhode Island, 5; Utah,
a; Vermont, A; Washington, 7, and
Wyoming, ga total of II electoral
votes, and he needs 266.
The really debatable states in the
campaign are New York, 40 electoral
votes; Connecticut, 7; Massachusetts,
1s; Wisconsin, 10; Ohio, 20, and
Illinois, 20; total, 1875 electoral votes.
These are the really debatable states,
and warm campaigns will be conducted
in all of them.
The campaign will not, however
take on its final form until after Au-
gust when the Roosevelt movement
will be estimated and weighed. Should
the Roosevelt movement prove as
strong as some think it will, it will
indeed be difficult to pick out the
certain Taft states, beyond at any
rate Vermont and Utah, Rhode Island
and New Hampshire.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
Hanford Quits the Bench

The revocation of the citizenship
papers of Leonard OLSON because he
had stated that he was socialist, was
the straw that broke ex-Judge Han
ford's back. Congressman Berger of
Milwaukee soon introduced impeach-
ment charges alleging that Hanford
had rendered corrupt decisions and
was an habitual drunkard. A sub
committee of the House judiciary COM
mittee was sent to Seattle and dozens
of witnesses testified before it.
Hanford escapes trial by the Senate
by rendering his resignation. He
could still be tried, but the House has
practically dropped the case. Chair
man Clayton says an unfaithful judge
has been weeded out, and he states
that in his opinion mo President will
ever appoint him, and no constituency
will ever elect him to any office Of
honor or profit"
1t is perhaps best to drop the un
savory case, but trial would have
taught all other judges that they have
no right to shut men out of citizenship
because of their political opinions.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24

and figures presented by DR.. Meade come
from official sources and may be relied
upon for their accuracy. 1t is suggested
that this article deserves a careful read
ing, as we'll as does the editorial found
on page, 500, entitled Thou Shalt Not
Steal."'
shippers who have not read Meade S
article should by all means send for the
Railway World for July 5. The dis
cussion will well repay perusai. DR..
Meade says in closing his discussions:
I do not wish to be understood as
bringing wholesale indictment against
all shippers of the United States, as II
is only small percentage who are guilty
of these violations of the law. The fact
remains, however. that In the aggregate
the loss to the railroads is enormous,
while the practice in itself places all
honest shippers under as decided dis
advantage as would the most objection
able form of rebating. This Is sufficient
cause for strong cooperative effort on
the part of the regulatlve authorities, the
railroads and the shippers, to the end that
such practices may be entirely aool-
ished.' "
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
A POMPEIAN ZACCHEUs

From the New York sun.
The most startling and pitiful collection
In the museum at Pompeii is that of the
plaster casts of people and animals that
have been discovered there The excava-
tors work with great caution and once in
a while tap place in the ashes that
sounds hollow; they make an opening in
this. remove the contents of the cavity
and then fill it with plaster of paris.
This preserves the contours of the figure
that kept the ashes in place and has since
decayed. The latest addition to the col
lection tells the story of the victims end
in a remarkable manner.
A hollow was found recently outside
the Nola gate on the east side of Pom
peii, few steps from the monument OF
Aesyuilia Polla. After the cast was taken
1t was found to be the huddled up body
of man holding his left hand over his
mouth, while the right arm was extended
above his head. Fastened to the body
were three fragments of branches, one
next the head. another, q forked piece
was attached to the left ankle. 1t Is clea,
that the man had climbec a tree hoping
to escape from the shower of ashes, and
that man and branches had fallen to-
gether. His money was found in q
linen bag. eight silver denarii dated from
Caesars time to that of Titus and a
copper as of Titus; with this was an
hon finger ring holding a carnelian or
which is engraved the sign of Capricorn
between star and . ships ruddss.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
Magnitude of the Canal

The Worlds Work for August pre-
sents the interesting features of the
greatest undertaking in the history
of the world. Its marvels are the
Gatun dam, the Culebra cut, and the
locks with IL chambers 1000 feet long
and ITO feet wide. One writer says
the locks are the greatest marvel of
all, for underneath them are conduits
as large as railroad tunnels and valves
that must be seen to be appreciated.
These locks lift up or let down ships
SIS feet, that being the level of the
water bridge between the two seas.
The differences between the Suez
canal and the work at Panama are
retold. The Suez canal could now
have been built at an expense of about
$50, 100000. The Panama canal will
cost $500, 100000, and it could not be
built at lower figures. The Panama
canal is marvel of sanitation as well
as Of engineering, and the Suez canal
was neither. The building of the Pan
anna canal is also a marvel of finance,
for it will be built without imposing
any perceptible burdens on the tax
payers of the United States. In no
respect is the Suez canal equal to that
at Panama, except possibly in rev.
enue, but that is a matter that re-
mains to be tested in the years to
come.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
THE SENSE OF LONELINESS

would cease. But at the same time cer1
tain fine instincts would be extirpatedy
The human heart feels the need of de-
pendence upon others.
Just here lies the hint of possible trag
edy. The really poignant suffering oil
isolation occurs where people are thick
est, where the sympathy that might bel
given is withheld. The loneliest spot inl
the world is not hard to find it is neither
the Sahara, nor the steppes of Siberia.
nor the Sargasso Sea-but a great city.
Here is no actual physical seclusion
The satiric pang lies in rubbing against
others with whom one has no commonl
bonds. The lighthouse keeper, alone with
his lamps. is blithe at heart compared
to the traveller at crowded railroad
terminus. The cowboy in some midnight
vigil under the stars feels none of that
mordant aloofness of the man Who'll
breasts a rushing stream of unfamiliar
faces on Broadway. Moreover, when onsl
is literally alone. it is frequently in al
place where nature is most intimate andl
companionable. Then trees, rivers, noun
tains, seem to throb with kindness and|
the lap of the tide become almost cpmpre-
hensible articulation. At least SO 1t seems|
to the stranger within the gates of thel
wilderness
Urban Inequalities have little of thisI
sort to offer. The factory whistle and|
the honk of the automobile are so much
dead noise. And the clack of strangeI
tongues is yet keener torture. The starv-|
ing man is not so unhappy in dungeonI
as In the sight of others feasting. To bel
alone in a crowd requires the adaman-I
tine heart. We recall in this connection,
the remark of a man who was passingI
a huge, deserted summer hotel, and wasI
asked whether he would have couragsl
to live there for a week all alone.
"Alone, yes, indeed was his answer.
but not IL all those rooms were filed
with strangers" That reply is mors|
than cleverness; it is fundamental truth.
The boy in a crowded dormitory on hisI
first night in boarding school knows what
is meant. OF course, so long as cities|
exist, the parks they cause will be the|
same. They can be lessened to some ext
tent Many are constantly trying to rel
claim the mental and spiritual waits and|
derelicts of great cities. And that is NJ
noble work. But so long as vast masses|
come together, human nature will never
allow perfect communion. The solitary
explorer is separated from his friendsI
only by latitude and longitude, but the
hall bedroom may be in another world.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
Judgments of the Board of Revenue

Judgments of the Board of Revenue
The right in the state tax commits.
sion to review assessments made by
the jefferson county Board of Rev.
enue is so uncertain that nothing
short of decision by the supreme
court of Alabama will decide it. The
board hears evidence and its decis-
ions are certainly the decisions of Of
ficials sworn to do their duty. The
presumption is that their judgments
rendered in assessment cases are just.
They must at any rate,be so considered
until they are reversed on appeal by a
jury of the county.
The governor and the state tax COM
mission will soon see that they can
not control the Board of Revenue in
this county. No attempt to place val
uations in Jefferson county on a 100
per cent basis, while they remain on
60 per cent basis in the rest of the
state, will be effectual. An added
threat of impeachment will not
change the determination of the Board
of Revenue to do it's duty without
fear or favor.
The fact that Jefferson county is
now paying the deficits of a score or
two of counties that draw out of the
state treasury more than they put in
it renders the administration atti-
tude all the more uncalled for. The
non-supporting counties should first
be brought up to the mark.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24

been discovered in Havana, and it is
idle to say that the disease does not
exist in Havana. Congress will soon
increase the appropriation for fighting
off the disease to 100000, and Sur
geon General Blue can do great deal
toward rendering the mainland i'm
mune from this dread Oriental disease.
The ports of the gulf should aid the
marine hospital service in the task.
All rats carry fleas, and all rats at the
gulf ports should therefore be killed.
Between the fleas and the rats the dis
ease has been spread in Porto Rico,
and so it would be on the mainland
if a single case of it should be de-
tected here.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
Good Road DAYS

1t is hoped that the Alabama Good
Roads associations good road days
August ID, Is and 16--will be OBJ
served in every one of the 81 counties.
On the days designated every able
bodied man in the rural districts is
expected to work three days at good
road making. or employ someone to dc
the work.
If the spirit of the good road days
is thoroughly in evidence, Alabama
viii make great stride forward next
month.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24

The catalog of st. Bernard for the
academic year 1912-13 has been issued
and is exceptionally interesting. 1t is
well illustrated, and an illustration
seen in this seasons catalog for the
first time shows the new power plant.
1t is said by those who know that this
Is one of the most complete power
plants in the country.
st. Bernard always has in It's student
body many boys from Birmingham and
the Birmingham district. Father Law
renee, o. s. B., and Father Stephen, o.
| S. b., who are spending a part of the
summer in this city, say that they are
receiving many inquiries from parents
who expect to send their boys to st.
Bernard.
St. Bernard abbey and its college
were established just 20 years ago. The
institution was practically self-sustain-
| ing from the start, but 1t was several
years before there was much expansion.
The buildings are large and all the ap-
pontments are now modern. The col
lege today has a capacity for 200 stu
dents, and 1t will eventually accommo-
date $50. The enrolment is always
about equal to the capacity.
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
A RIVER SONG

BY Papillon. in London World.
Old Father Thames, how many poets
loudly
Have hymned your stream, a blithe
melodious throng,
Spencer, for instance; hear him chant
ing proudly
Sweet Thamesi run softly till I END
r. too, invoke the Muse to give yor
greeting
(Though not poet of the older
SCHOOL,,
For summers come and sunny days
are fleeing.
And spotless boating f1anr els are the
rule.
Far have l wandered IN this land OF
rivers
Culled dusky lilies from the drowsy
Meme,
BY Tamar's shadowy bends where
foliage quivers
Have held sweet converse with ths
Fairy Queen;
Climbed the step cliffs of Wye, and
plucked moon-daisies
From Medway's peaceful banks a.
earliest morn,
Followed calm Severn in her leafy
mazes.
And tracked the murmuring Ousd
mid ripening corn.
Yet, Father Thames. whose winding
waters Simmer
With FURNISHED light at lavish sum
mer noon.
Or break to golden arabesques eacl
glimmer
OF star and pickering lantern 'neatl
the moon,
For you these stranger-loves are al.
forsaken; G
hear you call. see your beckonina
hand: t4ss
And back to your broad bosom gentlt
taken.
/ My Queen and I shall Goat to Fairy
land!
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
VAIN MIR. STONE
Gilbert Parker, in the August Metropoli-

tan.
Thomas Jefferson Stone was typical
claim holder and prospector. He came
from Indiana. He had no teeth, his hair
was gray, his features sallow and with
cred, and he looked 60 or 81. He told
me, however, that he was only 46. There
was a cowed, placid helpless air about
him, and yet In his eyes there was a fire
faint and glimmering, the fire of n
fading fanaticism. He was still the vic
tim of an obsession. He had been q
years prospecting. picking out claims,
hoping to strike 1t rich some day.
I asked him how he lost his teeth. He
said by taking medicine good for neural
gia but too strong for his worries.
asked him why he didn't have a false
set made. He said he had had a set,
but he took them out and put them In
his pocket one day. where his handker-
chief was ito rest his MOUTH" and hap
pening to take out the handkerchief
also and the plate fell on the floor and
broke.
told Thomas Jefferson Stone that
wanted his photograph, and three days
afterward he was ready for the kodak
When he came I saw he had set OF
teeth in his mouth. | was astounded
We were scores of miles from any den
fist, or any town where dentist could
be.
Hello, stone" / said; you've got q
set of teeth How's that?"
! He gave smile of conquest. II bor-
rowed 'em to be photographer he said
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24

TN connection with the recent reports
of Antarctic exploration. one casual
4 comment frequently heard was an ex-
preston of wonder that explorers can
fight off the almost appalling loneliness
of polar research. But do trackless
wastes of ice and complete isolation nee
essarily induce an acute sense of being
lonely? There is little doubt that loneli-
ness produces a keen hunger of the
heart. 1t need not be a yearning for ac-
tual intercourse with ones fellow-men;
1t is often the feeling that such COM
munion is perforce impossible. For this
reason 1t is benumbing. Thirst is often
caused not merely by the body's need,
but by the realization that no springs of
sweet water are within reach The an
alogy is far from perfect, for loneliness
is often a craving for the intangible
what, 1t can hardly tell The lonesome
man is like the infant: he feels without
realizing. Some philosophers declare that
the passion of love is only sort of sub
limated loneliness. The nearest one can
come to a definition is to say that lone
illness consists in the craving for SYM
thy.
That II does not depend upon actual iso-
lation is a fact too little understood
Much well meant sentimentality is vast
ed upon the person who is separated from
his kind by geographical barriers Take,
for instance, the to-do over the farmer.
1t is true that he lacks much intercourse
which would be educative and stimulat-
ing to him; but he Is not necessarily
lonesome because his vocation is such as
must needs keep him away from swarm
ing humanity. Though he plough alone
in his outermost field, in heart he Is
often at the conclave in the village store.
Moreover, he is usually the head of
family-that most sovereign remedy fo-
pangs of solitude. Or observe the sailor
on his watch or the trapper threading
his Businesses. These men suffer not
bit, for solitude is an aid to their work.
Nor does the actual hermit or recluse
suffer He has made his own bed, and
the cloud of egotism In which he enwraps
himself enables him to lie contentedly in
it. Speaking badly the hermit really
shrks life. Out of touch with flesh and
blood, the spark of comradeship in him
fickers and at last fades. That is the
trouble with the liking
dom-is'' sort of philosophy. Ennoblng in
itself in proper measure, the risk of TAX
ing a steady overdose is considerable.
To be sure, if all humanity were sur
charged with this spirit. lonesomeness
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
Porto Rico a Plague Center

The appearance of az cases followed
by 20 deaths renders Porto Rico a
center of infection. "The black
death" has there gained firm foot
hold and Porto Rico is province" Of
the United States. The disease was
kept out of the Philippines, but il
seems to have acquired increased
virulence in Porto Rico
More threatening still are the sus-
pected cases in Havana, which is but
100 miles from Key West. Four sus-
pected cases Of bubonic plague have
The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1912-07-24
concern,np CITY Politics

within the past few days have hearu
several prominent citizens talk as II they
J were going to vote against the Birming-
ham Waterworks companys proposition
notwithstanding their admission that
they had not read the contract which a
majority of the city commission ap-
proved, said a democrat and club man.
These were not only prominent clti-
zens. but they were men well known for
| their high intelligence and breadth OF
view; and yet they had not read so I'M
portant a document as the waterworks
contract.
"A few days ago I was in the office
of a private banker when the water
works question was being discussed by a
young lawyer and the man of wealth.
The banker Is noted for his public spirit
and for his liberal views. l have heard
him knock the waterworkse company
many time for what he termed its ex-
orbitant rates, not because he was In
anywise close with his money, but be-
cause Birmingham people have to pay
more than other cities. But touching the
pending contract he thought it was the
best that could be done by the commits
sioners under the circumstances, and, al
though he would always favor municipal
ownership, he intended voting in the
referendum on the waterworks side.
1.-THE young lawyer said he was going
to vote against the waterworks. When
asked If he had read the contract he
said he had not, but that he made 1t
point to vote against all corporations
Not very sound argument But that
lawyer Is typical of a large class.
1.-THE more I think of it the more i'm
pressed / am with Mr.. Underwood's dis
cussion of so-called progressiveism. Mr..
Underwood is a Jeffersonian democrat.
and representative government-the doc
trine of the fathers of the republic is
good enough for him. He said the initia-
tive and referendum would do for such
local questions as are easily understood
by the people, such questions. for exam
pie, as prohibition and bond issues. If
the majority of the people of a county
oppose the legalized sale of liquor, then
no license should be allowed. If on the
other hand a majority vote the other
way. then the liquor traffic should be
licensed.
Mr. Underwood made 1t very plain
that he was opposed to the referendum
on all complex questions. The people
should elect representative men who
would make study of government and
political economy, and the laws should
be enacted and carried out by such repre-
sentative men. That is good old demo-
cratic sense
at saw it suggested In The Age-Herald
that the city democratic executive COM
mfttee might put this question on the
next primary ballot. DO you favor the
commission form of government, or
would you prefer a return of the alder
manic system? If we have referendums
on complex questions that are not under
stood by prominent citizens, who have
not even read the proposition, then
would be in favor of the old system, al
though voted for the commission form.
Verify, 1t looks as if the referendum,
as some one remarked the other day, is
getting to be too much of football"