The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-01-14

On May 6. 1862, in a three-story. light colored brick house which now stands 3n the old part of the city, oscar w. Underwood was born in Louisville, Ky
 Although the young Kentuckian made his initial advent into this world but five days after the memorable surrender of New Orleans and during the spring of 1862 when the civil war was raging at its height, yet none of the Underwood family were ever connected with either side of the historic conflict. Eugene Un- derwood, the present congressman's fa- ther, was well to do lawyer, who be- lieved in peace and prosperity; he had large family of children and therefore never took an active part in the great war But important events often hap pen in punches, and the war between the states and the arrival of a new mem her of the Underwood family were not exceptions to the rule. t..
 The latter was great event for two reasons That Underwood baby, laterete be known as Oscar w. Underwood, Ala bama's choice for President of these United States in the year 1912, weighed B pounds. Speaking from the stand point of avordupois, that is, some baby; from the standpoint of numbers. it proves that the illustrious chairman of the ways and means committee is pot supersti- tious man. Underwood himself has stat ed positively that he does not believe in horseshoe good luck, hoot owl bad luck nor haunted" houses Underwood be- 1ieves in work and honesty. He bushes when he says so; for tnderwood's nature is to be man of actions more than a man of words and he practices what he breaches. though the preaching is as small and the acting as large as Under wood can make them.
 Comes of English Parentage
 He comes from English parentgge His ancestors in this country came over from England in l64S. His father was a farm CT in early life; later studied law, and he became an able attorney. At the time of his residence in Nashville he was one of the orieinators of the Louisville and Nashville railroad system. His mother, before her marriage was Miss Frederica Virginia Smith, daughter of Jabez smith, who at one time was mayor and very prominent citizen of Petersburg, Va. His fathers politics were whigf the con- servatve party during the civil war; The elder Underwood was an industrious lawyer with an excellent clientele. and he never was connected with politics in any conspicuous way. He married twice and was the father of three sons by his first wife and four sons by the second wife The present Oscar Underwood was the first born after his fathers second marriage.
 When oscar was years of age the family moved to St. Paul, Minn. That was in the year 1865, and it was in St. Paul that oscar Underwood's s first boy hood recollections are placed. St. Paul at that time was d frontier town of the great northwest It yet retained many of its old Indian trading post customs and the delight of young Underwood was to watch the Indians come to town, their feet encased in great snow shoes d blanket wrapped about their body and on their backs d bundle of furs and beads which they traded for flour and tobacco and fire waters The Indians and the general environments of the frontier town of the sixties instilled into the young boy a love for the great out Of doors. He became fond of hunting and out of door sports As is natural with boys in his circumstances, he learned to skate. swim and fish. With his crowd of chums he used to make leng tramps over the country