davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
"HAPPY ENDING, IN PLAYS

Walter Prichard Eaton, writer on the atrical subjects for the American Maga- zine, discusses the subject. What is Good Play?" in the September number of that periodical. Following is an interest ing extract:
 "A frequent criticism of critics is that they are overgiven to praising gloom and depreciating mirth. Critical wrath against the happy ending, however, is not due to the fact that the critics love laughter less, but that they love logic more. Mo- body in his senses objects to happy end- ing to a comedy. It is when the happy ending is arbitrarily tackled on a play which was foreordained to tragic con clusion that the critic rages Any play which sets out to depict set of circum- stances which, to be true to life and sig nificant as a commentary on society, has to end unhappily, and then deliberately, to please the ladies and matinee maids, throws everybody into somebody elses arms at the finish, is bad play an in sincere and false play, and no amount of talk and excuses can make it anything else Imagine Shakespeare calling in the family doctor to save Hamlet and resusci- tate Ophelia Imagine Ibsen bringing Nora back from the front door in The Dolls House. and casting her into Hell mer's arms!
 But 1t is not alone that you critics con demn the happy ending, the reader may object. You seem to prefer the solemn, serious gloomy dramas as a class. to those which are light and merry. There's a reason for this seeming preference, dear reader. The critic does not really dramas are, as class. more often good than the other kind; they are more often truthful, sincere and logical. That is partly because the paywrights who write not to express themselves but to catch the public pennies usually write comedies or machine made romances. while the more serious plays are written by the more serious playwrights. It is partly be- cause it Is almost always easier to make bad people effective In fiction than good "a well known fact. But 1t is chiefly be- cause most writers, in common with the rest of us, are more deeply stirred by the wrongs and sufferings of the world than by its joys We don't, as a rule, rise up and shout because our neighbor is getting along happ;:y with his wife. If he is beating her, however, we are very likely to act. It is so with the earnest dramatist'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
ROOSEVELT AT COLLEGE
Bradley Gilman in the American Re view of Reviews

Bradley Gilman in the American Re- view of Reviews. |, The fundamental trait in Theodore Roosevelt's character is an earnest sim cerity; he had this in his youth and has 1t today Fiat justitia ruat caelum.
 Despite accusations of political rivals the fact remains as a child, and as a youth in college, eager in his acquisi-
 ton of facts, absorbed in his studies
 of geology and zoology, he manifested the same love of reality which, later in | life, crystallized in his demand for "a square deal" The demand Is only the application, in the field of human con- duct, of the principles which he evinced in his study of the natural sciences. The first time I saw him was in the transept of Memorial hall, at Harvard where he was holding his own, in a
 group of four. in the discussion of some question of athletics. Little did he him.
 self look the athlete-pallid. near sight cd. thin chested, spindle legged; but as we early found out, on the football field and in the sparring bouts, his frail body held an iron will Game he was to his last ounce OI strehSth' tiuo sPoieS
 man always and when W, in the sparring contest. struck him after
 time" had been called, and the crowd howlea in protest at the "foul' blow Roosevelt, with nose bleeding. shouted to the referee: Don't rule him out! He
 didn't hear you. He couldn't have; he's
 all right" Then the anger of the crowd
 turned to admiration and cheers went
 up for Teddy Roosevelt"
 His devotion to truth-as also his
 disregard of scholarship marks-was evident to classmates many time as
 they met and frolicked in some stu dents room, Roosevelt sitting oblivious
 through 1t all absorbed in some line
 of reading, perhaps quite outside tht prescribed courses of study.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03

trade conditions have justified high degree of productive activity and the boom simply couldn't be held back.
 During the next twelve months the Birmingham district will witness new lines in commercial and industrial enterprise. Larger plans will be de- veloped in Birmingham's mercan- tile life, and larger plans for improve ment and new construction will be thought out and put into execution in the manufacturing field. Last month was the busiest August in the history of this city, but September business will surpass that of the month just ended.
 There is work for everybody and everybody hereabouts will have a share in the great forward move ment.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
IN HOTEL HOBBIES
The Wilson Campaign Fun,

While many Alabama democrats
 have contributed to our presidential
 campaign fund we should raise good
 deal more money in this state to 'heip the good cause.'" said former Governor
 Jelks, Alabama's member of the na-
 tional democratic committee.
 Tn large and rich states like New York the democrats are in the habit
 of contributing generously, but 1t must
 be remembered that in the doubtful
 states a great deal of money is need ed this year to promote the canvass or state candidates. In the southern states 1t is different. We do not need money to help elect democratic congressman or local nominees of the democratic party. We can, then, all the better afford to contribute to the national campaign fund. The democrats of Ala bama should raise at least $25,0oO Tor the national campaign. Subscriptions
 may be sent direct to me or they may be sent direct to the national treas urer. In either case every indiViduai contributor will receive from natlonai
 headquarters a handsomely engraved receipt which will be well worth keep ing as a souvenir.
 "On September 10 the national com
 mittee will publish a report in which It will be seen what each state has con- tributed. Very naturally l am solicit ous touching Alabama. This state should make a good showing in the
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
A Worldwide Boom

As one of the oldest and most prominent bankers in New York pointed out few days ago in dis cussing the business situation, there is "world-wide activity in trade" He said that Great Britain, Germany and France "have all been enjoying un- paralleled activity and prosperity This activity has extended to both domestic and foreign business. Pros- perity in Great Britain has been rec ord-breaking and this, as the New York financial authority says, lin spite of threatening social and politi- cal changes" Great Britain is look ing forward to even greater prosperi- ty during the next twelve months. Not only is prosperity the rule all over Europe, but it has extended to al most every part of Asia.
 sIn fact" says the New York fi- nancier, "the present boom-for it is nothing less-is worldwide, being one of those great forward movements which come in regular periods, anc which are always stimulated by prog. ress of invention and the develop. ment of means of communication.
 One of the most cheering things il connection with the present business boom in the United States is that i started and gained its great impetus in the face of national politca campaign. This never happened be fore. In former years even whel business was making for unusual ac tivity it held back not only until afte the presidential election, but unti the new President had made his in augural address. But all this yea
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
Alabama's Deficit on October

State Treasurer John Purifoy does not hesitate to say that this states accounts will at the end of the fiscal year, October 1, show deficiency of S1 100000 This will certainly be a pretty harsh exhibit of log-rolling legislation which induces member to vote for another bill in return for a vote cast for his own bill. The vari- ous bills that became laws have at any rate not only emptied the treas ury but left huge deficit that is said to demand an extra session of the | legislature soon after the November election.
 No great sums will be put into the state treasury until the two opening months of the new year, and every dollar received will be needed to meet current expenses. Expenses must be cut down, or else the revenue of the state must be increased, or else more state bonds must be. issued. A de- ficit is deficit until it is wiped odt, and something should be done to re- store the states credit.
 The stumbling block in the way is the constitution of 1901. Its limita- tions leave the legislature small room for action. Taxation on real and per- sonal property must not exceed 65- 1O0ths of 1 per cent, and practically speaking valuations of property for taxation purposes are left in this state to individual consciences. It is not so in many states, and in the course of time the system of valuation will be changed in this state.
 The extra session of the legislature will have before it serious task when it attempts under all the cir cumstances of the situation to bring the states expenditures within the states receipts.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
 Brisk Fall Season

Early in the summer business men in the large commercial centers predicted good fall trade in all lines, but, of course. a great deal depended upon the crops, said l.. j. Gallagher of Philadelphia.
 The crop reports have been so favor- able that prosperity came with much more of rush than most of us antici- pated I do not recall many years when summer business was so active as 1t has been during the summer just passed. believe we will have exceptionally brisk times from now on to the end of the year. Politics? Well, suppose we do have a good deal of excitement in this presi- dential campaign a few weeks prior to the day of election. Business is not go- ing to mind 1t much, if at all.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03

rancid butter from the -umes of the but ter lamps that fill the temples They are also infested with vermin. which they may not even destroy, because to Kill even the humblest of animals is contrary to the teachings of the Buddhist religion. s'he wonderful learning of the Buddhist lama is also said to be largely product of western imagination. The worship con sists largely in noisy incantations, in the process of which guns are sometimes fired, bells ring, and horns give forth deafening blasts
 Huge bonfires are an accepted means of warding off the demons of famine, pes- tilence, and war. The religion of the fhibetan is largely a system of devil worship, to propitiate and ward off wicked spirits. Prayer wheels and heaps of mani stones, surmounted by little pray CT flags, are in evidence In the widest and most remote regions of the country. At one of the stages of his journey, Dr. Shelton photographed a huge mound Of mani stones over mile long, Each stone had been deposited at some time by passing pilgrim.
 The Thibetan woman may hol pe "ien- out beauty. It is impossible to tell, slnce she does not wash. Her clothing IS also disgustingly dirty and greasy. Often It is of skins, which are worn years, hfe- time if they last Men and women dress much alike, in gowns Of originally bright colored cloth, fastened about the waist by green and red shashes. The bloused waist fe the raCpDtacle for the tea basin, whence 1t is handliy drawn forth at the constantly recurring hospitality of tea drinking"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
Wood Block in Philadelphia

Market street in Philadelphia was not long ago repaved with wood blocks and now South street is to be treated in a like manner No two streets in Philadelphia are more used. South street is congested commercial street and Market street is wide and full of traffic. The new surfacing in Market street is proving highly sat isfactory, and this fact has induced the city authorities to extend the new paving to South street.
 Those who have secured the relay ing of three blocks in First avenue in this city with wood blocks should take steps to have the work done as we'll here as it has been done in Market street, Philadelphia. In the latter city they find it is a pavement which pro- vides easy hauling, is kept clean with out difficulty, and is without any tendency to wear into "chuck holes. !" Better than all, it does not retain for long the heat of an Alabama sun. This is an important consideration in such weather as we are at present en- during. It is important, however, that the three blocks in First avenue be properly ballasted and surfaced.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
WHEN WOMAN TRAVELS

Edward Hungerford in Harper's Weekly.
 It Is getting to be less and less Of an ordeal for a woman to travel, and even
 travel alone, from the one ocean to the
 other. On the smartest of the excess
 fare limiteds ladies' maids are already part of the established equipment The
 wash rooms and the toilet rooms at the
 woman's end of the open berth sleeper
 each year come closer to the size of the
 mems comfortable rooms of that sort And woman even threatens the suprem- acy of the. to her. unbearable open berth sleeper She has been to Europe enough times already to bring back demand for an increasing number Of stateroom cars of one sort or another. And one of J. J. Hill's big railroads has been giving her parlor accommodations of her very own on its through limited trains-but on that precise thing the traffic man was not quite sure of him self It Is not always easy to make women herd by themselves in car from which men are excluded. That experiment has been tried many times and generally abandoned.
 When a road up in the northwest first placed rocking chairs in all It's passenger stations. large and small, It made an early concession to the inn portance of woman on its trains. The
 Pullman company. in providing paper
 bags for womens hats, made another
 the ladies' maids was a third-the mod ern railroad has awakened fully to the
 revenue possibilities of the eternal fem
 inine.- It will move more rapidly for her comfort in the future than ever it
 has in the past. That Is one of the
 possibilities of a business which today
 neglects no profitable opportunities of
 apv cort
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
DIsCREDITED BTLLBOARDs


 When circus men go back on billboards, 1t marks the beginning of the end of that form of advertising. The travelling circus initiated bilboards, and in turning from them to newspapers the circus advertiser inaugurates a departure from tradition and custom which have unquestionably built up many fortune. While still . novelty, billboards told a story and were effective But in their rapid multiplca- tion they no longer make the impression they once did. Newspapers give immedi- ate results. They reach the class of peo- pie you want to interest. Where one per- son read newspapers and magazines 30 years ago, hundreds read them now. It is to the papers every one goes to find the record of births, deaths, marriages. weather predictions, Wall street reports, sermons, prize fights and everything else that is going on in the world. The cir GUS man figures correctly that e9 per cent of the people will look in the same place to see about the coming of the circus.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
The Public Library

q hope in this period of prosperity that I hear so much about we will find some way to finance the needed public library building" said well known citi- zen.
 -.I have always felt an interest in the library and besides making several small cash contributions I have added to the library's story a few books Of value; but I have felt that we would not be able to get up large subscription fund unt.. We had genuine boom. This fall will be the time for the Library association to start an active campaign. Unless I am very much mistaken we will have enough money in sight in six months from now to go ahead with large building plans."
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
MARK TWAIN'S CIRCUS TOWN

and expenses, and he pair Pond a com
 mission. Perhaps without going any fur
 ther we may say that the tour was financial success and yielded a large re- turn of the needed funds.
 A good many interesting and amusing
 things would happen such tour.
 Many of these are entirely forgotten, of | course, but of others certain memoranda have been preserved.
 Grover Cleveland had been elected Pres
 ident when they set out on their travels. but was still holding his position in AL
 bany as govrnor of New York. When they reached Albany, Cable and Clemens | decided to call on him. They drove to
 the capitol and were shown into the gov ernors private office. Cleveland made
 them welcome, and after the greeting said to Clemens
 MT. Clemens, I was a fellow citizen ot yours in Buffalo for good many months, some years ago, but you never called on
 me then. How do you explain this kind of conduct?'
 Clemens said: "Oh, that's very simpls
 to answer, your excellency. In Buffalo
 you were a sheriff. I kept away from the
 sheriff as much as possible but you're governor now, and on the way to the
 presidency. It's worth while to come and
 see you"
 Clemens meantime had been resting half sitting on the corner of the executive desk. He leaned back little, and sud- denly about a dozen young mon opened various doors, filed in, and stood at atten- ton, as if waiting for orders. No one spoke for a moment; then the governor said to his collection of attendants: You are dismissed, young gentlemen. Your services are not required. MT. | Clemens Is sitting on the bells"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
PIRATES IN LAKE MICHIGAN

From the Louisville Courier-Journal
 The word pirates" is put in quotation marks in a dispatch from Chicago telling about a chase of lake thieves by police boat carrying a machine gun and stand of rifles. But piracy is not yet thlng or the past in the world, and if gamblers are put out of the way in New York by the assa assination methods of the Middle Ages, and a Kentucky congressman life IS threatened in Washington by hireiings ot interests opposed to legislation he advo- cates. why not piracy on Lake Michigan! Of course, piracy was originally term applied to robbery committed upon the high seas, but the definition has been made somewhat elastic.
 Piracy in some of the Chinese harbors and rivers, notably between Hong Kong and Canton, fourished before the late up- beaval, and has given the new republic A. good deal of trouble since the revolu- ton. Chinese gunboats scouting for pirates among the innumerable junks and sampans of the teeming estuaries of the China coast constitute one of the regular sights enjoyed by tourists. The Malay peninsula still breeds a few pirates. and only about two years ago a Chinese yes sel was attacked, taken and footed within cannon range of the peaceful harbor of Singapore All of the members of the crew were murdered and the Malays net ted about s60-Straights Settlement dol lars, worth about 60 cents ''gold"-for their trouble The number engaged might have made as much by six days work each upon one of the English rubber plan tations, where labor is usually needed. But a love of irregular adventure at sea is inborn among Malays.
 A body found near the mouth of Chi cago river, the hands and feet bound in wire. and weights attached to the trunk. marks the trail of the Lake Michi- gan pirates who are being hunted with the machine gun. When they are cap tured they will probably be az unpictur- esque and unromantic characters as Lefty Louie and "Gyp the Blood" but so were many of the bold buccaneers who fiourished in the days when Spanish gal Icons widowed toward the Bay of Biscay from the Caribbean fat with gold stolen from American aborigines. and offered ] shining mark for the guns of those who flew the black flag and thought it admis- sible to steal from Spain what Spain hac stolen from somebody else.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
TOUCHED Fon BY A FAN

From the Chicago Tribune.
 Ladies and gentlemen" bawled the um- pire, "the batt'ries today are"
 Fresh roasted peanuts! Only five a bag.'
 Grape juice. Right off the ice! Only a nickel!"
 Ice cream cones. Who wants the next one?''
 Remember, they're only five bag." Score card, sir? Gotta have a score card or ye don't know who's playin'!'' ''Right off the ice! An only q nickel!'' "Cushions, gentlemen? Five cents!' "Only nickel a bag, remember! Who wants the next one?'
 "Strike two.' vociferated the umpire.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
The rich stream of lords and ladies.
 king Henry VIII.
Family Supplies By Parcels Post

When the consumer in town is brought in direct communication with the producer in the country at low rates, households will indeed begin to get their food supplies fresh from the country. In England many family uses fresh fish sent from the sea on the previous day in the parcels post, not to mention eggs and butter and fowls and garden truck, all of which are transmitted by mail in all European countries, and especially in England and Germany.
 Under the initiative bill that Post master General Hitchcock is about to put into operation, rates may be pret- ty high, but man who wants articles fresh from the farm can secure them at prices that are not by any means prohibitive. He can get II pounds in a package, and several packages may in some instances become need ful. The paper houses will no doubt soon make packages that are not ex- pensive and yet are ample for wrap ping and mailing purposes. The sys- tenn cannot be perfected in day, and at least a six months test is needed in which to determine what changes in the law should be made. Congress appointed a committee composed of three senators and three representa- tives to consider such changes.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
IN FORBIDDEN THIBET

In an interesting article in the Living Church. entitled "The Latest Invaders Into Forbidden Thibet," Ruth Neely tells some interesting facts. Sine says:
 ''The western theosophlst's cherished ideal of this life, pure spirit and lofty con- temptation. is hardly borne out by tho description of the Buddisn :amas. as seen in every day life by the Sheltons. To be- gin with, like all Thibetans, they are in ordinately dirty. The native of Thibe never bathes. nor is the lama an excep- ton to this rule They are covered witt dirt and grease, and exude m odor ol
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
MULTIPLIED KNOCKS
From the Chicago Tribune.

FTOm the Ch1cagO Trfbune.
 "Verna, bring Uncle Elijah another nap kin; he has tucked that one under his chin"
 T was only joking when I said you had been calling on the manicure, Mir. Plin- mins; I can see that you haven't
 Its awfuly good of you to stay so long this evening, Mir. Spooner. suffering as you must be from those tight shoes"
 How much trouble it Is to look after boys! I don't wonder, Mrs. Chucksley. that you seldom have time to wash Bobby's face"
 'Clarence, dear. are you starting a beard. or have you merely forgotten tu shaye?,'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-09-03
"BRIGHT IS THE RING OF THE
 WORDS"

By Robert Louis Stevenson. Bright is the ring of words
 When the right man rings them, Fair the fall of songs
 When the singer sings them. Still they are cvarolled and said On wings they are carried After the singer is dead
 And the maker buried. Low as the singer lies
 In the field of heather. Songs of his fashion bring
 The swains together. And when the west Is read
 With the sunset embers, The lover fingers and sings
 And the maid remembesD.