davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
TALKING ALARM CLOCK
is THE LATEST INVENTION

1t has often seemed. after the an
nouncement of an invention to which
the attention of the entire civilized
world has been called, that the human
mind could scarcely invent anything
more and fashion 1t in material form,
but the countless dreams of Inventors
continue to be realized in astounding
numbers.
Every week. every month, the trade
journals advertise and comment upon
new things in the lines which they
represent and publish new ideas which
this material labor saving age seizes
and makes its own. says the New York
Sun.
An alarm clock which awakens you
with the words of a disgusted wife who
has breakfast on the table and a large
vessel which carries submarines over
long distances by means of pouch"
are among the newest offerings
As an ever present need, the alarm
clock will probably be put into more
general household use than the ship
with the pouch" for carrying sub
marines. In the evening before retiring
you set the clock for $50; at $50 you
will probably get up. Here is what Will
weaken you:
Six thirty, six thirty, six thirty; time
to get up get up, can't you? Get up you
miserable. lazy man. Get up, get up,
get upi"
The first clock of this kind was ex-
hibited in 1900 but 1t cost s250O to
make it. The present offering costs s25.
LII you are awaks in the middle of the
night and wish to know the time, press
a button and the clock will tell you the
nearest quarter hour as: 1.-TWO fifteen"
If 1t happens to be 2;1S or 2:1S. The
Photographic record is on an endless
belt and the grooves in which the voice
vibrations are recorded run lengthwise
of the belt. The belt continues to give
out sound until shut off when once
started. So far the clocks nave been
supplied with belt which talk in s5
languages.
The kangaroo" vessel is an inven-
tion which is being tried in the French
navy. 1t is SO called because the idea
of taking the submarine aboard may
be said to be in lmitation of the way in
which the female kangaroo carries her
young. The vessel is built so that her
stern may be sunk by water ballast and
the plates, framework and beams re-
moved from the bow. This manipuia-
tion reveals large chamber into which
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Plain Talk to a King

You call me Prince of Poland Well,
then, you have all been traitors till this
hour. Now you bring me here-I know
not why-dress me up like a popinjay as
yourselves, choke me with perfumes and
long winded compliments and then inter-
fere with all I do.
''Meddle with me no more-and as for
that lady-touch her who dares -
II dare" said Astolpho.
In an instant Segsmund had him by
the throat and would have strangled him
had not the courtiers interfered and Seq
ismunds attention been distracted by the
entrance of the King.
The shouts which greeted his entrance
told Segismund who he was and as the
old man slowly went and seated himself
upon the throne his son stood glaring at
liin. Then all the savage anger of his
heart broke forth and he cried out:
You made your son the savage and
the brute the stars only prophesied. Are
you not afraid the brute you made will
revenge the man you marred?
20, you could keep me all these years
a chained ANIMAL but when the crown
tottered upon your shaking head, the
scepter trembled in your palsied hand;
when Poland cried out for her rightful
heir: when you could hear across the
grave the trumpet of judgment calling
you to account-O, then, yo't drag me
from my den.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Learning His Power

so this is my capital-those are my
vassals."
would your highness have the music
play?"
"The music?-yes- the trumpet.
But then the trumpet might awake me
and bring back the guards
Before the morning is far advanced
your highness will hear the trumpet mar
shaling your soldiers"
"Ha, my soldiers-do they wear black
masks?"
.'Sir" exclaimed the chamberlain in as
tonishment.
well no natter replied Sigismund,
.but one word-do you know Clotaldo?"
The chamberlain declared that he had
grown old with ,Clotaldo in the service Of
the King.
.Old man. said Segismund, with that
white wand of yours-now l think of 1t,
1t seems to me that / have heard of sill
ver-haired magicians who with the wave
of a wand turn peasants to Emperors and
rags to jewels, carry people off in clouds
and set them down in fairy land. And
il you are no magician then tell me-are
you moclxing me-or do | dream?"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
king Rasilla

Meantime King Basilo, with his council
and members of the royal family. had
assembled In the council chamber at the
royal mandate.
King Baslio was called "The WISE"
and he professed to derive the wisdom
which gave him mis- title from the stars.
of which heavenly lamp he was con-
stant and profound student, reading in
them, as he thought the secrets of fate
for men and nations.
In short, he was a celebrated adept in
astrology. For the study Of that pseudo
science he had withdrawn himself almost
entirely from the affairs of state.
His wife had died 20 years before. She
was generally supposed to have died child
less and all attempts to persuade him to
marry again and provide an heir to the
Polish throne had been without result.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Dreams and Realities

THAT Is popularity of Dreams" re-
piled Clotaldo. "When once the dreamer
begins to dream that he dreams he is upon
the verge of waking
81 wish I had been upon the verge OF
death that knows no waking" cried Segis-
mund ITO be lifted up only to be thrown
down again, stunned and crippled and
more miserable than before-it is too
horrible"
IF you bore your visionary honors SO
badly" said Clotaldo, "as to try and
work murder and revenge upon those who
meant well to you, it is fortunate that
your dream was not reality.
Dreams are rough copies of the waking
soul, uncorrected by will power. Our DOR
mant passions rise in dreams, and when
we thus discover that we have base or
fierce qualities of mind lurking within our
natures 1t behooves us to watch ourselves
well in our waking hours, SO that these
latent evil passions may not take control
of us.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12

went from the royal presence in deep
meditation.
Polt 1d and Muscovy We're glittering
prizes. but there was something in the
character of Astolpho the moro she saw
of him, that repelled her, whila the
story of the unfortunate Segismund
had excited her deep interest and pity.
The next morning Segismund awokei
some lingering effects of the narcotic
still hung about his brain and he gazed
about him in dazed manner.
An attendant handed him a cup filled
with a morning draft in which was an
antidote for the narcotic. The gentle
men of the bed chamber began to clothe
him In the splendid garments which
had been prepared for him.
Segismund looked about as IL trying
to determine whether he was dreaming,
while the attendant lords hailed him as
Prince of Poland.
Suddenly he broke out with. "Stop,
stop, or l shall go mad with all this
gabble and glare and mummery. Give
me air. My brain reels
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Vengeance on the Guilty

At that instant Clotaldo entered the
room and bending his knee before the
Prince offered his homage.
what, your exclaimed the prince.
Have you who have SO long kept me
in chains, released my body to slay my
wits2 Il this IS not a dream how Is 1t
that 50 Ions J. Prince of Poland, have
been your prisoner?"
Clotaldo briefly told the prince the rea-
son of his Incarceration. segismund fell
into a fury and cried oit:
Either you lie, hoping to throw your
treason upon the King. or, if what you
say is so and he is really guilty, he hopes
to make the stars responsible.
THE stars cannot hear The charge and
disavow it. But whoever is the guilty
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12

the submarine may be driven. The how
Is then sunk, also by water ballast. The
submarines slides into its travelling dry
dock and a reverse series of manipula-
iton brings the Kangaroo, back into
position for voyage
new material has been invented
at the Westinghouse works at East
Pittsburg. 1t is called micarta and is
designed to take the place of hard fibre.
glass, porcelain, hard rubber ana other
substances which are used as insula
ton. gear blanks. conduit for automo-
bile wiring and the thousand and one
other uses to which nonconductors are
put in the handling of electricity. Mi
carta can be sawed. milled, turned.
tapped or threaded, but it cannot be
punched except in thin sheets 1t Is
contended that 1t will not warp. expand
or shrink with age or exposure.
Not an invention perhaps, but quite
interesting as a novelty are the printed
four-in-hand ties which English hab-
erdashers are preparing to put on the
market this fall. The prints will rem
resent sports and other lines of ac-
tivity. One necktie will show an aero
plane flying over battleship and an
other will bear the figures of ballet
dancers. A third style shows pictures
of pheasants and grouse and is evil
IDENTIFY intended to show that the wear
ef will go hunting before long. Still
another carries the heads of girl and
a thoroughbred race horse, indicating
taste for racing, and so on.
Suspenders which are supplied with
lightweight metal springs instead OF
elastic and thus do away with the me-
cessity of knotting the suspenders
when the rubber threads give out are
being made by an English manufac-
turer. The metal springs are said to
give as readily as the elastic bands
Those who buy betting for machin-
cry will not have to worry about the
price of leather in the years to come
IL certain sort of betting which is
being manufactured by a firm in Con-
necticut proves to be a success. The
new product Is called flexible steel belt
ing and is really step further than
the chain and sprocket idea. The belt
ing is made in complicated series OF
links and can be used on all pulleys
of from two inches in diameter to the
largest size. 1t has been designed es-
pecially for service where atmospheric
conditions are bad for leather and rub
Der belts.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
The Throne of Poland

He saw a great chair on a Gais and
seated himself in it.
II wonder if those shapes viii come
again il l call them,' he thought. Il
will try. What ho, without there!-st t
is Segismund calls-Prince Segismund.'
Immediately there entered the Lord
Chamberlain and group OF lords in
waiting.
81 rejoice" said the chamberlain.
that, guided by instinct alone, your
royal highness has taken the chair
whoch you were born to fill"
What chair?" asked Segismund.
"The one where you slit IS the
throne of Poland which shall be yours
when he who rules from it has been
called to Heaven
"And who is hep
"Your royal father. King Basiiio."
What place is this l see from the
Window"
WARSAW. your capital, sir
"And all these moving people out
there?''
Your subjects and your vassals, sir,
like ourselves"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
| CL A S SIC
IN A P A G E
copyright. 1913. by irving King. Al

scopyright. 1918, by irving King. All
rights reserved)
There is a doubtful tradition Whleh
SAYS that Calderon began to write playa
at the age OF Is. None of these plays
are extant-which is perhaps. just as
we'll
OF an old family of rank and care
fully educated in the Jesuit college OF
Madrid and at the celebrated Uhiver-
sity of Salamanca, Calderon was in his
early life, a soldier, serving with fis-
tinction for 10 years in Italy and the
low country, and afterward in cat
a1onia.
He was made knight of the Order
of Santiago, and was one of tie most
prominent figures at the court of Philip
". where he held many and various
offices.
In 1861 he suddenly decided to for
sake the world. took orders and even
tually became superior of the convent
of the brotherhood of San Pedro at
Madrid. But both as soldier and monk
Calderon was a prolific writer and
early achieved for himself a place
among the greatest of Spanish authors.
Life Is a Dream" is considered one
of his most worthy productions and is
pronounced by President Eliot to be "a
symbolic drama of profound and uni
versal philosophical significance.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
THE OPEN RANGE PASSING;
mo MAN'S' LAND NEXT TO GO

The sale of approximately six hundred
thousand acres of it's New College lands
OF Oklahoma in the counties 6f Cimarron
and Texas in the months of September
and October will bring finally to an end
the big cattle outfits and the big cattle
ranches In that part of the state. Since
earlier days these counties have been a
part of the choicest grazing region of the
great plains For decades the vast herds
of native cattle moved unrestrained by
wire fencess. feeding upon the buffalo
or curly mesquite grass, so nutritious that
the cattle went fat to the market without
the use of corn, says Guthrie Okla,
wire to the Kansas City Star.
Year after year. however. the small
farmer crept further and further towards
the west In search of cheaper lands, and
as his numbers increased the cattle men
found their range narrowing and their
water supply decreasing, as these settlers
fenced their homesteads along the few
streams in the country.
These New College lands are all that
remain of the unfenced area. They inter-
mingle with the homesteads obtained by
settlers from the government. and with
public lands owned by Oklahoma and held
under lease by their occupants The cat
tie men have paid an annual rental of
three cents an acre to the state for the
grazing privileges on the New College
lands. Now, however. they will be COM
PEELED to buy them in competition with
their bidders at public auction. and with
out the preference right of taking them at
the highest bid. The cattle outfits are
making their last stand in that part of
Oklahoma and, like the buffalo, are quick
ly to disappear. Their going will close the
last and one Of the most romatic chapters
in the story of the plains country Many
an old cowboy will choke as he tries to
swallow his ''sotr dough biscuit that
day.
The counties of cimarron and Texas are
still the most remote, isolated and un-
changed section of oklahoma. The Rock
Island railroad, running from Liberal
Kas,. to Dalhart. Tex. on the east and
the Fort Worth and Denver, slsirting the
edges of Cimarron county on the SOUTH
west. are the nearest outlets. All merch-
an)lise and supplies are freighted to In
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12

land points. The highway from Clayton,
Mexico, to Mineral and Bois City is as
smooth and polished as a floor and the
freighters often drive their horses and
mules four abreast.
Enough of the spirit and appearance of
the old west remains to make the region
of uncommon interest to the 'tenderfoot"
Here the Indian and the buffalo once
lived. Both have vanished and left great
silent places in which there is scarcely a
sound save the lowing of cattle, the bray
ing of occasional hobo wolf and the creak-
ing of windmill at tank in cattle
pasture or on the homestead of settler
whose neighbors may be miles distant.
Birds no longer seen in their old shaunts
in more thiclSly communities live and
raise their young here The curlew, for
instance, still comes In numbers. A swift
ly moving line of dark objects on the far
horizon each backed by a white flag"
quickly resolves itself into q band of ante
iope. The antelope are found mostly In
side the fences of the big cattle pastures,
where they We're protected by the cow
boys.
Timber is so scarce that it is not avail
able for fuel purposes The settlers burn
coal. brought from the inexhaustible fields
OF Colorado and New Mexico. cheaper
and more accessible fuel is chips, = which
burn easily and make a hot fire when dry.
One of the tasks of the children is gather
ing Chips
In such primitive surroundings men and
women seem naturally to unite in fixing
social standards that are adapted to
their needs. Hospitality, benevolence and
charity are so highly developed as to sur
prise strangers Each settlement or COM
munity becomes one family, in which the
sick, the poor and the unfortunate are
cared for with fine sympathy. Neighbors
go miles to help each other. Travellers
may be sure of entertainment.
John r.. Williams, secretary of the Okla
homa School Land commission, believe
that ten years viii find Cimarron and
Texas counties thiclxly settled. and one of
the most prosperous parts OF Oklahoma.
Not only will the lands now owned by the]
state be occupied. but the hundreds OF
abandoned government homesteads will be
settled. These hoinesteads were filed upon
about eight. or nine years ago. motsly by
persons without experiences in farming
especially in dry farming. SO essential to
these lands. They tried to raise crops not
adapted to the soil and the climate. and
when dry weather came these home--
steaders were starved out These honle7'
steads, however, contain only 100 acieG
not enough to sustain a family where
foundation Of agricultural industry n
be the (aising of livestock
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12

as the bewildered youth sat upon the
edge of his bed.
What a dream you must have been
having" said Clotaldo; you have been
talking in your sleep of princes and prin-
cesses. of seizing upon a white haired
King, muttering and fiinging your arms
about wildly, grinding your teeth and
mouthins out judgment and execution.
why, even now your eyes stare wildly,
Your senses are still under the storm OF
such dream"
"a dream?" answered Segismund. look
ing searchingy around, ''yes. it must have
been dream. 1 have had dreams before,
but never one which seemed SO real.
Il remember how the old man they
called the King, and who wore a crown
of gold upon his silver hair, warned me-
just when my rage was fiercest, to beware
lest 1t should all be dream. After that
all is blank
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Whether Waking or Dreaming

Segismund then declared the betrothal
between Estrella and Astolpho Cancelled
and announced that he would marry the
princess himself; this to the great joy
Of his subjects and the satisfaction OF
Estrella.
Next he reconciled Rosaura and Astol
pho and Rosaura took her lord back over
the mountains to Muscovy, where she
saw to it that neither he nor his heart
roamed more.
II may be now walking in a dream tu
wake again in the dark tower" said Seq.
ismund. addressing the great captains
and mobiles of his court 'or, perhaps. If
I sleep l shall dream that am waking
in the tower
But, whether waking or dreaming this
I know, that man must walk as ona
who must soon awake and SO that. dream
er or doer. there may be nothing after to
upbraid him for the part he PLAYED.
whether the light OF tomorrow.s dawn
awakens him or his sleep is broken bv
the last trumpet proclaiming the eternal
day when the dream of his mortal life
shall pass away forever"
Next weeks one-page classic will ba
Anne of Geirstein." by Sir Walter Scott
Copyright, 1913, by Irving King)
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
The Story of a Sword

In response to Clotaldo's questioning
Rosaura told the same story that she
had to the captive whom, she noticed
was addressed by the captain of the guard
by the name of Segismund.
Closely examining the sword, clotaldc
asked Rosaura how she got 1t.
From my father SHE replied. 1T was
given him by Polish officer whom he
had taken In battle and whom he had be-
fiiended and restored to freedom The
Polish officer had said that if his bene-
factor should ever be in need of assist
ance in Poland he was to show the SWORD
and ask the protection of its owner
My father is dead and am now on my
way to the Polish court to seek the owner
OF the sword and ask his interests in a
matter of grave import"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
BY
Pedro Calderon de la Barca
BY

before segismund. who. in the sight OF
all, embraced him and forgave him.
As for the King. he then and there ac.
knowledged his fault with regard to his
son. admitting that he had. in having
him brought up as he had done the very
thing which might have made the sup-
posed prophecy of the stars come true.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
The peo,,le Rise

The condition Of affairs was this. The
news of the existence Of Prince Segis-
mund and of his having been brought
from a long captivity to court. only to
be returned to his prison again. had
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Chained and Clad in Skins

When Segismund awoke the next morn
ing he was living upon his pallet in the
old tower, chained and clad in skins.
clotaldo stood loking down upon him
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Put to the Test

81 think one test of waking sanity
should be the power of self control, the
power to curb all passions, especially vim
dictiveness, which ill squares with human
law and less with that divine law which
bids us pardon our enemies and much
more those who, out of no i'll will, but
through mistake, have taken up the rod
which they think heaven has put into
their hands,
Segismund pondered deeply all that Clo-
taldo said and admitted that his dream
had shown him that he possessed savage
passion which his waking will must be
on guard to control.
But was that dream?" he said. "or
is this, now, the dream and that the
reality?"
Life is but a Dream" answered Clo-
taldo
Il am still sleepy" said Segismund; Il
think I shall have to try again"
YES replied Clotaldo sit is early yet.
Go and sleep again, and if the night de-
ceived you see what morning dreams will
do-they say morning dreams come true"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Waking TO LuNury

All present agreed to abide by the Is
sue Estrelia, although. she had con-
scented to the Kings plans regarding
her betrothal to the Duke OF siuceovy,
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
The Lesson Learned

But, mastering himself, he said: Soft,
soft! I remember not long ago, when
you told me-awake or dreaming-my
brain cannot tell which-that there was q
test. Mad people and people dreaming
could not control their evil passions
Il will apply that test Clotaldo, rough
old nurse and tutor. If this Is true you
have been only a traitor to me and loyal
to others. Give ~Clotaldo his horse and
sword and see him safely conducted
through our lines. Give me your hand
go seek your sovereign's side.
Rosaura. still In pages dress. now ap-
peared with Fife and told Sesismund more
of what had been taking place.
They ARMED the prince, the forces were
marshaled and put in motion and soon a
desperate battle took place between the
army Of Prince segismund and the army
of his royal father.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Hailed by the Rebels

The effects of the opiates which the
prince had taken still fingered and throw
ing himself down upon his bed, he soon
fell asleep again, while old Clotaldo start
ed for Warsaw to report to the King.
A couple of hours later Segsmund
awolxe again. He woke to hear the blow
ing of trumpets and to see around him a
crowd of soldiers, who hailed him with
cries of Long Live Prince Segismund!'
Again." cried the prince, $50 soon?
Have you not done with me yet? No
more of this; begone, ye shadows of the
night. But I must be nearly awake, for
/ know that am dreaming"
Long and earnestly the leader Of the
soldiers strove with Segismund to prove
to him that he was awake, that the army
and the people had risen in his behalf
and that he must put on the armor they
had brought him and head the forces.
Still the prince thought he dreamed
Clotaldo, who had been seized by the in
surgents, was brought before him cap
tive, and when the old man denounced the
prince and those who had espoused his
cause as rebels Segismund was about to
strike him.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Tired of IL All

one 1 can take vengeance on the first
that comes to hand"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-10-12
Rosura's Secret

She was the legal but unacknowledged
wife of Astolpho. who now proposed to
commit bigamy by marrying Estrella.
She had gone to the Polish court to
expose him, but had found his influence
so strong there that her life was in dam
ger II she made any move. Her only hope
was in the release and triumph of segis-
mund and she offered to guide the forces
to the prison tower.
Her offer was accepted, and she sent
Fife on ahead, who, as soon as Clotaldo
left, had interviewed the soldiers on duty
at the tower and won them over to the
cause of the prince.
In the battle which ensued Rosaura
fought valiantly beside the prince The
royal forces were utterly vanquished, and
the old King taken prisoner and brought