davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
From the Houston Post.

From the Houston Post
TyHE Birmingham Age-Herald is right.
In noting Alabama's treasury denclt
l. of 100000 and declaring that Dago
fruit peddler could not afford to run his
business as most of the southern states
run theirs. The Post was not casting a
slur upon Alabama, but stating a general
condition. In Texas the deficit is more
than twice $500, 900, and unless the tax rata
be greatly increased 1t viii run into the
millions within two years.
Besides that our penitcntiary system Is
crushed under a load OF debt. for which
the last legislature was responsible, and
the present legislature seems TO lack the
capacity 10 recledy that embarrassing sit
uaton.
Not only Alabama and Texas. but there
is Georgia in similar straits and sitting
legislature shows no disposition to put the
fiscal affairs of the commonwealth upon
permanent business baas.
Tennessee has similar troubles arc the
legislature, torn by political quarfcls. can
not accomplish anything sane and SEN
slble.
Mississippi, Louisiana and Kentucky
have their troubles. So has South Caro-
lima. North Carolina and Virginia are not
quite so lad as the others, but there is
room for Improvement In both states.
Generally speaking, the states of the
south need above all things at this time
a patriotic csmpaisn for fiscal reform. Our
institutions of higher learning gre but the
gaunt shadows of what they ought to be.
our oenitentiarlcs are stranglcd in the po-
litical broils that rage about them, and in
several nstances-Alabana and Missls-
sippi. for instance-thcre have been evil
dences Of highhanded corruption. Our
asylums are inadeguatc Here IN Texas,
many insane patients are rotting in the
county iails because there Is no room "
the asylums for them.
We make great pretense to ar affection
for the aged and indgert confederate vet
erans but the pittance we dole to them.
dignified by the name OF pcnsioa, is so
small that 1t ought to shame every citi-
zen There are indications OF early i'm
provement in Texas. but the new tax will
not bring in enough to warrant any CLAIMS
OF generosity on our part.
If the southern states have progressed
during the past 20 years, it has been in
spite of their legislatures. Every gov
ernment institution coming under their
control has failed to keep pace With the
advancement of the people and In many
instances such institutions have gore
back.
We have raved about reform, so-calledJ
without reforming anything. and IN the
confusion and strife we have apparently
become Indifferent to the government
Itself and its several functions'which were
instituted for the common welfare. Our
politics is cursed with demagogy and
hypocrisy and brawling, and even the peo-
ple,s demands are needed but little in the
general confusion. -
Time was when the democraac party
made efficiency solvency, good govern
ment and true progress a living faith. 1t
is time for the seuth TO set out OF tlse rut
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
Thirty-two Dollars Costs Millions

In 1909, State Senator e. Sundberg
of Kennedy, Mich, received an iron
casting from Minneapolis by express.
The value of the casting was $3.50
the express charges were $32 Mr..
Sundberg was angered, and he swore
revenge.
An attorney was employed to begin
proceedings before the interstate COM
merce commission. The case was
started in Minneapolis, and year
later was carried to New York. Mr..
Sundberg and his counsel went east
and persuaded Franklin X. Lane, then
a member of the commission, to issue
subpoenas for the officials of the
Wells-Fargo, the United States and
Adams Express companies. They per-
sonally served the summons and when
the case came up the attorney argued
that the companies had interlocking
directorates and that their rates were
unreasonable.
A little while ago the Interstate
commerce commission issued an order
lowering express rates to the amount
Of $26,000,000 a year.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
MANnERER,s SONG

BY Martha Gilbert Dickinson Bianchi,
Once more to see familiar stars,
Look down through friendly trees
once moro to feel the heart Of youth
With May across the scasi
once more to see the iiyactnth
Press upward through the grass,
To hear the plowboy's tuneless song
Above the furrows pass.
In dreams tho willows silver along the
rising streams,
In srearis the shining galley puts on
her sprirgtids gleans
Once more to breathe the lilac plumes,
In gusts of April rain
To linger with the violets
In forgotten lane;
Once more to reach the low, green
stile
Upon whose gentle sod
Those earlier travellers said farewell
Then Jared them forth to God.
In dreams the May white frances the
nights across the sea,
In dreams the voice of springtime Ia
calling, calling me!
I'd give the dawns of almond bloom.
The orange and the rose
The misty olive terraces
Of shadowy repose-
I'd give the nightingale and palm
And wander joys like these
Just to go back to springs old throb
And old infinities.
In dreams my heart is straying with
May across the seas,
In dreans r.y heart and Nay ere ous
In vagrant scstagiesi
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
Spying on the Judges

Senator Borah has stumbled upon a
mares nest, and, as yet unaware of
the nature of his discovery, is MAX
ing the welkin ring with news Of the
find. The Attorney General, complains
Mr.. Borah, has been sending out spies
to pierce the aura of immaculacy that
hangs around federal judges, and the
Mississippi river is going dry, the bats
are holding high carnival oyer their
prospects of shortly inhabiting the ma
tional capitol, and historians are oiling
their typewriters in preparation for
writing of the failure of another of
the worlds experiments in self-gov-
ernment.
Mr.. McReyonlds says three judges
have been investigated. One of these
was the notorious Archibald. Pity it
was he was not investigated before he
ever had an opportunity to soil the
ermine. Who the others are is not
known. Evidently nothing that would
justify impeachment proceedings was
discovered.
It is to be feared that Mr.. Borah
has been frightened by a shadow. The
country is hardly in danger of instant
demolition, even if all the Idaho SEN
ator suspects is true. Judges are not
purged of human attributes by eleva-
ton from the bar to the bench. They
are just men, after all. They undergo
no process of refinement which rem
ders them incapable of error. No
magic alchemy is employed to elimi-
nate greed and inculcate unselfish-
ness. Fallibility still prevails.
Of course, it was hoped to make
capital against the democratic adj
ministration. This effort already has
proven boomerang. Asked how long
the so-called Espionage system" had
been in effect, the Attorney General
said -four OF five years.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
Joseph Forney Johnston

In the death of Joseph Forney
Johnston, United States senator and
former governor, Alabama loses a
great mana statesman, patriot
and gentleman of splendid courage.
Born in North Carolina in 1S43 he
enlisted in the Confederate army from
that state and served throughout the
four years of the war. He came of
intrepid stock and as young soldier
early distinguished himself on the
field of battle. He was in many
bloody engagements and was four
times wounded. Starting as private
his dashing qualities gained him sew
eral promotions and he rose to the
rank of captain.
Soon after the war the young vet
eran became an Alabamian by adop-
ton. He practiced law in Selma from
1866 to 1884 and then moved to Bir-
mingham and accepted the presidency
of the Alabama National bank of this
city. Captain Johnston was a thor
ough business man as we'll as lawyer
and was quickly recognized as one Of
the upbuilders of the Birmingham
district.
Twice elected governor of Alabama,
he served two terms of two years each
-1S96-1900. Being a man of broad
experience in affairs and of strong
mental fibre he made one Of the best
executives the state has ever had.
When he was first chosen United
States senator to fill the vancancy
caused by the death of Senator Pettus
it was generally recognized even by
his political opponents, that an adj
mirable selection had been made. Few
senators attract much attention or
WELD much influence until they have
served a while; but with Senator
Johnston it was different. By reason
of his engaging personality and his
large capacity for work Alabama S
junior senator quickly became a ma
tional figure. He was recognized as
one of the foremost senators on the
democratic side.
Senator Johnston had political enc
mics, just as all positive, aggressive
men in public life will have, but parti-
san and opponent alike felt that he
was an ornament to Alabama. His
friends were bound to him by hoops of
steel and his death brings unfeigned
sorrow to the thousands who knew
him well and appreciated his manly
traits as we'll as his brilliant public
service. Peace to his ashes!
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
Making Haste Slowly

Some are inclined to cavil at the
republican opposition to the tariff bill
in the Senate. These should put a
check upon their impatience. The
fight of the republicans is no doubt
futile. Yet if there is anything in the
Underwood Simmons measure that ac-
tually spells danger to the country, it
should be pointed out before it is too
late. Again, Congress often does
things which prove surprising to it.
self. AS an instance might be men,
toned the adoption of an amendment
to the parcel post bill giving the Post
master General full authority to
change rates, zones, etc. Many mem
bers didn't know such a provision was
In the law until Mr.. Burleson proposed
to take advantage Of it.
There are many sides to the tariff
question, as there are to all others.
The business Of the country, to a
large extent, rests upon customs.
Everybody interested has a right to be
heard. Gallinger, Penrose, Smoot and
the rest are experts in their line. 1t
is true that so far their criticisms
have fallen upon ears that are deaf,
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
4 Pretty rhoroughfare

"Tuscaloosa avenue, the main
thoroughfare through West END, is q
pretty street with many lovely homes
along its way said an enthusiastic
citizen.
Il went out that way Thursday for
the first time in many months and
was delighted with the inviting sur
roundings. Pretty homes, lovely lawns,
and we'll kept hedges were to be seen
all along the way. The citizens, most
of them owning their homes, | dare
say, take much pride in freshness of
paint and well kept yards. 1 saw one
very handsome woman, tastily dressed,
working a lawn mower, successfully
too. One thing that struck me most
agreeably and impressively was the
CO. operation of street sprinkling. With
out 1t there could be no relief from
the dust, which not only would find
it's way indoors. but would coat the
shrubbery and the lawns, dulling their
rich green colors. Yes, West End Is
one of the most inviting sections of
Birmingham, and those who have vis-
itors to whom they wish to show what
makes Birmingham prosperous city
should not fail to conduct them through
the streets Of pretty West End, the
Arcadia of home life eXemplified.'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
A BUGGY RIDE with HER

From the Washington Post.
Did you ever take a buggy ride In the
still of the evening, down the winding
turns of country pike. with the fair
one by your side? IF so, 'nuff said.
With proper sense of proportion, the
old time buggy was made TO hold ex-
actly one and half. The result was
propinquity-also bliss. Along the
road-all too short--you drove. Moo
cows mooed in the distance Anxious
mothers came to the door and cried
"W-i-l-l-i-e!" But you were lost to
bovine plants and material solicitudcs.
Pungent odors from the dog fennel
mingled with the faint perfume OF the
thistles bloom The night dew lay on
the fields, starlight drencheG the earth
and you discovered you had a soul. The
air was chill, and you fixed a shawl
Hands touched and Withdrew. followed
by most eloquent and ecstaric silence
Then came the parting, as yoE handed"
her out at the gate A whispered good
by, lest any other hear, and retreat
ing vision of a rosebud fairec thar
John DIS pastor ever dreamed of.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
poINrEp PARAGRAPHS

From the Chicago News.
1t costs the average man lot TO he
popular.
Hone Is an excellent tonic, but It
makes q poor diet.
Some talking machines are nade. but
the majority are horn.
baby that isn't boss around the
house doesn't amount to much
Some inen are so small that tive
for Ave cigar is too big for .hem
When a man acquires peck of trou-
Bile it looks 20 hin, like a bushol and
u hnlf
A sercible maa Is ono who figures
out how he is goilg to let go oefore
taking hold.
Many mans cordial haeashake is
due to the fact t.'a. he needs that dol
lar In your pocket.
often man has a &c. IF coed traits
that you would never suspect Il he
didn't tell you about them.
lie Is a rich mar who car buy year
ing apparel for seven grown daughters
without missing the money.
Summer engagements are short be-
cause the young rian's two weeks I'd
vance salary doesn't last long.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
THE SMALL BOYS LIBERTY

From Life.
What shall be said of the inhuman
motor car manufacturer who has recently
succeeded in concealing the button which
sounds the motor car horn in such a way
that it cannot be pressed by the small boy
who hovers near? If this invention be-
comes universal consider what an effect
it is bound to have upon the character Of
this boy! And is not the American small
boy the hope of the nation?
Time was when the activities of small
boys went out in the direction of steal
ing apples and watermelons; but owing TO
the cvilizing influence of the cities and for
other reasons, this source of joy-this per-
fectly proper moral vent to every small
boys nature-has been largely cut off.
What might have happened to him? How
far in the scale of human progress this
boy would naturally have deteriorated, we
canot say.
But just in the nick of time the motor
car was invented, giving him chance to
sound the horn; and thus the spirit of in
vention-that notable fount of wickedness
| and daring in every boys makeup-came
to its expression, and he has been saved.
Motor cars stand everywhere. and If
you-oh sober minded and dignified adult
have never in passing one felt within your
heart the sudden impulse to jump into
it, and with fiendsh exultation sound the
horn, then look to yourself. for there is
something morally the matter with you.
We sincerely hope. therefore, that this
particular inventor will hold his inven-
tion so close that it may be confined only
to one machine among the thousands in
use.
Every boy is entitled not only to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness. but
also to sound the horn of any machine
upon which he may happen to stray. This
is one of his inalienable rights as an
American citizen.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09

against statesman, for John Barleycorn
las drawn his defenders from all of these
callings. and so have his enemies.
Primitive religion recognized drunxen-
ness, and one of the mayor gods of Greece
was Bacchus Modern religion never con-
dones inebrety, but it by no means agrees
upon use or abstention. The strictest
prohibitory laws are called Puritan, but
the Puritans indulged In strong drink
and in the "bluest' of the blue New Eng
land colonies the minister on his plous
round took his glass of hot rum with the
most secular of his flock.
Science, too, divides, and doctors dis
agree on this as ON other matters of inn
port. Statesmen are no better off, and one
policy holds that John Barleycorn should
die, another that he cannot die: one holds
that the use of liquor may and should be
prohibited. another that 1t cannot be pre-
vented, or should not be, or both. The
philosophers are no better off for har-
mong. nor the poets. either Sometimes
the same poet is divided in allegiance, for
If Robert Burns preached the cause of
John Barleycorn his life was sermon
against his misrule.
So the war goes on. Out of the ages of
the past it came, Into the ages of the fu-
ture it may go. Who knows? There are
wise men who say that deep in mans ma
ture Is the need for stimulant. for intoxi-
cation, for the heightening of sensation
or the bunting of pain. There are wise
men who say that this need is not need
but an abuse, a disease, and that mans
progress upward from the brute is taking
him away from it; that as he masters the
world and himself he will master this.
and that some cheerful spring John
Barleycorn will not get up asain and will
nevermore rally men to his ruddy stand
ard.
Which wise men are right? Today the
war RACES inappeasably. Ground Is gained
here and lost there. But all that seems
certain is that the war goes on.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
THE SIDE DooR MAN

FROM Lille
The Side Door Man has existed ever
since the days of ]. Iscariot. When he
was a baby he crawled in through the
side door, He has been doing 1t ever
since. Once s. d. M. always S. d. NJ
In every office and every club there il
always Side Door Man. Every church
has several. The Side Door Man thinks
in terms of Side Doors. Don't get into an
argument with him. He will shortly leave
by the side door.
Marriage does not make side door men
III there is a side door in man, all that
marriage does is to bring 1t out
There are several varieties of S. D. M
One is the lattice, another is the swing
ing and another the password variety.
You can always tell a Side Door Mar
by this peculiarity: Even If there is every
reason why he Should go in the front door
even II by going into the side door he is
really hurting himself-these and all the
other reasons make 10 difference. The
side door for him every time. He can't
get away from it.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09

decade of war and reconstruction who
carried in his personality the Chester
fieldian courtliness, the culture and chiv-
airy of the cavalier. He was often point
ed to as a gentleman whose life. bearing
and record might well be emulated by
mature men and taken as a guide and a
standard of personal action and accom-
plishment by the younger generation.
Maj Wallace Screws had been SO long
the nestor of the Alabama press that
no one had ever seriously thought of a
time when he would not be writing for
the Montgomery Advertiser His death
came as a shock to the profession. He
was the best known and one of the most
beloved men in the harness. and he stood
long, well and ably to the work. The
weekly press will mourn his death to
man.
PAU Legrand was a man In middle
life whose modesty was a predominant
ing characteristic. but whose ability and
lovable traits We're known TO wide cir
Gle of intimate friends. He had all the
manly traits and virtues: was prosperous
and generous and will be sincerely
mourned by the men vino had the for
tune of his acquaintance and friendship
John V. Smith occupied prominent
position in the states affairs as party
man and as a state official. He was
an able lawyer and went from the service
of the state as railroad commissioner to
the service as associate ccansel of
great railroad system.
For a few short days this is fear
ful toll Of the Grim Reaper and the
state may well pause to Go honor to ALL"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
Concealed weapon Evi,

Chief of Police Bodeker is to be
commended for his stand against the
disposal of confscated firearms in the
city's old boss sale said w. H. Winn.
Already it is too easy for the vicious
and criminal to procure pistols. The
appalling number of homicides that
| have blackened the name of Birming-
ham grimly attest his fact. Go count
the widows and orphans from East
Lake to Bessemer, as a direct result OF
the ease with which weapons may be
| procured. The broken hearts and
blighted lives may not be enumerated.
''Doubtless the time will come when
this traffic will be regulated, If not
controlled, by state or national gov
ernment. An evil that annually deprives
the nation of more of its citizens than
it lost in the Spanish American war
cannot always be condoned.
Birmingham's city commission could
in part remedy this condition. License
should be raised to such a sum that
only responsible people could afford to
| sell pistols, derringers, sword canes and
other paraphernalia of the murderer
and assassin. Then no man should be
permitted to purchase such arms with
out first procuring written consent of
| the authorities and making bond for
maintaining peace.
Both state and city say to the cit
izen, Thou shalt not carry weapons
concealed Then both connive to make
it so easy to procure weapons that are
made to carry no other way but CON
cealed that 10-year-old black idiot
may procure them anywhere"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
CASE cLxIIl.

A city man on his summer vacation
wandered too far from his cabin on the
bank of the purling stream and lost his
way in the traclSless forest
He was hurrying along feverishly in
what he supposed was the direction of
the camp. when he chanced to notice
just ahead of him brown and curious
y mottled stick of wood. Without q
moments reflection he stepped on the
stick-as he thought 1t was.
But ii did not curl up and bite him.
1t wasn't a snake. 1t was stick of
wood.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
POINTED PARAGRAPHS
From the Chicago News


Lack of charity also begins at home.
Mosquitoes seem to be troubled VITA
chronic insomnia
The diplomatic fat dweler calls the
janitor the superintendent.
Whisper to yourself when you have oc-
casion to speak of others faults.
Some people manage to make a little
truth go a long way by stretching it.
The wise girl doesn't know which side
of the fence he is on until he falls off
Flatter man and he will forget it the
next day; abuse him and he will remember
it for years.
About one man in ten thousand comes
halfway up to the expectations his fond
mother had of him when he was a boy.
The elevator chauffeur may have an up
lifting influence, yet he spends good por-
tion of his time in running people down.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
From the Chicago Tribune.
CASE CLXII

From the Chicago Tribune.
CASE CLXII.
Mr.. Skimmerhorn, an elderly citizen
residing in a south side suburb, was
making a trip across the lake one
windy day last week. He noticed as the
boat left the harbor a eoclxy, self-con-
tident young man who was hoping the
lake would be good and rough-it
couldn't be too rough for him.
When the steamer was half or two
thirds of the way over and was rolling
and pitching in the choppy waves Mr.
Skimmerhorn happened to see that
young man again. The conceited youth
was dancing with a chunky blonde from
Blue Island, and was not seasick in
the slightest degree.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
FAvoRITE FICTION
rom the Chicago Tribune.

from the Chicago Tribune.
1T Isn't the Heat; It's the Humidity"
The Costumes Some of These Women
Wear Shock Me Inexpressiblyw
For Half a Cent You Big Stiff, Ia
Knock Your Block OFF,
Every Minute While I Was Away,
Maria. | Was Wishing You Were
With Me-
"Our Valued Contemporary"
universal Suffrage"
Very Truly Yours"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
ADRIFT WITH THE TIMES

gave them a lecture in which he toid them
what they y>nust not do. Some of his ad-
monitions We're:
Don't stretch the TRUTH
Don't be too stern; have compassion"
Present all cases fairly and squarely."
Don't be nosey.s
Don't complain about long hours"
Don't use too much force in making ar
rests"
Don't talk moro than necessary. let
your commanding Officers do most of tho
talking"
Maybe they viii obsy orders ana maybe
not. It is significant that 10 policewomen
were due to be sworn in on this occasion.
but two failed to appear and sent no
void Of explanation as TO why they wound
not be present.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
IN HOTEL LOBBIES
Active Trnde

"As we approach the fall business ac-
tivity is becoming more pronounced said
H. J. Darnley of st. Louis.
In the middle west the far west and
the southwest prosperity has been the
rule all this year and the whole country
will witness much trade activity after
the big crops are harvested"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-08-09
GET rrIrM IN TnAIN,xG
! In. st. Louis Republic.

From the st. I.ouis Republic
This killing of two men in recent
lodge limitations suggets that secret So
cities might take as much pains rs box
irg clubs do and give .he.T nandidates
medical examination before sendlrS
thein into TIE fray.