davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Highway to the Warrior

Birmingham should not be slow in availing itself of the large oppor- tunity which the opening of the War rior affords. The coal, iron and steel operators of the Birmingham district will make great use of the river. Adequate railroad connections be- tween this city and the Warrior will soon be secured and steel products from Ensley and Fairfield will find their way in ever increasing volume down the river to the gulf
 But regardless of what our railroad facilities from here to the Warrior may be, we must have a great high way to the river, and Jefferson coun- ty should lose no time in completing it. A road of modern construction with a grade suitable for heavy traf- fife by motor trucks is needed and such road we must have with as little delay as possible.
 The distance from the center of Bir- mingham to the Warrior, by line of easy grade, is only about 28 miles. The county has already Is miles of macadam road in that direction, but in order to accommodate the truck traffic the entire highway to the War rior should have a roadbed of brick or other hard material.
 Not only will the big industries of Birmingham use the Warrior exten- sively, but also the. small manufactur. CTS and the wholesale merchants vii prove to be busy shippers by the boat lines; and many of the large mercan- tile houses owning and using heavy trucks will utilize these vehicles il getting their merchandise from Bir mingham to the Warrior for shipmen to points down the river.
 The highway should be wide and a smooth as city street. Aside iron the freight truck proposition the roat would be popular as pleasure drive way. In fact, it would be one of tht most popular boulevards in this par of the country. There is much wilt scenery between here and the War rior and the scenery on the banks O the river is as enchanting as an. found in America.
 Let the board of revenue proceet at once with the necessary surveys a the approaches of the Warrior ant make the plans for construction.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Regarding Conventions

''The question of wet or dry cuts no figure with some national bodies when they come to consider the place for holding their annual conventions, tut with not few 1t does make diff ference" said a man who belongs to many organizations
 Atlanta had the Shriners last year and the crowd was satisfied with beer, which is dispensed in prohibition Geor- gia lawfully under a special license. But it would be out of the question for any dry city to make a bid for Shrinor meet.
 "One of the best conventions that know anything about--a convention Of liberal spenders-is that of the Fedora tion of Union Musicians. It meets al Los Angeles in June. There will be an attendance of about 1900 MT. FranR Arrco will represent the Birmingham local and I hope. he will begin work to bring the convention to Birmingham l in 1920. It takes time. The musicians | are sociable and like to discuss musi' over stein of beer when they are of on a convention trip; and of course
 the federation would not think of hold | ing a convention in a peerless town
 In 1920 Birmingham will get in tn
 census with 250,000 population and b,
 that time we will have the saloons 1 back-beer saloons at any rate"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
DARDANELLES CAMP AIGN

with such timely aid as the warshps can give them Thus far the defense of the narrows has been triumph for the German engineers who have made effec- tive use of the terrain on both sides of the channel.
 The land campaign may not prove as hard a problem. but it bristles with dlf- faculties too. Up through the Galipoli peninsula the country is strewn with hills that can be easily defended There are besides narrow gorges and streams flow ing down from the divide. As the Turks are stubborn trench fighters, Sir Ian Ham,
 way, and his casualties are bound to be heavy Since the European side of the
 Dardaneles, by its greater elevation. conn
 mands the Asiatic. the British command CT must clear the Gallipoi peninsula of 1 the enemy up to Bokali Kalessi before the l Notifications on that side can be taken 1 in reverse On the opposite shore, the
 ground being lower and not offering so
 many obstacles to advance, the pro- gress of the expedition should be more rapid, but even with concerted action by
 the land forces and the fleet the reduce 1 ton of the defenses will be a task of tre- mendous difficulty.
 Once the forts at the narrows fall l occupying Constantinople will become a l question of getting transports into the 1 sea of Marmora and landing an allied army east of the Tchataldja lines under the guns of the warships.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Great Britain's Unpreparedness

Great Britain furnishes a striking example of unpreparedness for war and the economic waste resulting from such condition.
 England had counted on her great navy, but she should have looked also to her army. When, however, Field Marshal Lord Kitchener was ap- pointed secretary of state for war the public naturally felt secure. He was the military idol of the English people. He was supposed to be able enough and self-reliant enough to do the work of scores of ordinary mortals, even though they be trained in the profession of arms.
 But the job was too much for Lord Kitchener. He could well look after the, recruiting service and the drilling of young volunteers. But he coulc not make good" when it came tC hurrying up the manufacturers of tht munitions of war.
 The British public criticized ant then it began to howl. The attacks ol Kitchener's administration of the wa office became so fierce that Premie Asquith had to reckon with tn clamor. A result is the formation O a coalition cabinet. Several unionists including Bonar Law and A. J. Bal four, will have portfolios in gov
 ernment that was of the liberal party
 And one laborite, Arthur Henderson
 very popular leader of the labo
 classes-will have a seat in the re
 organized cabinet.
 Great Britain has been through
 grave political crisis since the wa l began last year. But no matter wh 5 else may have failed in efficienc , Asquith retains the confidence of tn 5 people. Kitchener may remain in tn
 cabinet with divided responsibilitis , in the matter of equipping the arm. T but the coalition government will 1 r expected to allay adverse criticism 0 extremely hurtful in time of wa D How much better the readjust, I . i, cabinet will be as compared with u !, old remains to be seen. It is no
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Growing Strawberries

''The stra awberry season Is now al i.' height" remadked c. F. Bell.
 Alabama growers are placing seVerai carloads per week on the Birmingham market, and the quality for the most part is excellent. My farm near Boiling mas been especially productive this year. have about 50 acres in strawberries. ana the returns are now proving excellent.
 While it is true the season was delayed this year about month in this section of the state on account of severe frosts m the early spring. it is my opinion that un, der favorable conditions the season VIII last several weeks longer than usual ana that the production total as large as that of last year
 q am now receiving from two to three carloads of fine berries from my Aiapama farm and find a ready sale for the fruit on the Birmingham market. My firm, or course, received supplies of Cnllman Der ries also, but the larger portion or thls crop is said to be going to the east and north this year. The Birmingham market is well supplied, and dealers are averaging a fair profit"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
From the Pittsburg Dispatch.

From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
 IT was many years after the writing
 and posting of mlssives became gen. U eral practice that envelopes came into use. Previous to this time letters ani circulars were sealed in various ways, most of which were more or less uncertain and troublesome but the invention Of the envelope went far toward overcoming all inconvenience, and today no other method is used.
 The invention of the envelope is gener- ally credited to & K. Brewer, bookseller and stationer of Brighton, England. The story runs that in 1880 he had for sale some small sheets of paper whereon u was difficult to write the address Ac- cordinslv he devised small envelopes and had metal plates made for cuttihg theih into the desired shape and size. fheS caught the fancy naturally of the Brlshtofi lad dies. and his orders multiplied so rap ldlv that he finally had them manufac- tured for him by prominent firm in London. This was the beginning of the trade.
 IL was not until 10 years later, however that they came into general use. Ihe hrs' praetical machine for making envelopes was natented in England Tn lS4o, by War ron De La Rue and Edwin Hlli. / Ill America the first patent was granted m 1s4e to ]. K Park and c. s. Watson ihe De La Rue machine was in many respects similar to the machines now in use put instead of gumming and lifting the blank in practically one operation the blank was lifted by India rubber nngers' 'hei gummed by a separate arm.
 There is no doubt, however that en- ve,ones were in use before the tune oi inc worthy Brighton bookseller DO lar es ;s pnoyn the idea of postpaid envelopes originated early in the reign oi Lou'' v,v of France, with M. de Valfyer' III 1esa he gained the royal approval TOT 'he establishment of private post anu piaee' hoxes at the corner of streets TOT ths rooention of letters inclosed in envelopes
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
BREWER AND ENVELOPES

that were sold at offices established for
 the purpose
 Nalfyer had also sold artificial. ."formes de billet" or notes applicable to ordinary
 business communications, with blanks to
 be filled up by pen with such special mat ter as the writer desired. One such bil- let" has, by a fortunate misapplication.
 been preserved to our time. Pellsson, the
 friend of Mme de Sevigne, was tickled
 by this skeleton form of correspondence,
 and filled up the blanks of such
 'forme' with a letter to Mile. de Scudery,
 addressing her, according to the pedantic
 fashion of the time, as "Sappho, and
 signing himself "Pisandre. This billet
 is still extant and is probably the oldest
 existing example of a prepaid envelope. In the British museum there is an en-
 velope, exactly like those now in use, with an ornamental border, bearing date 176o. from Madame Pompadour to the Duchess de Aiguilon, also a letter of Freredick Of Prussia addressed to an English general in his service dated in Potsdam, 1l66, which he folded in an envelope of coarse German paper similar in form to modern ones. except that it opens at the end, like those used by lawyers for deeds, instead of at the top.
 An old Yorkshire, England, family pre- serve an envelope exactly like the square, modern pattern, sent from Geneva, Swltz- erland, in l750. Not until Sir Rowland l Hill secured the establishment ot the penny post on January 19, 1S40, did en- | velopes become popular in all countries where writing was practiced. Before then oh l of paper enclosed with another, no mat | ter how thin each might be and how light the letter. So long as this rule was en- 1 forced. only franked letters were en- veloped, though at still carrier oay an envelona was used as a mark of respect,
 especially when writing to superior 1 On May G. after the penny post had beea 1 established the use of envelopes became
 general. Stamped and adhesive envelopes
 were issued by the postoffice. The first
 envelope machine was patented on March l F, 1S45.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
From the New York Sun.

From the New York sun
 vU1 t1p. military historian who deals "lln'
 the Dardanelles campaign or '"e U allies Great Britain ana ria'Ns' ,v;,l marvel at the original plan oi io'e'"e
 ,.a,ts with warships unsupported
 na forces. But today the allies Know
 ra ahout the channel defenses 'nah they did when they began to po'''pa'o t-,n, 1<ale and Seddul Bahr in the h'o- d,e of February. These old for's al u'e ,.,rarce of the Dardanelles were sileneed .ar,iec fire from 15-inch and l2-inch nnrs hut the forts were not destroyed ,,,ti, landing party occupied them un- dor the fire of the fleet. Ihey were no' nodern in any respect. Many oi the ou'- r.nped Turkish guns were found intact rho allies seemed to be pressing on .o an carly triumph when Chanak on the A.iatic and Kilid Bahr, on the Eu- ronean side of the narrows, were aiso s,,snced on March IS. But the 1oiio"ins davs.the British battleships ocean anu I..ros,st,ble and the French battleship po,,.st wore sunk by floating mines anu saas;ble operation the forcing or the l Dardanelles past Niagara 10 1aiiipoii " 1 Una unsupported warships went mt ao,;nsa If was of course understood that .roons would be needed later on wnen constantinople was to be occupied pu' tno British admiralty seems to have as sumed that the fleet could fight its way ,r.o the Sea of Marmora in spite of mine 1 fields.
 On April the British battleship Lord Nelson, next to the Queen Elizabeth the finest in the fleet. was put out of action bv the enemy's shell fire, and the tor pedoing of the British battleship Goliatf now brings the count up to four, exclusive of the loss of the Bouvet. Also the Ma iestic and Cornwallis have been damaged during the operations. Destroyers ane ira wlers engaged in sweeping the straits for mines have suffered, too In fact the Turks, with German engineers ana Il artillerymen to plan and direct the de fense of the narrows. have made thu warships keep their distance. The allie' have failed to clear the mine fields below lChanak It is now admitted that con cealed mobile batteries make the task i'm
 practicable. Moreover, there is reason t tbelieve that the defenders have lined tn
 shores of the narrows with torpedo tubes
 An attempt to force this part of the Oar danelles would probably result in over
 whelming disaster to the attacking fleet lSo if the straits are to be opened tn
 work must be done by the land foree'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Cigar Stubs and Prosperity

After twenty years of scientific ln- vestigation in practically all the prln- cipal cities of the United States, tramp savant declares that the best cigars are smoked in Evanston' Ill. he places that habitat and feeding ground of millionaires first on his list of the most prosperous cities of the country Next in order come Atlantic City, Philadelphia, Boston, Pasadena, Gal, New York city, Detroit, St. Louis' Minneapolis, Milwaukee and Chicago At certain seasons of the year there are doubtless other places frequented by rich people where the cleanlngs ot cigar stubs are worth while to con noisseur, but they are not accessible to gentry of his class. "The truest in- dex to the financial status ot com munity," declares this authority, lis the humble so-called 'snipe'-the un- 
 smoked portion of cigar"
 While Detroit is given seventh place in the list of "snipe" centers, 1t has tht unenviable reputation of burning Its cigars closer to the vanishing poin than any other city. To persons O thrifty habits and a desire to get thell moneys worth Detroit comments it. self, but to those of more libera views it reveals, if not parsimony, al least scant regard for the hobo fra ternity.
 One would naturally expect high grade of "snipes" in Pasadena, whicf is also overrun with millionaires while Atlantic City has long had thai reputation for reckless spending which makes cigar smoker call for the bes' in stock. Philadelphia, being very ricl and enjoying staid population, il doubtless entitled to high rating, ant Boston also. New York, having th' greatest population and perhaps th' most extravagant, could be depende' on to furnish the 'snipe' hunter witt a choice assortment of stubs. Detroit Minneapolis and Milwaukee, synonym for motor cars, flour and beer, hay long been recognized as prosperou cities, with the kind of smokers wh seldom if ever risk their health with Pittsburg stogie.
 How St. Louis managed to qualif for the "snipe" list is a mystery. Tn impression prevails that all the goo spenders left that town shortly afte the St. Louis fair and have never re turned.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
up to Great Britain to redeem itself as a nation renowned for famous achievement.
Weather Lies

Some discussion has of late been given space in various newspapers of the apparently growing tendency of telling "weather lies," these being re- marks mon the weather which are not sincerely believed by the speaker. For instance. a writer in Outing con- confesses to the habit of agreeing upon rainy days that it is terrible weather" when in reality the peitlng rain and fresh wind are far from unpleasant to her.
 This tendency to deprecate weather conditions, it is pointed out, has bad effect upon the individual, cultivatlng feeling of discontent and dlscom- fort. As a matter of fact, the change ability of weather is a relief from monotony, if one but looks at 1t In that light. It is easily possible to cultivate feeling of appreciation for the good nhases of rain or shine-and frank avowal of such appreciation will some times influence others to brighter outlook upon life.
 There are few things more exhller- ating than a brisk struggle against a sharp wind, providing the person IS suitably clothed and goes forth with i a cheerful challenge to the elements
 Happy the man who can keep g smiling countenance in the face of a long period of drouth-or who can say with the poet: "When the Lord sends rain, why, rains my choice"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
LUKE M'LUKE SAYS

The old-fashioned woman who used to shake the whole house when she was grinding coffee for breakfast usually had square meal on the table when you got up and got into your clothes.
 When you climb on board a street car and find friend engaged in reading the morning paper always remember that he would rather read his paper than listen tu your comments on the weather and the war.
 Why is It. that poor man is always putting up a bluff that heis rich and that a rich man tries to give you the impress sion that he is poor?
 There are a whole lot of small town hypocrites who vote dry at home and who come to the city every now and then and get stewed.
 Things could be worse. Just suppose au- tomobiles had names like Pullman cars and the names were painted on the sides of the machines in big letters. We are all inclined to imagine that the dribble of faint applause given as $ matter of courtesy is demand for ar encore
 The wise man isn't the man who never makes mistakes. The wise man is the ons who learns something every time h, makes a mistake. Any girl would rather have you stare at her than pass her by and act as if you | thought she wasn't worth staring at. l A man has a hard time srousing any en thusiasm when he discusses; 'The Why ness of the Wherefore" But he can al ways get three cheers by saying l .What'll Va Have?' I Few men live to reach the age of 100 l And fewer live to reach the age of dis l creticn.
 l when the germ of suspicion crawls in fin. uvur the microbe of love flies out )
 the window.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Additional Fire Inspector

''The city commissioners arc to be com mended for their prompt action in provid- ing an additional fire inspector for the city" said a member of the Real Estate exchange. There is hardly a shadow of doubt but that many of recent disas- trous fires were caused by absolute indif- ference or carelessness of property own CTS or tenents. in that they allowed in- flammable trash to accumulate about their premises. It Is very unfair to the per son who keeps his own premises clean to have them jeopardized by the carelessness of his or her neighbors, for it seldom hap pens that damage is not done to adjoining property in case of fire.
 "The fire ordinance has been on the city books for sometime, but under the former practice of giving warnings to careless occupants of property 1t might as wei not have been there. But if the present plan is faithfully carried out, that is tt make immediate arrests whenever condi tions Justify it, in my opinion the enor'
 nous fire losses of Birmingham will b'
 greatly reduced
 T hope the present activity will be con tinued and that no fear or favor will b'
 shown, no matter who the parties b' that are found guilty of violating the f1r'
 laws. A few stiff fines will have mos
 beneficial effect in keeping all premise
 clear from combustible trash.''
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
Promise of Fine Crops

"So far as my observation goes, and 1 have been in several counties this week. Alabama will produce fine crops thls year." said R. W. Snyder of Louisville.
 ''The south as whole will have rlch harvests if weather conditions continue good and I have seldom known the peo- rle in in the agricultural sections more buoyant than are the people of the south today. Last fall the farmers and mer- chants in the cotton states had cause 10 feel depressed. Business throughout the south was extremely dull. But the price of cotton advanced and great trans- formation has taken place.
 "The south seems to be thriving now III marked degree and when the growins crops are sold there will be a healtny boom all through this part of the ciun- try"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
THE THINKER

By Berton Braley. Back of the beating hammer
 By which the steel Is wrought, Back of the workshops clanor.
 The seeker may find the Thought The Thought that is ever master
 Of iron and steam and steel, That rises above disaster
 And tramples it under heel. The drudge may fret and tinker
 Or labor with lusty blows, But back of him stands the Thinker
 The clear-eyed man who knows; For into each blow or sabre,
 Each piece and part and whole, Must go the brains of labor.
 Which gives the work a soul. Back of the motors humming.
 Back of the bell that sings, Back of the hammers drumming, Back of the crane that swings There is the eye which scans them, Watching through stress and strain. There is the Mind which plans them Back of the brawn the Brain. Might of the roaring boiler. Force of the engines thrust, Strength of the sweating toiler. 1 Greatly in these we trust; But back of them stands the Schener l The Thinker who drives things througl Back of the job the Dreamer
 Who's making the dream como trua
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
An End to Practical Jokes

Wit and humor have been the sub- jects of many volumes, and lecturers have from time immemorial held forth in lengthy discourse upon the same subject.
 But in spite of these educational measures, the practical joker still per- sits. And the practical joker is a men ace no less baneful, in final analysis. than the person who is malicious in inclination, for the latter may be re-. strained by fear of punishment, while the practical joker knows no control and no one is safe from his pranks.
 Unfortunately the practical joker's fun has all too often serious anti. climax. The practical joker points a gun at his best friend. Afterward he tearfully explains he thought il "wasn't loaded" He frightens chil, and then "didn't suppose the chilc would go into convulsions."
 The tendency toward this perverte' sense of humor seems to reach it zenith in the boy just bordering on t manhood-the callow youth who pride himself on being joker"
 A few days ago Mrs. Rufus Harp of LaSalle, Col, was driving in a automobile. Some youths, passing he in another motor, threw a snake int her lap. Frightened, Mrs. Harp jumped from the moving machine sustaining . deep gash over her eys
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-05-22
A PRIME NECESSITY.

A PRIME NECESSITY.
 A correspondent who was on board the Noordam writes that he was struck by the way the more intellectual members of the party who at first showed a certain aloofness. finally unbent and became quite gracious to less high-browed persons. The rrised If there is anything a peace ad- ,vocate needs more than common sense we don't know what 1t is.