davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
American Health Resorts

A writer makes the statement in Leslie's Weekly that America has springs and health resorts equal to any in Europe, while American phy- sicians are as capable in "every branch of medicine" as those of any foreign country. The truth of this as- sertion can hardly be doubted. There are in the United States springs whose curative properties for many diseases have worldwide fame. Yet the possession of any number of ad- mirable health resorts at home will not deter the wealthy~American from patronizing European resorts. The war has compelled him to remain at home this year, or else seek "cure" in America, but as soon as the war clouds lift he will be seen blithely fit ting across the Atlantic again, with one of Europe's noted spas as an ob- jective point.
 The lure of European health resorts for Americans of means is not hard to understand. There is not only a ,Subconscious belief in most peoples minds that something away from home is better than anything they can get at home, but there are also the attractions of sea voyage, foreign travel and the countless Vaccinations of European life to account for the great number of American tourists who visit foreign health resorts.
 The genuine invalid is, of course, only anxious to get well. He is seek ing health, primarily, and not gaiety. To his sort the American springs are a great boon. He seeks the healing waters that are near at hand and is properly grateful for the health which they restore to him, but if he has a great deal of money and is not as sick do HC pICtcHuo IO US, Cilcil lHc LuTO- pean spa, which caters quite as much to the pleasure loving as it does to people in search of health, will, ac- cording to his way of thinking, "pos- sess superior advantages"
 Still another important factor is pride. A "cure" that is purchased at an exorbitant price abroad is re- garded in some circles as much more desirable than one obtained with less expense and trouble at home. As long as human nature is constituted as it is at present, no matter how many health resorts are developed in this country, the European spas will not lack American patronage, although they have been put out of business temporarily by the war.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
SIGNS OF BETTER THINGS

From "The Progress of the World" in
 the American Review of Reviews for
 March.
 hope for any boom in trade amid the pres ent unprecedented world conditions, there are some evidences of recovery from the worst of the depression. The United States is piling up a favorabl balance of trade at rate of something like $15O,OOo.0OO a month. This results from record expor-- tations of wheat and cotton, with the wheat going at the highest prices in his- tory; from sales of other food supplies and Of clothing material to Europe in great quantities at high prices. and from exporte tions of ammunition. ordnance and other war materials and supplies. such as horses. automobiles. motor trucks, aeroplanes and barb wire. In a period of reduced imports, this phenomenal move ment could not but give a huge balance of trade in our favor. By the middle of February. some cheering news had come from the steel mills the great plant at Gary going into operation after many months of ideness. The large issue of bonds by the Pennsylvania railroad was immediately and heavily oversubscribed and the still larger issue of debentures by tho New York Central was placed sat- isfactorily. The banks of the country have come into an exceptionally secure position. the federal reserve law is work ing so well that no more banking panics such as we had in 1893 and 1907 may be expected and the psychological factor in business has obviously changed for the better so that merchants and manufac- turer.' are now looking confidently for bet- ter tknga
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

and theatres. like so many court journals. Questions of etiquette are debated with gravity People talk of society," who never before knew or cared about it. A year ago the Secretary of State was 'heartless'' or 'unpatriotic' because he gave dinners; now the only complaint of him is that he don't have dancing. It is a sign of a changed state of feeling every where that all the northern cities have given up mourning and grumbling and are devoting themselves to festivities and fairs
 "A comparison of the theatrical and oreratic advertisements in New York, Philadelphia and Boston newspapers be- tween 1862 and 1864 shows remarkable increase in. the number of popular amuse- ments. and the comments on them evi- dence eager and generous patronage for the houses appear to be crowded nightly. Cities which had never before possessed a theatre commenced to have regular the atrical performances"
 At the present time, in spite of the war opers tions on both frontiers, Berlin news papers are full of advertisements of musical, theatrical and vaudeville per- formances. In Paris and London the the atreS are running, atnouSH tho hospltdin are crowded. To extinguish the life of people accustomed to mix work with recreation, nothing short of state of siege Is sufficient. All through the terror in Paris, 600,O0O people went about their normal pursuits in the shops and on the streets, regardless of the steady fall of the guillotine. If Lord Rosebery chooses to base his case on history, he can find plenty of precedents for letting people seek relief in sinful forms of levity in spite of the patriots clamor.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
GAYETY IN WAR TIME


 From the New York World.
 In protesting against the discontinu- ance of racing on account of the war, Lord Rosebery pleads the cause of the thoroughbred horse and the need of pop ular sports as a national tonic. Far be it from him to yield to any false sense of patriotism such as the London Times seeks to foster at the expense of inno- cent pleasure. "All through the score of bloody vars he recalls, that England was fighting against the French revolu- tion and Napoleon, Epson and Ascot meetings were regularly held" Lord Stradbrooke once told him that the most interesting 1ece he ever witnessed for the Ascot cup was run 10 days before Water loo, when Napoleon and Wellington were confronting each other to decide the fate of Europe.
 Cor nenting on conditions in Washing ton and New York in the latter part of the civil war James Ford Rhodes says:
 The gayety and amusements were an effective contrast to those which pre- vailed in the early days of the conflict. Frederick w. Steward, in a letter at the time. described the aspect of Wash ingtor in the winter of 1864: We seem to have reached new stage in the war. Gayety has become an epidemic in Wash ington this winter, as gloom was last winter There is a Hull in political dis cussions, and people are inclined to eat, drink and be merry. The newspapers can furnish nothing more interesting to their readers than accounts of parties, balls
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
SARAH
From Golfers Weekly.

Sarah Bernhardt isn't just an actress not wholly Yankee after all-'publicity. She has never known fear, and at an age it would be ungallant to mention she has voluntarily undergone grave opera ton. Though her best work for the stage was accomplished a dozen years ago a. the least she promises to return to it. and we wish Sarah well. On or off stage. may that tomb of hers on Belle Isle, near the coast of Brittany. stand empty for many years to come; and may the monu- m,'nt for the tomb, to which she has given her vacation hours-for she is a sculptor too.-wait on in the studio draped in it's modest calico. She bridges French dramatic history, does Sarah and, after the younger Dumas, what a debt do not Richepin and Rostand owe to that golden voice! Just how old Sarah Is we refuse to whisper; not so old as the ex-Enrress Eugenie, whose physician tells her: But, your majesty, you have already lived long past the age at which anyone ever dies!" Sarah is the spirit of youth-its fire and energy and imaglna- ton. She has carried beauty of word and gesture to the Antipodes. When De Les scps started work at Panama a genera ton ago, Sarah came out from Paris to the French theatre there to glorify that fete of great ectations-tragdcally be- trayed If ye of the United States man. age6 ceremonies as we'll as we dig canals we should be giving Bernhardt warship to cruise through that great ditch, and San Francisco would build a theatre named for her-a theatre for all time. like Sarah
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
The Beginning of Flood Tide

One of the most steadfast prophets of an early resumption of business activities is "Holland," well-informed and able writer on financial and in- dustrial conditions, whose special cor respondence is feature of The Age Herald. He is always optimistic, but never allows his optimism to run counter to the business situation as he sees it. In his New York letter, which appeared in yesterdays issue, he started out by saying it seemed to be the view of leaders in finance and business "that the bottom of the busi- ness depression had been reached, or to change the metaphor, flood tide has begun" The midweek reports from iron and steel centers justify that re- mark
 Not since business began to improve has there been such buoyant feeling in the industrial field as exists now, and this feeling is not based upon inquiries merely, but upon contracts, some of them large, actually closed within the last day or two. There is a brisk demand for steel products of almost every description; and it is quite likely that next week will wit ness even greater activity. April is
 >Se. to be busy month and May $ srr
 | flood tide is setting in and there is good reason to believe that before we are well into the summer healthy boom will be in full swing
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
WESSEX HEIGHTS
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The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
Greater Birmingham Spirit Needed


 Many years ago, before Birming- ham had grown to be large city, there was little or no evidence of pub- lie spirit here. And little effort was made then to develop civic pride or the get-together habit.
 But with the evolution of the Cham Der of Commerce from the old Con- mercial club in 1908 and the extension of the city limits just before the 1910 census was taken, Birmingham began -ybN manifest a great deal of public split. Much was accomplished by the Aew get-together movement. But recently, owing doubtless to months of business depression, the civic feel ing which had been causing our peo. pie to cooperate and boost Birming. ham, showed signs of Tagging.
 The Chamber of Commerce will al ways be the center of civic influence and civic activities. It has been for tunate in having able and progressive executive heads and able and enthusi astic directors. Every administration has achieved large things for Bir rningham and the Birmingham dis trict. But what is needed today is { revival of the get-together spirit; ane President Crawford Johnson and his
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
POINTED PARAGRAPHS

From the Chicago News.
 Blessed be the little flat in which there is no room for trouble.
 Ambition is all right if man has energy to back it up.
 A self-made man is often the only one satisfied with the job.
 As soon as sick shoemaker is able tt work he's on the mend.
 1t takes nervous woman to demon strate what nerve force really is.
 The mantle of charity covers lot ol amateur theatrical performances.
 After lively race for a husband many as heiress marries a run-down nobleman Tho man who coesnt secure the services of that great teacher, experience, may live to a green old age.
 Unless a man can see a slight improve ment in himself it's impossible to make him believe the world is growing better.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
ALABAMA PRESS

Montgomery Advertiser: An Atlanta man wants divorce on the grounds that he and his wife are incompatible. Inasmuch as she drove him out of the house at midnight, assaulted him two or three times and ran him out of his off, flee and down the street, it does seem that there was some incompatibility of temper
 Dothan News: We are told that cotton Is coming into fashion; that we will prob- ably walk in cotton, call in cotton, ,''all to help the cotton growers of the south. " And why not? Cotton can be woven into very beautiful fabrics. It is familiarity that has bred our contempt for it. About the only thing we can make in this coun- try that appeals to certain fastidious class is money.
 Demopolis Times: Much belated sym pathy is being devoted to the dope fiends by Alabama newspapers, because of the new federal law going into effect March | 1. And all this time Alabama has had stringent drug law to prevent the sale | of the prohibited stuff. Just what diff | ference there is between state and fed eral statute is hard to tell, but there 1 is a difference. Men don't fool witt Uncle Sam, because they are afraid, but they take all sorts of liberties with state
 regulations on the same subjects, ant have little fear of the consequences. | Gadsden Times-News: Dave Holt, ont
 of the best-known newspaper men of Ala
 bama has been spending week or two
 with the crop diversifcation committees
 in the southern part of the state. and hal
 written a number of interesting and in | spring stories to show what southern | farmers are doing and going to do. Th'
 crop divirsification campaign has covered
 the state thoroughly, and. according to th'
 numerous instances of diversification ctet
 by MT. Holt, the farmers of Alabama ar' 1 preparing to save themselves millions O.
 dollars this year by raising enough foot crops to make it unnecessary for then | to buy out of the state.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
IN HOTEL LOBBIES
Business Condition. in Texns


 T found business fairly good in cities and towns in eastern and southern Texas, but poor in western and northern parts of the state.' said H. P. chenoweth, the well known representative of hardware manufacturers.
 One hears much talk in Texas about crop diversificaton, and there is undoubt- edly some progress in that line, but from my observation I would say that Texas will plant as much cotton as last year, If not more. Tn those sections where cot ton is the only crop I never saw such preparations for extensive planting.
 Here in Alabama we will make good headway this year in diversification. The campaign which originated in the Bir- mingham Chamber of Commerce will have a fine effect Alabama will probably plant much less cotton this year and mere of everything else than was the case in 1914"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
The Proposed Cotton OH Plant

Tn regard to the account of the hear- ing of the city commissioners in relation to the cotton seed oil plant proposed for the Woodlawn district" said Chair man T. A. Weller of the industrial bu- reau committee, "I wish to say that the committee several days ago visited the site of the proposed mill and is familiar with the matter. The chairman of the committee also has conferred with Presi- dent Ward of the city commissioners and Mir. Ward is acquainted with our views.
 'sIt. is our earnest hope that this new industry, which would give employment to Birmingham men and provide another pay roll for the district, can be located to tho satisfaction of those who are financing 1t and that of the citizens of Woodlawn. The proposed site of tie mill is along a railroad.'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
WORTH EMULArING.

WORTH EMULATING. The forward looking fellow
 Leaves lots of woe behind; His heart is always mellow,
 There's not much on his mind He sees himself successful.
 Each day his dream renews, And though his luck's distressful, He seldom has the blues" He never may attain to
 The goal for which he longs, May suffer grief and pain. too And meet with bitter wrongs, But still the future brightens
 Before his hopeful gaze, And optimism lightens
 Misfortune all his days.
 THE TRUTHFUL TRAVELLER. How did you find life in the tropics?'' "All that I expected it to be- You were not disappointed then?' Not at all I thought 1t was going to be the next thing to Hades, and it was,
 A WHOLESOME REvERsIoN. ''The profiigate son of wealthy parents. What else could you expect of him?" Nothing. 'tis true, but was hoping he might be throw-back to his hod-carry- ing ancestors.'
 WHO WANTS TO BE ONE? "A shop girl says it is easy enough to live on s6 a week.
 "Of course. The average Patagonian lives on considerably less than that"
 TWAS TIME TO BLUSH. When Joe Potato got license to marry Mary Antichi today, Probate Judge Belk- nap asked him: What is your employ ment. Joe?" The blushing groom said: ''I am going to raise potatoes" He got his license for nothing (O.) dis patch in the Cincinnati Enquirer.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
THE BAGGAGE sMAsHER's WOES

From the Pnlladelpn1a HuDllc beuBer.
 Baggage masters in our local railway stations bewail the decision of the in- terstate commerce commission that whatever offers itself in the guise of a trunk must be transported by the rail ways
 '.e Faseriptions of the multi phase trun..s that threaten to terrorize their handlers, our friends, the cubists, futurists and post impressinists, to say nothing of the learned professors of solid geometry in the colleges, would appear to have found employment as consulting engineers and designers. For the Nude Descending 8 Staircase" that won notoriety as an extraordinary as- semblage of blobs and blotches, one might substitute Trunk Descending a Staircase" and immediately discern a new significance in the wild polygons of light and shadow apparently thrown at each other hibbledy- -piggledy like a pile of washed out postage stamps.
 Brancusi. who designed the bust called "A Muse" so very like distorted egg. or vallau, who depicted the Girl At the flaHO, loohilS iiho Diiiy cuh days description of fly's eye, can now get employment witN the trunk makers Henri Matisse. of the goop- like "Nasturtiums," or Picasso, who fashioned the amorphous Girl With the Mustard Pot" or Gluzes, whose "Mansin Balcony looks like a carpenter shop after the cyclone struck it, will find scope for their inventive ingenuity It should be easy for these protagonists of the new order to design trunks that can neither be etood on end nor laid on one side, and thereby multiply the sor- rows of those who minister to the travelling public with rhombicosido- dechedrons and rhombicuboctahedron such as would have brought transports of delight to Euclid's soul.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
Business in Various Section.

A. Il. Aseltine of New York a renre- sentative of the Commercial and Finan cal Chronicle, and an exceptionally well informed man on business conditions |. registered at the Tutwiler. He visits Rir- mlngham about once year and has many acquaintances here Last December MT. Aseltine made a trip to California and is on his way there now.
 rms is what I call my spring trip" remarked MT. Aseltine. q was in Br- mingham last spring and am glad to snake hands with my friends once more. One of the first gentlemen I met here this time was Mir. oscar Wells presi- dent of the First National bank, whom knew well a few years ago in Fort Worth. He will prove a most valuable acquisition to Birmingham, both as a banker and business man and a social factor.''
 MT. Aseltine, on his way south, stopped at Richmond. Norfolk, Raleigh. Charles ton, Columbia, S. C., Augusta, Savannah, Atlanta, Nashville and Chattanooga. While Richmond is prosperous towr, | generally speaking, it does not seem to be as busy as Norfolk at this time" said he 1 Savannah Is crowded with business and great gangs of men are working day and night loading cotton. Atlanta seems to be recovering rapidly from the business depression of last fall. Everybody I met
 there talked as if conditions were about normal.
 Throughout the south, as far as I am advised, business is improving right along and this will be year of real prosperity I in many southern cities..''
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

The Postmaster General announces that he will economize still further, a prac- tice that has been forced on a great many people here of late who didn't know what 1t meant before.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18
Death of Inventor of Mining M,.n,n,

MT. Francis M. Lechner, inventor of the first mining machine in this coun- try, died recently and his death takes
 from the mining industry one of the men who put his best efforts into its petterment," says writer in the Coal Trade Bulletin.
 He first brought his mining ma- chine to the notice of the public in 1877, and among those who became
 interested in it and who took a finan- clal interest in it was Mir. J. A. Jeffrey or Columbus, O., who succeeded in get ting sufficient capital invested to put
 the machine on the market. It was tba iorerunner Of the present mining ma- chimes
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

Mrs. Angle says Ballou was her very dear friend. That being the case, she might at least have called an ambulance to have her dear battered friend carried to the nearest hospital.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

People are willing to eat almost any kind of strawberry shortcake in restau- rants these days, because they are receiv- ing their first helpings. Later on they will be more critical.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

Dr. w. c. Gewin told this: q heard a good one in Chicago the other day. It was just during the election in a small Illinois town, when the lines between the prohibitionists and the antis were pretty closely drawn. On the day of the cleo tion long line of people, including both men and women for both vote in Illinois, stood in line awaiting their turn to vote Behind very determined looking female stood man patiently holding 3-months- old infant. Presently the woman turned around. I hope. you are going to vote dry. sir, she said. Thank you mann he answered.
 F. J. Holberg. advertising manager for Louis Saks. relates this experience
 .'On recent rainy night my wife and l, after attending a show at the Lyric, hurried to Twentieth street to take jitpey which would carry us to our home on Beech street. Very soon a comfort able looking auto car came along. I hailed it, and as it drew up to the side walk, I told tTie driver where we lived and asked him if he could take us there. He replied that he could carry us only as far as Five Points. Rather than wait we concluded to 'jitney' to that extent and walk the rest of the way.
 "The man opened the door of the car and we got in. There were no other passen- gers. After we had travelled several blocks southward the driver introduced himself. He WAS MT. Hugh Thompson of Park Ridge. He was driving his own car and not jitney. My wife and l were nat urally embarrassed when we found that we had made mistake and had forced ourselves in measure, upon a stranger gentleman whom we had taken to be a
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

Lincoln Beachey was @ Snowman of the air' and he ran the risks of his pro- fession, only to meet the fate that had been predicted for him.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

Those prominent New Workers who are "c, ming out for woman suffrage are doubtless the kind of politicians who don't need a weather vane to tell them in which direction the wind is blowing.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

MT. Bryan is angered by the statement that Americans are not protected in Mex ico. Probably looks too much like an indictment of "soft soap" and sentiment taiity.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

Count Witte was a diplomat who recog- nizcd the value of the press as an aid to diplomacy.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-03-18

The most restful page in the average newspaper these days is the sporting page, which is comparatively free from war news.