davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

However, perhaps we may arrive at the right answer by a more circuitous route, with a greater degree of certainty. To begin with Christmas starts here along about December 1, or perhaps a great while before that where business is con cerned But we're speaking principally of dear old General Public's Christmas, and that, if it should begin much earlier than the first day of the current month. would not have enough pep left by the 18th to arise in the early morning and say. Peace on earth"
 Well, along about December 1 the peo- pie begin to worry about presents and the clerks. shop girls, etc., begin to worry about people. Pretty soon thereafter the two worries get together and the fight is on. For instance, do you suppose for moment that I would have any chance to purchase the presents I want to buy this late in the season? I am not a weak ling physically. I tip the beam today at about 175 pounds; have played some football, have taken more or less real exercise all my life, and, as a reporter, have even covered" certain special bar gain sales when the firm in question was doing lot of advertising with the paper represented, but as for standing an even chance with these Christmas shop pers-why the thing is absurd upon it's face.
 You see, there is an art in it. One small New York woman, if she is a regular New York woman, could make me look like the Army quarterback with the whole Navy team after him. I know in gen. eral way how the shopping thing is done at this season: it requires mental, phy- sical, moral and immoral aggressiveness; it necessitates push, pull and palaver. and it unauestionably includes no quarter whether the enemy be adorned by gray hairs or an immediately post-natal bald mesa.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

said to be 13,000000 cubic feet per min- ute. From the Guayra falls to the Falls of Iguassu is a distance of 125 miles, which is torn and scared with cas- cades The column of mist that rises from the Iguassu falls is visible 12 miles away
 There are many other great cataracts besides these I have mentioned. The Ivahy river at Rio Branco has a fall almost 300 feet high, and one fall on the River Preto in the state of Goyaz is 240 feet high.s The Tocantin has falls of 200 feet. while those of Bene- vente and the Salto Grande on tho Jequitinhonha are each about 150 feet The Onca falls of the Rio Grande river are said to have potentiality of 600,- 900 horse power, while those of Doura- do. on the Parnahyba, have 100000, In the state of Minas Geraes there are more than 200 waterfalls and cascades that will generate commercial electri- city, and the state of Sac Paulo claims to have more than 100000 horse power as yet undeveloped. With an em- pire like that of Brazil, a country of enormous resources encouraged by a protective tariff, it would seem that these electrical possibilities might be turned into fortunes.
 AS to the rivers of northern Brazil, I have already spoken of the Paulo Af- fonso falls. They are on the Sac Fran cisco river which is the third in size in South America and the fourth larg- est on our hemisphere. In this I put the Amazon first, the Mississippi sec Francisco runs through more territory than any European river except the Volga. It crosses plateau where for more than 1000 miles it is navigable and navigated. It's only obstruction is at the Paulo Alfonso falls; and it may be that canal will some day make that part of easy access to the sea.
 Altogether northern Brazil has more than 13 rivers upward of a thousand miles long, and it has nine or ten that range in length from 800 to 1000 miles. Nearly all of these rivers have waterfalls at some points in their course. The names of many of these streams are unknown to the ordinary reader. Let me give you some of them. The Itapicuru is over 1000 miles long and the Parnahyba is 50 miles longer. They both flow into the Atlantic ocean. The Tocantins is sometimes called a tributary of the Amazon, but that is because it flows through the Rio Para into the Atlantic ocean, the same river also receiving some of the water of the Amazon. The Araguaya, which is one of the tributaries of the Tocantins is 1640
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

than 5000 places to dine here--I mean public places-and yet on New Years eve there isn't the spirit of a chance to take care of all who wish to spend the first half of that night in hotels the Plaza to the poorest quick lunch counter is duly decorated and prepared for capacity business. which it never fails to get, according to some expe- rience and much history acquired.
 To call this occasion a sane celebra- tion would be untrue-to designate it debauch might savor of exaggera- tion, so if you can find word that fits perfectly into the groove between the twain, you have come pretty close to the right answer. And even then you can't begin really to understand or appreciate what 1t really appears like unless you come up and go through it with us.
 It is all undoubtedly very glorious. impressive-and depressive. Imagine a native New Yorker spending Christ mas and New Year in small southern town. And yet I doubt if he would be more lonely than would native of lIAle, IOfceU to SpeHu lHe same two occasions in a city where he can never wholly, exactly, entirely and unmis- takably "belong."
 Since Henry Ford & Co. sailed away from this port on his peace ship we haven't even had subway accident but there are many friends of the automobile sultan who are spending lot of time worrying about his welfare and that of his vessel. crew and passengers.
 Seeing New York is about the poor est possible way of knowing New York and by the same token it occurs to me that we know q lot less about the world than we think we do after we have trav- eled bit in other parts. It is like look
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

All discussion and debate relative to the selection of purchases are absolutely taboo. It is always a case of go after it and get it if you have to grab it, and if a clerk is brief and decidedly to the point-and a sharp point at that-in his handling of your particular case, taking offense, or feeling sensitive about it is surely fatal to your cause.
 During this period of time lot of peo- pie seem to be vending their ways home- ward with pleased smiles, just as if they had actually been able to procure the purchases they wanted. And who shall say they have not done so? There are always few who seem to get in on the right side of everything. How it is done will remain a secret to many of us for ever-but the fact still stands. There is another element of the local throng which seems to be happy with nothing. appear ing to have enjoyed the sport of strife. while still another faction is evidently disappointed, disgruntled and disillu- stoned.
 In the evenings many people go to the various shows I mention this because it is another of the Christmas season mys- teries. The majority of us can't get a seat in anything from a 10-cent movie to g "Iegit.'' But there again we have that lucky minority.
 Those of us who are not possessors of automobiles, or equipages of some sort, become strong of arm and limb from much standing. struggling and hanging to straps in the subways, elevated and sur- face cars and many of us are forced to use weary legs to walk down town on, as even the over, under and on earth lines here are insufficient to properly take care of all of us.
 Finally just before the arrival of the eventful occasion itself, everyone is so worn out with the preliminary fighting and trench digging. that the best they can do is to wander wearily into the
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12
THE WHITE COAL OF BRAZIL

vegetation. In such places you see that the trees are matted together with vines. You observe that the mark is ofter silver gray and that much of the forest is loaded with flowers. Some of the grand est trees have the brightest of blossoms have seen some 60 feet high, with branches extending out in the shape of a haystaclz and the whole one mass of blue flowers. Imagine a haystack of vio- lets on a pedestal 60 feet high and you have one of the flower effects of the Amazon.
 Farther on you will pass tree with blossoms like buttercups. Think of 8 circus tent covered with buttercups, high up in the air surrounded by green, and you have an idea of these golden blos- sons.
 The country is wild all the way up the Amazon. Para the city at the mouth, is the metropolis of the whole region, and Manaos, although it is a thousand miles from the coast, is good second. Outside these two cities there are only collections of huts scattered here and there at wide distances apart along the banks, with now and then clearing just big enough for hut and a garden. The hut is made of poles and palm leaves, and the garden consists of a few banana plants and an orange tree or so. The huts are matched with palm leaves. They are little more than shelters okeep off the sun and rain. Most of them stand close to the river. Naked babies play on the shore in front of them, and the grown-ups are bare footed men and women, mostly muat- toes, or negroes, who stand and look at the steamer as it goes by. The people are rubber hunters who just now, on account of hard times in that industry, are pow erty stricken.
 The only cities of any size on the Amazon river are Para and Manaos, which monopolize the trade of the whole Amazon valley. The city of Para commands the entrance to the valley, and it has direct steamship connection with the United States and Europe. Within the past few years it has been growing as rapidly as any other of the fast growing towns of the world Thirty years ago it had about 30,000 people, It has now almost 300,- 000 Para is city of fine public build ings. It has picturesque streets lined with tropical trees; it has well shaded parks and open squares. It's streets are well paved, and the private dwell ings are surrounded by beautiful gar dens. The city is lighted by electric ity. It has electric cars and good
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

Interrupted by cascades. The largest ocean steamers sail up the Amazon as far as Manaos, and one can take ship at that city and go direct to New York. One of the easiest of the out-of-the-way steam ship voyages would be to go from New York to Iquitos Peru. The first stage of the trip would be to Para, at the mouth of the Amazon. The second from Para to Manaos and the third on smaller steam CT from Manaos to Iquitos. The latter city is about 2500 miles from the Atlantic ocean and about 1900 miles from Manaos. The cost of the trip is comparatively cheap and it could be made winter or summer for the river voyage is almost on the line of the equator, where the climate is much the same the year around.
 My trip up the Amazon was success sion of surprises. The was yellow with the silt of tine river for day netore we came into it. The ocean was diseol- ored with the washings of half a conti- nent and the great river was loaded With silt all the way to Manaos We entered the stream by the mouth, south of the island of Marajo. and wound our way in and out through series of wonderful channels before We reached the main stream.
 The Amazon delta is cut up by natural canals. You wind your way past islands of curious shapes between walls of tropi- cal vegetation. The river flows slowly, and the water looks like furnished steel. At sunset it turns to copper and god. The vegetation is beyond description. The great trees reach for 200 feet above your head, and you steam between walls of emerald plush 100 feet high.
 The canals make you think of Holland. The islands in some places are so small that you seem to be passing through one of the great cities of nature. city pop ulated by monkeys parrots and butter flies, the resting place of the orchid and the home of the crocodile. You are sur prised at the palms. There are scores of new varieties. Some are as big around as your arm, others are as tall as a sx-story house. The latter extend from the ground to the top without a limb and end in a tassel of leaves. Other palms are all leaves. They sprout from the earth in great punches. Others are of but a single leaf, such as the travellers palm which has but one stem. These palms grow among the other trees of the forest. It is only when planted by man that they are seen close together The forest in the distance looks much like our trees at home.
 It is only when you get close to the shores that you can study the Amazon
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

from hydraulic plant, situated about IS or 20 miles away. There, in dis tance of less than one-half mile, the Tiete falls 33 feet; and this fall, by means of dams and electric generators, is supplying both light and power to town of more than half million in- habitants. The concession belongs to and is run by Canadian and United States citizens. It is profitable.
 Between Sac Paulo and Salto de Itu the Tiete river has falls where, in rapids 90 feet long, 75,O00 horse power can be generated, and lower still are other falls which are now reached by the Brazilian Northwestern railway. This river will supply an enormous electric force. At it's mouth, preceded by rapids, is the cascade of Itapura, which falls A feet and not far away is another fall on the Rio Grande river. of which the Tiete is tributary. The volume of water of these two falls is so great that 1.000,UU0 horse power could be developed from them.
 The state of Sac Paulo has also other valuable water powers. It has one on the Rio Sorocaba, which furnishes power and light to the city of that name, and another on the Pa<napan- ema, which has volume of 300 cubic yards per second. Many of the chief towns of Sac Paulo get their light and power from rivers nearby. This is so of Santos, Campinas, Amparo, RIO Clara, Mococa and Rebeirao Preto.
 There are number of water powers of great extent on the Parana system. some of the largest tributaries of which are in the Brazilian republic. The Urubupunga falls have a capacity of 100000 horse power, and the falls of Iguassu and Guayra, on the borders of Paraguay, will rival those of Niagara and the Zambesi in their electric possi- bilities. Many claim that these falls are greater than the Victoria falls of South Africa, and some put them even in advance of Niagara. One of the es- inmates of the civil engineers is that 14,000, 900 horse power can be produced by the Iguassu falls alone, and that the Falls of Guayra have an equal po- tentiality. I have talked with some engineers who have measured these falls. They tell me that the estimates above given are to a large extent imaginary and they laugh at the idea of the Guayra falls producing S0,000, ,000 horse power, as has been suggested. These engineers say that the volume of the river is irregular, and that the horse power is much less at some times than at others. The Guayra falls are almost two miles in width. The waters drop BIO feet and their discharge is
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

miles long or almost as long as the To- cantins itself. Either river, if stretched upon the United States, would reach as far as from Boston to Omaha. The river Purus, a tributary of the Amazon, would reach from Boston almost to Denver, and the Madeira would very nearly go to Salt Lake.
 The Amazon proper is 340O miles long, and with it's tributaries it has navigable waters of 30,000 miles, which would reach clear around the world and leave enough to stretch three times the distance be- tween New York and Liverpool. The Rio Negro, which flows into the Amazon is as black as your hat. hence it's name. I have seen its waters mingling with those of the Amazon below the city of Manaos, thousand miles from the Atlantic The Amazon is yellow, and the two streams move side by side in great yellow and black stripes. before the black is swal- lowed up by the Mother of Waters. The lea river, another tributary of the Ama- zen, is longer than from New York to Chicago, and the Mearim longer than from New York to Detroit. Indeed Bra gil has so many great rivers that it is impossible to describe them, and it is not wonderful that these people did not go mad over President Roosevelt's investi- gation of the 'River of Doubt
 The Amazon is to me the most interest ing river of the world. I have travelled upon it from the Atlantic ocean to it's junction with the Rio Negro, which 1000 miles from the sea. In this voyage passed many of the great tributaries, in- cluding the Madeira which flows 20OO miles from it's headwaters in Matto Gros- so and the Andean highlands. The Anna zon altogether has several hundred trib- utaries, and 100 of them are said to be navigabe Eighteen are described as rivers of the first rank and six are each lcnger and more copious than the Rhine
 Many of the southern tributaries rise in the highlands of Matto Crosse, and some are so close to the headwaters of the Parana system that one can take a canoe and go from the Amazon into the Parana Indeed, one can start into the Orinoco in Venezuela and by slight port ages go clear down through the South American continent by way of the Rio Negro and up the rivers that flow into tho Amazon from the south, and, cross- ing to the headwaters of the Paraguay, come out through the Parana into the Rio de la Plata at Montevideo and Bue- nos Aires.
 The Rio Negro is navigable for 40 miles, the Purus for 1000 miles and the Tapajos for hundreds of miles, although
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

waterworks. Within recent years 1t has been made sanitary and yellow fever has disappeared.
 Para has e number of daily papers and excellent schools, including na- tional gymnasium an institute of me- ohancal arts and the Lauro Sodre In- stitute, which gives free industrial education to 400 resident students and 100 day scholars. The port works are extensive. They have been put in at a cost of millions by an American sym dicate, which has also large interest in the Madeira Mamore railroad, situ- ated far up the Amazon.
 Manaos seems to me the most inter- esting city in South America. 1t is in the heart of the Amazon wilderness, but the biggest steamers can come right to its wharves. Suppose our At lantic liners could sail from Europe to New York and without stop right on to Chicago? The latter city would then have transportation advantages like those of Manaos. The river is wide and deep all the way and after leaving Para there is practically nothing but forest on each side of the waterway.
 Arriving at Manaos. you land in civilized city. The place has 70,000 in- habitants. Some of the state buildings are equal in size and beauty to any in Brazil. The palace of justice is of white marble and the Theatre of tho Amazon has a golden dome decorated with the national colors. The theatre cost over $2,000,000. The town has fine schools including a gymnasium and an institute for girls It has mu- scum and public library of 10000 volumes. There are hospitals and in- firmaries, recreation grounds and pub lie parks and gardens In the evening the Jardin Publico is filled with prom enaders and the orchestra plays there after dusk.
 The streets are well paved. There are electric street car lines and many automobiles. The town has a board of trade and it has large exporting and importing houses. The chief business street is the Rua Marechal Deodoro. This is also the chief center of tho rubber industry, which forms the bulk of the business. the exports often amounting to s3o,000,000 a year.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

ing at the outside of theatre then go- ing back home and telling your friends what a good show was going on inside.
 I saw as many as three really old men on Wall street the other day. That is about the only street in New York city whereon they show their age. Here ev- erybody dresses young looks young, in a way at least, and endeavors to feel young. The rush and nervous strain keep the sap of youth flowing freely, they say but now and then Wall street bends a back or two, wrinkles d face beyond all semblance of even make-believe youth and shows to the world that it has the power to transform men at it's will. But old men are indeed a rarity in this town and old women-perish the rumination.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12

- IIzS sire to remind any one of an inevitable unpleasantness, it yet
 becomes a virtual necessity, herein. to announce, just as if 1t were real news, that Christmas is almost at hand once more This is not written to recall to your memories the probable fact that you are unprepared to meet it as you should-such has been the case with many of us ever since ''the memory of man runneth not, etc."
 It is done for the reason that we feel inclined to parler (I'm soaking in a little French, German. Italian, Norwegian, Spanish, Swedish and Hobolzen up here) . bit about Christmas in New York city. Of course, Christmas is Christmas, and many of you will say that 1t must be much the same the world overland that may be true in part-but not in New York city.
 No, sir. we have spent that so-called merry season. event. or holiday in sev- eral spots on earth, and it is different lin Manhattan from any other place on the civilized globe. And to the credit of giddy old oGtham be it said that it's ob- servance here is more nearly in accord ance with the rules of right living. re- |ligion and safety first. than anywhere else.
 In the first place there Is less giving of uselessly expensive presents. We are not over-run by spugs. but the general run of Christmas gifts here seems to be governed by something at least akin to sanity and sensible restraint. That is what 1t looks like on the surface. Should one go in too deep he might discover that this condition of Yuletide affairs is due to desire to hang on to what we strive so hard for in this place. However, why attribute motives of which we admit doubt, to those who may have the very 1hCst of them?
The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-12-12
UP AND DOWN BROADWAY---By Allen Griffin Johnson

When war is declared by the United States begins an article in a local news paper. Well, we're making some prog ress, anyway, so we may as well decide now-a la Fl. Ford--whether we are going to line up with the trench diggers and occupants or join the "scab'' forces of those who fight for the 1ag-and whatever other reason may present itself. Puzzle; Read these as they would be spoken;
 Christmas!"
 snowy
 The South-"A
 The North-"A
 snowy
 Christmas"