davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
MINIMUM WAGE FOR POETS

, who would gladly have written much
 more if he had been in luck. We ourselves
 do not think that the poem was over paid by the 5000 abounding from his wage
 after 5000 were apportioned for the story; we never have thought prose worth as
 much as poetry; and at the worst, the poet may have done his best for them. We must all of us authors rejoice that nc got so much for his poem, which ought to be the standard pay for poetry. If some such price were offered by the mag azines now, they could easily be filled with poetry, and many lively young tall ents could be turned from prose; but no such rewards followed the efforts of our earlier poets. The gains of Bryant have not to our knowledge been reported, but his contemporary Poe was always in
 money difficulties even when quite sober. We should be glad to know what he got for The Raven but we are confident, without knowing, that he was overpaid for The Bells" if he got anything at all for it. If we come down to Longfellow, whom Poe publicly accused of plagiar- ism while privately living on his loans. it is no secret that he received from the New York Ledger 5000 for The Hanging of the Crane which was richly worth the money. The Ledger was not always source of so much wealth to the poet; it's custom is said to have been to pay the average poet $10 for short piece which contained two rhymes to the quat- rain, and $5 where there was but one rhyme. When he was young, Lowell wrote for very little money or none; but when his fame became worldwide he sometimes got $400 and $500 for poem. Neither Holmes nor Whittier got so | much, and, of course, not Emerson, whose poetry indeed could not be appraised in money.
 All this will seen very, sordid to the captains of industry. and will probably add to the burdens of the tired business | man, who. when not listening to musical comedy, resorts to this department for cheer and refreshment'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
DIETING THE SOCIAL BOND

From the New York Globe.
 The Anti Enlistment league is about to start campaign in the colleges and un- iversities asking signatures to this pledge:
 q, being over IS years of age, hereby pledge myself against enlistment as a volunteer for any military or naval ser vice in international war, offensive or defensive, and against giving my ap- proval to such enlistment on the part of others
 This is a free country-free toll, free men, free speech-but freedom does not mean license to deny the right of the country in an hour of peril to call upon it's citizens to bear arms in its defense
 Since the outbreak of the war abroad this nation often has been sorely tried by the preachings and activities of un- American Americans. It has borne with patience the numerous assaults against it's cherished institutions and the peace and quiet of it's law abiding citizens There are limits, however, beyond which no man may pass.
 No matter what the motive behind the Anti-Enlistment leagues propagandism ID matter how noble those responsible fol it may hold their pacifist ideas, they cannot be members of society and dis regard the obligations of such member ship. These propagandists may leave tho country. but while here they must obey in one matter the general will. In civil no man can be allowed to repudiate thu zed society no man lives to himself ant social bond
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
HOTEL HOBBIES
Spain Makes Request

to every citizen of Jefferson county said Coroner Charles L. Spain yester- day. 'The thing I want them to do is to be quiet and law abiding citizens for the next month at least. From the way people are killing, cutting and fighting they seem to forget that l am running for the board of revenue and need some of my time for electioneer- ing.
 T have just about as much as I can get to without going out in the inter- est of my candidacy. My request is very reasonable and I hope that if any wished to commit suicide or kill any one else they will put it off for a month at least"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
The Bond Propositions

It is hardly conceivable that many negative votes will be cast in the election to be held June on the proposition for the city to issue S2,OOO,OOO of bonds for the erection of new school buildings, including two high schools, and repairing such of the old buildings as need attention.
 Birmingham, with school system of exceptional excellence, is poorly provided with housing accommoda- tions. That is because of the city's rapid growth.
 Five years ago the school buildings, while not entirely adequate, were sui ficient by crowding to house all the pupils that applied for enrolment. But the school population has grown steadily, as the biennial census shows, and the congestion is now so serious as to impair the efficiency of our boasted system of public edu- cation.
 No matter how much people may differ about certain municipal policies every intelligent citizen must appre- ciate the importance of keeping the schools up to high standard. Next to pure water and sanitary sewerage, the schools constitute city's great est asset; and the better the school accommodations the better the inn pression on prospective homeseekers.
 A bond issue of $2,000,000 for school purposes will not be dollar too much. At the rate of Birming- hams growth it will barely supply the school needs for period not longer than five years; and in view of the fact that the compulsory educa- tion act goes into effect next year the additional housing provided out : of fund of $2,O0O,0OO may not meet the demands to the end of the present decade.
 While the school bond issue is known to be popular, MT. Hornady the city commissioner of education who is chiefly responsible for the submission of the proposition to a vote of the people, is taking nothing Tor granted He is conducting an ac. tive campaign for the proposition with the hope that the majority fol the bonds will be practically unani nous.
 There seems to be no question abou the success of the city's electric ligh1 plant bond proposition of $50O,0OO tt be voted on at the same election called for the school bonds. and now
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
From the Cincinnati Times-Star.

From the Cincinnati Times-Star.
 K HRS. AMELIA E. BARR, who wrote M many good novels in her day and A generation, celebrated her eighty sixth birthday anniversary the other day in New York Several interviewers, who thought perhaps this venerable writer might express interestin gviews upon women of yesterday and today, called upon her. They were not disappointed.
 Mrs. Barr, in the opinions she frankly gave demonstrated how the world has changed in it's opinion of womens dress, womens~ amusements and so on. Mrs. Barr, intrenched in the prim customs and prejudices of her youth, said Dame fashion shows poorer taste to- day than she has shown at any time dur ing the last 75 years. Half portion gowns are entirely too much in evidence. The gentler sex no longer dresses; it un- dresses"
 On the adoption of out t-of-doors sports, Mrs. Barr said;
 "Present-day young women take en- tirely too much interest in athletics. For girls to play golf, tennis and other games which rightfully are mems sports, is out rageous.''
 Mrs. Barr also observed that when a girl uses slang:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15


 SOUTH IS SETTING THE PAGE Thomas F. Logan in Lesie's.
 No longer is the south depending on cot ton The total value of all agricultural products of the south last year was about s 60O,000,00O and of this only about $75O, ,0OO- 000 was represented by cotton. Cotton, therefore. comprised but little more than one fifth of the total agricultural prod ucts of the south. In 1915 the gain in the value of all farm crops in the United States over 1914 was $526,070, 0O0 Of this gain $317, ,209 coo, or little over 60 per cent, was in the south, an amazing illustration of the increase in the diversification of tire country, outside of the south, was s20S, ,Se1 O0O, slOS, 100O GOO less than the gair in the south. The percentage of increase for the south in 1915 over 1914 was 13Ss per cent The percentage of increase fol | the rest of the country in 1915 over 1914 ahead industrially, agriculturally anc 1 financially. Still producing the greatest ] cotton crop on earth, the southern states nevertheless are actually outdistancine many of the northern and western states | in the production of other farm products ] ties It is supplying a substantial basis l for its own and national prosperity fol lowing the close of the European war.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
Most pJeasaut Part of Reunion

''The most pleasant feature Of Con- federate reunion is meeting the old com rades of tre war;" said Capt. John G. Smith yesterday. 'I received letter today from Henry Hawkes. of Atlanta, who served in my company during the war and who surrendered with me at Ap- pomattox. He told me he was coming to the reunion here and wanted to embrace me once more before he passed away.
 T have not seen Henry Hawkes. since the day we surrendered at Appomattox, and you may be sure look forward with great pleasure to this visit from my old friend and comrade This is really the greatest part of the reunion. Of course, there are many features in connection with the annual gatherings, but the vast majority of the old soldiers come to the meetings principally for the purpose Of seeing some of their old war comrades and to talk over the days during the struggle and the hardships and the little incidents of the war"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
GAMBLING IN GOTHAM

New York Correspondence Cincinnati
 Times-Star.
 The money madness born of the fever
 of speculation and the flood of profits in
 war munitions has resulted in the estab-
 lishment of a gambling resort in New
 York city which makes any other gam
 bling resorts fade into utter insignificance.
 Canfields at it's best was a resort for pi-
 kers. The limit is not the ceiling, but the sky. A Texas oil operator who showed
 bank balance of s75,00O was refused ad- mission because there was no evidence that he could afford to lose it. No man who has ever been identified with profess sonal gambling, even as a mere frequen- ter of professional gambling places, can get in. It is run for and by the new
 millionaires who have made their money in intuition contracts or in speculation in stocks of the munition companies, and it gives them something to occupy their time while the market is closed The club house is in the Thirties, near Fifth ave- nue, and you can see dozen men slip out of Sherry's or Delmonico's every even- ing to so and play in games where the stakes are so high that it would be an offense to intelligence to state the fig- l ures. Upon the solemn word of man who goes there to play auction bridge, there is frequently enough money in a pool in one game or another ito buy the real estate and building in which the game is being played. The manageable l is called the chairman of the house com- mittee-is a famous polo player and the
 son of man whose name was once the 1 best known of any American horse owner.
 The games which are conducted nightly are baccarat chemin de fer faro, auc- I tion bridge and "table-stake" poker.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
Building Operations Growing

Building operations" said City En- gineer Julian Kendrick, continue to show much improvement For the month of March it showed an increase of 22 per cent over the same period in 1915, which is indicative that build ing operations are beginning to as- sume the proportions of three or four years ago.
 Throughout the whole country at the present time building operations are showing much improvement and 1t was to be expected that Birmingham would show its share of the increased construction work"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

let the commissioners "speed up" a bit and be prepared to submit for the June election bond issue proposition for the much needed auditorium. The city, as a convention center, is handi- capped by the lack of large, mod ern auditorium. Everybody feels this to be true and bond issue for an ade- quate convention hall would prove quite as popular as the school issue.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
THE HAPPY HILLs OF HAY

By Robert Louis Stevenson. Through all the pleasant medow side The grass grew shoulder high, Till the shining scythes went far and And cut it down to dry. These green and sweetly smelling
 crops
 They led in wagons home; And they piled them here in mountain
 tops
 For mountaineers to roam. Here is Mount Clear. Mount Rusty
 Nail.
 Mount Eagle and Mount High; The mice that in these mountains
 dwell
 No happier are than T. 10 what joy to chamber there, 0 what place for play, With the sweet, the dim, the dusy air, The happy hills of hay.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
Prof;table stock Farming

"A smaller acreage in cotton will De nlanted in Alabama this spring than usual. but crop diversification will make up for it." said Columbus Peach- CT, the we'll known fertilizer salesman.
 "The boil weevil was more dlsas- trous to the cotton belt in this state last year than it was in other states in this group; more disastrous than 1t was in Georgia, hence the decreased acreage that will follow.
 "The Alabama farmers are not buy ing much fertilizer, but they will plant more corn than ever before. In the southern part of the state good deal of attention is being paid to peanuts, but the most encouraging sign of pro- gress is the increased interest in live stock The south Alabama farmers arc raising hogs on an extensive scale and are shipping them to stock markets where they get fine prices"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
SPEAKING HIS MIND.

Permit me to give you some good ad- vice. said the meddlesome person.
 Go ahead" replied the irascible man. You can't make me feel any worse than I do already"
 "Oh, if you are going to take it that way, I'll keep silent"
 That's right! Shut up like a clam now and catch me some other time when you will have a better chance to spoil my dayr'
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
The Little White Slayer"


 Henry Ford, not content with try ing to bring about peace in Europe, seems determined to go down in his- tory as one of the nations most in- domitable uplifters. He has lately caused to be distributed throughout the length and breadth of the land 1 booklet entitled "The Case Against the Little White Slaver" A picture of lighted cigarette on the cover gives clue to it's contents, which the most obtuse person can readily grasp.
 Mr. Ford indicts the cigarette on number of counts and makes out a case against it similar, if more ex- aggerated, than the charges made against the Demon Rum by prohibi- tionists. That the cigarette is guilty of practically all the crimes in the calendar is accepted as matter of course, but MT. Ford, or rather his publicity department, proceeds to give some horrendous examples of just what the cigarette is doing to undermine the citizenship of this country, sap the strength of it's toil- CTS and, worse still, blight the lives of boys. The booklet contains letter from MT. Edison, who has already gone on record as opposing cigarettes, l together with a number of signed statements from employers, teachers, medical men and others who consider themselves qualified to speak on the baleful effects of cigarette smoking.
 A typical example of Mr. Ford's propaganda is an item copied from Detroit newspaper alleging that smoking one hundred cigarettes day weakened the mind of a resident of that city. And small wonder! Any person who smokes one hundred cigarettes day is probably feeble minded to start with and the fact that he does so and lives to tell the tale indicates pretty clearly that cigarettes are not as harmful as some of the reformers would have us be- lieve. Were he to consume one hun dred cups of coffee day, or even one hundred biscuits, the chances are that he would be dead man. Argu- ments of this sort don't help the con- tention of the anti-cigarette reform CTS. As matter of fact, their cita- rtion makes the people who sponsor them ridiculous.
 Hardly anyone will gainsay that cigarette smoking among boys is : harmful, and among grown persons : when indulged to excess, but the same charge may be made against practi- ' cally every article of food and drink. Excess in any form is so palpably in- furious that arguing about it is a waste of time.
 7 Practically all medical men agree , that the chief objection to smoking tobacco, whether in a pipe, cigar or cigarette, is its effect on the heart. If that is true, smoking eight or ten ; cigarettes day is far less harmful than three or four cigars or dozen pipefuls of tobacco. Few pipe or cigar smokers are temperate, and as a re- suit their hearts and nervous systems , suffer proportionately
 : If a reformer opposes the use of ] tobacco in all forms he is at least con- r sistent. But to single out the cigarette : as a menace to public morals, g
 wrecker of manhood and infeebler ol mature minds is much like the conten- tion of another type of reformers who } declare that the man who keeps wine l Tor liquor in his house is on the roac 7 to perdition.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
Progress of Howard College

The announcement made by Presi- dent Shelbourne that Howard college would, after the present scholastic year. discontinue the preparatory school, was of encouraging signifl- canoe. because of the two reasons given for this decision on the part of the board of trustees.
 The first reason was that the public school curriculum prepared boys for the freshman class-prepared them thoroughly-and that continuance Of the prep" department was, therefore, wholly unnecessary. The second reason was the college had grown so fast in recent years that it no longer had room for preparatory students.
 From the high schools of the state the freshman class is filled up, and many of the entrants are ready for the sophomore class, some even for the junior class.
 Howard college, one of the oldest and most esteemed institutions of learning in the south, is now one ot the best equipped, financially and cul- turally. Its standards are high and from an educational point of view it ranks with the great universities. Howard has had a large enrolment this year-the largest in its history but the year 1916-17 promises to be far greater
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

BEGINNING THE DAY-"LOrd, Thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations" If | live in God ought to be beyond all earthly ties. Rain and shine, sun and cold, disease and health, ought to find me alike covered in Him. Death, in the strictest sense, will not even be change of residence.-H. M. E.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
KEEPING UP APPEARANCES
the Houston Post.

From tHe HOUStOn FOSt.
 Tom Fielder charges that there is more flicker in Atlanta now than there is in Louisville or Cincinnati. Atlanta is town badly afflicted with refaw- mitis, but it doesn't want the outside world to think the disease is malig- nant enough to keep it off trav- eler's itinerary. w
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
Cuba Becoming Americanized

Dr. R. w. Roland was saying yesterday that the sudden hot spell made him shed his heavy clothes when someone re- marked that a man who had just re- turned from Cuba ought not to feel the heat.
 'There were plenty of overcoats being worn in Havana" said Dr. Roland, and the strange part of it is that most or them were worn with straw mats. Furthermore, the hats were not typically Cuban, but were the genuine American articles.
 Cuba has changed in this respect. American merchants have invaded the island and have confined themselves so strictly to American made goods that It is even hard to get curios typical of Cuba. Every year it is becoming more and more noticeable that the island is becoming thoroughly Americanized.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

The elevators in the Jefferson County Bank building are strictly modern and have great lifting power. The vast bulk the quarters of the Newspaper club on the twenty-third, twenty-fourth and twen- y-fifth floors without accident.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Blount County Journal: Mississippi has enacted a law whereby a person can only get two pints of liquor every two weeks in each shipment. Huh, they don't seem to like the stuff as well as the Ala bamians. The legislature here said let
 em have two quarts every two weeks.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
ADRIFT WITH THE TIMES
ALMOST COMMITTED.

A Header of the people,"
 Despite his knowing air, Is wary of offending
 And takes exceeding care To keep the voters guessing As to his true intent. He's often found "eXplaining" Exactly what he meant On this and that occasion,
 When in a thoughtless mood He let escape a statement They partly understood.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

A man wanted exemption from military service in the British army because he was the greatest clog dancer in the world.' Just the man to send to the front to entertain the Tommies in their bomb proofs.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
QUIETER CRAFT.

What is that song you are singing?'
 Its called the Steamboat Rag have to initiate the whistle and other sounds, you know"
 "Ahem! It's rather noisy. Couldn't you sing something about a canoe?"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
NOT OUR CHARLEY

From the New York Telegram.
 MT. Chaplin Is Made q Peer.--Head- line. The luck of some men! Salary of $670,000 a year and now--but, hold on. It's Henry. not Charles.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15
AN AFTERTHoUGHT.

This is positively the last word in apartments" said the breezy agent. And this little room tackled on the rear?"
 Why that's the kitchen"
 T see. And you might call that a postscript"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

The 'favorite sons' might as well fold up their banners and put their band chance at Chicago or St. Louis.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

That Birmingham mule which is now starring in the Barnum & Bailey circus should be commended for not going into the movies"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

A quick way to start riot in London is to stand on some busy corner and shout for peace
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

It is said that bachelor girls are rather slow to take advantage of leap year Maybe that's because there is a poor crop of bachelors to pick from.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

At this sea son of the year many per sons long for the outdoor life whose terms won't expire before 1920.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Recent events in Mexico indicate that the mere fact that they spend their money freely isn't going to make United States troops welcome in Mexican towns
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

While not important it would be inter- esting to know what Villa money is bring ing nowadays in the open market.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Vonn Bethmann- Iollweg will never for give the allies for not accepting peace when they had a great deal to lose by it and nothing to gain.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Cotton is no longer king in the south but is working with other products to make the south the richest section of country on the globe.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Villa doesn't even take the trouble to deny that the reports of his death are greatly exaggerated.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Ashland Progress: The Battle Cry of Peace" is very popular, but the farmers are now more interested in the battle cry of peas peanuts and potatoes.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Almost any democrat will tell Justice Hughes that he would forfeit his dignity by entering mad scramble for the pres idency.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

The man who hates the thought of shouldering arms for his country is quite willing to make the navy the first and last line of defense.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Patience has long since ceased to be a virtue, but Uncle Sam continues to exer- else it.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

The head that wears a crown is not one whit more uneasy than the head of Mex ico's first chief.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-15

Henry Ford is opposed to cigarette smoking, but evidently doesn't object to the peace pipe.