davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
FORTY HOUSEMAIDS OF QUEEN

CTS had no difficulty in meeting the de- mand for higher wages. The civil list of British royalty deals in nominaIly large sums. Apart from other reve- nues, nearly a million dollars year is appropriated for household expenses. This should be enough, one might think, to cover 10 per cent increase in the wages of forty housemaids. But the high cost of living is obviously as great a problem in Buckingham palace as in less exalted palaces. One income is in a sense no larger than another if nothing can be saved out of it.
 Literally speaking, these housemads are probably worth no more to the mil lionaires than they are to the Queen. But they gain glory from their old associations. This is snobbery, no doubt; but how many people are not snobs if put to the test? It may turn out that among the forty there is a con- siderable proportion of snobs. A mil- lionaire's household establishment however gorgeous. might not overawe one accustomed to intimacy with roy alty. That is not the way did-it for the Queen" To such a retort what answer would be possible The forty housemaids may >prove a handful to their new rniStreSSeS f
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
A FORGOTTEN KINGDOM

.NH 7 RASHINGToN. July 11-tspe-
 WW ciaD-Along busy highways
 of ocean travel. land links between Japan and Forposa, not far from China's coast-wise routes, yet visited by only two or three white persons year-such are the Loo ehoo. CLuchu or Ryukyu) Islands.
 Loo Choo is land full of the inde- scribable charm any mystery of the Orient, but replete with the pathos of vanishing race" wrotes Roy Chap man Andrews. of the National Geo. graphical Society.
 But. although it has been 40 years since there sounded the death knell of this little hidden kingdom. Loo choc is not yet Japan. The traveller real izes this even before he lands. The pine-clothed tomb-dotted hills which form the background of the strange little cities of Naha and Shuri have an unfamiliar look and he pretty tiled roofs of the diminutive houses, just visible over the surrounding gray stone walls. give fascinating hints of what may be found beyond their lacquered gateways. On their entire 900 squar. miles of land only one white man, all American missionary, is resident.
 With our money changed we began to look about to spend it, for Loa Choo is the home of the red lacquer ware famous throughout the world. Much of it is exported, and the finest of the boxes, bowls, trays, tables, etc, which are in daily use in Japan and China and sold to tourists throughout the Orient, come from the little city of Naha, or Shurl. it's neighbor across the hills. The lucquer ware, when first made, is dull brown, but really first class pieces improve with age and soon change tn a. heattiful Vermi1iiou
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12

becoming brighter and clearer the longer they are used.
 When we came to buy lacquer wa were greatly surprised to find that bargaining had no place in Loo choo. Without exception the first price asked for an articleA was the one for which it was sold. Never in the Orieri had we met with q similar condition
 Tt was interesting 10 find. also that the women of Loo Cfoo conduct all business. and have charge of ev- erything pertaining to money--with the single Slight exception of spend ing it. The market. Where in the morning trading for vegetables and fruit is carried on. resembles sui frage meeting place, for among the crowded mass of humanity not maa is to be seen.
 The straight backs and erect car riage of the Loo choo women arc due to the custom of carrying every thing upon their heads. No matter whatNthe object. be it large or small, it is perched upon their thick, black hair and off they walk in the mosr nonchalant manner, apparently paying not the slightest attention to keep. ing the object in place
 The most striking thing about Ma. ha and Shuri are the high stone walls which surround the houses These walls are generally covered by a smaa bayan tree, called the goja maru, grow ins like a great vine and sending out numberless raats which sometimes reach a hundred feet from She origin4i stem.
 These also serve as hiding place for a snake, kind of adder, six or seven feet long, which is the curse of the islands. Their bite is generally fatal in few hours, and many peo- pla are killed by them each year"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
LUKE M'LUKE SAYS

There wouldn't be so much discon- tent in the. world if more of us had asbestos Inning in our pants pockets.
 We know the difference between "uh hu' and "uh hu,' but what the hex is the difference between a shine aei polish?
 There are few old -fash;onei women who telcve that if they sent the family wash to a laundry it would ccnle iscS with all the starch in the union snlts and none il, tns curtains.
 The trouble with thA .can who is wearing kickaSoo snake dance silk shirt is that he imagines nat it is a crimo to wear Q coat with it.
 What hes become of .he 0. f. man wh,- wore thick round, detachable cuffs hat were attachel :o his shirt by means of a nickel platei crowbar with tv Q clips on it?
 Don't laugh at the girls legs If the men had to wear knee-length pants you would see a fearful collec- tlon of soup bones.
 Refo me-s have always demanded the naked truth. And now that 1t is here . ey want the styles changed.
 Aftea woman has passed the age of 40 You can't ce.cvince her that tho good die young,
 A gf-l is usually so afraid that she married the wrong man that her hus- band realizes the same thing.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12

From the Philadelphia Inquirer.
 M THEIR things than pale death Il knock with equal foot at the
 cottages of the poor and the palaces of kings. Buckingham Palace has suffered blow which has often fallen upon humber homes Queen Mary has found the servant problem quite as perplexing as if she lived in small house in Philadelphia Perhaps it is even more perp1exing; for no less than forty housemaids have given mo- tice and gone, which is forty times as mapy as most housekeepers have to look after. They wanted a 10 per cent increase in wages, but the Queen said she could not afford it. The sequel is not narrated. Are -she and the Prin- cess Mary now doing their own work :? If so, it is not the first times that roy atty has played its part. in the narrow affairs of home. Indeed, the general impression Is that most queens culti- vate the domesticeN virtues in these democra tic days.
 Nor is the fact that the departing housemaids have been at once snapped up by American. Australian and Can-
 adian millionaires'' without signifi- canoe. These more prosperous emplov-
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
ARMY FLIGHT TO NOME

full purposes were served. Photographs sof the country traversed are to be taken-the other day army fliers put lake in the Panama wildernessson the map-and notes will be made and in
 formation obtained for the establish
 ment of an air mail route to Alaska. The United States government partic. ularly wants to have the region be-
 tween Fort Hamlin and Circle photo
 graphed for the use of the Geological Survey. Well worth reading will be the report of the expedition made by the commander, Capt. St. Clair Street. In pioneering days an army officer with an elaborate and costly equipment
 spent months in exploration, and year passed before his story was pub 1ished. Today the aviators, who are the envy of their brother officers, can fly over uncharted territory, photograph it as they go, and in comparatively short time their graphic reports will appear in the department records.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
City We'll Represented

Birmingham has the honor of hav ing produced more men during the past year and half who have made cer- tain degree of success in literary cir cless than any other city in the south" says Clement Wood.
 Several years ago people living above the Mason and Dixon line who had heard of Birmingham believed it to be nothing more than a large sized mining camp. But now it's different The Magic City has long line of au- thors who got their start right here in Birmingham, and I personally Know several people in the east who are plan ming to visit the south and Birmingham just to see the places where the writ CTS found their material"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
NO SOLITUDE IN THE COUNTRY


 From Harpers Magazine for July. I once sought solitude in the country, but, having the dangers in mind, told no one where I had gone. l took the tlniest cottage I could find, in a dis trict where I had never been before and | could have done nothing to. arouse so the curiosity and interest of the few widely scattered neighbors They gave me few days to settle, and tasr, on the fourth, a glorious spring day, just after noon when I was preparing tara lorg. happy afternoon to myself l saw them coming across the fields. Three ia rmers' wives. I determined not to le; It k eg in. I would no. give up my first glorious afternoon. I woul1 pre- tend I was not at home. So I hur- riedIy shut the doors and pulled down all the blinds and tiptoed to the mid dle of the living room, where I waited. perfectly still, for them to come and go. They came up on the little porch. which I had made so comfortable for
 
 char, a table with my best loved hooks. They knocked at my door. ! remained scaroely breathing inside. .! wonder if she's away" heard one of them say; '.her blinds are down." They waited little while, and then went around to the same remark. Then they came round tosthe front again. fJt's nice here" one of them said. Let's sit down a little and wait; maybe she Il come back" So they sat down, one in the hammock. one in my easy chair, and one on the step. I thought they would get discouraged and go away. After a while heard one of them say. T don't believe she's coming back And am other one said: Well. don't feel .like going home. Why don't we stay? It's comfortable here. If she comes, all right, if she don't, we'll have a good visit ourselves" I tiptoed to chair. and let myself cautiously into it. And the whole of that glorious afternoon sat inside that darkened room, afraid to breathe or move. and listened to the regular creak o{ the Hammock hooks and the drone of voices gossiping about people I didn't know. They stayed until supper time. and even then they left reluctantly. And when they stepped off the porch I heard one of them say: "we'n come over again to- morrow. She's all alone. and we ought to be neighborly."
 The next day came back to town
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
IN THE WHEAT FIELD

By Paul Hamilton Hayne When the lids of the virgin Dawn un-
 close, when the earth is fair and the
 heavens are calm. And the early breath of the wakenins
 rose
 Floats on the air in balm. l stand breasthigh in the pearly wheat That ripples and thrills to sportive,
 breeze, Borne over the field with it's Hermes-
 feet
 2ARd it's subtle odor of southern seas. While out of the infinite azure deep The flashing wings of the swallows
 sweep. Buoyant and beautiful. wild and fleet, Over the waves of the whisp6ring
 wheat ss-s
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
RED GOATS AND RECRurrING

From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
 The British military authorities, en- countering difficulties in recruiting, have bethought themselves of the old scarlet coat. They have taken it out of the closet and dusted it off and are opining that there may be something fn the traditions of the thin red line'' and feminine attraction to bright uni forms. During the war the red. coats were abandoned for khaki, except for a few ceremonial guards retained in London. and it is supposed .xfat. like the American army, which has dropped the blue. and the French. which have virtually abolished their red pants olive drab was to be the garb for war riors in peace and war.
 Now the old blue American army uni form has never been particularly es- teemed as a thing of beauty. It has none of the brilliant plumage effects of the British scarlet. And during the war the country took to olive drab as a serviceable and even handsome uni form. But the British and Canadians lacked the smartness of the American cut, and there can be no doubt that there is marked contrast with the dash of the old red coats. Naturally. the officers wish to return to the showier uniform and probably the rank and file as well for peace service.
 But whether the return will increase recruiting is another question. The req luctance to enlist has been expressed by one Briton as due to their being fed up on army life. A mere change in the color of the uniform is not likely to help much. The mystery and glory of martial life is too thoroughly fa- miliar to the present generation of Britons It cannot be camouflassd in scarlet
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12

I7ClHE breath cannot be kept in the
 body of aviation in this country
 without ventures. novel and daring, that attract notice and make people talk. About the middle of next week four army officers and their me- chanics will leave Mitchell Field, Gar den City, in four De Faviland planes for Nome. Alaska. Their route will be to Portal, N. D., and thence through Canadian territory northwest to Fair banks and Nome, distance of S,6s0 miles The schedule calls for no flight of more than 30 miles day, and in sixteen days after leaving this city the aviators should be in Nome. With the weather bureau assisting and the Can adian authorities cooperating, the war depar tment has made preparations that permit no doubt of the success of the enterprise.
 Such an undertaking would be a waste of time and material unless use-.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
People Not Worrying
 About Next President

TN EMORCATS wish a democratic ~ President and they are more and more inclined to believe that their wish is going to be gratified.
 That rather perfunctory pessimism, which travelled the rounds prior to the national convention, has given place to distinct optimism.
 But, whether it be President Hard ing or President Cox, the reasonable American is not disturbed about his country's future. Senator Underwood expressed a quite common sentiment
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12

when he said in Birmingham recently; The business men of the country nave nothing to fear in the election "i elCher Of these candidates, as each IS man of character and ability wlth the determination to maintain law and order"
 The partisan politicians will paint gio"ihg pictures of the good things 'nat Will befall the country in case ms cnolce wins, and the dreadful things that will come about if tbe other candidate wins, but the masses Will not tear their hair. It bids fair to be about as quiet an election 6 the country has ever experienced ihiro parties and fourth parties Will not interest the mass of tbe american. people, because this mass does not sense danger to the rennbl;c m the election either of the democratic or the republican standard be.rer 1t IS going to be very interesting and a very dignified campaign, clos ing with the voter unexcited and casting the ballot for his choice with out mlsgiving in case he loses. And that is more comfortable sta5e of affairs than heated c.r, pa'gh whose caloric quality is purely artificial.
 # <
 Forty house maids of oueen m, eoi 'o work for ordinary millionaires They may have some difficulty ir Loan ing their chins and noses .t level.
 AS iohg as the cities are crowded with non-producers, and it is possible to n,oto ior hours Tn the country without running over anybody, living is going to be hiah
 E x * A sNteen-year-old girl of New yorx Who was doing the town" at-an e.r,v nour Ill the morning. was poisoned by wood alcohol. So young and LID so lats,
 < a x LaFollette can safely accept the no,,,- nation of the third party for President lie won't be given an Opportunity to wreck his health in the White Hous.
 * # # If it were not for their s,,h,rh ways teeming suburbs-some towns would get precious little consolation ont n, +,. oioYiul language from both sides marked the Saturday conference at sna One side was bluffing and the other side wasn't
 * x * considering the sugar situation. cuba could afford to smile if there wasn't q
  drop of anything stimulating on the island.
 still, it is gratifying to know that there are probably million women in New York who were not acquainted with Fa- well.
 # * * Marse Henry Watterson advises the courier-Journal boys to get on the Cox band wagon. It's going to be a joy ride.
 * x x With something like thirty wars roine on in the world is it any wonder that the dove Of peace wears hunted look?
 * < T II less than $500 was spent on the Nc Adoo candidacy, a remarkably good showing was made with the money.
 E What Lieutenant Wanderer thought would prove short cut to freedom will merely lead him to the gallows. General Wood has broken bread with Senator Harding in his home. Win Colonel Proctor call. we wonder?
 * * z Vice President Marshall will soon be where he will neither be viewed with alarm oTApointed to with pride.
 * x * We have great affection for old Ed
 
 Howe, but he'd better keep his hands off Robert Louis Stevenson.
 * Se E From printer's devil to the White House $. a far cry, but no farther than the 'oute Lincoln travelled.
 * * F ID solidly behind Franklin D. Roosevelt
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12

foremost road specialist in this part of the country. Under the circum- stances the public is asked by the road authorities to exercise patience.
 Several years ago, when the coun- ties of Alabama began to build harl- surfaced roads, they were really rot good roads. They were flimsy and soon washed away. Had the type been adopted that is now known, wagons and auto-trucks would not today be pulling through the mire and tugging over rought road beds.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
Criticism That Amu.e.

Tt is amusing" said o. l.. Bum, gem eral manager of the Birmingham Traf- fife Bureau. "to note the criticism made of the shippers for failure, in some in- stances. to promptly unload cars which they have received. The very smallest item of the car shortage rests there.
 For instance a Birmingham concern had car of stuff three months on the road from New York. It was so long coming that he was not prepared for its arrival He was few hours over the twenty-four hour limit allowed for unloading and had to pay a penalty of $.
 T say it is amusing to hear some of the railroad authorities attempting to throw some of the blame for car shortage and delays in moving cars to a shipper who was four or five hours late in unloading car that was more than two months late in reaching him."
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
Is Basis of Figures

what is kilowatt?" says William IL. White. Many people use the word daily, but how many know just what 1t means?
 There is no person in Birmingham who pays his grocery bill that fails to check up on it and see if it is right, But how many check up on their light Dill to see if the company made a mis- take? It is seldom that man makes mistake in figures. but it is doubt ful If the man who reads the meter fails to make any mistakes.
 Watt is a unit of electricity as one is the basis of all figures. Kilo means a thousand An hour Is just sixty min utes. Therefore. when the bill says you are chaxged for so many kilowatt hours, if means that you have used 1000 units of electricity for that many hours"
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
Growing Regard
 for the Law

THE sheriff of Tuscaloosa county O is reported to be on an extermi- hating hunt for the untagged dogs Twenty of his deputies have been dis patched on that errand.
 It is important that the untagged dog be killed because the lack of tag shows compliance with the law of Alabama. The law was adopted for the protection of the farm animals and human beings. That is an lddi- tlonal reason why the untagged dog should be gotten rid of.
 Bus the main thing is that the un- tagged dog is an infraction of the law. It is not for any man to pick and choose the laws which he shall obey and those which he will not. That kind of sentiment is no longer countenanced.
 The dog law will be less difficult of enforcement than the tick eradica- tion law, because officers have the enforcement of the latter as prece- dent on which to operate.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
IN HOTEL LCBBIES
 AND ELSEWHERE
Changed His Views

had thought of Birmingham as a city of smoke and grease, something like Pittsburg." said Louis L. Collins. president of the Minnesota Chapter of the Rainbow veterans.
 My preconceived idea as to the ap- pearance of your city was due for a sudden shock. I had not thought of the pretty residences that decorate some or your suburban districts. 1 be- iieve you have some of the most exs elusive residential sections in the coun- try
 The skyline of smoke stacks, which had in mind. failed to materialize. Skyscrapers took their place. But I suppose l will change my mind when get out into your industrial section. Anyway, the fact that you have a coal and iron city does not lesson the beauty of your residential sections.
 One thing that have not been dis appointed in. That is your southern Hospitality. I will have to give you credit for that.
The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-12
A Good selection

The site selected for the proposed city auditorium is a wise one, in my opinion" said D. E. Mckinley, city purchasing agent. Woodrow Wilson park is unquestionably the center around which our public buildings should be grouped. The site commit tee has evidently been guided by this idea.
 Those who were instrumental in having the tract set- aside as park property should especially be com mended. Experience has shown them to be men of vision. Of course, it will be gradual, but I hope the, day will come when alfs the public institutions will occupy space around the park. Then Birmingham can boast of a civic center equal to those possessed by some of the newer cities of the west.