Birmingham age-herald., 1894-09-08
AN IMPORTANT MEETING Of Birmingham Commercial Club,
 With Much Progress NOTED IN THE REPORTS New Members Taken In-Local
 Industries to Be
 Looked After.
NOTED IN THE REPORTS

aIISTuOOus lD6IS 10 I0ON6 Qu Ju0 CluDg as indicated from the business transacted, that means much for Birmingham.
 President Moore presided, ,.and large attendance of members graced the new meeting room Of the club, which is in the large hall over the reading room of the club quarters.
 Reports were called for from the stand ing committees. The first was from the retail trade and excursions committee, as follows:
 To the Commercial Club;
 Your committee on retail trade and ex cursions, after q con nference with members of the railroad aud ansportation-commit- tee, beg to submit the following requests to be presented to the several railroads en- tering this city. This will tend to give the retail trade of the city some larger terri tory in which to look for business:
 1. Stop-over privileges on all tourist tickets both from and to all southern points on travel of this character through Birmin gham.
 2. That tickets be sold from all points within 8 radius of seventy-6ve miles of Birmingham at one fare for the round trip, good from Saturday morning till Monday night of each week.
 Your committee believe trial of this will result in equal advant tage to the rail- road and to this city. The merchants will advertise for these special days and en- deavor to secure the largest possible patron age thereon. Respectfully submitted,
 SIMON KLoTz, Chairman.
 MT. P. Sid Jones stated that the request mentioned regarding stop.over privileges was in effect on the Louisville and Nash vile railroad.
 MT. A. q. Smith desired the com aaittee- to ask for round trip tickets for 150 miles instead of seventy-five
 The report of this committee was adopted on motion of 5. Steiner.
 The sub -committee from the real estate and insurance committee presented the following report, which elicited considera- ble discussion, but all favorable to the re- port. Some members, thinking that it did lot go far enough in fixing the blame for the Caldwell hotel fire, wanted 1t recom- mitted, but on motion of B. Steiner the report was adopted and ordered printed in such form as the secretary might select for general distribution. Here is the report: To the Commercial Clubr
 The committee on real estate and insur- ance appointed a sub-committie to in- vestigate the water supply of Birmingham. This was deemed necessary from the fact that the fire insurance companies doing business in this city claimed that the great loss to them from the Caldwell hotel fire was due to inadequate water supply, and on that claim they have changed their entire basis of writing business in this city,
 From the investigations made by this
 
 loss referred 10 may have been justly at- tributed, it appears to us fact beyond any possible question that the water supply of this city, both before and since the Cald- well hotel fire, is adequate for all needs or emergencies to which the city may be sub. jected. These facts are set forth in detail by the superintendent of the water works company, who was applied to for all facts relating to that supply. In addition to the facts thus presented your committee have f,xrEa a1at,n Aaff 1. .sa subject, which clearly shows that there is not only water supply for the present needs of this city, but entirely adequate for city of many more inhabitants than we possess.
 If the business men and property owners are brought under any increased burdens from this action of the insurance compa. nies your committee is persuaded that the facts us they actually exist will give them relief, for there is no city, north or south, better supplied with both quantity and quality of water, for either protection from fire or to promote the health of it's citizens, than is Birmingham. For detail particu. lars in full we refer to the facts embodied in the pamphlet of the water works com pany. JAMES BAILEY,
 Chairman Sub- Committee.
 Ross 0. Smith, chairman of the confer. ence committee, submitted the following report, which he supplemented by the statement that during the next thirty days buHt tUIuuilbt00 WOulu D6 III DO5ibiOu lO port much of the work accomplished and results obtained for Birmingham. It was as follows
 To the Officers and Members of the Commer-
 cal Club:
 Your committee appointed to confer with merchants, manufacturers and local and managing railroad officials relative to Bir- mingham' s industrial and mercantile in- teresis beg to report that they have held several important meetings, the principal pnes being conferences, first, with our railroad Officials. inc S conference % with local man nufacturers disclosed the fact that the class of industries that used rolling mill products were obliged to pay higher prices than the net prices sold to competitors, thus placing our home manufacturer at disadvantage, notwithstanding the fact that raw materials are produced at our very doors. Also certain freight discrimi. nations placed these manufacturers at such disadvautage that at competing points very little business could be obtained. Our Wholesale interests were also circum- scribed. There was no possibility of hold ing this territory without some relief, the facts being 50 serious that we do not deem it polite to state them even to our people.
 To further the interests committed to our charge we called a conference with railroad officials for the 29th ultimo. but postponed until the 9th instant, and a large number. or railroad men met your committee on that date. Many matters were brought to the attention of these officials, who were frank and cordial in their responses to them. Some matters met with immediate l slgnihcation of approval, and we have en. couraglng assurances that proper steps will lpe taken to adjust some other matters, (which we do not deem expedient to men, ton. The railroad officials expressed themselves willing 10 aid Birmingham all pn their power without detriment 10 other Interests.
 $Ihe visiting railroad Officials appointed