Birmingham age-herald., 1895-03-17
CURBSTONE AND LOBBY.


 Birmingham have cause for good cheer. | We have talked and been told of prosperity 1 and the approach of a general revival ia | business untilitis natural that our people should now listen to these prophecies with | doubt. But do not believe that it Is the | observation of sanguine spirit which | causes us to be more hopeful right now | than at any time in the past three or four | years. As far as Birmingham is directly concerned think this prosperity has al- | ready begun. One significant evidence is | the fact that the vacant dwellings and bus | mess houses of the city are constantly coming in demand and are being engaged | by parties from q distance. The people have confidence in Bir- mingham as the southern point for the man nufacture of steel, and that in- dustry is now certainty in the near fu- ture. Besides this a number Of improve ments in building are now in progress. Take First aveuus here, for instance. The improvement on this street would do credit
 to any city. l have rented, in the past two
 weeks, several houses of my own that have
 been vacant all through this period of de-
 pression, and have Knowledge of many other similar cases. For me to argue the
 certain prosperity of north Alabama in the
 next few years would be a useless waste of energy, for DO one questions this. am speaking of an immediate relief for our
 people, which think Is now upon us. .'' One of our leading real estate dealers said
 to friend of his on First avenue yesterday
 when asked about the outlook: "Why, l cannot furnish houses for my applcan ts.
 There is better demand for the rental of property right at this time than l have
 known in several years.''
 gentleman in the city who keeps thor oughly informed on current questions ob- served vesterdaV that inc nue9tiOn of
 woman's rights is beginning to attract
 entirely too much attention in Birming. ham. He said: "It is a growing evil, and our good people should not give 1t eveu
 encouragement enough to agitate the pos sibility of anything of the kind. Our
 southern women are not in favor of the
 cause, and this sectional craze Is brought on entirely through outside influences. Our women have been contented and happy
 in the past, and h the ante belum days they constituted society uurivaled in the
 world through their intelligence, modesty and womanly stations. This society was
 interfered with for time to a certain ex- tent, but do not fear that it will be totally abolished by any such modernism as
 woman s rights.
 A popular society young gentleman made
 the siereotyped remark yesterday that he Lad just received an invitation to the mar
 riage of his best girl, and turned away with sigh of relief. The stroller wondered then
 if 1t wasn't really true that mans best
 girl is the girl that some other fellow mar
 ries. But fearing that this would be cyn- ical view of the time- honored custom he apologized to himself and turned his thoughts into another channel. f
 
 "A few years ago there was craze among the young men of the south to go
 to New York to establish themselves after
 reaching their majorities,'' said gentle-
 man yesterday, s'but now the craze has
 been shifted. 1t is getting to be almost a
 fad with tue easterners to come south to
 establish themselves. You see our south
 crn boys have made such favorable im-
 pressons among the people of that section that they are anxious to live in land out of which comes so much chivalry and in- telligence. Southern men are popular in New York, and wherever southerner fails to win the confidence and good wilt of those people he is an exception. Northern
 men are not as apt at falling into the good graces of our people, which does not seem plausible. This fact is due in a great and bis false impressions about the spirit of our people. He is slow to accept the hospitalities so generously offered because he does not understand why they are due him. He foryets how we'll the southerner is greeted by his people, and that neither section is under obligation to the other. The typical easterner Is of more independent char aCLeT luau LQ6 true bOutn6TQeT lu these matters, which is due to the conditions which existed before the war;
 A popular young lady from the black belt region recently visited Birmingham for the first time, and upon taking her departure | from prolonged visit she said: 'I have | always been under a false impression about | Birmingham, but now 1 shall sing it's | praises wherever go. In fact, l think
 shall in the future consume the majority of my visiting time' in this city" Now whether this young lady had wrong im- | pression of Birmingham before she visited l here or not the Stroller is not pre- | pared to say, but he would re- mark by way of suggestion that if | ho were so fortunate as to be a black belt l belle he would never make the confession
 that he had an adverse opinion of Bir- mlngbam and it's people, because in so doing he would make very damaging l con fession, since it is so we'll known that | and far famed black belt families. In fact | there is n other section which has con-
 tributed so much good citizenship to our l city.
 l A visitor in the city yesterday from an l adjoining state said to a friend in conversa-
 tion in the lobby of the Florence hotel: s'I think one of the greatest institutions in
 the state of Alabama is the Birmingham Commercial club. This organization has | made a reputation for energy and business l capacity which reflects credit on your l city. The club is known all l over the country as one of the most enter l prising institutions in the state of Ala. bama. Birmingham is indeed destined to | be great city, because in addition to your l natural advantages you have men at work
 who know how to promote their develop ment.'
 MT. J. Asa Rountree, the sterling young | editor of the Alabama Enquirer, was iu | the city day or two ago and said to the Stroller: t'I have just nut in A neyv outft