Birmingham state herald. (Birmingham, Ala.) 1895-1897, 1896-03-26

(All items of social interest will be gladly
George c. Bali, Nineteenth street, between
Tenth and Eleventh avenues, South high
lands. Telephone 9SS.)
A petition is being circulated on the
South Highlands, which will be present.
ed to the mayor and board of aldermen
at their next meeting This petition will
probably be signed by every one to whom
it is presented, and it certainly should
be, for it begs of the proper authorities
relief from the depredations of prowling
cattle and the enforcement of the pound
law, which has for so long been dead
letter. There seems to be no other meth
cd by which the residents of certain por-
lions of the city can be.relieved from the
destruction of carefully cultivated yards
and grounds than this statement of their
grievances to the officials of Birming-
ham. In no other city of approximate
size in any section of the country would
COWS, horses and swine be permitted to
roam unmolested in the best residence
portions, as in our town. The citizens
have shown a commendable ambition to
surround their homes with well tended
flower yards. Hundreds of dollars are
spent annually upon flowers by Birming-
ham people, and if the cattle law was
be fifty fold more attractive than it now
is, with beautiful highly cultivated gar
dens. But there is but little encourage
ment given to residents to improve their
grounds, while everything is done for
the benefit of number of vicious, de-
structive cows, horses and hogs. The Ia
Dor of years and the expenditure of large
sums of money have been ruthlessly de-
stroyed in night by some miserab
half-starved cow whose owner depends
"a 70 A ms n
or woman who is not financially able to
feed their cattle should not insist upon
owning them, and certain it is that the
large majority of our people have grown
weary of having to pasture their neigh
bors' cows in flower yards Roses palms,
chrysanthemums, etc, are much more
expensive than hay, and If this condition
obtains much longer 1t is suggested that
the lovers and cultivators of flowers sub
scribe certain sum for the herding of
cattle the owners of which are too i'm
pecunious to feed them. 1t is also proposed
that those persons who cannot afford to
supply their cows with proper food shall
sell them and buy their milk We have
no right to enjoy luxuries at the expense
of our neighbors.
In other cities the cows are herded by
small boys, who are paid small sum
per month, and every morning they are
carried out of the municipal limits and
in the afternoon are returned to- their
MONIES, Wnefe InSy are securely nOuSea
for the night A few weeks ago | in
quired of friend about his flowers, and
what his wife was doing in their pretty
yard. In a tone of despair he replied:
Nothing yet, and L do not know that
We shall make any effort to have flowers
this spring, as my wife has been but lit
tie repaid for the struggles she has made
in this line. For five years we have
raised roses only to be eaten by my
neighbours COW regularly every season.
A man who refrains from destroying
such a vicious beast-I refer to the cow,
not the neighbor--should be reckoned
as a man of elevated Christian charac-
ter.
On the Highlands recently purcha sed
lots are being improved by the planting
of trees and expensive shrubbery, which
are protected by frames around them,
but all to little purpose, for the cows
reach as high as and feet and browse
upon the branches! This statement
seems exaggerated to only those per-
sons unfamiliar with the agility of Biz
mingham cows. To the average High
lander there is implicit faith in any such
account. for they have suffered, and they
believe there can be nothing too tall for
Highland cattle to scale. There are cows
in Birmingham that unlock gates, climb
great flights of steps, devour tons of
next morning greet you-at your front
gate--with glance so serene, so unruf-
fed that you are tempted to believe that
the devastation about you must be due
to some wild animal who turks In the
Businesses of the mountains, and not to
this sympathetic creature who lows her
good morning.
The citizens have certain rights, and
it is to be hoped that the petition re-
ferred to will arouse prompt action in the
premises. The owners of cows are in a
hopeless minority, and there Is no just
reason that an entire city should be
made to suffer because few persons
neglect to properly care for their cattle.
If the gentlemen who have charge OF the
petition will vigorously insist upon these
rights we can hope for a speedy abate-
ment of the cattle nuisance.
This matter has been agitated fire.
uuently before to no purpose. but II a
certain amount of persistence is now
shown we shall soon find that the laws
will be executed by the authorities and
our city become a place of beautiful
homes and well kept flower yards.
Roentgen. the great scientific German,
has been recently-since his marvellous
discoveries of certain powers of light
made a baron by the emperor. He has
received the order of the Royal Crown
and is now a Bavarian baron, in recogni-
ton of his late achievements in science.
For twenty years Roentgen labored un-
successfully in his laboratory and was
merely considered odd" by his neighbors,
but his reward came at last in the dis
covery which has aroused the civilized
world and which placed him among the
leading scientists of the nineteenth CEN
tury.
Miss Robbie Kyle of Gadsden is the
guest of her cousin, Mrs. Joseph F. john
ston, on Twelfth avenue, South High
lands.
The Aurora Literary club was delight
fully entertained yesterday afternoon by
Miss Ala King, at the residence of her
sister, Mrs. Richard Randolph. The fol-
lowing programme was rendered, with
the exception of the paper to be read by
Miss Alice Graham, who was necessarily
absent on account of sickness:
Reign of Richard III.
Roll call-Quotations from Shake
speare's Richard ILL.,"
Reading, selection from Miss Yonge of
the description of "Bosworth Field
Gertrude Ault.
Original paper on Life and Work of
Roger Bacon"-Florence Ballard.
Original paper on character of Richard
TIT-AIiaa Graham