The age-herald., 1899-03-28
IN HOTEL LOBBTES
 AND ELSEWHERE

| there not being a quorum present. Chair
 man Robert J. Lowe of Jefferson and John | NJ Hampton of Madison were the only | members of the committee in town. Other | members of the general committee who | are in Birmingham are w. J. Bullock of | Franklin and A. M. Tunstall of Hale. Mir. | Bullock, by the way, has been nominated | by his senatorial district for delegate to
 the constitutional convention from the 1 state at large. The state democratic com
 mittee will assemble in the Montgomery | city hall at noon today, Chairman Lowe | presiding. The most important duty 1t has
 to perform is to pass upon the Gaston | proposition looking to the union of the
 populist and democratic parties. The sub
 stance of Judge Zell Gastons plan pro- vides that the state democratic convention.
 which assemblies in Montgomery tomor-
 row, shall award to the populists delegates
 to the constitutional convention from the
 state at large equal in number to the pres | ent populist representation in the state
 senate; in consideration of which the pop l ulists will aid the democrats in carrying
 the convention with the voters. The effect I of this would be the merging of the popu- | lists into the democratic party A sub SANAO is expected to report today and some den- | nate action will probably be taken. The | state convention of the democrats will as- | semble in the hall of the house of repre-
 sentatives in the state capitol at noon to>
 morrow for the purpose of naming thirty l three delegates from the state at large and | for transacting such other business as may | come before it.
 
 | The session of the state convention is ex- | pected to be brief, and 1t is not improbable | that it will finish it's work tomorrow night. | The list of the thirty-three delegates is | already known. The conventions only duty in that direction is to ratify the nomi- 1 nations already agreed upon in the senato- | rial districts. There will be two or three | other matters to deal with, but 1t is inn | probable that the meeting of the conven- | tion will be prolonged. The work will be | certainly finished not later than Thursday. It is presumed that resolutions endorsing Governor Johnstons appointees to public | offices and censuring newspapers for crit | icising the governor will be offered in | which event there may be some fun In the l ancient hall of the house of representa- tives. The public can't guess what may occur, in view of the beautifully resonant and fulsome resolutions that were not
 adopted by the Montgomery county con- vention.
 Active advance in real estate values Is now well under way, and there is prospect of level of prices not equaed in Birming- ham during the past ten years. For a vacant lot in First avenue which could not be sold six months ago for $4,500,
 cash offer of $6,0OO has just been re- fused. For some property at Second ave-
 nue and Twenty third street $50 foot has been offered. Eighteen months ago the same property went begging at $15 foot. For residential lot on the South High
 lands that sold year ago at s2O a foot, an offer of almost $40 foot has been declined. A short time ago the O'Brien opera house property sold for S6OOO0. Yesterday 1t was resold for $75,0O0, and probably couldn't be purchased a month hence for $100, 900. It has been rumored for day or two that the First Methodist church lot, at Fourth ave- nue and Nineteenth street, had been sold for $40O0O This was not verified yester- day, but 1t is known that negotiations are pending for the transfer of the property.
 
 has received warning to quit.
 There may be some connection between the rumored sale of the "church lot' and the revival of gossip concerning the prob able erection of a great hotel in the city. The "chureh lot' would be an ideal site for a hotel worthy of Birmingham. Some visitors largely interested in hotel property
 have been in the city for the past two or three days and 1t is not unlikely that they are here with a view of Investigating the matter of building for Birmingham that which the city much needs-a modern hotel of the first-class.
 Speaking of real estate, Colonel Robert Mckee says that the first and only time he was ever In Chicago that town was about the size of the Birmingham of today He went there with some friends who had been attracted by the real estate boom then prevailing there. Three or four of the party, afraid of the high prices in the town proper, went out two miles in the country and purchased several acres at what ap- peared to be absurdly high figures The purchase made the investors rich. Chicago now contains nearly 20OO,OOO of inhabitants. Birmingham will never have that large a population, but Colonel Robert Mckee in- sists that it must be the greatest city south, and any real estate investment made
 here now will return great profits. Any
 man with money to buy few lots can
 sit down and grow wealthy
 Washington man was seen in First ay- enue yesterday carrying an open umbrella to protect himself from the heat of the sun. The umbrella attracted considerable at- tention. but the heat was more like that of May than March, and the Washington man displayed good sense. There is an epidemic of measles amongst
 the children on the South Highlands Many
 of the little tots are on the sick list Representative John Jackson Mitchell. of Lauderdale, is in the city on his way to