The age-herald., 1899-10-07
FESTIVITIES AT
 BEHREN'S PARK Celebration of German Day Made
 Happy Occasion.
NATIVE AIR WAS ABROAD
Park Transformed Into German Vil- lage With Gendarmes and Burger meister in Charge-Addresse
 by the Mayor and Others

ClbScu luelT dI beHT6l park last night.
 From morning until late at night the park was overhowing with fair-haired lassies and sturdy men, who delight in singing "Waeht'em Rhine," the national air of Germany. That section of Birmingham known as Behren's park was transformed into German village, and after entering the gates one felt as if he was walking in a foreign land. Americans and Ger mans mingled together as if they were brothers and no one was made to feel out of place.
 In the center of the improvised village stood the pavilion, in which the young peo- pie danced continually. In a semi-circle | facing this pleasure hall were numerous
 restaurants, refreshment stands. place | where the singers met and sang, the tent 1 of Der Wahrsayer' fortune teller) and last but not least, the office of the burger meister (mayor).
 Along this street the crowd surged all day. Darting here and there were a score of German maids dressed in native attire attending the wants of the men. Many of the men had also adopted the costume Of their native heath, and the spectacle pre- sented was novel in the extreme.
 Gendarmes dressed in full uniform could also be seen pushing their way among the men in a mock attempt to preserve order. Hundreds of persons were arrested and carried before Dan s. Sandman, the burger meister. Every defendant was found guilty and fined according to the amount the court adjudged he had concealed about his person. If he did not pay, the culprit was immediately placed in prison. Even the sheriff of the county had to serve sentence. He was willing to pay his fine, but the court said he must go to prison on general principles. His offense consisted in in wanting all the votes in Jefferson county for state seantor. Mayor Drennen had to pay one dollar for having his administra- l ton partly against him. The gendarme 1 force consisted of Hammond Arndt, Henry uhl, M. Strock and others, and they gave
 the German village excellent service. Mayor DrenDen Spoke | As evening approached the crowd gath
 cred in the pavilion and after supper listen
 ed to addresses from prominent men of
 Birmingham. In a short speech Herman | Schoel chairman of the programme com
 mittee, introduced to the asseblage Mayor | w. M Drennen. The mayor spoke briefly | but to the point. He said that when he de- | cided to enter the race for mayor of this | city his friends agreed to support him upon | condition that he would try to manage the | city's affairs by work and not by speech
 making. 'It is left with you to say as to | how well I have succeeded in managing | the affairs of the city, said MT. Drennen, | "but l feel that the results would have | been far better had a ma ioritv of fha hoa ri
 been in sympathy with my administration. Speaking from a political standpoint | 1 know of no executive in the state except
 Governor Johnston, who has been able to
 have his plans carried out. Neither do I
 know of any man holding political office | who has accomplished more for the up- | building of his state, city or county than | he am not here in the governors inter- est but I do say that his administration | is an example of the good that can be ac-
 complished when the executive has the l push, energy, ability and is backed up by | his administration
 He referred to the public schools and the | improvements which had been made and
 said:
 | We now have teachers in the depart
 ment of supervision of drawing and physi- | cal culture. No tuition is charged in any of
 the departments, except the high school
 and that has been reduced from $S.00 per I month to $2.00. The attendance at all the | public schools is greater than ever in their | history. The board of education and the l mayor and aldermen are now considering | the building of not less than four or five l new school buildings and one of this num- l Der will be located in the rolling mill dis | trtct, better known as Denmark" He touched upon the question of separate | prisons for white and coored prisoners and ! also upon the fire department and the in- I crease which would in all probability be made on January 1.
 In regard to the water question he said:
 "Last but not least of all these great ne
 cessfties is cheaper water. I was talking to
 one of my German friends few days since in reference to the excessive rates charged
 for water in Birmingham and I asked him for a suggestion. He replied that at the present price charged for water by the Bir- | mingham Water Works company that it is | cheaper to drink beer at cents per
 schooner and his solution of the problem
 is that we try and induce more breweries
 to locate in our city,
 The mayor concluded his speech with a
 graceful acknowledgements of his apprecia-
 ton of the invitation to speak and an ex-
 pression of the kindliest sentiments for his
 German friends.
 Addre sses in German
 Emil Lesser followed with an address in
 Genman The reporters were. told that be
 was making good speech and the Ameri-
 cans took the German at their word, confi-
 dent that the statement was correct. MT.
 School also spoke in Germon. and from the
 applause he evidently impressed the crowd
 favorably This closed the speechmaking
 for the evening" Everybody then proceeded
 to enjoy themselves to their hearts con | tent.
 Mesdames Behrens. H. Luhrman, J. | Prantl and Mentschel were on the com