The age-herald., 1899-11-14
IN HOTEL LOBBIES
 AND ELSEWHERE

1 salvation for the State fair. There is no l recollection of any other long season of 1 such perfect weather in Jones valley in Mo- l vember. It would seem to be almost a i freak of nature. Certain it is that it is l without remembered precedent. Frost fol- | lowed frost for many days, and no clouds l gathered until on Saturday. when there was | a gentle shower lasting less than d half | hour. The frosts are followed by the 1 warmth and refreshing glow of springtime and this valley never bore a more attrac- l tive appearance. "The beautiful weather l has meant everything to the State fair,
 and it has been of great comfort to us" 1 said police officer last night "So far the l crowds attracted to the city by the fair l have given the police almost no trouble Of 1 any sort. Arrests for the ordinary offenses l have been but little, if any, more numer- l ous than in ordinary times. In my eXperi- l ence in the service, now covering many l years, I never saw such orderly, well-ae- 1 haved, law-abiding crowds. This I am l bound to attribute in part to the perfect weather with which we have been blessed We'd shudder at signs of one or two rainy, | raw, cold days. Such a change in the weather would drive men to the saloons, where they would spend most of their time, 1 drink too much for their own good or The read good of the saloons, and which would | lead inevitably to occasional violations of | the peace of the city. Tragedies are likely to occur at any time. We expect them. They are to be always looked for in a large industrial town like Birmingham. But speaking generally, this city is remarkably l peaceable. As to rainy days, apart from the personal discomfort they cause the po- lice, they give us much anxiety. Since the State fair began to bring great crowds of visitors to the city, the weather has tempt ed the visitors and the city people to the fair grounds, and kept them there all day | So the work of the police has been much l lighter than it otherwise would have been Therefore we are praying for a continu- ance of sunshine"
 The Confederate veterans had their day at the State Fair yesterday, and great num-
 bers of them gathered to enjoy themselves. The old warriors listened to eloquent words from one of the most eloquent of all the
 veterans of the south, Colonel John ". A. Sanford, of Montgomery. General Shelley was talking to some friends regarding his
 own experience of the valor, pluck and dis Clpllue Ol men WHO served uuuef 4llll Ill the great strife. l never shall forget the
 bravery and courtesy of a mountaineer at the battle of Jonesboo,' he said. I've
 were hard pressed at one particular point
 and some soldiers from the mountains were performing wonderful deeds. There was
 one poor fellow in the very front of the
 fight who challenged the admiration of two
 armies. His deeds of daring were almost appalling. He wore long auburn hair and beard had grey-blue eyes, and seemed el- most a fury in a soldiers uniform. After
 awhile a bullet struck him in the upper
 breast, knocking him down. He arose and continued to advance, fighting terribly Immediately on his right was a comrade
 equally brave, who was struck fair in the face by large ball, his blood covering
 and almost blinding the soldier l was watching. My friend went on as if nothing
 had happened, bleeding frightfuly. Sud- denly he staggered and fell fiat on the
 ground A bullet had struck him in the left
 temple and simply ploughed open his scalp
 just above the line of the ear He lay there
 almost still, and the general commanding dashed up, dismounted. and asked the poor
 fellow if he was much hurt. The soldier
 struggled to rise, and finally rested quiver- ing in agony upon his left elbow Shading
 his eyes with his right hand his poor old
 hat shot away and his clothing shot to rags that were bloody, he recalled his wandering senses to the extent of recognizing the gen.
 eral, and, saluting feebly, he answered: T
 thank you, sir I thank you. I believe
 am a right smart hurt He fell back, and
 there passed from the earth one of the
 braVeSt men I ever saw"
 Talking about valor and discipuine," re-
 marked Governor Jones, "I passed all
 through the war between the states and
 saw my share of fighting. I came to know
 intimately my comrades of the Army of
 Virginia, and became acquainted with their
 marvellous daring, pluck, power of endur-
 ance, and heroism; the like of which has
 perhaps never .een elsewhere seen in war
 fare. But I never witnessed more splendid
 discipline anywhere than I saw displayed
 by the Birmingham Rifles in the Posey riots
 here in Birmingham in 1885, Posey was in
 the Jefferson county jail charged with a
 terrible crime, and a mob of citizens deter
 mined to lynch him. The governor directed
 me to protect the prisoner with portion of
 the Second regiment. Amongst the com-
 panies guarding the jail were the Birming-
 ham Rifles under Captain Thompson, now
 dead The mob was very powerful and very
 threatening. Stones and bricks were thrown
 at the soldiers, and the mob was at the
 point of charging. I had exhausted every
 argument, put forth every plea for peace:
 but had not been needed. Finally, in the
 face of the peril, I ordered Thompson to be-
 gin firing. Forgive me, colonel, he said in
 a low voice. I am too hoar-se from cold to
 give the commando Then I gave the com-
 mand to make ready and take aim, and the command fire had formed in my mouth when, by the fickering street light, I saw IA. O. Lane, then mayor of Birmingham, ad- vancing in the direct line of fire. I caught
 the final command at my lips with my hand
 and sharply ordered recover With perfect
 discipline, perfect coolness and a courage that never faltered, those Birmingham boys turned their guns from the Birmingham