The age-herald., 1900-03-17
IN HOTEL LOBBIES
 AND ELSEWHERE

This is "st Patrick's day in the morn-
 ing" and it will be piously remembered by
 all good Irdshmen throughout the world. It
 is safe to say that there will be more
 sprigs of shamrock worn today than ever
 before since the modest little plant of the
 ould sod became Erin's cherished emblem
 for it cannot be longer sung that they are
 hanging men and women for the wearing of the green" The Union Jack representative
 of the flags of Ireland Scotland and Eng 1 land. which now floats over the state house in Bloemfontein. bears in one corner the image of a four-leaved, shamrock worked | by the fair hands of Lady Roberts. the wife of that redoubtable Irish warrior, Field Marshal Lord Roberts of Waterford and | Candahar. In Ireland the 17th of March is a holiday, in that everybody who can we'll | do so abstains from labor, and hoyday in | the sense that vast numbers of Catholics crowd the churches at mass. Having at | tended to their religious duties, the people go out to enjoy themselves, every mothers 1 son of them wearing a sprdg of shamrock | The florists and the beggar-women alike do a profitable business in selling the little | sprigs of green. Not infrequently jolly | crowd meeting a man not "wearlng of the green stop him and with great gee pin l the shamrock on his coat. To the thous- ands of Irish in Jefferson county this Satur 1 day comes as a glad day. Saint Patrick,
 "the apostle and patron. saint of Ireland was baptized by the name Succat, meaning brave in battle. The place of his birth IS | not known, but the date was about 372 A. l D. After being held as captive and slave l by the king of Dalaradia in Ireland, he manag ged to make his way to France, where | he was educated, and was ordained priest | and bishop. Afterwards he proceeded to 1 Ireland as missionary. when he was about l sixty years old. He died at Stransford Lough, County Down, March 1T, 465, at the age of 93 or about that. Hence it Is the | anniversary of the death of this renowned saint that is observed His Confession and | his Epistle to Coroticus constitute about all 1 of his unauestionably genuine writings that | have come down to us This much is from | the profane history of the worlds greatest 1 missionary.
 Last night there came from Hon. Frank | P. O'Brien a spIig of the dear old sham rock. and with the cherished gift these | lines:
 From the shamrock sod of my own Green | Land
 1 I send you these leaves today. | I l1now they'll remind you of olden haunts And times that have passed away. | And though your future may be spent
 Far from your late old nome, | May peace and joy be yours, dear friend, | Wherever you may roadn.
 I
 | "Along the line of the Southern railway l between Birmingham and Fayette there are l remarkable evidences of material develop ment," said Hon. B. NJ. Allen This is es- | pecially true of the districts of Jefferson county through which the Southern passes | Coal and ore mines are very numerous, and | close together. New mines are being opened mp and the output of those already devel-
 oped is being largely increased Houses of
 all sorts have been and are being erected
 all the way to the Jefferson county line.
 Not far from what used to be called Little
 Warrior, the Republic Iron and Steel com
 pany is building the new town of Warner,
 where there are already some fifty houses
 completed. The Southern road is running
 out spur hnes and building sidetracks for
 the accommodation of the Republics large
 
 The name of Little Warrior has been
 changed to Littleton, and a new town is
 being built there. The site is perhaps the | most beautiful in Jefferson. Beginning at
 the base of a range of high mountains, | beautiful level plain extends to the Little
 Warrior river, which at this point makes | A bold and majestic curve as 1t rolls sea-
 ward. This point is wonderfully beautiful | odNl ctte a citV And
 the story of Jefferson county's growth. | About Blossburg Cardiff, Brookside, and
 the other mining centers, great improve
 ments are in progress, both as to buildings
 and the mineral development. In passing
 through those populous and rapidly grow
 ing districts it occurred to me that some-
 what difficult problem, which we will be
 called upon shortly to solve, will be to pro-
 vide a proper and adequate scheme for af-
 fording police protection to the people. Jeff
 ferson county has largely outgrown the
 old plan of relying solely upon the beat con-
 stable. The constable needs assistance, and
 possibly we shall soon have to organize sufficiently strong county police force. look
 for this years census to show population
 of at least 1SO 900, possibly 140,0O0, in Jeffer-
 son county Tt will largely depend on the
 efficiency of the census enumerators in ob-
 taining the names of all the inhabitants | Every body whom duty, pleasure or mere
 curiosity leads to attend conventions at | Montgomery will rejoice at the completion l and formal opening of the Auditorium in
 that city, and at the same time it is In | order to offer hearty congratulations to
 the capital of Alabama The demand upon l Montgomery for a proper convention hall
 was urgent and imperative, and right
 worthtly has that demand been compiled
 with. Adjoining the big old city hall, and
 and on the site of the market house, has been erected superb structure, ln which there hs a magnificent hall capable of seat
 ing $500 persons. according to yesterdays | report of the Associated Press. Committee | and aan 1,av