The Birmingham age-herald., 1905-08-02
ROUGH RIDERS LOVE THEIR OLD COLONEL President of the Association
 Talks of Roosevelt BIRMINGHAM IS GREAT
Capt. c. E. Hunter, Who Fought Through the War With the Presl- dent, Gives an Interest
 ing Interview.

Capt. c. E. Hunter of Chickasha, l. T., the president of the Roosevelt Rough Riders association and of the Oklahoma Mutual Townslte company, will leave Birmingham for Oklahoma City August l2 with an excursion of 150 settlers and investors from Alabama and Georgia.
 In commenting on his visit to Birming- ham where he has been for several weeks, Captain Hunter talked interestingly of the city and district, and incdently of Oklahoma and the Rough Riders.
 T have been in the habit said Cap tain Hunter last night at the Morris, "of coming to Birmingham at frequent and irregular intervals for the last fifteen years. and I am increasingly impressed with the growth and development of the city and district. l find that wherever l go-and my business engagements take me to various sections of the Union-the people have great deal to say about Bir- 1 mingham. The city Is now and will con tinue to be in the public eye. Many far | sighted business men believe that Bir- mingham is destined to be one of a few | confess that share that belief.
 But One Complaint.
 There is only one complaint that have heard about Birmingham To speak 1 frankly, the impression is abroad that the criminal element here is large. and that the spirit of lawlessness is not in- frequently rampant here. I have sought to combat this general impression. and have invariably been told of certain crim- inal acts chronicled in the Alabama newspapers and by the Associated Press reports.
 Persons who live far away say that the greatest drawback to Birmingham is the fact that convict lapor is permitted to compete with free labor in the mines of the Birmingham district. They say that the mines where these convicts are eni- ployed are near Birmingham, and that the convicts. at the end of their sentences, go to Birmingham and settle there. They in fer from this that Birmingham is rendezvous for many of the most crim- inal and most vicious elements in the population. especially among the negroes.
 My knowledge of conditions here does not enable me to say whether or not this criticism Is merited. I only know that this criticism of Birmingham is common at the north and in the west, and l have found it so common that I have some times thought it would be wise if the state would abolish the convict labor law, or i at least prohibit working the convicts near urban centers. cite this criticism for what it Is worth.
 About immigration.
 .T see," continued Mir Hunter, that Ala bama is interested In getting immigrants to develop her agricultural and mineral resources. It so happens that l am here to get men to go out of Alabama and set tie in Oklahoma. lhere is, however, no conflict between these two efforts to get immigrants, on the one hand and emil grants on the other. Your state needs most of all laborers. What we need most of all is settlers and investors. l am glad to say that we are getting both. On the 12tn of this month I am going out with 15o men from Alabama and Georgia to Oklahoma. They will be shown the whole country there and will be able to judge for themselves of the possibilities. We naturally think it is a great country and destined to be one of the most prosperous snd .pregressye sections of the unon. MT. Hunter was asked how he got in with the Rough Riders.
 With Rough Riders. Well" said he q was New York boy who had gone west. l wasn't old enough to be in the big war, and in the twenty years I had lived out west l had seen everything worth seeing there. When the Spanish- American war came on made up my mind that I'd have piece of 1t, and l got 1t. Yes, at the reunion in San Antonio in April the boys were good enough to elect me president of the association for the next two years
 .How do the Rough Riders regard the Presdent?" was asked
 Well" said MT. Hunter TT don't often like to use the word, but they come as near loving Colonel Roosevelt as men can come to love one of their number They loved him when he was raising and eouipping the regiment. They loved him in the campaign in Cuba. They loved him at Montauk and they love him now. He will always he Colonel Roosevelt with us.
 By the by, I see that he is to. be in Birmingham this fall. When he makes his visit south, I'm coming all the way from Oklahoma to be here in Birmingham on that occasion. Texas certainly gave hinl a rousing reception. The only thing they didn't like was, the secret service body guard. He didn't need body guard in Texas. He won't need it here in Alabama There's no man in the country who Is so close to the people as is Colonel Roose- welt. l predict he will be given great ovation when he arrives in Birmingham just as he got one when he went to Texas"