The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-06-09
KING SENDS OUT
 FA|RV|EW LETTER EnsIey Picks Some Flaws in
 the Statement FREE DELIVERY SERVICE Postmaster Clayton Says Positively It Will Be Installed on June 15.
 Personal and General
 News of EnsIey.

Ensley, June S.-(Special)-A letter was today Issued by Representative Jere c. King, chairman of the Greater Birming- ham committee, appointed al meeting of the city officials and representative citi- zens of the municipalities which 1t Is pro- posed to embrace in Greater Birmingham, held in the Commercial club rooms last week, in reply to a communication ad- dressed to the citizens of Fairview by the Greater Ensley committee:
 "To the Citizens of Fairview, Osceola and
 Adjacent Territory
 For reply to the letter issued by the committee appointed by Mayor Sugg of Ensley relative to extending the boun- diary lines of Ensley so as to include your terriotry within the limits of Ensey, the Greater Birmingham committee would respectively say:
 That we have watched your remarka- be development and growth with a mat ter of pride and recognize your thrifty and growing community as a part of the unbroken line of a teening population from the boundary lines of Ensley to East Lake and a part of this great city which
  We believe 1t an opportune time for you to again undertake to be incorporated, and suggest that you take all the territory between Ensley and Greymont, with the Toadvine road on the north for your boundary line, and the north line of sec ton 8, townchip IS, range west, run i ming from West End to Ensley for your south boundary line
 1 After you have become incorporated and have elected your officers. and the Greater Birmingham bills have passed you can issue bonds and make such municipal improvements such as school houses, streets, sidewalks and sewerage systems, as you may need, and on the first day of October, 1909, the Greater city will assume every dollar of this in- debtedness. As you will have your own mayor and city council to issue these bonds and to make these improvements, within these two years, there can be no question about your getting such in- provements that you may wish The credit of this greater city will be be- hind your bonds and there will be no trouble in selling them. Of course they will be issued under the constitutional limitations which rightfully protects the inhabitants of each municipality, as well as the bond buyer.
 Tt is a mistake in that part of tho letter addressed to you by the committee from Ensley to state that part of your taxes will go to pay the indebtedness of Birmingham. There is a special levy of one-half of F per cent covering the present city limits of Birmingham that goes solely to the payment of the inter est and the refunding of the bonded debt of the city of Birmingham, and this money cannot be applied for any purpose nor extend over any other territory than present limits. Birmingham has no trouble in paying the interest on her bonded debt as she collects now about s650,oo0 yearly fro mtaxes and the interest on her debt Is about s129,0O0
 Under the Greater Birmingham bills. If you should construct any water works, electric light or gas system before Octo- Der 1. 1909, the greater city will take, op- crate and run these public utilities and charge the consumers thereof le same rates as before the annexation.
 You will get a free delivery at your residence in your town once daily, and in the business portion several times daily.
 You will have a paid fire station and police protection. milk and meat inspec- tion and all of the facilities looking to the well being of your people that can be furnished only Tn large cities.
 "If you should have 4O00 inhabitants by October 1, 1909, you will be made a sepa- rate police district ana your Mayor will be made police judge and his successor, which will be elected by the people of your district, and will have the same power mad authority as the judge of the police court of Birmingham,
 You will also have a separate school district and the tuition in all of the pub lie schools in the greater city will be free.
 "These things are guaranteed you In the Greater Birmingham bill.
 There Is no street tax charged the peo pie of Birmingham, and we understand that Ensley collects tax of s2.
 The greater city will be dicided into twenty wards: nine in the present limits of Birmingham and eleven In the new territory added, giving the outside muni cipalities twenty-two aldermen to be ad- ded to the eighteen in the present city.
 '.The mayor of each municipality shall constitute one of a commission to divide all this new territory added in the wards to be added In the greater city.
 Birmingham will have one commits sioner and the outlying municipalities, as now constituted. will have eight. And If other towns will incorporate. the mayor of each of these municipalities will be added to this commission.
 Tn conclusion, we want you to come