The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-08-05
DIRECTORY WILL BE
 BIG IMPROVEMENT
Board of Trade Acts on County
 High School
OPPOSES RATE ADVANCES
Special Committees Obtain Important Concessions From Directory Pub fishers lnsurng Valuable
 Book for Next Year.


 and well-attended meeting yesterday aft
 ernoon Chairman Ewing reported for the past month showing the concessions granted by the directory company and the
 work of the good roads committee.
 The discussion of the meeting divided itself into civic improvement, metering of steam heat, increased railroad rates and the importance of locating a state high school in Jefferson county.
 | Chairman C. c. Hedt of the civic im- provement committee reported that Bir- mingham seems to be awakened to it's possibilities in cleansing and beautifying her streets and homes, and he called at tention to the able work of Mayor Ward along this line. It received the commen- dation of the whole board
 The board also took up the matter of motoring steam heat, there being some complaint of the charges for this com modity, but no action was taken. l J. E. Shelby of the good roads com mittee called the attention of the mem- bers present to the fact that every coun- ty in the state has the right to one of the | new high schools, provided it contains no agricultural school. He said that Jefferson county has always been too lax
 
 zens are not building high schools for the present but for all time.
 T am informed,' he said, that the property owners of Shades valley have offered a site of 25 acres of beautiful land for this high school, and since this board has been so positively instrumental in getting the St. Charles street road across the mountain constructed, bring
 ing the site within two miles and half of the court house, 1 think we should do something immediately" He then in- troduced this resolutions
 Resolved, That the president appoint a committee of two to confer with com mittees from the City Council, Board of Education and with the Governor as to securing and locating county high schools and to investigate location of the tract of 25 acres now being offered by prop erty owners in Shades valley" President R. w. Ewing said that If any high schools are coming our way we should certainly get them" He pointed out that 1t is to the interests of the mer- chants of Birmingham to keep the popu- lation and the educational interests cen tered around Birmingham, and that 1t is their duty to see that this high school is not located at some town distant from the center. The motion was unanimously i carried, and J. E. Shelby and J. D. Col lins were appointed on the committee.
 Restriction on Rates. Mr. Shelby then said that, while he recognized the present conditions, he con sidered it the duty of the board to join in tl1e national movement against in- creased railroad rates, and he read this resolution, which. was passed without dis sent:
 Whereas, there is a movement on the part of the transportation companies 4l..,x. ,,.~l.~. T,.s4 tnt@ To the rates for the transportation of com | modities,
 "Be 1t resolved by the Birmingham Board of Trade, That 1t is the sense of this board that such increase just at this time is inadvsable and that this board go on record as being opposed to said increase unless it clearly appears within the next six months that the same is Absolutely necessary in order to enable tie railroads to maintain the pres ent wage scale.''.
 Ewing Reads Report. Here Is the report of President R. w. Ewing:
 Since the last meeting. owing to the absence of good many of the chief members of the various committees from the city on summer vacation, it has been impossible to get all of the committees to work, but the Board of Trade has, however. accomplished some things right along during the past month of benefit to the town in the mercantile interest You will hear several reports from the va- rious standing committees showing work accomplished in their separate spheres of action.
 ''rhe work coming under the scope of the civic improvement committee has been going forward nicelyi Much has been done through the leadership of our able mayor and those cooperating with him in cleansing and beautifying Greater Birmingham, which is fast becoming one | of the most beautiful and most attrac- tive, as well as one of the healthiest cities in the country.
 .The good road movements has already undergone Improvements during the last | month and a good road over St. Charles street to Shades mountain is practically assured and the progress regarding the 1 tunnel project will probably be reported on by the good roads committee. .One of the most important things ac- | coinplished during the past month has been the procuring of guarantee for a more satisfactory city directory for Great | CT Birmingham for 1909. In response to | complaints about inaccuracy in the 1908 city directory I, as president of the board. took the initiative and appointed a com mittee to take proper steps to procure a more satisfactory directory for 1909, and | received the ready cooperation of other | commercial organizations in the city along this line Everything vital the com | mittee demanded has been granted by l the directory publishers already in the | field and if our citizens, business men and all people will cooperate fully in giv- | ing the canvassers for the directory the necessary and correct data and nforma- tion, we assure you a much more satis- factory city directory for 1909. The items which will be embraced in the directory, which were not covered in last years di-
 rectory, will be mentioned in detail by a report from that committee.
 Let us not forget that strenuous times like these when we are trying to coax back our business prosperity, we ge1ner and pulling together for the benefit
 of the mercantile interest of Birmingham.
 and a number of ways which we can ac- complish greater good for the city and for our various interests is by standing together and working together and build ing up Birmingham as trading center, and I certainly hope that these meetings will be centers of inspiration from which will go forth the enthusiasm which will
 work for the greater success and pros perity of Greater Birmingham.
 "The membership of the Board of Trade being limited to the wholesale and retail merchants alone. it is very important that every merchant in Birmingham, if he has not already done so, should identify him. self and join. The dues-$1 per month for the firm are nominal, and the mem