The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-30
HARTSELLE IS
 PROGRESSIVE TOWN Ships About S1OO,OOO Worth
 ofChickens and Eggs BIG CEDAR INDUSTRY Morgan County Town Has Good Schools and churches-Many
 Handsome Buildings Are
 Now Being Erected.
BIG CEDAR INDUSTRY
BY WALTER HARPER.

BY WALTER HARPER.
 Hartselle. August Special )- Hartselle is strictly an agricultural town with a strong inclination to so- cial and home life
 The people are sociable. refined and not in too big hurry to give the visitor a warm. friendly welcome and handshake that Is eloquent of sin oerity.
 The town Is near the geographical center of Morgan county, one of the richest and oldest in point of agricul- tural development In the state,
 The traveller looking from his Pull man window would conclude that the town Is a dreamy hamlet of two or three hundred people. Indeed he might not be aware of the presence of town but for the fact that his train stops for minute to pick up some passenger.
 During the past 12 months more than dozen creditable brick business houses have been erected in the place. More than a score of handsome homes have been built and plans are now be- ing drawn for number of other build tngs, both business and residential.
 The residences that have been built and that are now under way are mod ern and some of them expensive. It is safe to say that no town in the state of the same size has had a more satisfactory growth during the past 12 months.
 During the year the Morgan county high school has been erected here and work has begun on a handsome new Methodist church.
 Good roads are being built out from the town In all directions and the streets of the town are kept In good condition connecting with these coun- try thorough fares
 Hartselle is in the midst of one of the finest agricultural sections in the state, being in the broad Tennessee val ley. The lands in the vicinity of Hart selle have been found to be especially adapted to the culture of fruits and vegetables and the Truck Growers as7 sociation recently organized with A. A Oden as president is rapidly develop ing this industry. Elberta peaches are grown very successfully as well as strawberries and other fruits and veg etables The acreage In this class of products are being rapidly increased and Hartselle promises to become one of the most important shipping points for this line of stuff in the state.
 One of the important and unusual industries of sne town is the purchase and shipment of cedar and oak slaves. Large tracts of cedar timber q few miles west and south of the town sup ply large quantities of this valuable product and many of the land owners and laborers employed In the work are making good money in the business. The principal part of this business is done by farmers who haul in the tim Der when not actually employed on their farms. The same is true of the stave timber industry. But the in dustry is very important, amounting to something like S1000e0 a year. A load of cedar timber is worth all the way from s5 to $15.
 The poultry and egg trade at Hart selle is of no small importance. There are two produce firms in town which do nothing else but buy and ship pro- duce of this kind. Each firm does about $100 worth of business a week. That is each firm pays out this much money every week for chickens and eggs brought to town from the sur rounding country. The business amounts to more than $100,O00 a year, or more than the cedar and stave busi- ness combined, and yet 1t is not counted as an important industry.
 The chicken and egg business has never been considered seriously in Ala bama and is not appreciated as it sh ould be. The housewife and the farmer look upon the money secured from the sale of such products as pin money" and a rule but little at tention is given to it. Yet when 1t comes together as it does at Hartselle it amounts to quite fortune and im- presses the observant man with the possibilities of the industry. The chicken and egg business of Alabama is worth millions of dollars to the people But We do not seem to real fze it.
 Hartselle has population of about 2OOO. There are but few negroes. There are five churches, two strong banks, two stave mills, two blaming mills, a farmers union warehouse and one newspaper.
 Besides the county high school there is also one or the pest Clly puDllC schools in this section of the state.
 Prof. J. J. Moore is principal of the public school. The teachers are Miss Dixie Drum, Miss Claude Patillo, Mrs. J. L. Rountree, Miss Lucia Barcliff and Miss Lucy Causby.
 Prof. J. H. Little is president of the county high school. Prof. J. l.. Gibson is assistant superintendent The teachers are Miss Florence Turrentine and Miss Bettie Burleson.
 There is a movement on foot for the building of a cotton oil mill in the town. Birmingham men are interested in the enterprise and it is more than probable that the industry will be es- tablished here at an early date. There is not a better location between Bir mingham and Decatur for such plant The town handles about 10,G00 bales of cotton every year.
 Water works and electric lights are