The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-08-08

T confidently believe that measured by l characters strengthened, by evil habits overcome, by temptation resisted by ann bitions aroused, by lives strengthened and by souls saved, no other building in this community will begin to equal in im-
 portance this building of the Young Mems Christian association"
 And 1t is the third largest building in the city, Il stories high; cost about s725,oO0
 and contains within it every possible de- partment which could be attached to as- sociation work. The building campaign
 did not begin until four $5,000 subscrip- tions had been secured as a foundation.
 The entrance and the lobby are as
 beautiful as almost any hotel in the city. It would be impossible to de- scribe the advantages which the more than 2000 members enjoy the educa- tional facilities engineering, physics,
 machine shops, business and all spe- cialties used daily by the hundreds of | men and boys who could not get the time for common school work; automo- bile shop where training is given to mechinics and chauffeurs not to speak of two enormous gymnastums, a big aromry where several hundred young members of the association military
 companies do their drill work; the 200 dormitories which are filled with a waiting list of 75; special outdoor and indoor basketball and handball and tennis courts, pool and billiard rooms, libraries for men and boys, an audi | torium which will seat 700, bowling l alleys. In fact no one could dream | of a more perfect structure so conven- | iently arranged. This is the building i of which John R. Mott, member of the l international committee of the associa- | ton, said: T am now prepared to say with knowledge that you have without | the shadow of a doubt the finest asso- ciation building on earth. I have seen over 800, including al lthe important | ones throughout the world but this is the most advanced of the mall.' But even more surprising than this Is the miracle which stricken San Fran
 cisco has performed. In spite of the fact that every citizen was rebuild ing his own home and business house, while they were hardly out of the throes of the quake. these dauntless people put up s650,000 for an associa- ton building, now almost complete. It will push the Los Angeles struc- ture as a close second. covers a whole block, and contains every advantage l that has been attributed to the one | just described
 And so you find it everywhere. Port | land is just completing a magnificent nine-story building. costing a half mil | lion Seattle has long been housed in | a seven-story plant, with a working i staff that moves even faster than the | growth of that magic city.
 l St. Paul has the second finest finish ed | building which I examined. The people i of St. Paul wanted something unique and elaborate. They have the most | beautiful exterior, and the most hand 1 somely furnished interior for an asso- | citation building in the world.
 Situated on one of the business 1 streets, between two towering office i buildings, with a stream of members ] passing in and out, that Central asso- 1 citation in Chicago is a wonderful ma l chine. Chicago has three others equal l ly as large, and all are filling a place 1 in the metropolitan life which the busi- | ness men count on as their principal I asset.
 Perhaps it doesn't take a pigeon i toed, prying, lingering butter in" tour ist to discover that the association is the biggest thing in every big to~t, but 1t is fact, nevertheless