The Birmingham age-herald., 1909-09-14
GRAND JURY SLAMS C|TY'S YOUNG MEN Says It Is Hard for Them to
 Tell the Truth GOSSIP FROM TUSCALOOSA Sentiment Appears Strong Against Amendment-colone Russell and
 MT. Taylor Spend the
 Day in City.
GOSSIP FROM TUSCALOOSA
BY HUGH w. ROBERTS.

report of grand jury which lamented the fact that 1t could not obtain truthful ex- pressions from the young men of Tusca- loosa; with the arrival today from Mobile of Vice President u. L. Russell and Gen eral Manager R. V. Taylor of the Mobile and Ohio railroad, and their splendid entertainment; with the city filled to the brim with University of Alabama boys and girls and enthused with the spirit which they alone can inspire, TUSCALOOSA would be far from dull even were there no interest in the congressional acuVlries of Hobson and Dasts. and the never ceasing discussion of what is termed "weakleys Fuller bill and constitutional amendment
 The grand jury, to which reference i' ,,ada ahove. reported to Henry B. Foster, i,,dse of the county court Saturday ana was evidently imbued with apprecla'lon for the great argument of the ah'i-proll- bitionists-that the prevention or tne licensed sale of whisky tends to make liars. sneaks and thieves Of us ai- Ano criticism of the jurors, however this may he. set Tuscaloosa by the ears, ana has caused more street corner discussion anu 
 front porch gossip than any other mat ter of recent occurrence.
 Truth Is Wanted.
 That section of the report which tells tbe whole story in dignihed language fol- lows:
 ..we found a docket of considerable size awaiting our consideration and to this we added many more cases-docket- ing in all 167. We examined S04 witnesses and found 75 true bills which we here with return into court.
 I've find that with the exception or violations of the prohibition laws. some drunkenness and fighting. the general state of quietude and peace In tho country is as good, if not better thah for some years past. We regret to state, however, that 1t is very hard matter to get witnesses to tell the truth in re- gard to violations of the prohibition laws We hope that better public spirit in this regard will be cultivated and that the young men. especially, will learn to more fully appreciate the value of truth
 To Defeat Amendment.
 From discussion with well known peo- pie it is evident that the city of Tusca- loosa, at any rate, will return safe ma jority for Captain Hobson, and will hand the prohibition amendment terrific uppercut to the chin. Those men who for years have maintained their fingers on the political pulse of city, county and state. give Tuscaloosa county to Hobson, and the most conservative admit that the amendment, unless its physical strength be as Gibraltar's, will hardly weather the rough seas over which 1t must set sail.
 And Tuscaloosa, as Is known, Is one of the best If not the very best organized county in the interest of prohibition in the state. Although Tuscaloosa's dispen- sary cleared an enormous profit each year. a considerable portion of which the rural residents enjoyed, prohibition won without serious trouble. But from what Is said by those who generally are aware of po- litical situations and on-coming crises. Tuscaloosa will defeat the amendment handily.
 Wasson Agitation Entertains.
 James J. Mayfield, judge of the supreme court, believes that the state will go against the amendment by five to one vote-'if," as he puts it, the women do
 
 president of the Times-Gazette Publishing company, in speaking of the rural vote on which the success of prohibition dc bends, declares that from his observa- ton the farmers are taking little interest in the situation, mot enough to cause them to stop work and go to the place of voting, and," he adds, "I find general aversion among the residents of the out of-town districts to making any change, however sltght in the constitution
 There is considerable interest in Tusca- loosa in the recent agitation of the Rev. s. E. Wasson, the divine of Huntsville He was in charge of the Methodist church here in 1907, and he took healthy part in the fight for prohibition. He caused a furry on several occasions py sending an unexpected broadsde in the direction of Senator Frank s. Moody whose efforts in behalf of temperance, everyone knows, were among the first to make themselves felt in this state, and other citizens of character equally as un- assailabe, who had dared to raised their voices against what they considered ill., advised and dangerous. Though MT Was sons residence here was unusually linn ited, what he says each day through The Age-Herald is read in Tuscaloosa and re- marked upon.
 Dummy Smoking Still.
 
 work today. The enrolment is larger than last season, and the indications are that the number of students will ap- proach 550 The university is excellently equipped at the present time, and is en- tering upon, it Is the opinion of practically everyone, its most successful period.
 It is learned that the eye-sore of Tusca- loosa, the miserable tramp of dummy, which puffs and smokes and fumes at irregular hours through the streets of the city, Is in no danger of an immediate consignment to the junk pile. An officer of the Birmingham and Gulf Railway company, which company owns the dummy. stated this morning that as no new capital had been obtained it was possible to hold on to what was pos sessed for considerable time to come. He considers it certain, however, that the rails will be electrified in the future. He gave no date.