The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-06-16
By MYRTLE MILES

"To travel cheerfully," said the be- loved Robert Louis Stevenson, 'is bet ter than, to arrive" Travel brings change of place and scene and it Is a liberal education to become associated with different life and rub shoulders with people of opposing ideas and temperaments. The tourist depends on the railway people or booking agencies for his route and is even told where he must sleep and eat, and he goes around, very probably. seeing little outside of what his Baedel1er mentions-but tho true traveller is the ohe that is depend ent on himself, and 1t is he who, in the end, gets the greater enjoyment from his wanderings in experience and the possibilities of life. Stevenson was Q great wanderer, but his observation, as above has its limitations, as no matter how cheerful the voyage or journey may he. who of us. even those who are .itten by the wanderlust, are not thank ful for the nonce that we have reached our destination? If it is resort, on the continent or moulderlng ruin which he seeks in behalf of mental culture, the tired American is always glad to come to the journeys end. The tired Birm.ngham resident is sometimes glad 10 remain where he Is when vacation time arrives, for with but few excep- tions the summer days here are as pleasant as any to be found in distant places. But taken by and large, the Birmingham person who can get away, goes as soon as he can, as far as he can, and stays as long as he can--for change is a great thing About this time every year is sure to appear the wag who writes to the papers or the magazines and propounds the paradox that the best summer resort of all is New York--or Baltimore-or Birming
 ham, or whatever place he chances to be exploiting. Personally, have all ways imagined the writer living at ease far away on some cool northern coast where the thermometer and the humid ity register never strike 92 together. Or else he is one of those who are condemned to remain in town day and night and, like the fox who lost his tail is eager to persuade the rest of his fellow creatures that his plight Is really happy one. Birmingham, how ever, unquestionably has advantages over many places larger and smaller than it's sell. It Is q great place Tor the commuter. The man who must be in his office every day of July and August may manage to keep cool a great deal of the time and persuade himself that summer is the crown of the year if he may have a summer cottage at one of the many surrounding places in reach of the. cars. There are the ". D, Smiths, who are abandoning their sum mer house to stay at their country '. place at Clairmont, and Mrs. smith, who is a faithful "fan," motors in to witness almost every baseball game. MT. and Mrs. William II Kettig who. while they do not close up their town house, possess a delightful cottage at St. Clair with which they are in easy com munication by motor and may run over almost any warm day to enjoy the cool ness and the quiet, the water and the fresh vegetables and fried chicken with which it plentifully abounds. They also expect to go to Atlantic City in July. Mir. and Mrs. A. II. Woodward have thei.' beautiful country place at Wood ward. The F. K. Camphells have built charming bungalow over Red moun- tain, just four miles from town, where they are happy in summer.
 Shades mountain has it's devotees also, The sumner residents vii, many of them, return-and the number this year is to be augmented by several who have leased cottages. Dr. and Mrs. Benjamin Kidd have taken cottage for