The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-04-27
WEST LAKE PARK
 OPENS TOMORROW
Many New Features Have Been Added to Attractive
 Resort This Season

| The beautiful park known as West
 Lake will be formally thrown open to the
 public tomorrow for the 1916 season. 1 The first event of the present season was the dance held last evening by Mr and Mrs. c. H. Miles, who will have
 charge of the dancing at West Lake dur l ing the summer, and many scores of couples from every section of the city enjoyed the occasion.
 | West Lake park will again be under
 the management of J. A. Keith, who as-
 sumed charge of it in the middle of the l 1915 season. and under his supervision many substantial improvements have been
 made. 4ssa IAIM@& 1 West Lake park is situated on Lake 1 Breeze" as nearly every resident of the | city Knows, and not only have numerous new features been introduced for the com 1 fort and convenience of those who go there to bathe, but entirely new dress
 ing rooms, entirely distinct from the old l buildings, have been constructed for ladies.
 The main pavilion at West Lake has 1 been entirely rebuilt, the upper floor on | the south wing being the skating rink and the lower floor being a bowling al-
 ley of the most modern construction. l The upper floor on the north wing is for the dances, which will be conducted | by MT. and Mrs. Harry Miles, and the large crowd present last evening is an | evidence that the dance pavilion will be
 exceedingly popular during the season. 1 cafe virtually an open-air restaurant, though under the roof of the main pa- vilion, will be conducted during the sea- son by one of the leading restauranteurs of Birmingham and special arrangements are being made to cater to unexpected parties visiting the park.
 | West Lake park, in the past, has been I~,.k MT. Keith, the present manager, took charge, had not proven an equal success 1 as an amusement resort for the people of Birmingham seeking rest and recrea- tion during the hot summer afternoons and evenings
 At the high school, which was built to take care of 800 pupils, we have 1900 in attendance, while 400 others are cared for in the old Paul Hayne | building. Next year compulsory edu- | cation will become fact in this state and this will mean an enormous in-
 crease in school attendance. This
 means that Birmingham must provide additional facilities. The needs are inn perative and in asking for $2,000,000 the board of education and the city | commission are not asking for one cent more than is needed. Fl Paso, lex, IS now putting up one SCnO0l building that will cost s500,0O0. This is l 25 per cent of what Birmingham school authorities are asking for the 1 erection of two high schools and 2O- odd primary school buildings and ad- ditions. It is not too much, and if
 ever there was call that should meet I with an instant and generous response
 it is the call now being made in be-
 half of the school children of Birming- ham. They cannot help themselves They must put up with what we give l them and our duty is to give them at least enough to make it certain that
 their lives will be secure and their health will be properly safegua rded when they enter the buildings we have
 provided for them.'
 INCREASE 20OO A YEAR
 Dr. J. H. Phillips said that the school population during the past six years had shown an average increase of 20OO
 a year. 'To provide for this increase"
 he said. i've have been compelled to use cloak rooms, storage rooms and poorly lighted and worse ventilated basement rooms. The board during the past four years has attempted to relieve these con ditions by the erection of temporary
 frame structures for 5S classrooms; it has converted old, diapidated residences for the use of 2S other classrooms, and is paying rent for churches, halls and resi- l fences for the use of 31 more classrooms
 More than 60oo children in Birmingham are housed in 112 temporary classrooms, either cheaply constructed or leased for that purpose, and more than 200 other classrooms now in use should be con ! demned. More than 12,O00 children in Bir- niinghaIu arc calling for relief today. Next year, with compulsory attendance laws enforced, conditions will become in- ] tolerable.
 iCut Of 56 school buildings now used to house the 28,0O0 children of the city, not more than one-fourth of that num- Der will pass inspection as to size. safety and sanitation.
 1T call upon my brethren in Rotary to realize this responsibility for service and 1 through you I ask the citizens of Bir- mingham to come to the rescue of their
 children by making the proposed school bond issue fact"
 OWE IT TO CHILDREN
 MT. Bowies address was along the line that tho bond issue was an immediate. and pressing need; that it was only right and proper that bonds should be is-
 sued for the construction of adequate scht olhop sing facilities, and that the peo- lpla of Birmingham owed it to their chil- dren and to their neighbors' children to l vote for the proposed issue of bonds. l Dr. Shelburne indorsed the proposed is-
 sue. aid stated that the need was glar- ingly apparent, and that the voters should not hesitate to express themselves as fav- bring it.
 ] Immediately after the speaker had re-
 stunned his seat a member of the Rotary
 club secured recognition from the chair. 1 ''If there is no objection. I would like to ask the Rotary club as a body to place it's stamp of approval upon the pro- lpoeed issue of s2,000.00o of bonds for schoo' purposes in Birmingham he said.
 The vote was taken and every Rotarian was enthusiastic in his aye
 M A Correction
 l It is rumored that MT. D. U. Williams was discharged by me. In justice to MT. Williams I wish to state he resigned of hi ic axr fra rx-i1l l,n l.