The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-06-25
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

have Jrst come from Capitol park.
 It is not the first visit have made to
 it withia the past few months to see the
 boys wro were called into service. | came cut of the Tutwiler at and saw a stream of people going north and, of course. realized that it was the par | ents or friends of the 600 or more men
 who were getting their cards in shape so that they could entrain last night
 
 l Automobiles were hurrying past, but
 somehow I was more interested and touched by those who were walking, for ] in the stream of humanity were repre- sentatives of all the walks of life in this great district. Most of the pedestrians were sober faced, but every now and then a smiling group of young folks enlivened the scene.
 I was soon in line and on reaching the park I found hundreds of people sitting CT the benches, lying on the grass, or standing beneath the shade of the trees, fer it was swelteringly hot. It wasn't n 1 picnic crowd There was no boisterous | laughter, TO games, no fun making, but most Of the little parties were quietly chatting as if something unusual was taking place.
 Hurqying along, I came in front of the grandstand and already the benches were 1 filled with the different classes of drafted | men, and those whose business it was to check them were busy at work, an it is no easy job Harry Jones was as busy as bee and in his glory. He is a past master at the art of handling crowds Pepperlnan, the silent but efficient man, was on the platform watching ev- erythng, but moving about as silently l and as swiftly as g. cat, without. how ever, getting up his back or splitting if he was rubbed the wrong way. This is trait worth having, and specially so for one whose business it is to handle great throngs in a systematic way
 I have been interested and touched every time l have been present, as the
  Monday afternoon l was scanning the tfrong for just one face, that of a hand some young man, my wifes brother, whom I have known since he was in knee brooches, and who about 10 years ago came to live with us for awhile. He seemed to be like one of my own boys, and now he was going away. 
 I soon located him and went to tell him good-by, for I missed him on Sunday when he spent the day at my home, for I was away preaching and speaking for the government. He had asked his mother and his sister not to come down. for he was afraid that they might not be able to control themselves, and that is the reason I went. My boy Frank soon showed up.
 I can better understand now how many who lave lad their boys go away feet for there was a tightening around my heart as I gripped the hand of the cheery- y-hearted young man who in the rrime of his strength was going to war d5 d 5TGdI' duNcnluIO ehIio do eo dllSOh- cerned as though he were merely going on a camping expedition rather than to l military camp to be prepared as a sol | dler to face the Germans and stand by 1 Ainerlca.
 l looked into the crowd and saw Judge | Mandy. I thought he had just come as l an onlooker, but found out that he was there to bid farewell to his son Harold. | I will have far different thoughts about 1 him from now on, as I sit near him at | the big desk when we are digging out l copy, for he is the father of a soldier, | an honor that every man should wear worthily, and which every right think | ing man should respect. have always liked him. but from now on I will love
 him for his soldier boys sake. l I studied the vast throng, for in if 1 were many interesting people. I got 1 into group of proud Italians, and my! I how they were chattering. I couldn't understand what they were saying, but l if l were betting man I would have ! DeGH WllllflH tO WdSeI d Utl tle ' they were talking about the great stand l being made by their countrymen in holding the hated Austrians and the
 treacherous Germans.
 I saw men from the mines with their l families about them, clerks out of the stores, with many of the pretty sales girls hanging close by; office men with attractive stenographers by their sides. farmers with bashful country lassies casting wistful glances over their shou-
 ders at their chums who were leaving be- hind the fields of peace to do or die ip fields torn by shot and she'll
 Red Cross nurses were everywhere.
 A dear old mother in Israel in sun bonnet gave an air of homeliness to the situa- ton which almost upset me. There were
 women there in smart frocks and pattern hats. saw men who stand at the top in the financial world mingling demo-
 cratically with those who made their living with their hands. War, like death, is the great leveler. It's giving us a de- mocracy that is worth fighting for Take it from me, autocracy will die in Europe and we will have truer brand
 of fraternity here in America.
 I turned my back unwillingly on the scene, for had to catch a train to gc out to try and stir up an interest +a in, ho