The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-01-19
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS


 , I want to start a new club. Don't ge
 excited. There are to be no dues, nc charter. no bylaws, no officers.
 Now I wouldn't have the temerity tc even suggest it. if did not see the need of it. Birmingham is growing so fast
 that it is beyond any man to know ev-
 erybody as in the good old days when
 knew men. women and children by name.
 The name of the club will give the idea
 of it quicker and better than any pre-
 ludes or preambles. I call it The Get
 Acquainted Club" This is what We need
 more than anything else just at pres ent. In the various campaigns We have
 made good start, but let's put it over in ,'good shape until there IS a revival of greeting and handshaking that will make for friendliness
 I heard story of ante-bellum days 1 when the negroes from adjoining plan tations were invited to a dance in hall about midway between the two. The couples from old Marster Browns sat on | one side of the room, while those from l Mir. Smiths sat on the other The white l folks who were looking on wondered l how they would be introduced to one an- other It was mighty easy. for the caller l stepped into the middle of the floor, and, looking from right to left, said, ] Ladies and gents, take acquaintance, 1 and don't waste no time in mixing" I And they didn't.
 1 Any drummer, or knight of the road 1 like your humble servant, knows the | sinking feeling which comes when you | line up in tank town hotel and finally reach the register to be told by the sleepy | clerk, T got one double bed left; you two gents will have to occupy it." You've | just got to get acquainted. l had it put up to me recently. I didn't know the other fellow and he didn't know me. 1 Neither of us looked pleased at the pros~ pect. I soon found out that my compan- ion was very frank in his expression, for he said q reckon you don't want to sleep with me any more than I do with you, but it's late; let's go to bed" 
 The Rotarians and the Kiwanaites are quite busy doing the Alphonse and Cas- ton stunt, and are ready to get ac- quainted, and if need be to double up if they can get something for Birmingham or Uncle Sam, but was little bit ner- vous recently to know if the dwelers on the top of the Jefferson County Bank hui,dipr xynt,ld coY,,e down tn ,ccent tho hospitality of those who were keeping open house in the Chamber of Commerce. It worked very nicely, but for bit there was little sitting apart.
 At the Chamber reception the formal ity began to wear away when President DeBardeleben pulled out his farewell ad- dress, and tried to stoop low enough to read it by the desk light on the table. l He saw that to tie himself up in a letter l $ would be to stop the flow of his ora turned to W. Blanks Everett, the oblig- | ing secretary, and said Look here, old l fellow, stand up and hold this light for | me-" Blanks did, and he never looked | blanker in all his life, as he stood mak- | ing an electrolier or lamp post of him. self'
 Charley's farewell was entirely un- | orthodox, for he announced that there was surplus of several thousand dollars in the treasury The Chamber had never | been called together before in all it's his- tory to listen to any such report It had | been asked frequently at the annual meetings to devise ways and means to raise deficit, but 10 and behold! Pres ident DeBardeleben was apologizing that owing to the freakiness of the coal sit uation he had not been able to give as much time to the work of the Chamber as he had wished. They excused him, for every one felt that if he could have taken few days off from pressing pri- vate business he might have found some way to spend the publics money. But they excused him for leaving an embar- rassing fund for the body to spend.
 
 Arthur Crowder was unanimously l elected president for the ensuing year, and made forward looking speech which was enthusiastically applauded
 
 l think it high time that we all put aside our formality, just as it's neces- sary to quit giving peop.e the all-over' to see if they are in "our set' before we are willing to bow or shake hands. What we need more than anything else is to quit waiting for introductions and just take acquaintance" The town is full of good fellows who are only wait 2 ing for friendly handshake and bit of brotherly treatment to take hold and | get into civic harness.
 
 A good way to make a start is for you to speak to the man who for months has ] been riding down on the car with you In nine times out of ten he will meet you I more than half way If he is cold and 8 looks as if he thought you were about to make "a touch," don't be down-hearted, but smile. and tell him you are a member ' of the Get Acquainted Club" and if enough people will do this it will soon be i h so we'll advertised that it will be good V form to speak to one another in public Il places. o4snlaItN NxAasxM ss F. S.; If you read this, go down to the Chamber of Commerce and get acquaint- U ed with Blanks Everett. He isn't bit i;