The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-08-20
MEN, WOMEN
AND THINGS

SVhpeHSdtlOnS because. Oh lne lACl Ina :
my fellow victims were good fellows.
I have had the honor thrust on me
before but always had a good excuse,
but this time when a call was made at
the Rotary lunch for ten volunteers I
dent Woodall was much disappointed
tkat in spite of his urgent plea no one
else volunteered.
In the hope of stirring some to their
patriotic duty he made his second ap
peal stating that it required men of
high intelligence. and began to beat
none entered the list. ] arose and said,
Il am sorry L have my brother Rota-
rians outclassed, but lit isn't my fault
that am Intelligent"
But nothing the persuasive Percy
could say had the slightest effect on
the body and 1 was left alone in my
preeminence to represent the Rotary
club of Birmingham in the polling
booths for the bond election I con-
TESS was willing to sublet the job and
tried to get rid of the job by still keep
ing it in the family, but my brother
Paul, said mo, not for $1,000 and so
served.
I was at the booth at the Mt. Ter
race junction. L got down a few min
utes late but found W. A. Currie, DR..
Cecil CASTOR, and John Bradley al
ready arranging the tables. Frank
Rushton, the great organizer and sim
plifier happened along and lent valu-
able aid in showing us how to expedite
the voting and keep the records
straight He put the same gray mat
ter into it that he used so effectively
as our field marshall of the allied
armies.
Frank placed the six ballot boxes all
in row and assorted the colors, for
some of the ballots were pink, some
yellow, some green and some white.
1t was a kind of rainbow election,
and after his artistic hands had placed
the black boxes and the variegated
voting slips, we were all ready to cite
him for a job at the rib bon counter of
Sol Caheen's, or recommend him as a
window dresser to Joe Loveman.l
With one of his most bewitching
smiles he overlooked his handiwork
and pronounced it good he waved us an
affectionate adieu, as il to say: II have
the trade, and will retire until the cool
Of the afternoon, but will drop by on
my way home to see IL business was
good" There is nothing like being an
executive. 1t relieves one of so much
drudgery@ L take my hat off to Frank
as director.
soon it looked like bargain day at
General George McCleery's famous
Kress' Friday sales, for the automobile
trade was brisk up to about nine and
we had a hard time to wait on the
silk stocking" crowd that filed out of
various bond issues. Every now and
then some capitalist who cared not to
exercise his franchise rode by without
SO much as deigning to look at u.s. but
as rule they were good sports and
voted straight
We did a pretty fair business with
w bo ~ -, he ca1o
as they had to stop between cars and
usually had chance to make out their
ticket and deposit in before a Lakeview
rolled round to take them to town.
During the day we had two old timers,
both over three score years and ten who
to vote for the whole series. Every
now and then some lady whose husband
had left her in the car while he ex-
ercised his right of suffrage would sar-
castically ask if we would let her cast
her ballot. We lodged by referring
her to the legislators down. at Mont
gomery.
l used to head great deal about
"repeaters,, how gangs Of toughs gath
cred in, the slums or imported for the
purpose would visit district after dis
trict to vote; but this was not neces-
sary on Monday, for any citizen could
satisfy himself and still be within the
law for each one had the right to cast
six ballots. 1t was a political heaven
for bargain hunters. am sure that
if women had been granted the suf-
frage we would have been swamped
with voters, while mere man" not be-
ing used to marked down sales remained
away. for the vote was unusually light.
1t was some complicated thing for
the managers and the clerks Six lists
had to be kept in duplicate which
meant that each voters name had to
be written down twelve times Some
duplication. Then it was necessary to
be very careful in seeing that the right
ballot was cast in one of the six boxes
If it had been holly contested cleo
ton in which persons instead of bonds
were being voted for 1t would opened
a way for many a squabble.
Early in the morning while the vot-
ing was heavy there was plenty of life.
but as business got dull and the sun
kept getting closer and all of the best
jokes had been snapped, we were get
ting bit duh and thirsty when up