The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1919-10-20
MEN, WOMEN
AND THINGS

On Thursdays for more than two
years when in town 1 have usually
found my way to the Southern club to
lunch with the Birmingham Realtors,
not that 1 am in the real estate game
but simply to keep in active touch
with a bunch of as good fellows as this
city holds.
am just natural born liner
Some folks won't join anything, not
even a church; while others are will
ing to line up with every good thing
which is running or going to be
started. / just naturally love people
and like to go to church, attend lodge,
register at club, or be present at all
kinds of gatherings,
I have not only had gracious fellow
ship at the stated lunches of the Real
tors, but have learned many things L
never would have known about the
problems being bravely faced and met
by those who look on their business
not merely as a means to make money
DuL TO SbENCs II WOuld PAASS
to know just the civic load carried by
the Real Estate Exchange.
The thing I like about the Realtors,
| is that it Is no close corporation IN
which a few leading firms dominate,
| but that it is thoroughly democratic
and questions are threshed out some
times warmly but always in good spirit,
| and the youngsters get hearing about
as easy as the older ones. There are
men who have been familiar with the
game for a quarter of century or
more like w. 3. Leedy. 7. H Motion
| Nat Malone and others; while some
| like my young friend John ID. Chiches-
! ter is just entering the business
| Now Just because L kept in touch
with the realtors before America en-
tered the war, and during it, and now
| in peace times makes it possible for me
| to better understand some phases OF
the rental and building problems than
| if had not heard them discussed SO
pften from the inside. I saw them
struggling under a stagnant real es-
tate market. knew how they sweateo
under the poor returns on investments
in houses for rent. They had some
mighty lean years
Talk about courage. well there are
, various kinds. There is moral cour'
age and the world will never be over
stocked on it. There is physical cour'
age and I think nine men out OF ter
have enough and to spare. Then therf
is business courage, and here come
the rub, for as one of our Industrious
townsmen has said, capital is YER.
timid." Sure it is and often needs mucf
coaxing before it will venture out.
The war evidenced the fact that Am
orleans had moral, physical and Dust
ness courage, and now the acid test o
peace times is upon us to see whethe
our business men are willing to take
chance and forge ahead or will dig IL
luntil the H. C. L. comes down and tn
labor unrest auiets down. To buy o
not to buy is the vexatious problem
merchants and traders of all kinds ar
wrestling with. To build or not I
|, build, is puzzling the minds of builder
and manufacturers.
1t took courage for those behind tn
' Tutwiler to put it through, the Brown
Marx, the woodward, the Empire, IN
American Trust, the Farley, the I1ti
Guarantee, the Motion, the Jefferso
County Bank building and other grea
} structures were built on courage. An
this is equally true about the great in
dustrial enterprises built and unde
construction. 1t was courage whic
caused some of our leading merchant
to erect new stores or enlarge or beau
| ! tify their old ones.
Its the business Of the Realtor to
on the watch out to promote buildin
as well as to sell vacant property. N
one who merely sits in his office
an agent merely to collect and loo
after the rental property or sell lot
will ever amount to anything in tn
. real estate world To be a successft
realtor a man must have energy coui
age and imagination to see thing an
then get hold of the man or men wh
{ can realize his vision.
know it has been favorlte pas
/, time with some to abuse the big lane
a holding organixa tons of retarding TT
q development of the city. The Birmine
ham Realty company. the oldest Of II
hot has come in for much of this Kin
of talk, and yet if the simple story
, what 1t has done and accomplished
the upbuilding of this community WI
4 set down in black and white 1t wou
surprise many who have criticized
hold no brief for it, but do sa
that when many individuals were he's
tating as to the safety OF buildlr
more homes, Groom Beatty set pa
which was hard to follow and was do
: ting Norwood and Chestnut Hill WI
attractive residences. He is a your
man with an abundance of courage,
he never would have advised his con
many to buy the great holdings fro
Bob Jemison, Jr., and William Leary.
The tale of what Robert Jemison,
n has wrought here is an epoch of fai
! and courage. He has waved his mag
i. hand and skyscrapers, hotels and apar
If ment houses have leaped into existene
Al HE has given the word and beautif
'r residential sections have come IN