The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-04-04
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

several futile attempts made recently to get out into the country from the county seats.
 But I am regaining hope, as l stood Thursday in front of the Tutwiler or 'iounged in the lobby taking stock of the good roads representatives who had gath cred from all parts of the state. It was enough to hearten me, for I met men who run things in their neck of the woods.
 went to the usual luncheon of the Realtors at the Southern club and had the pleasure of hearing Keller, the state highway engineer who has done so much to bring the question of permanent roads to the people of Alabama, explain just what the legislature must do to get the benefit of federal aid for the trunk sys- tenn mapped out in the congressional Dill.
 I dropped into the meeting at the Tut wiler and the prayer by pr. George Stuart lifted the whole question into high plain. It's a wonderful thing to have the gift of doing and saying the right thing under all circumstances. My dis tInguished Methodist preacher friend pos sesses this gift to a very rare degree and whenever he is on a programme you can count upon his rising to the occasion.
 After tho invocation Sid Lee announced that as pr. Burruss had not arrived to welcome the convention in the name of the city, he would just ask me to do it, and living up to my platform of never refusing to talk when called upon, I had to jump right into the welcome address on what is technically known as cold collar but I tried to warm up bit so that the delegates would feel at home.
 
 Senator Oscar Underwood was then in- troduced and he got a sure enough glad hand' fM his home town. It was the first chance had had the good luck to hear him since his return to Birmingham. He was in fine spirits. It was characteristic of him to give honor where honor is due and he paid a. glowing tribute to the senior senator from Alabama, John H. Bankhead, as the father of good roads" He opened his address by reading a telegram which he had received the night before from Senator Bankhead regretting the fact that business of interest to the state prevented his being present, but urging tho convention to go strongly on record in asking the legislature to pass the necessary bills to meet the require ment of the government in order to get federal aid, and proferring his aid to stump Alabama in the interest of the movement at any time his engagements would permit
 The senator was in fine voice and seemed to really appreciate the opportun- ity of speaking to so representative a body of his fellow citizens He had an audience worthy of his best and he gave it to them without stint, although he had to limit his speech in order to catch a train which was to bear him to Mobile | where he was scheduled for an address ! at the launching of six cement ships. He gave an extended account or the history of the good roads movement in America, beginning before the adoption of the constitution He showed that good roads was in the web and wool of the thinking of those who brought into t<- ing this great government of ours, as was evidenced in the early attention given to postroads stating that he had | travelled over the one leading from Ball. timore through the south, and while the original roads had been built over and over again, yet the foundations of the
 bridges still were intact. He also spoke of the interest of Thom- | as Jefferson in good roads. It seems that ] the great democrat rarely overlooked any good thing in his time, but always ] was ahead of his generation. Senator l Underwood said that the government was ! wise in it's determination to overlook | and apporve any plans for state high ways to which 1t gave funds. In this way
 it protected its gifts and at the same time safeguarded the state appropria-
 tions.
 !
 | He was insistent that we must adopt l the old Roman method of building a foundation to support the roads and that 1 ir his opinion it was necessary to use
 cement for this and leave the choice of 1 a top dressing to be determined by local conditions. I think the people in Ala | bama have seen the folly of building \ roads that wiN not stand the traffic, and l surely not when no fund for permanent upkeep has been set aside for the pur- pose.
 After clearly explaining the federal bill in it's relation to state aid supplement he electrified his hearers by telling them of a talk which he had recently had at a dinner with the commanding general of the Rainbow division, who took the opportunity to pay high compliment te
 the boys of the 167th infantry and of how they had gained terrain for quite
 a distance without the support of the artillery.
 He wound up by saying that monu- ments were already in their place and that our Alabama boys deserved the bes
 that we could give them for having giver to the world an exhibition of braver,
 which will ring down the centuries. but
 that he thought one of the most prac
 tical things that could be done for then | would be for the state to match dollars