The Birmingham age-herald., 1920-07-09
MEN, WOMEN
 AND THINGS

The war brought on a flood of gov- ernment publications, and any man or firm getting on the list was deluged with printed matter from every conceivable department It got to be a burden to the mails and pest to the public.
 
 Then there were lot ike me who by ,hock or crook got on the "sucker list" and were consequently submerged with preparedness by the promoters of every species of w.idcat stock offerings; but so far as ] am personally concerned it has been an easy matter to drop them gently in the re' e'ertacle under my desk to await the ctm.ng of the old paper col- 1 ectur.
 But the hardest pamphlets to te rid of are the ones which are sent out by the various publicity bureaus in the interest of the many worthy humanitarian causes before the people. Some of the appeals are simply heart-rending. I used to dread to see an envelope with the name Ar menia on it, for it meant that inside was a story of pathetic suffering among men, women, and children.
 1
 1 I thought when sold the Alabama l Baptist that would get rid of the major part of printed matter which flowed to my desk, but somehow it seems that all of my efforts to have 1t diverted to my successors were just notices that I was still alive, and good prospect for perus- 1 ing printed matter, as my mail box gets damned several times a. week, and it De- comes necessary for me to at least make a pretense of running through it.
 
 All of this because I found in my box a letter from the United States depart lment of agriculture, bureau of animal in- dustry, with offices in the Jefferson County Bank building. I knew that it carried report showing the status of the tick eradication work iii Alabama for June, 1920, in counties released from fed eral quarantine. It hit me juts right. flor had just had a talk with one of the department men about the status of tick eradica ion in Arkansas.
 I suppose ou are wondering why am Interested in tick conditions in other states, and so I will tell you. I got game from the day Frank Derby sprung his Red Cross bull proposition on the Chamber of Commerce; but I became an enthusiast only after touring the state with Fred Jones of Livingston, who was then president of the Southern Cattle mems Association It took Fred to make me ready to become under Bob Scale a shouting convert to pure breeds. |
 | I was specially interested in the tick situation in Arkansas because my friend, Jack Phillips, of the Birmingham Pack ling Company, had invited me out to see several carloads of cattle which had come from Arkansas through the Memphis stock yards. I was at the Southern Cat Itlemens Association meeting at Mont gomery awhile back, when the Capital City was bidding against Memphis and New Orleans for headquarters. Memphis won out before the body. and evidently is getting into the cattle game I had seen Tennessee, Georgia, Mississippi, Florida and some Texas cattle in the local yards, but had not seen any from l Arkansas. The loads looked over were hard to tell from the average grade Ala bama cattle.
 It's getting on my nerves to see how Montgomery and Memphis are getting to be cattle markets I was used to re- Igarding Nashville and Louisville as great lcattle centers. Birmingham is killing a lot of cattle surprising amount, and worlds of good Birmingham money is go- out out of the district which ought to be kept in circulation here, and which hope soon will be, for I think the time Is getting ripe for some one or some group of men to make up their minds to make Birmingham one of the best mar lkets in the south for cattle. It will take men of vision and means to get busy be- fore it's toe late, for Alabama is des- timed to be a great cattle producing state. II just throw this out as hint to those who have eyes to see and money to in- vest We need a big stock yards right here in Jones valley We have men who know the game, and we have men who have the money. Here is hoping they will get together.
 But back to friend Beckers report on the tick situation ir Alabama. To put it mildly, tick eradication has not been a popular undertaking in this particular clmate. It has been bitterly fought from it's inception. It has put enmity be- tween neighbors, divided families, in- vaded churches and got into politics. Blowing up vats has been favorite pas time in certain sections of Alamaha. for
 in certain counties lot of dynamite has been carelessly handled. and some people have gotten themselves into se- ir:ous trouble.
 But since the department came into Alabama with the slogan. Despite All Dip That Tick through team work be- tween the federal, state and county in- spectors. and 99 per cent of Alabamas s cattle owners. 91 per cent of Alabama S area is cleared of the depredations of the pestiferous and costly cattle tick. Uncle Sam when he starts never lets up. ard by the aid of the state and the coun- Ity it is hoped that before long Alabama will be tick free.
 !, Alamaha has s47,S96.0O0 ncested in cat } tie. Of this amount s2S,sl400O is invested