The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-12-24
More Santas In Birmingham
 Now Than There Are Policemen
Youngsters SkeptiCaI, But Shyly Shake Hands With All, Taking No Chances


 late the Santa Clauses?
 For days at least dozen of the merry saints have engaged in com petitive endeavor in downtown Bir- mingham with much duplication of effort and Nhiskers.
 Ones a broad shouldered, slender young fellow who has scarcely grown into his patriarchal beard. He stands in front of jewelry store and waylays adults and juvenile passers-by alike, presenting little tag.
 step in on the coupon and get a Christmas gift"
 He's rather blunt Santa and, if pressed for details, will reply:
 "Aw, go on the inside and see what it's about. l haven't got time to tell you a bedtime story"
 Other Santas are not so hard boiled. There's one in department store. dolled up in a spic and span red suit, who hands out souvenirs to the kids. Then, there's a part-time Santa who must need help out at run ming the elevator. He has a running line of chatter for the young folk $ and they like him enough to punch him in the side and ask many ques- tions.
 Still another Saint Nicholas. the veteran of the staff, picks up the little ones and kisses them. He is tired when his days work is done, and he's more or less jealous of the one downstairs who passes around the souvenirs.
 There's no question about it. The street corners and the various shops and windows with all their Santa Clauses have confused Birmingham. Jr, quite bit. One could not be positively sure which was Santa Claus and which were his brothers. Enormous family and they all look very much alike.
 o o o
 Have Their Doubts.
 In the shopping crowds were many youngsters who regarded all the Santas as imposters and became so confused that they told their parents they doubted the existence of any such person.
 Over at the federal building, Post master R. B. Smyer said he could prove to the full satisfaction of every skeptic that there is Santa Claus"
 No more reason to doubt now than when l was a boy" he declared. Fact is, if you care to accept the volume of business we are going through the post office as criterion there is more reason to be firmer in the belief that Santa Claus thriyes."
 MT. Smyer suggested a look at the broad floors inside the post office. Hundreds of sacks of mail were re- ceiving attention. Scores of letters to Santa Claus had been separated from the mass. The Elks, Commun- ity Chest headquarters, the Salvation Army and other organiza tions took them, because, naturally, they are in closer touch with Santa than any body else.
 The mail sorters said there must be a Santa Claus because some one calls every day and takes his mail and no back to the writers. That seems proof enough, doesn't it?
 Down in the shopping district there seemed to be little doubt about it, even if several Santas were doing their stuff. very small boy, fas- cinated by an electric locomotive speeding around a track with six cars in it's train, was asked what he thought.
 Sure" he said "ain't he going to to gimme that train?"
 You wouldn't ask for more proof than that, would you?
 One youngster, though, was found whose skepticism was held to be full ly justified.
 IS oditd aCJaLSi pelpS Good to you this Christmas?" someone asked him.
 T dunno about Santa Claus" he said.
 Hes just been to the dentist" ex- plained his mother.
 "Gotto go again Tuesday, too," la- mented the young man.
 It seems useless to pursue the topic further. The preponderance of tes- timony is favorable to Santa Claus. The stores are crowded just as they are every Christmas season. Busi- ness men say 1923 has been a re- markable year. Just as many chil- dren are shyly shaking hands with Santa Claus and not weakening be- cause they see the old chap in al- most every window they pass.