Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1867-03-19
For the Spectator.
WASHINGTON, Texas, |
Feb. 24th. 1867. (

| Anh. I1DlIOh w t reached CnlS place Dy
stage line few days since, it being on one Of
the lines owned by the Messrs. Sawyer, who
now have stages running on more than 5000
miles OF road-ln the interior of Texas, extend.
ing from Red River to the Rio Grande. This
| town was founded about 1884 and was the first
capitol Of the Republic.
| 1t was here that the Convention met, March
| the 1st 1886, in an unfinished building without
| doors or windows, and on the End declared
| themselves independent Of the-then Empire,
| of Mexico
| Here Gen. SAM Houston collected his forces,
| and from this point marched against Santa An
| ma at San Jacinto
This was once place of extensive trade be-
| ing situated in the heart of a rich country on
| the west bank of the Brazos, which was navi-
gable months in the year-it was the market
| for the country for many miles West of it,
The Central Railroad, which runs 6 miles
| East Of it has ruined the trade, and bridge
| across the River 60 miles below this point, pre-
vents navigation The town has not more than
half its former population. Many of the houses
| were built of brick, and of better quality than
are generally seen in the interior of Texas.
Many houses are now In ruins-amongst 9TH
| ers two large brick Churches. Some of the
people still have hope that it will yet revive
| as this is the point at which the great Pacific
| Railroad will cross the Brazos.
| A portion of this road is now being built be-
| tween Huntsville and Navasota, and will event
| ually run from Shreveport or Marshall via
Huntsville, Washington and San Antonio, to
the Rio Grande at Eagle Pass, thence to Ma
| zattan on the Pacific Thus connecting the in
exhaustible pine forests of Eastern Texas with
the vast and rich prairies of the West, now al
most useless for want of timber, and at the
same time proving source of untold wealth to
the company
The Houston and Texas Central Road is be-
ing pushed forward rapidly up to the Brazos,
| and will be completed to Dallas In five years
thus affording market in the heart of one of
the finest wheat growing regions in the world
At Dallas it will be intersected by the road
now building from Marshall The Harrisburg
branch Railroad is now running about l2O miles
West from Houston, and will be built to San
Antonio In few years. Another road is char
tered from Port Lavacca to San Antonia, and
IS now running as far as Victoria And still
| another known as the n. 0. and Houston Road
is now running from Houston to Beaumont, at
| the head OF Sabine Lake-a distance of about
so miles,
So you see that Texas is doing something for
herself in the way of Railroads, which with the
vast immigration into her borders-if not
| checked by the action of that gang of madmen
| at Washington-colled Congress-will in few
years make her one of the richest States in the
Union so-cdlted
The weather is quite warm; the grass and
leaves areputting forth; the farmers are plant
ing corn and everything looks cheering
many large farms will lie idle this year for want
OF labor Labor, labor, labor, is the cry here
the native negroes wont hire. Some of them
work for a apartofthe crop, and many have bought
| or leased small piece of land and there
| they build cabins-raise a little corn for
bread, and steal their meat out of the range
And in sparsely settled country like this they
can very rarely be caught, for there are thou
sands Of hogs in the range, and none of the
| stock owners know how many hogs, sheep Oh
goats they have.
| We have been asked by Virginians, which is
the best route &C., &c. The quickest route would
be from Staunton or some point On the Va. &
Tenn. Railroad, by rail to New Orleans-but it
would be cheaper to travel by the Mississippi
River to the Gulf and land at Galveston or
Houston, and thence by rail to the Interior
This is cheaper, safer and quicker than the
Red River route.
! Families moving should bring as little bag
gage as possible, but it would be well for them
to bring bed clothing
| The best part of the State for Virginians is
the wheat-growing country about Dallas. They
should come in the fall or winter so as to be-
come acclimated more gradually,
"MAGNOLIA"