The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1873-08-21
LErrER RRO1 SAN Antonio.

SAX ANTONIO. August 16, 1873.
Editors Democratic Statesmals-The Htrald,
in noticing my communication published
in the STATESMAN Of the stlR calls it q
libel, and follows it up by reproducing in
fun your complimentary editorial about San
Antonio. I indOrse your article as heartily
as the Herald does, and admire the beauty
and nstural advantages Of the place as
much as any man, but if San Antonio was
ten times as beautiful as It is, with its fine
views and numerous streams, l would still
call it ssdry, hot and dull - the business
men all complain that times are fearfully
dry and dull, and the thermometer yes
terday standing at 95 degrees in the shade,
proclaimed it pretty hot. Shirt collars and
fat men suffered in spite of soda fountains,
fans and iced lemonades, and to-day, though
much pleasanter than yesterday, might be
termed hot, without fear of perpetrating q
libel.
As to the railroad, your correspondent
gave faithful account of what passed at
the meeting while he was there, but San
Antonio oughtto have a road, ought to have
had one twenty years ago, and no people
have worked harder for it than the citizens
of Bexar county, yet it is matter Of much
speculation among the business men here
whether the completion of road to this
point will be of such incalculable value to
the place or not. One thing is certain, it
will fill up the county with immigrants who
will cultivate the thousands of acres of good
land now idle. or used only for grazing pur-
poses; it viii increase the strength of the
county, and IN many other respects be ben
cficial On the other hand the large
western and frontier trade that San
Antonio has mOnopolized for the past
twenty-five years, will 90 to other
points. During the above period, San
Antonio has probably done a larger whole
sale trade than any other interior city in the
South, and as a natural consequence the in.
creased facilities for travelling and shipping
will carry this trade to better markets.
This is evidenced in the case of Austin. Be
fore the completion of the Central road to
that place some of the leading merchants
did a large wholesale business. For example
the well known house on the corner of the
Avenue and Bots dare street, sold probably
upon an average $250,000 worth of goods
at wholesale per annum. Since the COM
| pletion of that road most of that trade has
gone on to Galveston, yet what they have
lost In frontier trade, they have made up in
/
do the same, yet the prevailing opinion is
that a road will benefit all the surrounding
country more than San Antonio.
There is little or no Indian news, that is
reliable, afloat. Major II. B. Adams showed
me this morning the accoutrements of the
Indian chief who was killed some time ago
near Fort McKavitt. They consist of a
rawhide shield covered with buckskin,
highly ornamented with paint, feathers and
scalps (there being some four or five of the
latter, one evidently woman from the
length Of the hair, q bow, and j CULVER full
Of arrows, the culver, like the Shield, orna-
mented profusely with paint, feathers and
claws. Three little beaded pouches, one
of them ornamented with two iron rings and a
steel watch key, and containing a file and
material for war paint, complete the outfit.
Major Adams also has his hat, and that hat
is curiosity, common white wool hat,
but surmounted by short bunch Of feath-
aers and painted around the crown in red
and blue are pictures of houses, horses and
men. This hat was sent to the reservation,
and by it the chief was identifcd-proving
that our reservation pets are the ones who
borrow our horses and chair"
w. r. w.