New-York tribune., 1879-05-10

taken. tie men climbing trees, or posting them
selves on hilOcks TO count the cattle scattered nVei
the plains. Almost every night number OF cuiNr'
| are born and the poor creatures. separated IRON
their moi hers. left 10 die OF starvation or nc ne
| voured by wolves, unless z hnmahe neiuSih""
shoots them 10 put them out OF their misery.
While passing through Texas an occaSlonaI
rancho frontier village seen. but once across
the Red River into the Nation as the lndlap err
tory Is called. there Is nothing but vast stretches OF
beautiful ferie,Open country, without signs OF SET
tlemert or culture, or of humln'Hle save now anu
then an Indian encanpment. Inc castie uHcH
rarely have any trouble with the Indians Oi tho y .
ton. Sometimes they are visited by a party Oh
braves who demand toll or pass across then 90
main; ; but their demand Is usually satisfied by me
gilt OF one Of the poorest ANIMALS III the heli'
Sometime in June or Jaiy the drove arrives III lnc
vicinity OF the Kansas Pacific Railroad, and II ski.
fully driven the animals VIII De sleek ana lat anu
ready for shipment To Eastern markets. IL "a SAFE
has not already been effected, the cattle are pastueu
on the Kansas pralres until sold. Then the owner
pays of his men, sells his horses ana wagon Unless
the men return the way they came aud takes the
cars for home, with handsome addition 10 MS
capital and money enOugn 20 live at his ease until
the next driving season. Inc prOnt on each ahihdi
is from - 10 Sl2.
Inc cattle business Of Texas is capable Of almost
indefinite expansion, and is an exceedingly inviting
field for capital provided the capitalist ~ wlugtO
Danish himself from civilization and accept the
loneliness and hardSlps OF - frontier llfe bIadii-
ally the bad reputation Gi Texas cattle IN northern
markets Is being overcome by the Improvement OF
the breed through the lmpOra alton OF DOoded Duls'
Although the ranges are constantly encroacned upon
from the East by agricultural settlement, there ls
no danger that there will be any lack of paStuTage
for many years to come, because there Is an I'M
menSe reserve of good grazing land Still unOccupled
Enthusiastic Texans, eager 10 see Their state
denseiy populated, believe that nearly all tins vast
region will eventually be covered with farms ana
insist that It Is adapted for wheat cul-
ture. The inquiries | have made OF old
settlers on the frontier convince me, how
ever that this will never be the case unless the
climate undergoes an important modification All
of Western and Southwestern Texas rs too dry for
successful agriculture. There are years when the
rains come IN the right season Tor raising wheat,
but they are not frequent or regular enough to be
depeuded on. The eastern limit OF tae present
grazing belt will perhaps recede hundred miles,
but beyond there will always be a vast territory
from which the her,isncn will not be expelled by
the farmers.
WOOL-GROwING on THE NUECFs.
had proposed visiting the wool-growng districts
Oh the lower Nueces. but finding that they are
reached from here only by stage journey of nearly
a hundred miles, across country as barren OF
interest as 1t is destitute of Inhabitants have con-
cluded TO be content with secondhand information.
One-sixth of all the sheep in the State are owned
in Nueces County. The remarkable development
of the ol-growing industry In that county is
probably owing moro TO the mild Winter climate,
and the facilities for the shipment of wool by sea
from Corpus Christi, than to any marked superiority
of the pa-furage. No Winter protection or fodder
is provided for the sheep though the experience Of
the mast Winter shows that II would be prudent to
make some such provision. Many thousand head
died durIng the severe weather, which began before
the lst of January. Some farmers lost hlit their
n1cIs 4 small capital Is sufficient for gong INTO
the wool business, and this fact makes 1t more at
tractive than the cattle business to men of very
moderate means. Mexican ewes can be bought for
90 cents a head in Mexico, and driven across the
country for aSmall expense. \ thousand ewes and
n few MrrnO bucks, costing go each, constitute
n good flock to begin with. No land need be bought,
bnt If the wOOl-grOwer prefers TO own ms own pas
tures instead OF ranging over the unlenced country,
be can purchase rs much land as he desires Tor ~
an acre. one thousand dollars would be liberal
estimate for a house and pen To- protect the hock
at uight from the wolves. Two Mexican shepherds.
rosting SD or SO a month and their board, Will
tend the Iljck. slearlng costs cents head, ana
as II is the custom 10 shear twice year, instead OF
once as i'm the NOrH TIL, item Of expense the first
year viii be 800. The yield of wool will average
six pounds annually, and when the breed lS lm-
proved by the Merino cross lt VIII increase To
eIght. At 80 cents a pound, the return from the
flock the first year viii be 81 800, and the total eX-
pensos. not counting the cost OF living TOR the
ry,rerjs family will not be over $500 This leaves
4 800 profit on an investment Of about 5000;
ana there must be added the increase OF the Hook,
estimated at 70 per cent after dedHcting ordinary
losses In will be seen from these hgures that the
business is remarkably good one, as lar as the
remuneration is concerned. Its drawbacks are the
srab and the screW-wOrm. The scab IS too familiar
10 Northern farmers to need description. Ii seems
to be more prevalent ana fatal here than III the
North. The screw-worm Is the product OF iiy that
deposits its III raw places on both cattle and
sheep. 1T the eggs allowed to hatch, the worms
penetrate TO the yIas OF the animals ana speedily
kill them. The remedy is TO wash all raw places
with carb0c ointment. lhe screw-worm IS sald
TO be rs fatal TO man as to beasts, and instances
are related of men being stung by the lily IN their
sleep Oh some scratch wound, and dying ia lew
days from the Iilyages If the worms
A comparison OF catte-rdsing and wOOl-growing
IN Southwestern Texas would show that, IN proper
ton To the capital required one industry Is about
as profitable as the oGAer The former involves
more isolated, active and adventurous existence
than the latter, but both are attractive 10 people
vino desire to get Iar away from cities and clTiila-
.ion and lead a free lie IN the open air III
climate where snow is unknOwn and trOstS seldom
comc and who want at the same time to see their
means increase rapidly, so as To make retnrn to
the busy haunts of men practicable and pleasant
az some future dav when they may tire OF the conf
pauionship oI docks and herds. E.Y 5.