San Marcos free press. [volume] (San Marcos, Tex.) 1877-1892, 1879-06-14
Some Corrections.

On our OutSluc pdgco We WY WV
greater part of the letter of Mr.. Small
10y, special correspondent OF the New
York Tribune, concerning this region,
emitting chiefly its personalities. We
do this first, because there is much in
the letter that is correct, and will be
of interest to our readers at distance;
and second, that we may correct some
misstatements of the writer. The
Journey he describes was made in Feb
ruary, when the country presented its
most unprepossessing phase, and a
traveller passing hastily through is liza
BILE, with the best intentions, to make
mistakes.
But allowing for these palliating
circumstances. they will not explain
some of the most Objectionable features
of the letter. To appreciate the ami
mus of them it must be recollected
that the Tribune, though still bearing
at its mast. head, FOUNDED BY HoR-
ACE GREELEY" again breathes very
different spirit from that which char
acterized the latter years of that great
man, and has deganerated into a thor
ough-going partisan sheet OF the
bloody shirt" order. And to make
political capital was clearly a part Of
the business of its late special CORES
pondent in Texas.
This fact sticks out" mainly in his
gross perversion of the truth in his ac-
count of Hays county. We do not OBJ
ject at all to his praises of Comal coun
ty and its worthy German people,
though we shrewdly surmise they
were prompted to a considerable degree
by the superstition, however mistaken,
that they were mainly of the writer's
own political school. But how, for
instance, could he so totally fail to see
the fine Stringtown country of Hays,
through which he passed directly,
reaching almost to the line of Comal,
and certainly lot surpassed, to say the
least, in attractions and improvements
by any part of the latter county, yet
settled nearly entirely by Americans
who direct their own business, and to
q large extent do their own work, with
no special reference 10 "the negro and
the mule?" 1t is this spirit of iujus
tice and spite towards everything which
he supposed to be Southern, which is
revealed in various parts of the letter,
to which we chiefly object. Horace
Greeley would have scorned such in.
justice and littleness, aud it is totally
unworthy great newspaper like the
Tribune.
We will now proceed to notice some
of the minor mistakes of this writer.
His statement that the wheat crop, in
this part Of Texas, was nearly ruined
last year by rains, and that -four made
of it sells at So barrel less than that
brough; from s.. Louis, will be news
here. as also that our Irish potatoes
are 30 watery aud spongy as to be
scarcely ft to eat The wheat crop
here was immense and good, the best
natiy. -four is worth only small irac.
ton less than that !rou ST Louis, aud
our Irish potatoes are exempt from the
charges inside. aud really are very good.
Passing by the writer's mistake 10
locating the source Of the Guadalupa
IN the sane line with that of the Co.
nal, san Marcos, de-, We will Just no
iice his evident and luiicrous bluuder
IN getting our Institute building and
Court House mixed. the former being
clearly tie lofty castle Ike building