The weekly democratic statesman. [volume] (Austin, Tex.) 1871-1883, 1880-04-08
aow AUSTIN MAY PRosPER

HOW AUSTIN MAY PROSPER.
There are no more fertile lands than
these of Travis county, and that entire
section OF country which has been or
is now tributary to the capital city.
With the impetus given the place by
the completion Of one railway IN 1872,
1t grew within two or three years from
q town OF six OF seven thousand inhsb-
itsnts ta be city with q busy popu,s-
tion of $4,000. I.s star was all the
time rapidly ascending, and so it
would have continued to ascend had
its people, as they should have done,
gone earnestly to work in assisting ma
tuTe ani outside human Influences in
developing it into q place of great
prosperity and Of unoqualed attractions.
L. required railroad towards the
northwest, ss soon as the International
approached us, to hold the trade of a
vest section, for many years tributary
to Austin, and 800, 900 invested in
such an enterprise would have saved
property -holders in the rental Of busi-
ness property alone in this city two or
three times this sum annually. 1t re-
Quilted grestly improved wagon roads
10 induce Shippers 10 send their cotton
and wool and hides over the hills west
of Round Rock towards Austin, and
$40, 900 spent on one road alone would
have saved the city a great amount of
trade, but not enough money could be
raised to properly grade and mscadam-
iZe road to the foot of the hills
four miles to the westward of Austin.
A railroad from Austin to Burnet
would even now go great way to-
wards restoring to us much that has
been lost, but the STATESMAN has said
so much about such an enterprise,
without the least effect, it fears that
much reference to 1t again would
only lend to display the utter cal
tousness of Austin's wealthy men to
Austln's best interests. A railway will
reach Burnet and Lsmpasss and Brown
wood and the Texas and Pacific rail-
way, in time, but we greatly fear that
not a pound Of freight passing
over that road will ever come
nearer Austin than Round Rock.
A great productive region must have
quick intercourse with the business
world, but Austin, it is greatly feared,
will remain passive while channels tC
it from oth@ cities are being opened,
and while grass grows on the highways
that once presented perpetual and
pleasing pageant OF heavily laden cara
vans. But, as is SAID in the beginning
of this-article, Austin is located in che
midst OF rich agricultural region, the
perfect development of which would
give to the city a permanent degree Of
prosperity. To develop this section,
to make all these rich. rolling prairie!
TEEN with vast product, city AM
country must combine. We must haYt
great water power on the banks o
the Colorado river, within the corpo
rate limits of Austin. Mexico, in
stead of being q section of the city de
voted to novels and dens and sombre
ros and spurs and whisky and frailty
should be converted into an industri
Gus quarter, with the plunge of waite
and the roar Of wheels, and the hun
of spindles and the click of cards. In
stead of very worthless population
infesting the first wsrd, it should b.
the center of Industries giving employ
ment to thousands of men and womeI
and children. Instead of the music o
the six-shooter and the dragging o
dead men out of brothrls, this place
should be made attractive with the de
lightful hum OF machinery, and th'
rolling out of bales of cloth and leath
er and barrels of -four and oil. Thest
things may be accomplished in very
few years if our people will only com
bine in Efforts to accomplish such de-
sired ends, and by adopting system
of liberality towards capital that may
seek investment here. One of the YerJ
first things to be done is to establish S
water power, that the manufacturing
world may know that they can estab-
lish mills within our clty's limits within
reach Of vast cotton and whes. fields
aud large flocks. Then we may
begin to retrieve what has been
lost, and then we may have these rail.
roads, We have been trying to have
built, constructed by people of other
sections, that they msy have an easy
approach to excellent markets, created
by manufactures. Not pound OF
cotton nor of wool, nor Of cotton seed,
and not a bushel of grain from
fifty to hundred miles from Austin
should be permitted, In ten years
from now, to go beyond tins city until
converted into yarns and cloth, and
oil and -four. II any one contemplate
putting money into cotton compress,
let him conclude TO change the order
of ira lie and by starting cotton mill,
eYen on smsll scale, plant a nucleus
around which will gather enterprises
of sufficient magnitude to defy raii-
ways whose tracks pass through our
city, and to make them tributary to
Austin, instead Of Austin being wholly
tributary to the railroads.
GOING TO BE GOVERNOR.
N