The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1882-04-27
CRUDE VIEWS OLE TEXAS

the various ideas of our state and name
OF life prevalent in eastern and European
circles could be gathered together in vol
ume. Aside from those residents of tn,
old or northern and eastern states who
have Of late years visited Texas, the entire
mass of their people, ignorant or intelli
gent, cling to the theory that here is the
seat OF whatever is left Of standardization
in America, that the only objects visible
are countless thousands Of long-horned
steers and Mexican ponies and the big
hated and spurred cowboy and his nat
ural enemies the redskins and
Mexican cattle thieves. As for health and
climate, they suppose that we have nothing
but malaria and tropical sunshine, Every
resident of Texas who has Travelled, at all
extensively, outside our state will bear us
out in the statement that such are really
the views OF four-iifths Of the people Of the
older sections. We can excuse such ig-
norance on the part of Europeans, most of
whom regard all America as wild, but the
| question, in view of such absurd ideas, 20
| tar as our own citizens are concerned
as to what good are newspapers and
| free schools, becomes very peril
nent one. Every fifteen, year old
school girl ought to know that Texas is now
one of the grandest, most populous and
prosperous most orderly and progressive
states in the American Union supplied
with the various comforts and appliances Of
modern life, blessed with an unusually in
tclligcnt and industrious population, free
from savages or cut-throats, and as intre.
qucntly treated to the sight of the revolver
as in Ohio or Illinois. Not to know these
things throughout America now. is very
discrcditable commentary on public schools
and the intelligence OF the people
outside of Texas. We are in recent
of letter from Old England, only one
of scores of such constantly received
from everywhere, in which some rather
amusing queries are put. For instance,
the writer, apparently an intelligent man
and excusable because n foreigner, wants to
know in behalf of the fair sex, particu-
larly, whether the Indians are dangerous
and troublesome" also "what is the con-
dtion of the state as to law and order, or
what protection is afforded to agriculturists
or others isolated from towns" and last,
but not least, "in what portions of the state
does Professionalism most prevail ?" and
generally, what man could do in
Texas. The residents of Texas are
of late so much in the habit of contempla-
ting with pride and infinite satisfaction our
magnificent showing from n progressive
and civilized standpoint, our big census
returns, our railroads, our telegraph, our
newspapers, beautiful and metropolitan
and pushing cities, with a religion and
labor, hearty welcome and an open and
unmolcsted field of vas. possibilities for
every one, that ii lisa fearful blow to our
pardonable vanity to have the out
side world constantly poking these
remarkable questions at us. We can.
not but repeat the pathetic re.
irain Of disappointment, "What is fame,
after all?' Underneath this ignorance of
other sections, as TO the west, or of the
west as TO the east and south, or, in short,
of one section of another, lies the secret of
much that has heretofore not only cmbit.
tered the politics of the country, but re-
tardcd to an alarming extent the material
development of the south and southwest.
We do not sufficiently know each other,
and it strikes us that il would be wise in
the common schools of the land to use
more extensively textbooks und instruc.
tons which would teach Amer ca to Ameri.
cans, and pay less attention to the victories
and butcherles of the ancients
and the history of the Greek letter di.
gamma, The Yale graduate comes out
with his diploma believing Texas wild,
and the Texan, or Iouisianian, has about
as accurate views of Vermont us the Peru.
Wan has af Canada. Inaccuracies of inlor.
nation aud errors Of thought ought TO sug.
gest the true points for the pedagCguc's at.
tcntion, but these latter seem to be US much
in the dark as the pupils lfTcxas and the
south were properly understood their popu.
lation In the next decade would be astound
ing, and they would dominate the Union,
but as 1t is, In the absence OF any organized
effort to inform the world correctly, II Is
likely that We will continue for some tim,
connected In tho worlds thought with pis.
tolls and Apaches.
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