The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-07-19
HOW A POTTER THINKERS FALSE
HOOD.

4
HOOD. e
One A. l.. Potter, who writes 10
,oleman's RuraIW orld, from LaMotte,
a., pretends to be ready to give in
ormation about Texas, and invites {
hose desiring it to write to him pri-
yately. His attempt, as may be seen,
S to induce people not to go to Texas,
While all that he says about Texas is
n an undetermined, sneaking sort of
style. 1t appears as though he knows
well enough that he presents false
hoods, and is therefore ashamed of his
public effort, and covets the oppor-
tunity to tell what he would say with
as much secrecy as possible. He writes:
The description of Williamson
county, as published in the Rural
World, had induced me to open cor
with parties there, and
thither / Steered my course to find a
climate and soil that would so far
surpass my Iowa home as to justify |
my removal to so great distance.
Now that 1 have "seen the ele-
phant," let me whisper in the ear
of your Dakota correspondent, and
as many more of your readers as
are developing febrile symptoms
sober second thought" before leaving
for this Eldorado of Southern land
fHhnrn THINGS
worse than thirty degrees below zero.
The last winter in Iowa. though the
coolest in the history of the state, has
nevertheless been one of the health
lest and most enjoyable of them all.
Who would not prefer our fieecy
snow and good sleighing to the abom-
Unable mire of Texas winter? Who
would prefer the sudden changes and
piercing Northers of Texas to the
steady cold weather of Iowa? Would
a northern man enjoy blowing when
no amount of persuasion will induce
your plow to scOur? Can you well get
along with no perennial grass? Can
you afford to do without apples or
irish potatoes? The fact is, but few
Northern farmers will move to Texas
if they will see for themselves before
DIlcN 1AN DuU l. OIu hOO OO w IL
to write letter about Texas, but
about my cane. If, however, any of
your readers are seeking information
about the Lone Star State and
would care for the observations of an
Iowa farmer, they have my adj
dress and can reach me by mail.
There was nothing told in thew orld's
description of Williamson county but
the truth, and, though the report was
as full as such reports generally are,
many favorable things were left un-
mentioned. We do not deny that
this man Potter was in Texas and in
Williamson county, but we are decid-
eddy inclined to suspect his motives
in visiting Texas. The Northwest
has land agents as well as Texas; and
though this Potter may not be one
of these, the suspicion is strong that
he is acting in their interest, and that
he is paid to insinuate false
hood in the public prints, and
the supposition is that he invites pri-
vate correspondence that he may deal
out falsehood by the running yard.
There are many things" says this
Potter, "worse than thirty degrees
below Zero" and "worse things" are
reserved for his private correspond
ence, in which freezing falsehoods
may be rated as good many degrees
colder than the winter temperature of
Iowa. Be this as it may, a good many
people from Iowa express themselves
differently from this Potter. They
come to Texas, with the hectic
flush upon their cheeks, to
seek prolongation of precious
life, often wholly recovering, even
under the influence of sudden
changes" in Texas, health that has
been undermined by the STEADY cold''
of the Northwest. "But few Northern
farmers will move to Texas if they
will see for themselves before they
invest" says the insinuating Potter,
and when he says this, he no
doubt knew, that taking the
line of the International rail-
way as southern boundary, and
the Red River as the northern limit,
one-half the men who now conduct
farms in all that vast region are
northern farmers, who have come to
Texas, and, after looking for them
selves, invested; and none of
these people think of selling out their
farms at an increased valuation
and moving back to the cold
North. There they are making crops
of wheat and cotton on the same
land in one season, crops of corn and
haydn the same period; three crops of
sorghum in one year; and when the
winter time comes with its sudden
changes" live stock remains upon the
range and finds its own living, the
most careful farmers never finding
it necessary to feed any unemployed
cattle more than three months of each
year. would a Northern man enjoy
blowing when no amount of persua-
sion will induce your pillow to scour?'
asks the Potter. The chocolate lands
of Williamson county are very much
like the very best prairie lands of the
Northwest, which So delight the
working farmer, who is there con-
fined to cropping season of between
four and five months, against one of
one of eight or nine months
in Texas. AS to the scour-
ing, it may be presumed
the designing Potter sought out some
antediluvian utensil, handled by some
representative of the forty acre and
a mule" element, which no doubt |
claimed his especial favor. The gen.
erously inclined might conceive for
him such comp anionship, but THE
thinks his contract was
to misrepresent. "Can you well get
along with no perennial grass ?"
again insinuates the Potter.
and it might be answered that where
there is perpetual gr-ss of the best
sort, the perennial might be dispensed
with. But the perennial grasses of
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