The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1883-05-31
VOL. XII.

walnut, while occasionally buckeye
and pine appears. Near the boundary
line of the county is found splendid
body of pine, covering space OF coun-
try about five by eight miles. The
underground in this quarter of the
county is light and scattering, but the
surface is carpeted by vegetation that
indicates depth of soil. The grasses
afford good grazing, here and there
being found sprig of the rescue
grass growing in the woods, and one
place we noticed in a field, unculti-
waited for two years, this grass had
taken the place of other growth and
formed substantial sod. The clover
and spotted medick grow wild here,
as they do in all parts of this county.
In the southeastern quarter of the
county we first saw this
sf- WILD NATIVE CLOVER.
1t was shown us first by b. I. Mont
gomery and j. H.. Garrison. On un-
fenced lands it is small, but in lots
and uneultivated yards we found it
from six to thirty inches in height.
1t has been in the county six or eight
years, and is now steadily replacing
other wild vegetation. We found two
different kinds of wild clover, and re-
ferred them to the Department of
Agriculture at Washington. On the
9th of May, 1883, was received the fol-
lowing reply:
rs" Your letter of the 26th ult. and
the specimens of clover have been re-
ceived and referred to the Botanist Of
the Department, who reports that the
small package in brown paper is Trl-
fOlium Caroliniauum-a true clover,
but of short, small growth. The other
packages contained Medicago Macu-
lata or spotted medick-nOt true
clover, but allied to it, and well
known valuable forage plant.
as Respectfully,
.4i- ~ -a. =. GEO. b. LORING,
?, = -stss..t-e Commissioner"
With this depression, we will COM
mence the regular description of the
second quarter of the county. About
the middle of this fourth there is u
small section OF thin, gray sandy soil,
where the pine predominates, and in
walking over it we found the under
growth thick and small and the grasses
light. All the other gray land here is
about the same as that mentioned in
the first quarter, except, perhaps, the
timber is of a slightly larger growth.
In the southeast we strike body of
mellow, dark red land, running east
and west about eighteen miles and
north and south about seven miles.
This is probably the most excellent
land in the county, though it COM
mandS no higher price, and by many
IS not regarded as superior to the
choice gray and chocolate lands, and
some claim the ahuvial land exeels all.
We first saw this red land at G. L.
Falkner'S farm. In approaching his
place, the unusual size and thriftiness
of his apple, peach and pear trees at
tracted our attention. Next we saw
a walnut grove deadened in his field,
then beyond the field on the ridge and
in the valley of the Golden Drain we
saw the richest growth and finest va
riety of timber that ever before greet
ed our eyes. Leaving the saddle and
temporarily deserting our guide, we
walked through the woods and made
the following note in our memoran-
dunn book: "Haws, slippery elm, SUI
gar maple, hickory, white oak, linn,
mdlberfy, dogwood, redbud, sassafras,
walnut, cherry, gum, beach, papaw
and other fine egrowths not familiar to
us" On resuming the saddle, we re-
marked to our guide, DR.. Scruggs,
that if it were not for appearing irrev-
erent, we would remove our shoes to
stand on
' SO THIS HOLY LAND,
As, did Moses before the burning
bush. We, were then far into the
dark red land country. AT the base
Of Howlett's Hill we paused, at 3. H.
Bateman's attractive farm, and on
foot .ascended the hill, which is about
three hundred feet high. The ascent
is gradual, the soil a deep, dark red,
occasionally black and, strange to say,
even to the crest of the hill, we found
the. growth almost as fine as that
on the Golden Drain. This
hill would produce fruit and grapes
every year in, a century, and the south
market by the first of April. All of
this dark red upland is uniformly fine,
and in places tie timber is of unusual
size. z. B. Garrison [all persons so
far named can be addressed at Law
sonyilIel has, where this red land
and the black bottom. land on the
Golden Drain intersect, about the
best farm in Eastern Texas. He in
formed US that, in his neighborhood,
a saWmill could be prohtably run, ex-
clusively in saving walnut, cherry and
ash lumber. A famous walnut is in
these parts, which measures at its
base four feet in diameter and is sixty
feet high to the first limb. There is
another walnut in the northern part
of the county supposed to be larger,
but notso tall The northeastern part
of the county has very fine gray and
chocolate, land, with very large timber,
growth Of good varieties. The pine
and oak here grow unusually large.
About five miles east of the center
(city of Henderson, of the county there
is a small body of poor land similar to
that described in the southeastern
fourth, except that it is covered by
larger sized pinery and considerable
of 1t is cultivated, its occupants claim
ing that it is but slightly affected by
extreme dry weather. The perpetual
running springs on it are remarkably
numerous. In the extreme northeast
the second bottom black land, border
ing on the Sabine River, is very rich.
On Martins Creek and Cherokee
Bayou there is found considerable
North of the center of
the county is another poor district,
but beyond this lies another quantity
of red land. If together, it would be
about five by ten miles square. This
differs from the red land in the south,
as it is some stiffer and, instead of
dark, has bright red color. 1t is ex-
ceedingly productive, but the native
growth on it is not quite so varied. In
all the northern part Of the county, in
the past few years, a peculiar wild
winter grass, resembling blue grass,
has become common and valuable, it
seeding itself 1t dies early in May,
leaving the ground enriched and light
for cultivating. In the northwestern
quarter the chocolate, and gray soils
obtain, the former, perhaps predomin-
ating; and in all of this fourth is good
land, the growth being as good, if not
better, than that in the southwest.
On Mill, Carey and Towiska creeks
grows the birch to large size, and
these, are the only streams that have
on their borders the cypress, being
found here considerable in size and
quantity. Our remarks so far apply
almost wholly to, upland. aH 80
az -d THE BOTTOM LANDS.
On all the streams heretofore men
toned are similar-a rich, mellow,
deep, black alluvial soil, which grows
the finest varieties of timber and pro-
d1scnu aa vyall as anv h0ttnm land in