Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1885-12-31
C0MANCHE.
A Clear and Comprehensive Statement
Of what Comanehe County Is
and win Be.
The De Leon Express Robbery stiii Talked
About--How Christmas Was
Celebrated.


Correspondence OF the Gazette.
CoAfANCAE, TEX, Dec. 20 .-Now is the
season when one feels the full force of the
remark attributed to country editor
after Thanksgiving dinner, cts All
STUFF Christmas came and saw, and
the turkeys were conquered. The slaugh-
ter is not yet over, and neither Is the IN
digestion produced by the first onset.
Times never get hard enough In Texas TO
keep anybody from having Santa Claus,
turkey, Christmas trees, and all the usual
etceteras Of the season. Comanche is no
execution The merchants have all been
rushed during the past week, even
with double their usual force OF clerks
The Baptist church and the college were
both crowded TO their utmost capacity by
the Christmas tree gatherings aud both
passed OF with perfect success. There
we're several private trees in town which
were also well attended. Our mountain
cedars furnish the crude material Tor
symmetrical trees which, when decorated
with that taste so Characteristic of the
female sex, believe cannot be surpassed
by any other evergreen.
The holidays thus far have passed off
very quietly. barring the usual fireworks
and tin trumpets among the boys. Not
more than two or three men among the
hundreds who have been in town have
been seen even partially intoxicated. In
! fact, our county will compare fayorably
with any other upon this point. Gene
I rally speaking our citizens are upright,
moral thinking people. Perhaps one
evidence of this is their appreciation OF
THE GAZETTE. | am credibly informed
that It's circulation and sales here are
about ten TO one of any other daily,
which either proves that 1t is the best, or
that the people are stupid.
Comanche county has eleven post
Offices besides the county site, to each OF
which large delivery is tributary. Sipe
! Springs and DeLeon are both flourish
! ing towns, the former being about
| twenty miles northwest of here, and
having reached its present size and pros
perity solely by the fertility of the sur
rounding country, and without the inter-
vening help of any railroad. Among the
! institutions of which she is proud, Is a
council of the Friends of Temperance,
which claims now to be the Oldest in the
state, its organization dating back num-
| Der of years. De.seon Is the only railroad
! town in the county, though we nope she
| will not be able to boast that distinction
more than year or two longer if the Fort
Worth & Rio Grande road succeeds in
getting off from paper to the ground.
| Speaking of DeLeon, rumors are still
ahoat of various kinds in reference
to the express robbery committed
there the last of October, but nothing
tangible has developed itself as yet
Hazel Dell is one of the oldest settle
ments in the county, but its proximity to
the Central road has checked its growth,
the railroad towns cutting off its sup
port. Whlttyille is in the western edge,
next to Brown, and has large delivery.
/ Newhurg is of more recent development,
bu. already boasts n nrst-class school, 4
! Touring mill, store or two and Il pros
porous Masonic lodge. 1t is on the
/ Lampasas road, ten miles from here.
| Bib0 MERGERS Gap, Fleming, Lam
kin, Dingler and Sloan are
scattered around In various portions
Of the county, all thriving settlements
! IL IS probably not an unsafe estimate to
put the population of the county at from
10000 to $4,000. When it is remembered
that no longer than twelve years ago the
Indians made a successful raid into the
county, and that the entire population die
not exceed few hundred, while west o
us was an undeveloped wilderness, un
known to settlers, saving the few olt
, pioneers who felt crowded If man set
! tied within fifty miles OF them, the gr0wt
OF Comanche county will not be consid
/ cred much short of an absolute wonder.