The San Antonio light. (San Antonio, Tex.) 1883-1886, 1885-07-24
UYALDE.
A CORRESPONDENTS impress
SION OF THE TOWN.
Delightful Place Cooling BPeeLes
Splendid Fishing The
Nueces River

Edltor SAN Antonio Light.
UvAtpE, July 2l.--Iour correspondent
left San Antonio on the evening train Of
the nth instant, arriving here (92 miles)
ut the very inconvenient hour OF mid
sight. The returning trains also pass
here between II and n. IN.
shall endcavnr to give you brief
description of this pleasant town. II is
undoubtedly American In its origin,
Judging from the manner in which II is
laid of. The blocks being large, regular
squares. wide streets crossing each other
at right angles and running nearly east
and west; also good sized alleys quarter
ing every square. The plaza is fully as
large as our Main and Military plazas
combined. On it are situated the court
house and jail, each built Of stone.
Besides these there is also the main mar
ket. This, however, Is II wooden build
ing. Surrounding the plaza and in Its
vicinity are the business houses, each,
apparently. well stocked, and as one Of
them states on its sign, "with every
thing you want"
Except in the vicinity of the plaza the
houses mostly present the appearance of
isolated country residences. This Is
owing partly to the liberal dimensions OF
the lots and streets, and also TO the In
Vulnerable large live oaks and mesquite
trees which Intervene, diminishing views
in all direction and making 1t appear
that one Ia In the country instead Of n
town. The truth Is Uvalde IL built In
the midst OF IL beautiful grove OF live
oaks and mesquite trees. II Is alto
gelher quiet, lovely and healthy town,
daily famed by the strong sea breczes of
the coast. and with nights so delightful
ly cool that bed covering OF some kind
Is n necessity, and with no mosquitoes to
fret one during the delightful and re-
freshing sleep which necessarily follows.
And on sabbath day the church bells
tell that they are also n religious people
and worship God either ne Methodists,
Roman Catholics. Presbyterians, Camp
bellites, Episcopalians and Baptists, etc.
Its large two-story public school house
with n State Normal school now holding
session IN II, proclaims loudly enough
that this people take large stock In edu-
cutiOnal matters also.
such il pleasant, quiet, hOspitable
UyHlde. Like rs u beautiful modest
maid adorns her father home, so does
Uyalde adorn our Texas.
do not know the origin of the name
nor its meaning, but is 1t not smooth
sweet sounding name suitable for II
girl who will be the first to adopt 1t?
Uvalde.
Through the kindness of some friends
your writer met with one Of those de-
lightfully pleasant incidents in life
which can never be forgotten. lie re-
grets his inability to draw the penpiC-
ture it merits
On theafternoon ofthe 18th instant, to-
gethrr with Major G.. II. Cunningham,
DR.. ;. y. Applewhite and W. II. Beau
mont and several liltlc boys for pelon,
we went out southwest OF this place
about IL miles and 0ampcd out on the
NeuGes river, all intent on catching fish,
but it afterwards turned out that there
were only two or three fishermen in our
company, viz, Messrs. Cunningham and
Applewhite. Else we might have sent
you mess ofsome of the prettiest trout
you ever saw, as 1t was though we only
got enough for ourselves.
The sun was setting when we reached
the Neuces, and the roaring OF water
falls greeted our ears us we neared Its
bank, on which was beautiful grove of
pecan trees.
The river at this point Is possibly 10
yards wide, with ledge of rock running
diagonally across 1t about eight or twelve
inches below its surface, thus making
n beautiful Rapids, and the water so
clear we could easily see to the depth
of several feet. At about 800 yards above
this point was the nearest fall, and 30
yards higher up was still another, each
reaching almost entirely across the
river. The lower fall had the appear
ance of being caused by volanic crup-
ton, throwing up and across the bed Of
river mass OF what now
appears to once have been mol
ten rock, and through which the water
has cut channels from twelve to eighteen
inches deep, thus making the actual fall
of water about three or three and one
half feet. At this fall we caught one
fish. Such beautiful trout, averaging in
length about eight inches.
The peculiar appearance and color Of
the rocky mass on which we stood, and
over which the crystal waters fell, had
attracted attention from the first, re-
minding one OF asphalt or bitumen, and
now close examination proved II TO he
| 20, mixed, however, with rock and sand,
| but In some Instances the pu e mineral
tar coed out of the cracks and lissures.
| some one who Is prospecting In this
| vicinity for coal told me that the bed OF
/
below the falls, and that this, together
with slate, also found here, are good in
dications of coal.
The most novel and interesting sight
that we Witnessed was the little min
nOws ascending the falls A school of
these baby trout each from two and IL
hall TO trree Inches long, would us-
semblo at II point Just under the falls
whore the wafer did not ru.h over so
violently, and from thence would spring
out of the water directly towards the
upper edge Of the falls, and almost el cry
time would safely reach the basin OF
winter ut the top, then suddenly dis
appear up the sw lift current. This may
seem to some persons as incredible as
llsh stories very often are; but 1t is
never theless true. Eventually those OF
us who could not fish fell to doing other
things necessary to complete our com.
fort, and soon we had our camp fire
burning, coffee boiled and fish fried
Then ali OF us assembled to enjoy Il de.
llghtlul feast by the light of the moon
ana stars, served and eaten, however, In
prlmatrre style, n large stone slab fol
our fish dish and fingers for forks. But
the beauties, comforts and convenience,
OF our camping place surpassed every
thing Of The kind | ever saw. The
beautiful grove Of pecans, under which
we were camped, had the full benefit OF
our delightful coast breeZes, there be
ing no distractions whatsoever on the
west bank of the river, being Il prairi,
country up to the waters edge; thus W,
were so pleasantly famed that neither
the heat nor smoke of our camp fire an
nOyed us. AS some one suggested, thi,
beautiful place might well be named
"CamD Paradise But oyerVtbinp musl