The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1888-04-07
HOME OF A TEXAS MISSIONARY.
BY MRS. NJ. c. Billings.
tEIicO, Texas.)

A woman without home, is like an
uprOoted garden plant, blown over the
ground from place to place, losing fresh
ness and vitality. 1t is movement with
out life-or that finer essence of it, that
can only be enjoyed when planted in
the friendly soil of a permanent domes-
ticity.
Such being our feeling, after year
of change without an abiding place in
our mission work, we hailed with glad
satisfaction the time when these four
walls of our little martin box of house
were reared and the venerable mission
ary and his co-laborer were installed in
veritable home. Then happily did we
realize that we were actually planted in
The soil of this great southwestern
State, and that thereafter, if our ''days
were long or short in the land, 1--WE could
make them yield better record for
service in this mission, than an timer
ant life could do-though we were to
live scores of years, longer without
this sheltering place for rest and COM
fert-all our own.
Thus, for two years have we ''dwelt
beneath our own vine and fig tree"-in
fgurative sense-going out and com
ing in as the duties of our calling have
required. And thus with home at
mosphere to nourish and sustain our in
dividuality, and with its quietude and
restful influence to recuperate brain
and nerves when oyer-weary, we have
found this chosen retreat blessing.
We are settled in a young, orderly,
small, wooded town in the heart of
Texas, where the Bosque river winds,
below its high, forest fringed banks,
around two sides of the village, where
the stumps of primevaltr still stand
in the streets and common. \ settle
ment mostly of young families not
rich in this worlds goods but, in good
times, making a comfortable living, ac-
cording to Southern ideas. Social,
kindly and pleasant people are they ALL
Where could we find a better loca-
ton in which to set up our household
gods, and weave the warp and woof
of daily life? So we thought, and SO
the experience of these twice twelve
months has confirmed our first self in
terrogation.
Not c0lored family in the place.
This seemed a strange omission in the
makeup of a Southern community.
Subsequent experience has induced
favorable opinion of the wisdom of the
founders of Hico in this matter,
though it looked cruel to US at first, to
deny these people homes among us.
The class that would come in are of the
shiftless, lazy sort, that would be detri-
mental to the place and could find
plenty of room elsewhere. Poor white
people, industrious, and worthy, need
ed all the work that could be furnished,
and were fairly entitled to hold the
ground, while, as yet, so few could Ob-
tain support
A branch of the Central Texas Rail
road, having a station here, has built
up the town in a large measure, while
it is the business center of a wide agIi-
cultural district, dependent upon it for
its supplies and upon the railroad for
shipment. No rowdyism, no danger of
theft or burglary here. We 90 to bed
leaving windows open and door un-
fastened, fearing no evil" While in
human society there are always some
elements of wrong, probably our quiet
community Of eight hundred souls is
not exempt from this rule
But we ask ourselves, where is the
municipal corporation, however small,
where mayor and aldermen give their
services without money value; or city
marshall, who is content to receive
for his more arduous work, such COM