Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-09-10
THE LONE STAR STATE.
Bishop Goodsell Talks on Phases
of Life and Work in Texas.
Some of the Resources of that Great State.
His Field of Work in the world-Views on
the Negro and Mexican.
New Haven Conn. } Journal.

Texas. He preached at. both services 10
large congregations that listened atten-
lively. His style of preaching, SO foroi-
bic and SIMPLE, Is of unusual interest.
Especially SO was his talk in the evening
upon "Some Phases of Life and Work in
Texas
In our branch of the work in Texas we
do not have diocesan bishops. They are
of equal authority everywhere. and have
the world as their field. There are six
teen of the principal cities which ara
named by the council and among these
places sixteen bishops, if there be that
number, select their places for residing
IN order of seniority, but it is merely for
residence and does not constitute
diocese.
My residence is Fort Worth, but my
field of Labor is the world. ! may be
called even to go to Africa or Japan. l
have been called here in New Haven the
bishop of Texas. l am not even Meth
odist Episcopal bishop of Texas, but
simply bishop of the Methodist Episco-
| pal church residing in Fort Worth, Tex.
| Texas is now name that is on men 3
| lips as that of n state with a great fut-
ure in store. Not long ago Its name was
| rather held in contempt and of small
worth. There is yet much incorrect in
| formation concerning the noted Lone
| Star state of the UGion. Our first i'm
| preston is that it is large state, but
| even in that we have not a very clear
conception. The inhabitant of Texas is
as proud of the size of his state as we
were wont sometime ago to feel proud of
| the extent of our whole country. What
| W pf q which
! enter a car at $3.50 a. m. and ride all
! day and then on till l O'Clock the next
| afternoon. and by the fastest express at
| that? ] would not wish you to go down
| to Texas and suggest the practicability
of dividing that state into two or more
smaller ones. l don Z think you would
return in the best of health. They want
TO make it the grandest as well as the
largest state of the Union. Its climate is
varied in different localities, allowing
| one 10 take his choice from the
delightfully."- temperate to tropic
| heat. The. climate is most uni
versaliy healthy aud invigorating.
! That famous institution, the Tex
| as cowboy, is fast disappearing. The
condition of things is changing. The
! land is fast being fenced in with barbed
wire and the cowboys duties are now
| Culeul " Tllc dllAl SG6 ~ Iu6 COu-
| dltiop OF the fences. Its early settle
ment was largely from the adjoining
| Southern states, but since the advent of
the railroads, its population has largely
| increased, which has given an impetus to
all the branches Of agriculture and some
! manufacturing. i will say it if it does
sound q little bit big, that there it fertile
| land in Texas to raise enough to feed
! the nation: there was more than l,75O,-
| 600 bales of cotton raised last year, and
! il is expected that it will be over 2 ,000,-
| 900 this year. The eastern portion of the
| state is sandy, with white pine plentiful.
| When further west there Is black fer
| tile streak, then more arid tract;
| further TO the northwest is some of the
| beat wheat land in all America, where is
| an immense area of pasture lands and
also large tracts that only need to have
| water to be valuable.
The western part as well as the north
eastern is billy, with peaks SO high as
| 5000 or 10 900. Here lie mineral depos-
| its of untold wealth. The state has
| gained in larger proportion II the last ten
| years than any other Southern state. It
has gained in that time about 600 900.
! and has a population at present of over
| 3 $50 900. The northern portion is beng
| rapidly filled up with Northern people,
! and here is an example of great progress
| and energy. The town of Dallas has finer
! buildings for business purposes than any
| in New Haven. There is now no trouble
from the Indians, as the Comanches
were removed from the state some years
| ago by the government. The Mexican
element of the population is about 40 600,
| nearly all of whom live in squalid sur
| roundings. They are Roman Catholics
| and hard to get at for Protestant in
! fuences. They are respectful toward
| the government. The Southerner con-
sidsrs him to be a white man but not the
same kind of a white man as he ID him.
felt. There are about 20, 900 negroes in
| the state. l believe the condition of the
black man is better in Texas than in any
other of the southern states. The state
| gives them good schools and the law is
made TO respect their condition of Cit
| Zenship. If troubles of a race kind occur
| it is more inthe remote rural districts.
| One great thing in favor of this race is
| their hunger after knowledge. They
send their children TO the best schools in
! their power. These people occupy q
peculiar position. On the one side are
the whites, who have from generations
back inherited feeling that they had a
| right to own the blacks, and also felt
that it was moral responsibility Now
the blacks are suddenly emanoipated and
put on an equality with his former mas
ter. There have been strained relations
and acts of violence, but l Will say thar
| the two classes have acted more har-
moniously in Texas than perhaps else
where in the South, and there is bright
| prospects for the future.
There are about 100 600 of Methodists
| in Texas. The Protestant Episcopaliaus
are strong likewise, also the Presbyte-
rians and other Protestant denomina-
tons. The Roman Catholics have no
| believers outside OF the Mexican element.
| There is one thing certain-that the re-
ligious atmosphere in the entire South is
thoroughly orthOrdox. They believe i'm
| plicitly in the fundamental truths of the
| Bible and do not have any trouble with
doubts and wraugling in questions of
| future probation, the divinity of Christ,
etc. l wish to say that on the whole 1
have been treated very kindly IN my
work South. have been attacked some,
perhaps, by the newspapers and even by
the church for my position toward the
black man IN relation to the church.
There is great work for Christians to