Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1890-05-22
HON. PETER SMITH.
The Father of Fort Worth Pays a Pleas
ant Visit to Sherman.
He Is Bounded up by Regis ter Nan and Talks
of the City, and Expresses an Opinion
on the Commission.
Sherman Register.

Wherever there is pushing, progress
sive populaee there will the name of
Peter Smith be familiar, for no man has
done more to show what town can do
by energy and get up than he has, and
Fort Worth with Its varied and growing
interests, its miles of graded and paved
thoroughfares, its sewerage, its railroads
and its prospects Is an undying monu-
ment TO the tireless handiwork of Peter
Smith, and the progressive people of
Fort Worth among whom he, as mayor
of the city, was leader. In fact, Col q.
Smith is a man who always labors in be-
half of his people and has always been
successful.
Yesterday afternoon Register repre-
sentative saw Col. Smith at the Union
depot, where he was waiting to catch the
fast express for Fort Worth.
"Well, colonel" ventured the re-
porter, "what do you think of Sherman
since your last visit
"You have beautiful little city, full
of life and energy, and with wealth
enough, If it is judtciously used, to make
a large place. don't expect there is
another city in the whole state blessed
with any finer Surroundings than Sher-
man possesses, and that of itself is no
small item. drove over the city this
afternoon and improvements are notice
able in all directions. 1 notice too that
you are blessed with good schools and
splendid buildings, this is much
in your favor. By-the-way, you
need street improvement in Sher-
man. Over in Fort Worth
when we first began to make pretensions
toward making city of ourselves we
had bad streets. We effected big loan
aud put the proceeds on the streets and
in putting in good, substantial stone
curbing. We graveled and rocked our
streets and to-day have thoroughfares
second to none in the state, and have
streets which cost US eighteen cents per
square yard just as good as that which
cost $500. Excellent streets can be
made by having them surfaced off by a
competent engineer with the proper
slopes, etc. Cover it then with broken
rock and I'LL in with gravel. Street and
sewer building is what first gave Fort
Worth an impetus and put her on the
way toward making the best town in the
state, with prospects une1oelled.
"But hash t Fort Worth IS growth been
aided much by the railroads she has CEN
tering thereof interposed the reporter.
"Well, yes, to a great extent Fort
Worth, as well as the whole state for
that matter, owes more to the railroads
than to any other agency for her present
grandeur and advancement. Railroads
are doing great deal for the Western
country in which we are particularly in
terested. Why. there are great many
counties out west just as fertile aud pro-
ductIve as your own county here, but
which cannot be farmed to an advan-
tage without railroads. For instance,
last year there was not less than 70, 0C0
bushels of wheat raised in the vicinity of
Seymour. There were no mills of any
consequence to grind it up, because
without means of transportation fuel, an
ever needed commodity, can not be
secured. 1t would cost the producer
twenty-five cents per bushel to have
hauled this wheat from Seymour to
Wichita Falls. This was enough to dis
courage farming in q county with an
almost unlimited supply of good rich
soil, but a railroad Is now being built
out from Wichita Falls and hundreds of
new farms are being opened up and put
in cultivation. This is the influence of
railroads. Fort Worth, when she built
the Denver road, did a good thing for
herself aud a great deal more for the
whole west We are now buildIfiR a line
to Jacks p6ro, and are hopeful of getting
the Sherman extension of the Missouri,
Kansas and Texas.
EDO yRu apprehend that the recent
West Texas.immigration movement will
result in mueh,good for that seotion?"
81 think 50; from the fact that 1t has
gotten them alftp;pulling together, il for
no ather reason - SzBEt thsWest IS build
ing Sh under the inpetuS4 4yen by, bright
railroAa prospectsy seSeraldiR being in
course1of construction through that SEQ
ton and as many more projected. -
"What effect do you think the enact
ment Of railroad commission law would
have on the railroad building IN Texas?"
~ think it will have the effect of re-
tarding the railroad building in progress
and In contemplation. The government
of our country is in the hands of three
branches now the legislative, the Judicial
and the executive. The legislative branch
form and enact the law, the judicial
branch decides how it effects all litigants
or interests aud the executive branch
carries into effect the orders or decisions
of the court. think that in these three
branches there is power enough to mana
age any interest, without increasing TIM
already ponderous machinery of govefH-
ment. Railroads are not unlike other
great undertakings; they are controlled
by circumstances One railroad located
in densely populated section
might be able because OF loaded trains
each way to make money at rates which
would bankrupt and completely swamp
roads in the sparsely settled districts.
Some people can never realize that aroad
which originally cost $40, eco per mile
has TO be built twice over again. before
it is permanent, and that the
bonds which were necessiteted in order
to secure mpney TO build the roads bear
an interest," which eat up all the -ofits
and leaves virtually nothing for 1. in
vestors against whom the commission
will operate, as the interest must be paid
no matter what the receipts of the road
are. Loan and trust companies collect
interest to the very limit OF the usury
law. 1t is true money gotten from them
sometimes enables 8 man to improve
property. but these mortgage holders are
not the pablo bsnefaotors, the railroads
are. T9Iey POCKET thelt 10 per cent. in
terest and no commission is aSked for to
regulate them NAte will Ge constant
appeals from a commission subject to the
judicial branch, hetcat world of tire
some litigation would Se engendered. A
commission not amenable to the
judiciary would be a body of Dlenary