San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-09-16
THIS GREAT SOUTHWEST.

thousand dollars were expended a
the Arkansas Harbor sale last Friday
and Saturday. This is only the be
ginning of real estate transactions
there. At Rockport and all around
the shores of that bay real estate
sales have been brisk for the past two
years, until today they aggregate
several hundreds of thousands of dol
lars. Not only so, but very substan-
tial improvements have been made
in that little town and up the shores
of the bay, electric plants, street i'm
provements etc.showing that the town
is preparing for some better thing.
Large tracts of land in the immediate
vicinity have been converted into
graperies, gardens, truck patches and
small fruit farms, which in q few
years will be source of great reve-
nue. to that section OF the state. On
Nueces Bay, also, and along the Nu-
eces river extensive preparations for
market gardening have been made
and canning factories projected,
which in another year will be turn
ing out large supplies of all kinds of
canned vegetables for the South
west. At Corpus Christi, real
estate aggregating more than
million dollars has changed
hands within a comparatively short
time. Electric plants, electric street
railways, large aud commodious
hotels and substantial business
blocks are being erected, and the
work of creating new city on the
bluffs most auspiciously begun.
Thousands of acres lying back from
the bay and upon the bluffs have
been converted into small farms for
the growth Of vegetables and fruits,
as well as larger farms opened
for the cultivation of corn, cot
ton and cane. In this vicinity
and southwark towards Brownsville,
and westward toward the Rio Grande
lies the future sugar district of Texas.
This section devoted entirely TO graz
ing only few years since is now
attention as the creates
cotton section OF the South. AS a
sample of the growth of this staple, as
to acreage, Duval county is in evil
dence. Only five years ago not a |
bale of cotton was raised in the
county, and this year four steam gins
are inadequate to do the work. The
natural fruits through all this region
are thrifty and flourishing. Peaches
and pears where planted years
ago on some isolated ranch |
yield a regular crop of fine fruit,
aud there are thousands and tens of |
thousands OF acres that can very
profitably be devoted to fruit culture
Frost is very rare visitor in these |
regions and oranges could not find a |
more kindly climate or more congenial |
soil. These improvements and this
territory, lying around the great bend |
made by the Mexican Gulf in its |
sharp curve to the south, at its most
western extremity, just where the
railways for the South and Central
Americas must converge in their cir
cult around the Gulf indicate that
the vast possibilities of this region are
being at last understood and
that intelligence and capital are
preparing the. way for the rush
that must come with the great sea
port of the gulf in this its western ex-
tremity, where nature designed its
great harbor to be. All Texas and
particularly all southwest Texas,
must share in the marvellous increase
so certain to flow into this territory
within the next two years. Already
the advance guard of this great army
OF occupation has pitched its tents
and the eyes of all are turned toward
a future which is limitless in it's pos
sibilities. San Antonio stands pecu-
liarly placed to distribute the pro-
auctions of much of this territory, as
well as to become in herself the GEN.
ter of manufacturing and mercan-
tile industry that will double her
population decade by decade. Verify
the morning dawns for Southwest
Tavaa