New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-07-20
MENT AND SPECULATION.

NENT AND SPECULATION.
Del Rio, Tex, July 12.-In 1872, when Horrs
Greeley visited Texas and wrote that II 10000 North
farmers would settle about any city In Texas and
devote themselves Supplying IL with fresh milk, but
ter Strawberries raspberes peaches, etc, they might
charge double prices and get rich faster than many
cultlvators OF the soil did before he said what
was true and Il is AS true to-day 1t was twenty years
ago.
What Texas needs is and money; the opportuni-
ties for investment and labor here Ana also OPP
pOrtunities for speculation. In hurried trip through
the State "rhe Frank Leslie Weekly special car
stopped at this place the southern boundary,
within stones throw Of the Mexican border While
driving about the city my attention called 20 an
enOrnOus Of hills rising Ike palisades above the
bottom lands upon when the clty built was told
that these hills full of red ochre At Colorado
City. the Texas and Pacific road, found two salt
mines in operation, over mile distant from each other
and both tapping enormous vein OF pure rock salt
at a depth Of 200 feet below the soil. Investigation
has shown that this bed is 100 feet thick the brine
that is pumped up is saturated solution Of salt
tanning 20 per cent Of pure salt which evaportes in
the dry air Of Colorado City IN day or two, often
few hours do not believe in any part OF the world
salt be produced by solar evaporation cheaper than
1t is here
But wonderful as are the timber, iron, salt and
other of this state, concerning which much
has been written wonderful still are It's unde-
yeloped agricultural resources. These are Just be-
ginning to be appreciated and their development as
much as any thing has built mp hundreds OF thriving
prosperous and ambitious cities. The building up Of
| these new cite, has enriched multitude Of men who
came here poor, bought lands ~ few dollars an acre,
and by natural increase suddenly found their Lands
of great value because Of their neaness to town sites
in every city | visited men Of wealth were pointed
e,ut TO me- who began life poor. The workman IN the
:hlpgye mill proating by land investments, had be-
come the lumber king the bank clerk Of few years
ago is now the bank president the railroad conductor
or telegraph operator OF five or ten years ago IS no" the
aeal estate AGENT or the head Of manufacturing con-
Germ Lawyers with a few years practice have grown
rich and retired to their homesteads Everywhere The
same story was told me, and it il always susceptible
Of vcriGcauOn.
Texas is a state without village or creek 70
place is too small to be a city and no stream is TOO
small TO be called river 1t has an enormous empire
and everything is done on an enormous scale. Inc
irrcating ditch that does not afford water sufficient
70 friictlfy millions OF OF adjoining lands, Is
counted a small thing and the man who owns aaanch
of ten or twenty thousand acres is by no means
numbered with the heaviest landowners. l have
often been asked by friends in the North II there wce
opportunities for safe investment in Texas reply
unquaifedly after having travelled from the Atlantic
70 the Pacific, from Canada 70 the Gulf that am
satisfied that TaXas offers safe and profitable IN
vesmcnts as any state OF the American Cnon'
i
Tcxa, offer many inducements 10 the purchaser Of
nroner;y perhaps the safest investment can be found
in tbe arabic lands offered various parts OF the state
| At from 50 10 go per acre. The agricultural De
yelopment Of the prairie and dry lands Of Texas that
| is Going on is ~ wide reaching that douut
the people Of the North appreciate its extent Every
train OF cars brings IN new coon,ts from the Noth
and West as well the South and the rch req aha'
Of the Panhandle country dotted with " ra-ne
scboouers~ bearing colonists to their new homes The
Northern counties Of Texas, I'm what IS known as the
" Panhandle were supposed for many years 10 %
dry and worthless for purpose except pastuFase,
but these lands especially in the Eastern 'ehu"
counties have been demonstrated by tests that are 10
! longer experiments to be the richest wheat LANDS.
since the disclosure that the lower and central ter
of counties along the Denver, Texas and Fort Worth
Railroad arr all wheat producing counties thS entire
region Is being rapidly settled. and no more thrifty
cities can he found than Weathcrford Wichita Fails
vernon Waxahachie and many Others.
4 resident near Wcathcrfori, b. F. Blton'
recently said that his crop consisted OF - acres d
cotton 33 in corn, in oats, II wheat, 4 INLET ara
that his net gain on the entire crop S903 20 al
~ which ne made and gathered With his own family
with the exception Of one farm hand employed Tor
three months from March TIL June, and tie hep
needed for plcdng ten bales Of cotton. c. l. Nc
Cartv. seer taGy Of the immigration ASSOCIATION ~
Vernon told me Of the Macarthur Bros, living SIX
wheat on Nv nty tive acres, ave'aSe Of thirty business
,1 acre 2GGO bushels Of oats from thirty I'VE acres
or an average Of fifty five bushels an acre. Johh
Howard. the immigration promoter, at vienna rams
said that L Il. Evans, who came from JeH''So"
county. New York. and lives one mile NON NNi"V'
Fails made twenty nine bushels Of wheat u the ara
ON twenty seven acres he had planted, and that W.
A. Palmer formerly of Missouri. who has a large farm
soutn of Wichita Falls, raises 300 bushels OF WAea'
nn IcO acres, 10000 bushels OF oats from 10 acres
900 bushels Of from Do acres aud 1000 tons OIL
sorghum from 135 acres. The gross proceeds a. Ills
exon, were g. .OOO and his expenses $1,000. ana us
net proceeds 5000. from land that cost MN ony -
pr acre.
These fact, may be questioned but when say nat
only a small portion of tie wheat lands around venom
W,rbita Fails. WaXahachie ami Weatherlor and ID
r, throughout the cOuntc, Of tie Panhandle, are h'"
liza cultivation, and the railroads are Offering huhli'i'
of thousand, Of acres az - - - an ~ aI' 81
lad r. are holding large tracts which they are lh.eI
M 10 sell ON a rise, appreciate the cnoillu,
i yelopmeut Of the last few year., ana tuS s'S'
pr,m. 80 held cut for the future. Ihese ldlu, 'yn
~iJcrnE tlr returns they make. arg GAc-p' Ets w.,
pirltlVcly speaking thcy ar dear. Tor mu az ~ ~.
could have been bought few years a-3 10. -, ny
| nv. cent, Az acr, The dry lands along the 40
Grlulr luricr have been sold a. lo" n tc.i '0.',
acre but are today with irrigation iO'l the r'~ss'
,rcns and fom we'll; deNrioPls dn, r,,ni C,rl.
| cpr fruit aue grain lands. Inc il1hcr ir D..
Valley b., water from the pccJ, River, mas oleI ga d
vast area rich lands and added i. ,,,rs
r|It. Tie Ianora Mesa COMPANY mas taH IN
t6u-qnd, ~ acres of land at The GOT OF tne d
about a dozen miles from RI Iaso' a.u "a. ,r-5.s,
rim, ntr f,tty, .,,. plots t. fruit grower t'' n.lfU
mann I,pr done rom TANKS supplied from areS,ln
wells. one Who ma. seen TIE grown He,' ~ lii
I..n. ,"-,l,nle, fruit. ctc.. ~ me htN' yu'.tL
,,p rclilc tl,t plant, tat may b. Set ~ IN. f',
irreacJ ,ol OF til, part q, me stat aN,'P 81,
,.ur wears INTO fruit bearing trees ana NIS' >
,,,., a yrar and a hall old frequently ylem ous..
Of fruit to the tree. and spe decor lI.' md m,
vino, I'm a wear. II !, iu ucSe - E"' - te,,
Nncrt land, of the North. that 70. unc. nave tYne
ade hy spectators, investors ana Nv ne
,r II " A De- but a few wears plor an 49, ~ ia.
NH ~. b.Il n $40 % $50 acre. They are plcu' ~,
Isuslo as the soil is from four to 'A''c" ''.'
deep. go. +,,r NJ This state we found
tn greatest lumber region OF tine r2npty III FV' ,,s
, " - cn,r-l,u, iron DEPOSITS n the east ana il ~
l'Nt ~ .,,r,tlss mountains of canitc about ht!uV
r,u.. salt at Colorado CITY. IN imite', gu. 'trl
10" Ga. most magnificent cotton. corn, Wae't l..'
ad vccctal IL producing territory or conla ims