Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1891-04-30
Correspondence Of the Beacon.)

such glorious county and Brown coun-
tY, Texas, Il am prepared 10 pay in advance,
and while / inclose the very small amount
/ viii, with your permission, give you an
outline Of our trip to Texas, and also of
this country. We left dear old St. Mary's
about the LIST of March last and reached
Baltimore on time, and after getting our
baggage in shape for Texas we, Capt. W.
b. Wise, Frank Dent and myself, went out
TO give Baltimore a farewell call, and in
the late hour of midnight we found our
way to our respective stopping place. On
Friday, at 4:30 o'clock, p. NJ, Frank Dent,
Derby A. Lynch and myself and family
stepped aboard the train for Harrisburg,
Penn, at which place we changed cars for
ST. Louis. On the route from Harrisburg
to St Louis we saw some very pretty and
seemingly thrifty country, and on reaching
st. Louis, to our surprise the train was
waiting for US, though we had been in
formed that we would lie over there from
Z O'Clock, p. N. till p NJ, and we (at
least Derby and DENT intended TO take
that city in, and guess also to paint the
house elegantly red, but they were cisap
pointed, as we only had time to change be-
fore the iron horse pulled out for Fort
Worth, Texas. We very soon engaged
berths in the sleeper and everything was
pleasant enough for Mr.. Dent especially
until next morning, for as he began dres.
sing he did not find until he was ready for
his shoes where they were gone, and if you
could have seen him with those long limbs
Of his going from one end Of the sleeper to
the other you would have thought him
slightly tipsy, but before he could get hold of
/ any one stopped him by explaining to him
it was all right, that the porter had simply
taken his shoes out to shine them up and
would soon bring them in. That quoted
him for the time, but when he ordered a
handed him and he found it to be one dollar
thought we would have TO put him in
irons or leave him on the road, but before
ne reached Texas he became very gentle
and submissive to all the railroad rules.
We passed through a portion of Arkan-
sas from Texarkana TO Fort Worth. and
think withou: any exception it is the
poorest, God forsaken country ever saw,
as the ground seemed literally cover
ed with rock all along the route. have
often thought the people there were COM
PEELED to keep their chickens shod to pre-
vent them from wearing out their feet.
After we left Fort Worth the land, country
and scenery cannot be surpassed in the
United States. The soil was as black as
night and soft, mellow and productive.
tell you, Messrs Editors, if the farmers OF
st. Mary's could but sec this country where
from so to IS bushels Of corn grow pei
acre, 80 and 90 bushels of wheat and oats
and from one-half to one and a-half bales
of cotton can be raised per acre and moi
one pound of fertilizer used they could
then enjoy farming indeed. The farmers
here use sulkY plows altogether and they
simply make crop with one-third the Ia
Dor and expense they do there, and after IL
is made and gathered they are not forced
TO place il on board a steamboat and ship
ped to commission merchants to be sold at
once, so as to pay that dear little fertilizer
bill. No, indeed, they simply roll their
cotton On their wagons and dive il to town
and sell it themselves and put the cash eith-
er in their pockets or in bank and come
home satisfied with their years work.
There are q dozen men right here in two
miles of me that came from Georgia
Alabama and Mississippi four or five
years ago with nothing except what they
brought in theiI wagons, and today every
one of them own good farms, plenty OF
stock and some cash, owing no living soul.
They are, indeed, the happiest people here
ever saw. know the people of the East
are under the impression that this country
is settled up with thieves and cutthroats,
but it is mistaken idea, as believe there
are as many good people here as in any
other country and morals superior TO many.
The farmers here are now planting cotton;
their corn is up and growing nicely and the
prospects here are fine for a good crop this
year. l am very sorry, indeed, that my
friend Frank Dent did not remain longer
with us as he would not have returned at
all if he could have seen the country after
Spring came.
am happy to inform the many friends
of Derby A. Lynch, ESQ, that he has
formed a co-partnership with one of the
first lawyers Of Brownwood, Texas, and
has bright prospects for himself in the fu-
ture. He says that there is one little charm
in Maryland for him and but for that he
would be all o. X. Lands here are selling
from two TO ten dollars per acre and on
long time, so that nearly any one can bay
farm and in fewl years have it paid for.
Nearly all tho farmers raise from 5 to so
yearlings each year, for which they can &c.
from 81 to So per head; and remember
these yearlings have not cost them (the
farmers) one cent, as they do not have to
feed them Winter or Summer, besides they
have the use of all the butter they can use
They feed their hogs entirely on milk dur
ing the Summer, so that they have no meat
or lard to buy, and was informed the
other day that they use all the lard they
have left over from one year to another for
making soap as there is no sale for it. l
can buy eggs from three TO seven cents per
dozen; meat from 4 to s cents per pound;
corn from 80 TO 40 cents per bushel and
oats from 25 to so cents. Goods are very
much higher in this country than in Mary