Fort Worth gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1891-1898, 1891-08-02
AN EASTERN PRODUCT.

Every little county town in the East
has its oracle, who sits in the sun in
front of the corner grocery, whites on
the dry goods boxes, spits tobacco juice
over the surrounding territory, and
talks politics. His mental horizon is
bounded by the traditions of his native
village. Beyond that, he knows moth
| ing.
Occasionally this oracle, stirred by
some migratory impulse, is moved
to travel. So he invests in second
hand immigrant ticket and goes
West"
One can imagine the effect upon his
mind OF a few days residence in a
dashing, ambitious Western city. He
is amazed to see business lots held at
$4,000 to $4,000, when he had never
heard OF twenty-five feet of land bring
ing more than $1,000. There is but one
thing about it. These people are crazy.
So he sets down and writes letter to
his home paper, generally of about the
tenor of this:
DALLAS, TEX, July 24-The boom in
North Texas has completely collapsed.
Both Dallas and Fort Worth, which We're Il
year ago JhroIged with real estate agents
and land sharks, are as dead as door nail.
In this city there are block after block OF
vacant residences and business houses. The
streets are deserted and the town presents
the appearance of one-horSe country vii
lage.
The boomer has packed his Saratoga and
silently stolen away, leaving the more IN
fortunate creatures who were suckers
enough 10 buy land and other property at
inflated values with the bag to hold. Bust
ness is at complete standstill and the town
seems to be on the verge of financial
panic. Several large firms are making des-
perate efforts to make both ends meet, but
fears are entertained that when one big
failure occurs dozen others will follow.
Fort Worth is in worse condition fnan-
cially il anything than Dallas. The failure
Of w. +. Lake for 100000 and the Mer-
chants national bank for 100000 has
knocked the hind sights of every enter
prise in the town, and every man in the
place seems to be trying turn his property
into cash, in order to close out his business
and leave the town.
While Dallas and Fort Worth are in the
throes Of financial troubles, the boomers
who have caused it have moved on Calves
ton and Houston in a body in order TO come
in for slice of the ST, 00O, 900 appropriation
by congress for the improvement of Gal
weston harbor. Galveston island has been
laid off into town lots, and, not content
with that, the real estate fiends have gone
over to the mainland and plated acres OF
marsh land, and are Offering them for sale
at fabulous prices as desirable residence
lots.
OF course they do not expect the land to
be ''filled in" and houses erected on it, as
the country is so full OF malaria that a mos
quito would die with the fever; but what
do they care for that9 All they are after is
shekels, and as soon as they work Galveston
for all they can they will move on TO an
other locality and find more suckers, wax
fat and leave other people in the lurch.
This letter we find published in
Memphis newspapers city that is a
pretty good place 10 live in while the
yellow fever is not raging. We give it
place in The GAZETTE because it will
be amusing reading to people at home,
the greater part of whom were enter
prising enough to better their condi-
ton by coming from the Eastern states
to Texas.
But the oracle, after night spent in
a wagon-yard, will rise refreshed, and
when he has consumed free lunch he
will write another letter about some
thing else that he never heard Of and
knows nothing about.