San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1897-09-12
IN CONCERT.
Commercial Clubs OF Tex
as Have A COnfab.
DECIDE TO WORK FOR THE GOOD
OF THE STATE, WILL TACK
LIE IMMIGRATION,
Secretaries Will Use The Free
Press For All They Can But
Are Cautioned To Avoid
Putting Themselves
So Much.
Special Wire to Sunday Light,

Austin, Texas, Sept. 11.-As per pre-
vious announcement the secretaries
of the various Commercial clubs met
in the Driskill hotel this morning for
the purpose of organizing themselves
with a view Of furthering the inter-
ests of the association they represent.
The attendance was not as full as
expected, but those present were not
in the least discouraged by this fact
holding that business had prevented
others from attending. The cities re-
presented were Austin, by Mr.. Carl
Drake, president of the Austin club,
and Secretary George A. Hill; Hous-
ton by Secretary Tom Richardson;
Galveston by Secretary c. III. McMas-
tiers; Waco by Secretary S. L. Jones;
San Antonio by Secretary l.. c. IT.
vine.
The meeting was got in shape by the
election of Mr.. Irvine as temporary
chairman and Mr.. George Hill secre-
tary.
An invitation had been extended
Mayor Hancock to be present and vel
come the visitors, but previous en-
gagements prevented his attending
and in his absence President Carl
Drake of the Austin Commercial club
welcomed the visitors and also took
occasion to express himself on the
subject of the organization, saying
that he hoped the club would be at
tended with the most marked success.
He started the speech making and for
the next hour or so those present told
their experience in managing CONNER
cial clubs and trials and tribulations
that arose on every hand.
Mr.. Irvine of San Antonio reviewed
the history of San Antonio's efforts TO
get industries and said that the only
way that Texas cities could hope to
maintain manufactures was to assure
them of home patronage; that this
was the secret of success in the mat
ter of securing home industries and
he hoped that every city in the state
would go on record along this line. He
also urged the various clubs through
out the state to try and get up imme-
grafton some way or the other so as
to bring more people into the state
and thus give more backing to fac
tories that start up among us.
Mr.. Geo. Hill made speech along
the same line saying that he thought
immigration should be encouraged as
well as home manufactures.
Col. NJ. NJ. Shipe, of this city, who
was present by invitation was invited
to address the meeting and did so,
saving that he was in hearty sympa-
thy with the proposition to encourage
by every means possible home enter
prise and immigration. He gave his
hearers to understand, however, that
if they wanted any foreign capital to
invest in lands in the state they must
see to it that the State Legislature
does not put its hand against them.
He urged his hearers to concerted ac-
ton along any lire that would tend
to place men in the Legislature who
would not constantly be antagonizing
capital in its effort to come into the
state and locate. He said that the
tendency in the past so far as the
Legislature was concerned had been
to antagonize by it actions the foreign
capital and until that could be stopped
Texas need not look for much more
from the outside world.
Mr.. Richardson, of Houston, spoke
in favor of securing immigration at
any and all cost, saying that was the
basis for all sure development of the
state and it's industries. He said he
thought the meeting ought to let the
railroads of the state know that they
intended by every means possible to
encourage immigration and suggested
that a committee be appointed to
draft suitable resolutions along this
line to be presented to the railroads
of the state.
In compliance with his suggestion
committee of three was, on motion
of Mr.. McMasters, appointed as a !