The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1897-06-06

Countrv-Its Marvellous SurrouDdin:
Point-One of the Greatest Fruit Sec
tions In the worid-SOm Of the Proof
Of the Presence Of . Boon In Easters
Texas.
Port Arthur, Texas. June 4-Once upor
a time with apologies to an old and
revered fiction) land Of transcendins
beauty was, at the witching touch Of tie
luiling wand Of Dame Nature, put to
sleep. And as years wore on. the fairy,
Jealous Of her enhancing jewel. bulwark-
ed the region in from exploring mar
kind, by great black forests Of bearded
pine, and irregular and impossible
marshes. So undisturbed the land slep,
beside great cfrast lake. whose alluyiai
shores were built up by the rich dis
charges of two great rivers and deep
bayou A Prince, whose family name
il Industry, with Push for short. came
out of the north tearing his way through
the bosky thickets and riotous tangles
of semi tropical vegetation, came upon
this Sleeping Beauty, and kissed life
activity, prosperity and beauty back
in'o her face.
That is the story Of Port Arthur and
its boom, put into words which so far as
the casual reader is concerned, would
frighten belief 10 death and scare ere
dulity out of years growth. Simply
because men have stopped investing
money on poetical propositions.
INVESTORS ARE CAREFUL
The kiss of a Kansas sun on a burn
ished hilltop has sold corner lots in
Coolidge. the amorous caress Of Pa
cifc zephyr has scooped out to hungry
buyers orange groves in California, and
the rovelist's invention OF single mug
get enriching a man forever. az one
stroke of the pick-axe, has made IN
ornamental holes marketable In Colo
| rado, but the days Of that sort Of boom
! are gone forever.
| The shrewd Investor OF the present
| time crawls into a shell Of Harveyized
skcpticism. Tell him that certain sec
| ton is having a big growth and there is
| c.oney to be made in investing, and he
| smiles the weary smile Of a man who has
| been there before, and is rather affront-
| ed because you have sized him up for
| a sucker.
/ Hundreds Of people have at the men,
| ton OF Port Arthur given play to this
weary, incredulous smile. Have they
| been right? No, they have not. Is
| Port Arthur on a boom? Yes. Can IL
be SO proved by good. sensible. legiti-
mate, unpoet,cal, unbiased displays OF
| facts? Yes.
| Let us hunt for the evidences Of the
| boom with our own eyes. A majority
of the investors who visit Port Arthur
| do so through "excursionists," recently
| coined word. Edwards and Motif are
the excursionists for Port Arthur. To
them, much of the success of Port Ar
thur is due and the rapidity Of its growth
hangs, in some measure. on their con-
tinued activity in leading people into
this new country, or equal industry on
the part OF their successors.
INTO THE NEW REGION.
Excursions leave Kansas City about
once a month. The traveller Is shown
his berthin car and there he stays
until he arrives at Port Arthur. He is
told that the railroad is new. Pittsburg
and Joplin. familiar points. are touched
and he sees no evidence Of growth. The
train is running parallel to the state
line of Kansas and Missouri and now
parallel with the line Of Indian Terri |
tory and Arkansas. The old country
Is left behind. The railroad stations
are new. Around the stations are new
towns. The incredulous investor, re-
Numbering that the railroad is new and /
must have stations, says: Forced" TO !
himself and is still a skeptic. BY the |
second evening ne has reached the !
Louisiana city of Shreveport. Here the |
skeptic begins to weaken. Shreveport |
is an old southern town. but the langour |
which yawned about its streets for so
many years Is gone. The qulckened |
pulse OF growth is here. T. charges |
Hussar-lke. on all the senses The |
eyes are assailed by new brick business !
blocks, new and costly residences. new
signs. the ears IN the rattle OF carts and /
rumble o: heavy drays and the whirr OF /
trolley cars have perpetual evidence of /
pulsating prosperity. Eventhe nose /
not an important member in the detec- |
ton Of booms, halls with delight the |
scent Of fresh paint. delight, for the /
westerner knows that paint is a sure 1
token Of prosperity. The people there /
are happy and busy. A large number
OF Them are from the north. Colonel |
Forrey. who runs the large hotel there. I
Is from Wichita.
PEOPLE ALL BOOMERS.
The popuiace has that aggressive pride I
II their city which comes on; so strongly
in all growing places.
This place has two railroads hasn't
it?'' inquired stranger on the depo;
platform.
Two exclaimed the native. Great
Jehosophat. 1, has five.''
Every man. woman and child in the
city is alive TO the defense OF the city
and garrulous Of its advantages.
One northern woman was accosisi by
two fair members OF the community on
a street car:
Don't YOU think we have a lovely
city," one o. these asked.
ut is a beautiful little city" answered
The northern woman
The diIniuutive IVES a dagger. Pal
rAbly offended The two Shreveport
women rang the bell and lsf, the car.
~ YOU push OF EoA3EI> I1s COAST you
become aware OF humorous attitude
towards thai gentleman in the north
Who keeps on howling sbou; al avail
able agricultural land in the nation BE-
ing -one- Tracts OF Il. Kingdom vide. lie
here. waiting t1r re inspiring. enlive--
ing touch o: a pl1v. Wife OCCASION
ally the mad lodges through fo-es-
With enough lumber. turned inca hrys.