El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1900-05-02
HOUSTON, TEXAS
The Business Men OF That City Are
Beginning To Appreciate the
Importance OF Judicious Ex
pendIture For Public Entertain-
ment-Houston As Great Sea-
port-The Value OF Coopera-
tiOn.

special Correspondence of the HERALD.
HOUSTON, Tex, A pril 26.-Our peo-
pie are still talking of Houston's re-
cent experience in entertaining the
Trans Mississippi commercial con-
gress. The local secretary of the con-
| gress worked hard for almost a year to
assure the success of the convention
| For the last two months of the time,
he and several efficient assistants were
kept constantly employed in attend
ing to the details Of the meeting
Houston's various associations of bust
ness men such as the board OF trade,
cotton exchange, aud business mems
league, gave to the committee every
assistance possible.
We can now look back upon our
work with no slight feeling of pride in
various interests involved was at all
times perfect
Houston heself has.hardly begun to
appreciate the immensely important
results that will accrue to her In con-
sequence of such q meeting OF dis
tinguished citizens of the Great West
within her gates. Houston surprised
repeatedly said. Our business men
realize more than ever that there is no
way to advertise a city's advantages
that can compare with actually show
ing them to the people whom it is de-
sired to impress.
It is estimated that the total expense
incurred by Houston people in enter
tanning the three hundred or more dele
gates and their friends amounted to less
than ten thousand dollars. At the low
est estimate far more than
this sum was spent In
this city during the four days of the
congress by those In attendance.
The men who came here as delegates
were nearly all men OF distinction In
th cir own communities, and very
large mum Der were men of national
or international reputation, Besides
score or more OF men who hold or
within the gift of the various states
governors, lieutenant governors, and
senators-there were mayors and ex-
mayors, congressman and ex-congress-
men, leading bankers, great manufac-
turers, successful merchants, high rail-
way officials, scientific experts, law
yers, college professors, miners, farm
ers, dnanciers, capitalists, brokers,
steamship owners, civil engineers, real
in fact, except professional politi-
clans.
Houston expects to be q great sea-
port within q very few years. Our
people believe that with deep water In
our much talked Of ship channel, Hous-
ton will have advantages as an import
ing and exporting center that will sur
pass those of New Orleans and Gal
weston.
New Orleans will be always the
great outlet for the comm erce of the
Mississippi and the states lying east of
that magnificent waterway. But Hous-
ton is destined to become the greatest
OF all the ports for the exchange of the
products of the territory west of the
Missouri and Mississippi rivers with
those OF Europe and the orient.
1t was not only highly gratifying to
our people but also striking evidence
of the 'changing map of trade" to
note the practical unanimity with
which the Trans Mississippi congress
recognized the inevitable tendency of
the trade of the Great West to seek
the nearest gulf port as the most eco
nomical way to reach tide water.
It Is not too much to cay that by
having brought to our city these hun
dreds of influential men from all over