The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-01-20
THE PECAN NUT.
Texas Supplies Two-Thirds of all Grown in This Country

in This Country.
 Texas is the great pecan nut growing
 State in the Union. It is estimated that
 tWo-thlrds of the pecan nuts that are
 marketed come from this State. The valleys of all the rivers and creeks of this part of the State are covered with pecan groves, and Austin is said to be the largest pecan market in the United States. It is here that the commission men and regular pecan nut buyers from the Beast make their headquarters
 during the harvesting season, anddirect
 the shipments of the delicious nut to the
 Northern Eastern markets, where they
 command good prices at all times.
 | When the yield is good the shipments
 from this city and tributary points
 amount to hundreds of carloads but
 this season but very few cars are being l shipped, for the reason that the Texas
 crop of oceans Is almost complete fail-
 ure. The prices for the nuts are high
 and the owners of pecan groves who are so fortunate as to have good crop are
 getting big income from the nuts It
 was not until few years ago that l Texas came to be known to any great | extent in the pecan markets of the country. This fact was due principally to the lack of railway communication l with the outside markets and the in- ability to getAthe nuts to market. The nuts had but little value at that time, and oeffoTt was made topreserve the forest of pecan trees that covered parts of Southwest and West Texas not many years ago. Now that 1t is known that there are big profits in marketing the nuts the owners of producing trees are careful to have them spared the woodman's axe, and much attention is being paid the industry. Tn some To- calites orchards of young pecan trees, embracing thousands of acres have been planted within the last few years. They require but little attention and seem to thrive without irrigation. They begin bearing when about nine years old, and continue to produce for an indefinite period. It is known that some pecan trees which are still yielding several bushels each good crop season were full grown and bearing not less than fifty years ago.
 The beautiful polish possessed by the pecan nuts found in the markets of Northern and Eastern cities Is not natural condition. When gathered the surface of the shell is rough. Nuts sent to market In this condition do not com mand the highest prices, and in order to make them grade better it is usual for them to undergo a polishing process before final shipment is made Pecan polishing mills have been established at a number of places in this section. But few of them are running this season, to +t,1 cI,a of ha
 Another industry that has greatly in- creased the demand for pecan nuts has been developed during the last few years. It Is that of using the kernels | of the.nuts in the manufacture of con- fectionery of various kinds. About six years ago confectioner of New York | City chanced to visit a small candy l store in San Antonio run by Mexican. He found there kind of confectionery | which the Mexican called pecan can dy." It pleased his taste so greatly that | he entered into a. contract with the | Mexican to furnish him large quantity | of pecan kernels for use in the manu- | facture of this new kind of candy in his | New York City establishment.
 The extraction and shipment of ker- nels which was begun in small way | only six years ago has grown to mann | mothe proportions, and many people are | engaged in the business. Machinery for | the extraction of the kernels has been | invented and placed in successful opera tion at San Antonio, and large ship ments are made each season to confec- | tioners in New York, St. Louis, Chicago and other cities of the country. The Kernels command a high price, and good | profits are derived by those employed in [ that branch of the pecan business.
 The Mexicans on the Rio Grande bor- der store large quantities of pecan nuts for winter use They make fine flour out of the kernels, and this is used to make the most delicious bread, which Is only eaten on festival occasions. The nut enters into their Christmas enjoy ments to large extent, being used in the preparation of various kinds of choice dishes es.-Correspondence of the Times-H Herald.