Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1900-03-08
IN THE LONE STAR STATE.
Mrs. Geo. R. Gardner Writes of Her Winter
Sojourn in San Antonio, Texas.

newspapers. Mrs. Geo. Z. Gardner and
family have been spending the winter
months in San Antonio, Texas. A
letter was written by Mrs. Gardner
recently to be read before the March
meeting of the WOman's Missionary
society of the Congregational church
and the same has been rendered us
for publication:
San Antonio. Texas. March l. 1900
To The W. NJ. s. OF GRAND RAPIDS
AND CENTRALIA:-I wish | had only
one subject 10 write about but | shall
be like the Jack of all trades. [ have
so many none will amount to any
thing. There are SO many things |
want to tell you about, for [ want to
tell you about our trip to Mexico and
the never to be fOrgOtten) bull fight.
some things about the MeXicans and
several things l saw in New Orleans
Here in San Antonio are the old
Spanish missions, four in number.
built by the SpaniardS between IT'S
and 173O TO ChriStianiZe the Indians.
The missions are from two to nine
miles south Of the city.
The Alamo, in the city built in
IT'S for both church and fast, is the
place where David Crockett and his
Spartan followers were all killed mo.
butchered and then burned) by Santa
Annals army the MeXicanS). 1t is
pointed to with pride and called the
ALTAR of TeXian Liberty" for verify
it's stones were stained with the blood
of the Martyrs.
The San Antonio of today, an
American yet Cosmopolitan city of
seventy thousand, is SO very different
from our American cities one can
hardly realize it is in our own country.
1t is the oldest incorporated city in
the United States. The reason history
does not give it as such is because
Texas was not admitted as part of
this United States until 1915 and San
Antonio was no young city then. 1t
became the capital of the Province of
Texas as far back as 173O and would
have been the capital of the state but
for it's cOlOred population, and Austin
was all white people. There are
twenty thousand Mexicans, twelve
thousand negroes and every other
kind of people make up the balance.
San Antonio was settled along the
u do 1dI UdSN 1OJ- Ouu UuC 1llSU
permanent settlement was a colony
from the Canary islands (came a long
way didn't they. In 173O the
Spaniards built for this colony the
mission church, "San-fer-nandeZ," in
1882. 1t stands on the main Plaza
place as park. There was an under
ground passage from this church to
the Alamo and some say all the
missions were connected by this sub
terranean passage.
The church was rebuilt in 1878 as a
cathedral, the dome of the old church
still stands and forms the Sacristy for
the new one lit looks like pictures |
have seem. The buildings are like
the people, all kinds of architecture
and all kinds of no kind. There are
beautiful buildings, both business and
resident, and all kinds of Shanties and
novels without door or window. Some
made of old tin cans and old StOvepipeS,
some covered with straw and grass. in
! fact there is every kind imaginable.
| The federal and post office building is
beautiful cream sand stone structure.
| The custom house officer has had one
sale Of struggled Mexican goods since
we were here, mostly drawn work.
The streets and walks are sonnet hing
| too bad to describe, two reasons for it.
| Southern slackneSS. one. lots of that
here: second, the fact that the walks
are nearly all cement, and when the
ground gets dry it cracks, big wide
openings. Then when it rains it
sWeliS and closes. Of course this
cracks the walks in every way, chunks
break, stick up and trip the pedes-
| trian.
There are many Presbyterian
| churches here, more than any other.
next Catholic, then Episcopal and
Methodist, no Congregational. There
| are Baptist, Lutheran, Jewish and
SpiritualiSt. The Salvation army are
quiet and do a great deal of good here.
The schools are poor compared with
schools north. There are three
military schools for boys, two EpiS-
copal colleges for girls, two convent
schools, SO every one who can afford to
sends their children to a private
school and there is no interest taken
in the public schools. There is a
cOlOred school near us but it is very
poorly attended. The MeXicanS send
their children to the Catholic school
what litJle they send them.
The Third Military Post in the
United States is here in a beautiful
| place. There are Two or three regi-
ments here all the time. They drill
every afternoon all winter free, for all
cars run there every 10 minutes.
Don't think this is the land of roses
and sunshine. The sunshine we have
| free and abundant, now that the rainy
| season is over, but roses are less
abundant because the people have no
ambition to grow them. The roses,
| panSieS, verbenaS and sweet peas have
| blOSSomed all winter in the parks, and
| the palms, banana, century plant and
ferns have been out all winter. They
| look fine nOw
The city is built on gravel bed and
nothing will grow in the soil but
cacti, prickly pear, rattle snakes and
| mosquitoes. The snakes are taking
their winter nap and we, wish the
| mosquitoes were too. There is plenty
of good black loan on the low lands
| just out side and some put it around
| the trees and shrubs and this climate
just rushes them. If they did one
| half as much on their lawns as we do
north they would be things of beauty.
| The hooking birds and red birds have
been around the yard all winter.
The climate is all that one can ask
for, there has been very few days that
one could not sit on the porch except
when we get ''nOrther" north wind
and that is when you have cold wave.
1t has frozen ice about like paper four
or five times this winter. The 22nd of
February it was So in the shade.
The average temperature for January
was So. Some days the temperature
is so even the thermometer will not
vary for half day and often say if I