The Waxahachie daily light. [volume] (Waxahachie, Tex.) 1894-current, 1904-07-01
Saving THE COUNTRY
Iaaocence Training with the Sic Poll
ticiaaS al San AafeRiO.

L
Waxahachie appointed me, along
with other citizens of the county, to
go to San Antonio and there get our
heads together and devise means
whereby the country might be saved.
Never having travelled south over
the new l. & G.. n. road from Italy,
1 hied myself to that place Sunday
evening and Monday morning hit q
southbound passenger there and
down through Mertens and many
other new towns built up since this
road was completed. 1t passes
Through a magnificent country all
the way to Waco and runs into that
| city on the Cotton Belt road. Waco
agreed to give the |. d G. n. $780,
900 to build into that city but when
| the road failed to do this and made
| arrangements to run in there on the
| Cotton Belt track Waco refused to
pay and stood the road suit and
| beat them, and then the /. Il 6. N.
built its shops at Mart, fifteen miles
south of Waco ana is doing all it
possibly can to build mp that town
and it is in a magnificent black land
country and is rapidly improving.
90 south the road runs into M arlin
and from there keeps right down the
Brazos river valley. About | O'Clock
when within five miles of Calvert
our train was speeding along at
twenty-five miles an hour the bag
gage car and tender to the engine
jumped the track in the center of a
big cotton plantation. There we
stayed for five long hours before
the cars were placed back. In the
meantime most of we passengers
explored the cotton fields and found
an abundance of boil weevils in the
squares on the cotton. These Brazos
river lands usually make from a
bale to q bale and a half to the mere
and now for the past three or four
years not enough cotton has been
gathered to pay the expense of pro-
ducing it, consequently these
wealthy Brazos river farmers are
nearly all broke. But for the wreck
of our train / should have reached
San Antonio at $50 O'Clock Monday
night. Lewis or Valley June
ton, as it is now called, is situated
between the little and big Brazos
rivers and here we change cars on
to the old |. 4 G.. n. tracks and
through Austin some time during
the night we go, Next morning at
100 we reached San Antonio. The
convention was called to order st II
O'Clock with the largest delegations
present from every section OF Texas
that have gotten together for many
years and it was indeed fine look
ing body of men. San Antonio was
equal to the occasion and had hall
large enough not only to accommo-
date the delegates, but also to seat
all the spectators who cared to go,
and there were many in attendance
who were not delegates. Judge
Reagan, who Is now nearly Sc years
old, was seated on the stage and
soon after the convention was called
to order the delegates began calling
for Reagan for speech and when
he rose from his seat men threw
their hats and umbrellas skyward
and yelled for ten minutes. No
man who ever lived in grand old
Texas is more loved and more ven
Grated than is John H. Reagan.
For something like sixty years be
held office and in all that time not
one whisper was ever heard against
his character. Honest and true to
the people he served go long, and he
is now the only member of JEFF Davis
cabinet living, serving four years of
the war as Postmaster General of
the Confederate government. His
mind seems as clear today as 1t ever
was. His voice is still good and his
speech was listened to with rapt at
tention by that large audience. He
was called on several times during
the two days of the convention to
speak. After Judge Reagan, Sena-
tor Bailey was called for and was
given rousing reception as he
Lassed from the audience 10 the ros-
trum to make his speech. He is q
fine looking man and is a splendid
orator, and now when it 10 known. in
Washington that Senator Bailey 10
to make a speech in the senate of
the United States the galleries of
the senate chamber are crowded.
His speech to the convention was
magnificent and after he bad finish |
ed Senator Chas. A. Culberson, who,
/ think is Bailey's equal, though |
not so much talked of, made q
ringing speech. Our Senators
from Texas no doubt measure
up in ability and oratory with /