The San Angelo press. (San Angelo, Tex.) 1897-1907, 1905-07-13

others noses, and Mr.. Metcalte
saws
II have never heard II single
man in Texas object to it. "
San Angelo is quite an old
town, although it is located in
the western part of Texas upon
what used to be considered u
desert. 1t was only a few years
ago that anybody thought Of
planting seeds in the ground here,
because nobody believed that
anything would grow where so
little rain falls. But the range
cattle have gone away far to the
westward and are driven in here
TO be fattened and shipped to the
market. There are good many
sheep on the ranges off the south
west also and lots of fine mules
and horses are bred in the vicin-
ity. Cotton is the big agricult-
ural crop, and last year more
than 100000 worth of farm
products were shipped on the
Santa Fe road from this place.
The people of San Angelo insist
that it is the largest wool ship
ping point in Texas. All the
clips within radius of $50 miles
are brought in here. The Santa
Fe road has carried away as high
as 100000 pounds a year. Three
million pounds have already been
shipped this season and the price
of wool is so high that the farm
ers will clip their sheep twice this
year. They are now getting from
% to 30 cents pound, which is
the record price. Heretofore they
have been glad to get 10 cents
But here, as elsewhere, the
ranges are being broken up into
farms, because it pays more
money to pillow the ground than it
does to drive cattle. 1t requires
ten acres TO feed II "critter" and
land is worth from So to $40 an
acre, which makes it too eXpen-
slve for grazing purposes. If
Eastern people who are grum-
bling about the high price of beef
would come out here and talk to
the cattle growers they would get
some new ideas on that subject.
Cattle are very scarce and very
high and those who are in the
business predict that they are
likely to be higher rather than
lower. The cattle business is
changing very rapidly. AS the
ranchmen say, no one knows
what is going to turn up. This
used to be breeding ground and
the yearllngs were shipped to
Kansas and Missouri to be fat.
tened. The ranchman was salts
fined with rs and $lOa head, but
he now keeps the steers, fattens
them himself and sells them at
from Sl5 to S25 head. There
are still several very large ranch
es in this vicinity, blocks of 3d.
600, $4,000 and even 100000
acres belonging to the same own
ers, who bought them years ago
from the State for 80 cents and
81 per acres on forty years time,
and are now selling the land in
small lots for ten times Its orig
inal value, They tell of one old
"mossback" who has n tract of
10000 acres of excellent land,
but he will not sell an acre of it
because he does not know what to
do with the money and is afraid
some swindler will get it away
from him.
While there is n fairly good
rainfall, irrigation is popular.
There Is plenty of water in the
Concho river and the canals and
bitches are being extended every
season. Charles Metcalfe, the
man who owns the mules, the
most energetic and progressive
citizen of San Angelo, has built a
dam in the river to make n lake
that is used both for pleasure and
profit. 1t furnishes the city n
water supply and provides power
for the electric light plant and n
cotton gin, n grist mill and other