The Hope pioneer. [volume] (Hope, N.D.) 1882-1964, 1909-01-28

VO 1clt OOIpuS SuF1SJl one week.
ago and went to Houston getting q
good view of the country for the two
hundred and seventy-five miles (for
this is a country of magnificent dis
tances) between Corpus Christi and
Houston and one would think that
there is unoccupied land enough in
Texas to support all the people of the
U. S., but there is great activity
around the station of Taft. They are
preparing five thousand acres for cot
ton this coming season. This land
is owned by Mr.. Chas. Taft, brother
of our President elect, and it would be
pretty hard to find a finer body of land
than this which believe is about
$4,000 acres. Itsis just about as level
as q floor and of almost unlimited fer
tility. We stopped at Yocnm, a div
ision point of the Arkansas Pass r. r.
and found a wide-a-wake little city
of about 5000 people. North from
there we passed thru rolling, pref
ty nice looking country for hun
dred miles then we struck the level
rice land and for about fifty miles we
passed over country as smooth as you
could find anywhere. Then we struck
the valley of the Brazt,s River where
the soil is twenty feet deep and about
as red as red brick. We arrived in
old Houston at 7:3O O'Clock in the ev-
ening. We went direct to the Rice
Hotel, a fine and we'll managed hostel
ry, which was built by that old man
Rice who was murdered for his money
in New York and over which they have
had such a long, drawn-out trial. The
next day we started out early to see
Houston. We found city of about
$4,000 people and of an energetic dis
position, something of the northern
type and I noticed number of new
concrete and steel buildings under
construction and of the ten storey
type. Sam Huston Park is a beauti-
full place and number of others which
l didn't learn their names. Houston
hss been renamed the city of roses, as
they bloom all the winter and in great
profusion. The city is working for
deep water channel from the gulf
and there is probability of their get
ting it and if they do the city of Hus-
ton is going to be great city for they
have already sixteen railroads center
4 ing there. We left Houston at 1926
Sunday night via. the Southern Pa
ciic making the run at night, there
fore we didn't see much of the country.
We arrived in San Antonio at 7:3C
Monday morning. We went direct to
our hotel had breakfast then we start.
ed out to learn something about an.
other city founded by the Spanish
over 200 years ago, as it SO happened
our. hotel fronts on Alamo Plaza an6
on one corner of which stands the
old historic Alamo, called by the peo
pie of Texas the cradle of Texas lib
erty. You, of course, all remember
the account of the great battle of the
Alamo fought in 1886 between the Tex
ans and Mexicans. The old Alamo i:
owned by the state and opens for Wis
itors every day except Sunday. w,
went out to the army post, just out
side of the city where 1000 soldiers ar,
now. We saw all their quarters, thei
commissary and many other interest
/, ing things.
We then went from there to one o
the parks and then to the hot wells
These hot wells are something of
wonder. At a depth of 1000 feet the.
struck a flow of nice water, clear a
crystal, but very strong of sulphu
and hot, 1O4 degrees, or just right TO
bathing. They have large sanitar
ium and bath house, swimming pool
and which all seem to be paying well
The grounds are very beautiful and
very slightly place and of course a
usual, on the car coming back fror
the wells l met three men from N.
have never gone anywhere, yet, with
out meeting people from N. Dak., the
seem to be everywhere. That convinc
es me that they must make some mon
ey in old N. D. or they couldn't b
forever travelling over the earth.
This city is q hustling place of abou
one hundred thousand inha bitants an
is destined to become a center of trad
and large city. There is one SIS, ,00
Hotel now nearly completed and ar
other under construction to cost
million they are great steel structure
and l noticed one or two other stee
buildings under way that will be tie
storeys high. There are some nature
curiosities here. One is the source {
the San Pedro river about mile frol
the city limits which is an enormor
spring of clear, pure water coming o,
of a ledge of rock and the volume {
water is nearly if not as great as OF
own Sheyenne.