The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1914-11-15

iniscences, and we were much impressed.
Only the, year before had the Texas
coast been swept by a fear equfnoctial
gale, and a shattered vessel mile out
was then in sight, and the wrecked condi-
ton of some wharves and the water front
of the city itself caused us to regard her
location with amazement. No cleaner city
could be found, no healthier situation, no
prettier drives than along that beach, no
lovelier homes than those fronting the
gulf-yet knowing SO we'll the violence
of our southeast gales and the rise of
water caused thereby-even in Mobile, 80
miles from the gulf-caused us to enter
into more than one discussion as to the
danger threatened by those two mighty
forces. But no-the citizens contend ed
that the winds would not rise beyond so
or 90 miles per hour, and the waters
| would pass or whirl around the island.
and they never rose above five or six
| feet. Yet "A years later a terrible disas-
ter overwhelmed this Queenly city, when
/ on September and g. 1900, the waters
stood in the streets 10 to Is feet deep,
dashed into raging sea by a hurricane
| of over 100 miles velocity, and between
1000 and 5000 of her people met an unex-
pected and shocking death.
| Just previous to this calamity the skele-
tons of some 1000 human beings had been
\ exhumed by workmen building the Ari-
iona and New Mexico railroad They
were piled or heaped in such a condition
| as TO show that death had not resulted
\ from natural causes. nor had they been
regularly buried. Scientists claimed that
they belonged to a historic race, ana
had been suddenly submerged by q tidal
wave and covered by the sands.
gentleman recently from Galveston
| informs us that the finest homes he saw
IN Texas are now upon the strand where
the greatest havoc was wrought in 1900
showing the abiding faith that the people
| or that wonderful and thriving city have
either In the sea wall now building. or in
their determination to defy the elements
| Galveston is a city whose life be-
| gan In 1887 and at the time of our
visit the tonnage entering her port
| amounted to 100000, and in 1900 was
over 100000. The cotton alone ex-
ported amounted to s6,o0o,o0o, and
other exports to about $50, 900, 00O-the
combined exports and imports to s171,-
100000. The population at the time of
! the disaster was $4,000. No less than
| $50 vessels entered and cleared at her
custom house for the year 1899, one
half of which were foreign. This pic
turesque city was named for a wild girl
found on the island with a vest on
"Gal-vest- on,'-so tradition goes, but
really derived its name from Count
Bernodo de Galvez a Spanish states
man and soldier, who was governor of
| Louisiana in 1776 and died in Mexico
| in 1875. His military career covers
some 10 years of exciting times spent
along our gulf coast, Mobile and PEN
sacola coming in for the principal share
of adventures.
| While in the city we called on r. W.
! Clayton, the former first clerk of the
| celebrated steamer Alice Vivian. He
was the business man of Willis & Co.,
the largest cotton factors then In that
city. We had all known him as "S1ick
Clayton" and his signature was the
admiration of all, his being the most
beautifully penned name of any in the
palmy days of Mobile-save one-that
| of the late Benjamin Whitaker of the
Gulg City, who signed st. John, Powers
& Co., bankers, and whose writing has
never been rivalled, so far as this writer
can testify.
Next day we babe adieu to the fair
city by the sea, and soon reached In
dianola, or a wrecked railway station
by that name, the storm of 1878 hav-
ing destroyed nearly every house and
wharf. leaving desolate bed of white
sand which Is today known as Fort
Lavaca.
/ The bay leading up to the town OF
Matagordo is so shallow that no steam
ers run thereto and we had to char
ter small sloop to sail the 80 miles
| Matagordo, like st. Stephens, Cahaba
and Claiborne of our own state. has a
history. which, like Meirs, lies in the
beautiful past. 1t was formerly the
summer resort of the wealthy planter
and beautiful belle of we olden tyne
In company with old Colonel VIII
liams, formerly Of Tennessee, and
young Hugely, a son of the firm OF
Hugely & Blair. cotton factors in old
Mobile even before our day, we spen,
several hours In wandering over the
almost deserted place. Colonel Will
liams was one of those ante-bellum
planters of education who had beer
wealthy and he possessed world OF
information upon all subjects and had
been left a1one-wife, children and ali
that binds to Mother Earth had gons
on before, and he lived In the past. His
companions were cowboys and he lived
In the midst of houses which had cost
| some 10000 and some $4,000, now de-
serted and nailed up; a few contain
ing old and handsomely carved fur
niture, ready for and seemingly await
ing the owners return Here were
broad streets, perfectly laid out and
graded; carriages that had cost $4,000
sand $4,000 standing in many outhouses
and as we listened to the tales that
the old man told of the balls and din
ings and pleasures once enjoyed by
those good old families who had their
winter homes along Caney Creek, ant
their summer resorts along this peace
full bay, our thoughts reverted to Point
|, Clear on the eastern shore of our beau.
tiful bay of Mobile, when the south
was happy and no war had laid itl
devastating touch upon us.
At Matagordo there still stood the
hotel where the rich planter met the
princely merchant from New York and
entertained him as only a southern
man could We were led into a room
where IS young sons of these wealthy
planters had lain as corpses In the
sixties Being under age they could
not enter the army-yet full of the fire
of adventure they had crossed Mata-
gordo bay and landed on a narrow
strip that almost encircled that body
of water in order to capture a vessel
that had been blown near the land
| and which was flying the flag of ths
! union. While there in their summer
|; attire a fierce norther came upor
! them and they we're frozen to death
Scarcely one family escaped the los.
of son.
Just at this point the Colorado rive
rent, without steamers and consequently
minus commerce.
Meeting with some Of the cowboys, an,
mounting a hardy mustang, we set GU
for Caney Creek. some 30 miles distant
cleverer set of Texans never welcome,
a stranger and while we could not boI
with them in their terrible rides and man
quarter races. we watched each heat witt
interest. One young fellow named Col
lingsworth. a former Alabamian, ridin
a horse that possessed more of the Lex
tington blood was content to jog alonI
with us and talk yearlings. marketing