Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1914-01-21
ARE SEEING AND REALIZING
The Thayer Family Enjoying Winter
in Big Southwest
RAYMoNDvmI.E, Texas. Jan. 9. 1914

mas oecOHe OF tue mayer Iamlly. 10
such we will say, that after spending
IA days on the way, stopping off at st.
Louis, Arkadelphia ana Texarcana,
Arkansas, and Denton, Texas, where
resides the family of your old neighbor,
Jacob Mork. kingsville is lovely city
of about 5000 to 5000 population and
well built up in modern style. and
with mixed population of southern
capitalists, mostly ranchers, northern
farmers and Mexicans, with a few Ne
groes, Spandiard, and Indian popula-
tion among the laboring class, so as to
give variety. Kingsvile is perhaps the
best built up of all southern Texas cities
of its size, having several grand resi-
dence, one of which, the home of Mrs
King, about three miles out, is being
erected at an expense of nearly $780,
600 The Frisco system of railroad has
erected great shops and their general
offices for this section of their road be-
tween Brownsville and Houston, includ-
| ing the most beautiful hotel in pebble
dashed work to be found in any part of
Texas, and far exceeding in artistic
beauty anything in the north. Mr..
Mork and family gave US a very hearty
reception and in going over their farm
we noticed that they had as good crop
OF cotton, corn, mile maize, etc, as
can be raised in their vicinity. In fact,
their profits are fully equal to those of
the best farmers in the vicinity of vi
roqua, and their expenses are compar-
atively small. We were the first Yer
non county people to call on the Mork
family since they came south They
certainly entertained us royalty and we
were loath to depart.
While at Kingsville the manager of
the Kings interests took us in his car to
the orange groves of b +. Yocum and
Mrs. King, where we enjoyed the lux
ury of eating luscious Navel oranges
fresh from the tree, and there we saw
a wagon load or more on trees six years
old. The only drawback that we noted
was the great Kings ranch stretching
like great barrier to general farming
on each side three to FIVE miles distant
from the railroad extending many miles
both north and south, and also their
rainfall is quite heavy and hence their
climate more changeable than at this
point
Leaving Kingsville on January 9th,
we came to Raymondville, and are en-
joying all that delightful, balmy eli
mate coupled with roads that will excel
in all directions the roads from Viroqua
to asylum and county home, together
with orange groves on all sides, some
new and some four to six years old and
loaded with their fruit. In the same
grove we find very large grape fruit,
| fig trees, peach trees, pomgranites.
date plums in bearing, together with
lemen trees starting that bear the year
around. Last evening we passed an
orange and grape fruit grove of IA acres
two miles from. Raymondvil!e and adj
joining on wav back palm grove of
about same size used as nursery for
southern Texas
Every thing that was planted and
cared for this last season grew in album
dance wi bout any irrigation. The soil
is very rich and very deep. no stone at
all, and packs so as to make perfect
road bed without any gravel or other
hard material. My wife, Verna and
Howard all seem to enjoy every hour
OF the day and night. We will go down
to the irrigated region next and report
our observations. Our automobile ar
rived next day after we got here. and
80 we go where and when we please
and this southern hospitality gives US
the opportunity of calling on people of
all lines of business, including ranchers,
fruit growers, truck growers. general
farmers and business people Of all kinds
Raymondville is the center of very
rich farming section and its territory
being sold at from $40 to $50 per acre
for the very best situated, should build
up very rapidly, and especially as the
people are very friendly, that with its
genial climate. never above 80 the past
season, and no killing frosts as yet,
with sea breeze all the time, should
make very strong position commerce.
ally at no late cate. Its oranges may
be tested as taken from the trees this
morning by my own hands and sent to
G. r. Bishop, Ed Wig and J. r, SPELL
UNI.
There may be other points that are
being doomed that command more at
tention, but from what can learn up
to this time there is none better situat-
ed or better suited for general or for
intensive fruit growing than this sec
ton, which can be irrigated at any time
desired at a reasonable expense.
My family joins in wishing home
| friends and neighbors happy and pros
porous season. Very respectfully,