Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-07-13
by w. ID. HORNADAY.
Special Correspondence Of The Star


. man nature right now. For
tunes suddenly acquired have brought
luxury almost unsurpassed within
the reach of thousands of people who
were poor and, in some cases. power.
ty-stricken little more than a year
ago. Comparatively few Of these IA.
vored folks are going in for wild ex.
travagances. Their habits of liyinr
FOR the most part have changed but
little.
Although there are scores Of land
owners who were poor so far as be.
Ing able to realize in dollars and cents
upon their holdings before the oil
boom and who are now counting their
money by the hundreds of thousa nds
and even by the millions Of dollars.
there are. besides these. hundreds of
other farmers scattered throughout
central west Texas who have made
comfortable fortunes from the leas-
ing Of their Properties.
one OF the noticeable features of
the changed conditions that have
come to these men is that they are
for the most part content to remain
IN their own communities. although
they have enough money to live In
afhueqte In any part Of the world.
Very few Of them have expressed any
intention Of doing even the smallest
amount Of travelling. In many In.
stances they are erecting better rest.
dehoee upon their farms or have
mnVAA lnfn ~ A,,t
homes tor their occupancy. They are
investing their money In a variety OF
ways.
It significant. perhaps. that the re-
ligiots element Of the people who
have been thus favored by tho god.
dess OF fortune in central west Texas
u OF the old fashioned. sound type.
For this reason 1t is not surprising
that many of the devout farmers who
have reaped big fortunes on account
Of the discovery Of oil are giving
tithes. In the matter Of making
church and charitable donations these
man are proving their faith by their
works. They respond literally to all
legitimate demands that may be made
upon them for contributions of this
kind.
Naturally. the ingoing Of so much
money to a territory ESQ miles long
by 100 miles wide has stimulated all
lines of trade and industry. One Of
the outstanding evidences Of the pros
perity of the people Is to be found
in the enormous increase in bank de-
poslts not only in the towns immedi-
ately adjacent to the producing fields.
but in the more removed and larger
cities. particularly Fort Worth. Dali
las. Waco and Wichita Falls. Little
country banks that before the dis
covery Of oil had deposits Of $4,000
to $4,000. now show deposits Of $780,
900 to $1,500.000 each. Never, per-
haps. In any part OF the United States,
not even excepting the mining camps
of the west in the heyday Of their
prosperity, was money more plenti-
full than in the thriving towns that
arc being directly benefited by tho
oil development operations. Men talk
in figures of $4,000 to 100000 as
though these sums were mere baga-
telles. Curbstone and hotel lobby
transactions involving hundreds OF
thousands of dollars are made daily.
Several cases are known where farm
ers who were not able two years ago
to borrow 800 from a bank have be-
come stockholders in new financial
institutions of that kind in their home
towns to the extent OF perhaps $4,000,
and in some instances they have been
elected to positions of president or
vice president In these banks. It Is
also noticeable that many Of the farm
ers are investing their newly acquired
riches in the purchase Of additional
land. Some OF them have bought
farms and ranches In the moro west
ern part of the state for their sons.
Others have gone In for live stock
and are carrying out the ambition
that they may have long cherished In
the matter Of making their properties
UP to date In all respects.
Ono Of the first, things that the aver
age possess OF an oil fortune does Is
to buy a high price six-cylinder auto.
mobile. This part of Texas is literally
overrun with cars OF this type. They
q