Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1922-01-19
Lid CLEAR Off DOWN
IN TEXAS OIL TOWN
Mcxia Duplicates Experiences Of
Gold Mining Camps Of
Earlier Days
BY Associated Press to Every Evening

BY Associated Press TO Every Evening.
Mexia, Texas, Jan. l9.-Overnight
a tented city arose. From an apparently
sleepy little town Of 1900 population in
October. 1921, where old settlers tarmed
for living and eked out bare existence
from their lands; where they rode COW
horses TO town" and hitched them to
hitching post and where even the Town
Hall bell had not tolled for years because
of fhe cobwebs and bird ncsts-to a
busting city of 10000 people, and all
in few months, this is the recent record
of Mexia, an old time Texas town, which
is feeling the effects of one of the numer-
GUS oil developments in the Southwest.
The population now consists OF an
assortment Of oilheld followers and
1 thousands men and women seeking
employing 1 eaving an old field for tho
new, coming on trains from all parts Of
/ the United States, or In wagons, trucks or
horseback, some bringing their assert
ment Of household goods and camping
outfits and finding from ten to hundred
men for every job, and no place available
1 for spending the night.
/ Consequently because of the exhorbi-
I tant prices charged for roorr, il one
were lucky enough To secure one, hum
dreds of men, favored by the long-con-
| tinued mild weather are sleeping on the
grass along railroad tracks, public park
ing places and, in fact, any where they
could. Overnight bed in tent market
"A place To flop" scared from so cents
night TO SO. A night in crude plank
structure where one didn't know his
bed-fellow or the hundreds Of others
in the single room cost IS. Prices
charged the few who were lucky enough
10 get in one of the few private dwellings
vary, but ell were high enough to satisfy
the most fastidious millionaire. But
men are glad to get bed at any price
and many could not find shelter except
that provided by nature.
Rail traffic jumped hundreds Of per
cent. There are two trunk lines, the
Houston & Texas Central and the
Trinity and Brazos Valley heading
through here and passenger traffic is
very heavy while freight trains are fire.
quently seen running three abreast, 80
heavy is the demand for oil machinery.
One road is said TO have spent 5000, 00o
in enlargng it's facilities.
what could be desired. The water was
procured from spring short distance
/ from town, and although good water, II
/ Was nearly as high in price as gasoline
Some oil man, however, came along anc
drilled an oil well right side by side with
the spring, tapping" the water supply
so badly that lately it has been entirely
stopped. Water wagons have been
requisitioned and although they ar,
busy all day and night hauling water t.
homes, restaurants and improvised :
''bunking houses" they are not sIfficien
10 cover the field
. Consequently the town has been de
clared very unsanitary' by citizens IL
heated arguments at the meetings o
the City Council, which is making
every effort to remedy the situation
, Mayor Riddle informed the irate citi
: zens that this could not be done over
: night"
Getting bath here is quite an expert
ence, if indeed not task. The old say
ing IF you want to do something big
wash an elephant" certainly has foun'
parallel in Mexia. This luxury may b
found, outside the woodland creeks
only III uOWutOWn Dh1DcI bnOp. ~
bath house is stall in wooden hoored
planked-in enclosure. Just plain pin
planks are slippery, but the proprietor
of the house have found that it is no
necessary to maintain first aid kit
because the board floors are warpe,
enough to allow the bather foot-hold
Cleanliness, after all, is next to godli
ness" but bath in Mexia IS next 4
impossible.
But as for oil There. are solid 81
miles of new derricks, drillers outfits
tents, wooden buildings and peopl
where once there was the open prairie
A survey Of all local lumber men show
that building completed or constructs
for since October /, totals between
$780, 900 and $5,000,000.
Gambling and drinking halls file
with dancing girls are open every night
and one may buy openly red an
corn" whisky at 50 cents a drink
There is no effort at closing them. TIL
Winter Garden is the most flourish
ing Of these. Here it is said fortune
have been lost overnight at the dice an
roulette tables.