The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 58, July 1954 - April, 1955 Page: 189
650 p. : ill., maps (some col.), ports. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Book Reviews
have esthetic value, but they are fruits of the frontier. Civiliza-
tion has polluted the springs, dammed the streams (and no pun
is necessarily intended), and put pumps on the wells. Fountains
have supplanted springs, and streams wind their way through con-
crete pipe. The race is between the artistic soul and the thirsty
body and the winner takes all--or nearly all.
Several months ago the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation issued a
report entitled "Water Supply and the Texas Economy, an Ap-
praisal of the Texas Water Problem." Dr. Webb has undertaken
the task of reducing the technical aspects of the report to the
common idiom and has added a 'note of urgency' in order to
awaken the people of Texas to the immediate necessity of adopt-
ing an adequate statewide water program. The book is in a way
a sequel to his previous works, The Great Plains and The Great
Frontier, both of which are outstanding presentations of their
subjects.
A canal paralleling the Gulf coast from the Sabine River to the
Rio Grande and inland a distance of approximately 6o or 70
miles to carry water from the eastern area of present excess sup-
ply to the western and southern areas of deficiency is the out-
standing proposal made in the report of the Bureau of Reclama-
tion as well as in Dr. Webb's book. Arguments will probably be
forthcoming regarding the feasibility, cost, benefits, and detri-
ments involved in the project, and all such arguments will be
useful in arriving at whatever may be the final decision. It is to
be hoped that the over-all problem of water conservation in the
entire state of Texas will not be lost sight of amidst sectional
rivalries.
The statistics and illustrations are taken from the Bureau of
Reclamation report, and in that respect they are authentic. Ex-
ception might be taken to Dr. Webb's selection of the date that
Texas started industrialization. The first sulphur production in
Texas was at Bryan Heights (Freeport) in November, 1912, and
not in 1909 (page 19) . If petroleum discovery and subsequent
refinery operations had anything to do with it, Corsicana in 1895
might be chosen. Better perhaps would be Spindletop and other
Gulf Coast salt dome oil fields beginning in 1901, followed by
the industrial development in the Port Arthur-Beaumont area
and along the Houston ship channel.189
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 58, July 1954 - April, 1955, periodical, 1955; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101158/m1/210/: accessed April 19, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.