Denison Daily News. (Denison, Tex.), Vol. 6, No. 264, Ed. 1 Tuesday, December 31, 1878 Page: 4 of 20
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DENISON,
TEXAS.
speculators was formed, who hunted up
this class of otutwAud made forged titl< -
to the property, i\ntiiiK thw Iwek to
about tlu> time of tho owner's di«:>p-
pearanee. They then made transfers
from one to another, nil duly authenti-
cated and showing u perfect chain of
title flown to the present claimant, who
would have these instruments nil recor-
ded and put the land upon the market.
Their transactions were generally limit-
ed to two or three tracts in a county, in
order to avoid suspicion. These tracts
are now all luuwn and their history is
fully understood by every abstract man,
and there is no more danger of being
deceived in a title in Texas than any
other state, provided the purchaser ex-
ercises the same amount of caution here
that he would there. The fraudulent
titles are less than one per cent, of the
the western states, which are now over-
whelmed with a bonded debt assumed
during a period of inflated prosperity,
the people of Texas have adopted a
constitution by which counties, cities
aud towns are prohibited from issuing
bonds in aid of railroads or any other
private enterprise. By the same instru-
ment the rate of taxation is limited in
cities of less than ten thousand inhabit-
ants to one-fourth of one per cent, for
general purposes. A few of the olden
cities have been drawn into the vortex
of debt, but the law has been so framed,
and the right of taxation so carefully
hedged, that it is next to impossible for
a county or city hereafter to become in-
volved beyond its means. The line has
been perhaps too closely drawn, but
who have suffered from over-taxa-
reach even this, but owing to neglect of
cultivation.
(trasses -The introduction of do-
mestic grasses common to the north has
not proven satisfactory. The wild
grasses of the prairie are very nutritious,
the state. Largo orchards and fruit bowia knife at the back of his neck,
farms have already been established, I However true this may have been in
which are being enlarged and increased
in number every year, and the day is
not far distant when early fruits will
be shipped from this point to thejeities
those
tion, will agree with us that it is better tanee apart as corn.
NORTH TEXAS.
Information for tltose I n'alring to
Emigrate.
Introduction—Public Lands- Land Urunt*
— Land Titles—Homentend E.temptlonn- ■
t*rlce oj J.ami Soil—Lumber Ilater and
ll'#r ter l*owcrs Inseets, l{rptlhst Etc.
Taxation ami Itomfs Health Ea rml nft
I*r< ducts—t'lima/<•--Schools -The i'olorcd
Element—Stock tiaisl nif fruits- Irj/r/ti-
hit s—Ma it uf actories business Onoovtn-
nltles Trades ami Professions II /irtf to
tlo and lime to tlet There, /?/<*., Etc.
Texas, although a state in name, is an
empire in size. It has an area of 271,-nn(1(H. any title and paying
tJOO square nines, or more than the coin-1 years, become absolute owners of buildings erected and paid for, their
bined area of Illinois, Ohio, lVnnsylva- pr0perty against all ad vera© claim- credit is good, and they are enjoying a
nia and New York, with all of New hug- except minor heirs. ! season of financial prosperity.
land thrown in. It stretches from the homestead exemptions. health.
seventeenth to the twenty-ninth nieridi- flio j,©ad of a family is entitled to' North Texas is as healthy a region of
an of longitude, and its extreme boun- j10j^ 200 acres of laud with all the im-, country as is to be found anywhere in
daries are more than a thousand miles proVements thereon, also sutlieientstock j the Union. Owing to its high location,
apart. It embraces within its limits implements to work the same, and pure air and good water it is free from
rugged mountains, fertile plums ana (]lese ltrc, exempt from seizure or forced malaria, oxcept in river bottoms, while
barren wastes. It contains some of the ; 8ftje £or nllv t%anse except taxes or pur-; rheumatism, catarrh and neuralgia are
chase money. If living in a city or j almost unknown. Indeed, numerous
town, he is entitled to a lot or lots, the cases can be shown where people who
original cost of which, exclusive of im-' have suffered for years from these dis-
richest land upon the continent as well
us a great deal of the poorest. Its range
of products is ns diversified as its sur-
face, embracing the cereals and fruits of
the North, the cotton of the South, and
the sugar and orange of the tropics. It
was one of the first to secede from the
old home government, and yet suffered
less by the rebellion than any other
southern state, and is the only one that
escaped financial ruin at the hands of
the carpet bagger. Its state debt is
only nominal as compared with its re-
sources; its bonds are above par, and
its rate of taxation for state and county
purposes is limited to one per cent.,
except for special pnrposes. Its popu-
lation in 1870 was 818,510, which will
be more than doubled by the year 1880.
public lands.
Under the conditions of the treaty by
which Texas was annexed to the United
States she retained control of all her
public lands. These she has used to
stimulate immigration, to establish a
permanent school fund, and to foster
and encourage internal improvements.
The state has never been sectionized,
but is laid off into "headlights," each
person taking in such shape as suited
his fancy the amount of land to which
ho was entitled. The field notes or de-
scription of the tract, duly certified by
the county surveyor, were forwarded to
the land commissioner at Austin, a pat-
ent was issued to the locator by the gov-
ernor of the state, and henceforth, for
all tiuie to come, that tract became
known as his "headlight." In early
times the old Spanish system of land
measurement was adopted and is gen-
erally still adhered to. In tiiis system
the unit of measurement is a vara or
Spanish yard (33£ inches), and the table
to be learned by tlio Texan school boy
runs as follows:
33£ inches make 1 vara.
5646 square varas make I acre.
177 acres make 1 labor.
25 labors make 1 league.
To one aecustomed to the short and
concise descriptions of land in a coun-
try where everything is laid off in sec-
tions, where all tracts are square or
nearly so, and where all angles are right
angles, the complex descriptions found
here are puzzling in the extreme. It is
seldom that a lino runs due east and
west or due north" and south, and the
number of sides and corners to a tract
varies from three to twenty.' In one
instance in this county (Grayson) a
pieco of land, as described in the pat-
ent, lias forty-three sides, and its de-
scription, including bearing trees, &c.,
to identify the corners, covers more
than two pages of legal cap paper, close-
ly written.
land grants.
While Texas was still a part of the
Mexican government, large grants of
land were made to citizens for distin-
guished services—seldom less than one
or more than eleven leagues to each
person. These grants, as far as they
were located and could be identified,
were respected when Texas became a
republic, and the same system was kept
up, except in smaller amounts, by issu-
ing "donation warrants," "bounty war-
rants," and "headright certificates."
Under the republic the size of the grant,
varied, a league and labor (4605 acres)
being the largest and a single labor (177
acres) the smallest. In those days the
head of a family was entitled to a grant
of 1200 acres, which was afterwards re-
duced to 040 acres and finally, since
Texas became a state, to a pre-emption
claim ®f 160 acres. A warrant or a cer-
tificate could be located in a singlebody,
or in detached pieces, as its owner pleas-
ed; hence it has occurred that lands
have been located in pieces of irregular
sizes, of every possible shape, with lines
running to every point of the compass
When ubout three
whole. Further than this, rigid limita-! to err on the side of economy than on j or four weeks old these rows are
tion laws have been passed by which that of ext ravagance. Very few conn-1 "chopped out," leaving the stalks about
persons holding peaceable possession ties in North Texas have any bonded I one foot apart. It is then cultivated
title and paying taxes for! debt, most of them have good county the same as corn. The picking season
begins in September and lasts until De-
cember. A field of cotton has to be
picked about threo or four times. One
man can tend about the same number
of acres as of corn, but extra help
would have to be employed in picking.
After picking it is taken to the gin,
where it is ginned and baled for one-
twelfth. A fair crop is one-half bale
(250 pounds) to the acre; a good crop is
three-fourths of a bale, and an extra
crdjj one bale. Cotton has brought in
market for the last two seasons an aver-
age of nine cents per pound. The seed
yields about thirty bushels to the bale
and is worth from five to ten cents per
and retain this quality when cured upon of the north-west by the car load,
the ground without being cut. It is Peaches Texas is the natural home
believed that as the soil becomes culti- of the peach, all varieties doing re-
vatcd and domesticated the tame markably well. Until recently little at-
grasses can be successfully introduced, tention was paid to their culture, and
The best pasture grass is ISermuda, yet some of the specimens of natural
which yields more pasturage than any fruit would be hard to excel in any
other grass known and never kills out. market.
Cotton is the staplo of the south, earliest varieties they often
Before the war it was t he main reliance their producers from four to six dollars
' of the planter, for the reason that it is per bushel. The Amsden, Alexander,
always cash and will bear transporta- Foster and River have thus far proven
i tion to any distance. It is planted in among the most profitable.
April, in solid rows, about the same dis- '
the days of the republic, there is no
such character to lie met at the present
day. The present inhabitants are peace-
ful, law-abiding men, who have come
here with the same motive that actuated
the early settlers of t he western states—
that of making a home for themselves
and their families. The laws are strict
and rigidly enforced. It is one of the
few states where the stealing of a calf
or a pig, whose value is less than tlvo
Since the introduction of the I dollars, is a penitentiary offence. Life
realize for and property are as safe here as in any
of the older states. A gentleman
riginal
provements, does not exceed $5,000.
Under recent rulings of the supreme
court it is not necessary that these lots
lie contiguous to each other, so that a
man may claim as his homestead a resi-
dence in the suburbs and a business
block on the main street. The home-
stead, whether farm or city property,
can not be mortgaged or encumbered
in any way except for purchase money
or improvements, and for the latter only
when the written consent of the wife
has been obtained and the same duly
certified before a notary public.
pkk'e ok land.
This varies with the quality and loca-
tion, from twenty-five cents per aero to
ten dollars. In the northern part of
the state, the part best adapted to grain
raising and now most rapidly settling,
the best grade of farming land, unim-
proved and lying within ten miles of a
railroad station, can be had at from four
to ten dollars per acre. As you recede
from railroads and markets the price
diminishes to about one dollar, the low-
est price at which good land can be had
in organized counties.
soil.
The soil is greatly varied, being com-
posed of black waxy, black sandy, red
amdv and light or gray sandy, each hav-
ing its peculiar crops. The subsoils
are yellow and red clay, the red being
considered the best, especially for fruit
and vegetables. The strongest and
richest of these is the black waxy,
which, however, is hardest and most
disagreeable to cultivate, owing to the
sticky qualities from which it derives
itj namo.
timber.
The principal timber of the agricul-
tural regions is the oak, and the varie-
ties found are the post oak, red oak and
black oak, with bun1 oak and chestnut
oak in the bottoms. We have also, in
more limited quantities, the elm, ash,
hickory and pecan. The bois d'arc
(osage orange) here becomes a sturdy
tree and is very valuable on account of
its lasting qualities. When dry it is al-
most as hard as iron, and will last long-
er than any other wood upon the conti-
nent. It is rapidly coming into use in
the manufacture of wagons and imple-
ments where strength and great dura-
bility are required.
The streams generally are bordered
with timber, and there are occasional
belts of timber upon the uplands, ex-
tending across several counties. In
general terms it may be stated that
North Texas is supplied with sufficient,
timber for fuel and fencing purposes.
eases have been wholly cured by the
climate here. The fevers that prevail
are bilious and intermittent, a type
easily controlled and very seldom fatal. [ bushel for feeding or for oil.
The old form of typhus or typhoid fev
er is seldom met. The disease most
dreaded is the pneumonia, which pre-
vails in the month of February, and is
frequently fatal among those who have
been poorly clothed or housed. People
of good habits and properly cared for
have little to fear from it. Yellow fev-
er sometimes appears along the gulf
coast, but has never reached the north
part of the state, the altitude being
above that ever reached by the disease.
Chills and fever abound along the riv-
ers, the same as in all other newly set-
tled countries, but disappear as the
country becomes improved.
climate.
The climate is mild and equable. In
winter snow is seldom seen, ice seldom
forms more than two inches thick, and
in the last four years the thermometer
has never but once touched zero. In
January and February there are days
together when a fire is not needed and
an overcoat is uncomfortable. The oc-
casional "cold snaps," in the shape of
"northers," seldom last more than forty-
eight hours. Stock does very well
without shelter, aud plowing is done
every month in the year, unless it be
July and August. Spring opens in
February, and in March all nature lias
resumed her robes of green. The sum-
mers are longer, but the heat no great-
er than in latitudes ten degrees farther
north. The thermometer seldom rises
above 100 degrees in the shade. Our
hottest days are equalled in St. Louis
and Chicago, but they begin earlier
and hold on later. As an oftset to the
heat of the day we have always a cool
breeze at night, so that one rises in the
. schools.
Texas has a good school system and
the nucleus of a fund which will event-
ually eqnal that of any state in the
Union. All poll taxes, all fines and
penalties collected, and all proceeds
arising from the sale of public lands, go
into the school fund. When it is re-
membered that over seventy million
acres of land has been donated to rail-
roads and that for each section so donat-
ed an alternate is set apart as school
land it will bo seen that the school fund
will eventually swell to enormous pro-
portions. At present it is sufficient to
sustain a school only about, four months
in the year. Like all other southern
states there is a strong prejudice against
free schools, which must be worn away
before they can reach their full degree
of usefulness. Even legislators are not
above this prejudice, and the school
law last enacted does not permit the
levying of a tax to supplement the
school fund, no matter how willing the
people may bo to pay it. Fortunately,
some of the cities and towns have
special charter privileges, enabling them
to provide for their schools, and these
the law could not affect. The eity of
Apples—Early varieties do woll, as
they maturo before the • extremely hot
weather sets in. They bring from
$1.50 to $2.50 per bushel; Lato varie-
ties are liable to blister and sunburn
upon the trees, and have not thus far
proven a success.
Pears—Formerly grew and produced
well, but of lato years have been subject
to blight.
Plumbs—Produco well. . Tlioy have
not as yet been troubled by the eurculio.
The wild goose is the favorite and most
successful variety.
Cherries—A few varieties, particu-
larly those of the Morrollo typo, have
been successfully introduced. It is as
yet an unsettled question whether
sweet cherries can bo profitably raised.
Grapes—Are indigenous to the coun-
try. Tho-woods are full of wild ones,
some of which aro equal in size to
domestic grapes, and very little the in-
ferior in quality. Tho Concord is the
standard vino, being more hardy and
sure than any other, the more delicato
varieties, particularly tho Ives, Scup-
pernong and Delavy, are being success-
fully introduced and promise to bo very
profitable. Grapes can bo raised mueli
cheaper here than at the North, and
this is gradually becoming a wine-
producing district.
Blackberries—Produce well, are
oasily raised and very profitable. We
know of several instances where they
have realized for their owners a dollar
per hill in a singlo season.
Strawberries—Do well upon sandy
land and are exceedingly profitable,
but are quite liable to be burned out
during the hot months of the summer.
If located where they be irrigated or
easily watered thtjy become one of the
safest and surest as well as most valua-
ble crops. As high as $700 per acre
has been realized from them.
Raspberries, Gooseberries ancl
Currants—Do not succeed.
vegetables.
The native Texan 1ms very little use
for any great variety of vegetables, and
still less ambition to cultivate them.
Denison is one of this class, and her j It is only since tho advent of people
proudest, boast is that for three years j from the North that anything like mar-
she has maintained a system of free ; kot gardening in this part of the State
graded schools during ten months of j has been tried, and the result so far has
the year. Truth compels us to admit, j been very satisfactory.
however, that not three other towns in i Sweet Potatoes—Are to tho South
the state have done the same thing. j what Irish potatoes are to the North.
states. A gentleman or
lady can always find gentlemen and la-
dies to associate with, and although
there is a rough element in the commu-
nity its existence need never be known
by those not desiring it.
professions.
The legal and medical professions aro
generally well represented, so that no
man need want for advico or physic.
Still, as a noted lawyer onco said, "there
is always room at the top."
merchandising.
Tho Americans have become a race
of merchants. Wherever you find one
man ready to earn his living by hard
labor you will find ten others ready to
make a living by selling the product of
that labor. This is no less true of Tex-
as than any other state. Still there are
always openings, and probably as fre-
quent here its elsewhere. New towns
are to bo built and older ones enlarged,
and enterprising, successful merchants
are the pivot upon which these things
turn.
churches.
All the leading denominations aro well
represented throughout the state, and
several of them have sectarian schools
and colleges.
manufactories.
Although one of the greatest produc-
ing states in the Union, Texas has few
manufactories worthy of the name. She
exports hides and tanning material and
imports leather. She sells annually
millions of pounds of wool, yet lias but
one woolen manufactory. Slio pro-
duces more cotton than other states, and
disposes of ninety nine per cont. of it
in a raw condition. Sho imports her
soap, when it can be made cheaper
here than at any other place upon tho
continent. She sells wheat to St. Louis
merchants and takes crackers in ex-
change. Sho pays for a thousand miles
of railway transportation on the com-
monest articles of household furniture
and uses for fuel a better material than
that of which they are made.
It needs no argument to show that
fortunes are in waiting for those who
have the pluck, energy and capital to
step in and undertake tho manufacture
of those staplo articles of whose cost so
heavy a percentage is the item of
freight.
denison
in particular offers inducements shown
by no other point in Texas, or indeed
in tho Union. Already tho terminus of
four trunk railroads and others reach*
| ing towards her as an objective point,
the colored element j Thcv grow everywhere, upon all classes j she must necessarily become the great
is not sufficiently strong in the north-' of soil, and aro a staple article of diet. distributing centre of the state. Fuel,*
era part of the state to be felt either j with everybody. They do best upon a both wood and coal, are cheap and close
politically or otherwise. They repre- j sandy soii, ami often attain an immense | at hand, water is plenty, the location is
sent only a small percentage of the in- j size. One was brought to the News | healthy, and the city offers to exempt
morning refreshed and invigorated by j habitants and aro the same as their j
a good night's rest. Not twice in a sea- j class everywhere—a few thrifty, but the |
son do we have a close, sweltering night j majority lazy and improvident.
such as frequently follows a hot day in . stock raising.
the north. Whether from this cause or! Probably larger fortunes have been I
not we cannot say, but for some reason j made in a short time in stock raising ;
people are seldom overcome by the I than any other line of business. Nu-
heat, and cases of sunstroke are un- j raerous instances can bo cited where j
known. j men who were poor ten years ago now i
There is no denying the fact that the j number their cattle by - the thousand. I well upon moist ground, and two crops
climate has a somewhat enervating eff-1 Most of these acquired their riches in a j are raised in a season. The first crop,
ect upon the human system. A man j legitimate way, but of occasionally one ripening in June, is very liable to rot.
comes here full of the life and energy of it will be said that he began business They are not as good as the Nor-
oflice a short time ago which weighed
nine and a half pounds, and was larger
than a man's head. They sell at 75
cents per bushel when first produced,
50 cents during the plentiful season,
and $1 late in the winter. They yield
from two to four hundred bushel:, per
acre.
Irish Potatoes.—Produce tolerably
a northern clime, and is astonished at
the indolent ways of the people.
Gradually, however, ho seems to lose
his own vitality, and in a few years has
drifted into the ways of those around
him.
farming products.
The range of
with a "bull and a branding iron" and ] thorn potatoes, and
in a year had raised a hundred head, not as great, ranging
The stock field is a large one and offers
as good inducements as ever. Bogin-
The eastern portion of the state is an
immense pine forest, which is now pen-
etrated by railroads, and the yellow pine j reach of the farmer is extremely varied,
lumber is the cheapest and best build-. Our location is upon a kind of middle
ing material to be had, being furnished | ground, where the grain belt of the
at from fifteen to twenty-five dollars per
thousand. The pine land regions are
not desirable as farming lands nor are
they generally healthy.
water and water power.
The northern part of Texas is well
watered. The numerous springs are
supplemented by streams, furnishing
north and the cotton region of tho south
overlap each other, and the products of
both are available. A farm which can
produce thirty bushels of wheat to the
acre in one field and three-fourths of a
bale of cotton to the aero in an adjoin-
ing one, and where cuttle and hogs sub-
sist through the winter without other
an ample supply for stock, and tho wa- food or shelter than such as they can
ter generally is soft and palatable. The gather upon tho range outside, is cer-
averago depth of wells is not over twen- J tainly a desirable one, and tho country
ty feet. The water, whether from wells is full of such places. A careful inquiry
or springs, is several degrees warmer among farming men has given us about
than in the higher latitudes. One's the following as a basis of facts which
teeth are never chilled here by the cold- can bo relied upon.
ness of the water, as is often the ease at Wheat is a crop which seldom fails
the mountain springs or deep wells fur-
ther north. Still, experience has proven
that nature knew best what was adapted produce from fifteen to forty bushels
to the human system, for those are heal-
thiest and less troubled by thirst who
use the fresh, clear water without the
addition of ice to reduce the tempera-
and giving to a county map the general ] ture
confused appearance of a spider-web j Water power is very littlo utilized,
struck by lightning. ! and probably never can be much relied
university and hchool lands. | upon. The beds of rivers are often of
In most of the northern counties of I quicksand, making it impossible to con-
thc state large quantities of land wero < struct dams, and the long dry season
surveyed aud set apart, many years ago, j would render it impracticable to obtain
for the purpose of founding'and sua-1 a supply to carry machinery through
tabling a state university. In addition j tho summer months even if the build-
to this each county was granted a ccr- j ing of dams were possible.
tain number of leagues of land to be j insects, reptiles, etc
used exclusively for the benefit of com- j Tho greatest pests of this country
mon schools in that county. These arc the flea and tho bed-bug. They
ning with one, two or three hundred
yearlings, which can be had at five to
seven dollars each, a man lias but to
products within tho! sit down and wait for them to grow up,
increase and multiply. Still even this
occupation is not without its drawbacks.
The successful stock raiser must ban-
ish himself beyond the limits of civili-
zation, must eat, drink and sleep with
his herd, and bo ever ready to protect
himself and them against incursions
from wolves, Indians and cattle thieves,
which are to be dreaded about in the
order named.
Tho raising of cattle, sheep and hogs
in connection with farming is much
more profitable in a warm than in a
cold country, where the crop of the
summer is stored away to be fed out in
winter. Every thrifty farmer has his
bunch of stock about him, which in-
creases and grows and thrives, he scarce-
ly knows how, except that it is without
cost to himself, until in a few years the
revenue from his stock is equal to that
from his grain. The native cows aro
very poor milkers, perhaps frun the
fact that for generations back their
calves have been allowed to run with
them until they weaned themselves.
Tho breed is being rapidly improved,
the yield is
from seventy
five to one huudred and fifty bushels
per acre. The fall crop is much supe-
rior both in eating and keeping quali-
ties. Tho average price is 75 cents to
$1.00.
Peanuts— Are a profitable crop upon
sandy soil, producing from one to two
hundred bushels per acre, which readily
bring 75 cents per bushel.
Melons.—For fine, large, delicious
watermelons Texas beats the world. A
whole wagon load is sometimes seen,
the smallest of which weighs 50 pounds,
and a single melon was produced last
year weighing 06 pounds. They are as
line in quality as in size, and are often
shipped in car load lots to Northern
cities.
Peas, Beans, Turnips, Radishes
and, Lettuce— All do well.
Onions—Do not attain a very large
size.
from taxation for ten years any manu-
facturing enterprise whose buildings
and machinery cost over $5,000. It is
located in a county which ranks first in
tho state in population and wealth, and
within a radius of a hundred miles lie
half a dozen of tho best agricultural
counties.
when to go.
The best season for emigrating to
Texas is in the fall of the year. All
persons as well as all animals have an
acclimating process to go through,
more or less severe, and the best time
to begin it is in tho fall bo tl at the sys-
tem may be better prepared for the
long summer. Further than this, it
gives time to look around before locat-
ing and still be in season for tho next
year's crop. If it be desirable to rent
for a year before purchasing, the proper
time for that is in tho fall or early win-
ter.
whereto go.
The answer to this must depend
greatly upon the occupation to bo en-
gaged in. If it be cattle raising the
best openings are upon the western
frontier; if sheep raising, the south-
west portion of tho state in the region
of San Antonio;if farming or fruit rais-
ing, there is no better place to settle
than in one of the counties bordering
on lied River. Come first to Denison
over the M. K. & T. railway, and with
this as an inital point you can radiate
j in any direction or to any distance do-
when well put in and in proper season
The black lands, both sandy and waxv,
per acre. The proper season for sow-
ing is from the 20th of September to
the 10th of October, although winter
wheat is often sown as late as January,
and evon then it frequently makes a
good crop. The harvest begins about | cattle raisers having discovered that
the middle of May, and tho price of j half bloods can be as easily raised as na-
wheat usually ranges about $1.00 per! tives and are worth considerably more
bushel. A very common plan here is I in tho market, Formerly, nearly all
to sow wheat upon corn ground with- j imported stock died of fever during the
out any preparation, and then cover first season, but latterly it has been
lightly with a plow or even with a found that if sheltered and protected
brush. Summer fallowing is a process! from the sun during their acclimating
here unknown. It may bo noticed, period they become as hardy as natives,
however, that every year more atton- j Tho same is true of horses as well as
tion is being paid to wheat, and of cattle, and many a man (the writer of
course with better results. As mills j this among the number,) has lost valua-
Tomatoes—Produce well, but need j sired
great care and sometimes shelter to | what to bring,
prevent the fruit from scalding. Bring only the most useful and in-
Cabbage—Require proper soil niTd J dispensable articles of household furni
lands arc now upon the market, to be j are indigenous to the soil, and it re- j are built and shipping facilities in- j ble horses by not knowing this in time,
sold to actual settlers, at an appraised ! quires extreme vigilance on the part of j creased more of it is raised, and it is ; In this connection wo might state
value ranging from $1.50 to $5.00 per; the housekeeper to keep them at bay. i gradually changing from an article of I that with all her cattle, Texas has
acre, payable in ton annual installments ; It is only in isolated cases that the mos-
with interest at ten percent, per annum, quito becomes troublesome, and then
Thfiy are divided into tracts of 80 and not as much so as in higher latitudes.
100 acres, and no person can purchase Lizards, chameleons, horned frogs, and
more than one tract, so that the school tho common order of harmless snakes
lands are rapidly becoming tho most abound here. Tarantnlas, centipedes
thickly settlod portions of too country, and scorpions, of which such terrible
land titles. ' j tales are told, are occasionally met with,
All impression has gone abroad that but hardly once in a lifetime do we
land titles in Texas are very precarious, hear of a person being injured by them.
This is partly true, but in the main very
untrue, and aroso mainly in this way:
Owing to the low value of lands, it fre-
quently happened that a tract would be
located or purchased by a non-residont
and held as an investment. As years
rolled by the owner would disappear
and all traces of him bo lost. A ring of
very
import to one of export. There is no! few dairies, makes but littlo butter and
reason why Texas should not rank with | still less choose. Those who liavo en-
the best wneftt producing states. Only tered this lino of business aro reaping
winter wheat is raised, spring wheat j rich harvests in proportion to the eapi-
nover having boon tried so far as we j tal invested.
know. ! fruits.
Barley yields well so far as tried, but j For certain classes of fruit tho soil
is very little raised, owing to lack of and climate, particularly in the nor-
demand and shipping facilities. j thern tier of counties, seem specially
Oats yield immensely upon all wheat j adapted, and fruit growing is being
They are far more dangerous at a dis-j growing lands, often producing seventy- made a specialty in those points ae-
tancc than at close quarters. Poison- i five or eighty bushels to the acre. Thoy . cessible to market. Having an advant-
ous reptiles, such as the rattlesnake and bring from twenty to forty cents per ! ago of from one to throe weeks time
the copperhead, arg not more common | bushel. j over Missouri and Illinois, the produc-
or dangerous here ' than upon the prai-, Corn produces well on valley lands, j tion of such fruits as will bear transpor-
ries of Illinois. yielding from forty to eighty bushels, j tation is very profitable. "Denison, the
taxation and bonds. On light uplands it runs from fifteen to terminus of the M. K. & T. railway, is
Profiting by tho example of some of1 forty bushels. A great deal fails to 1 the center of tho finest fruit region in
skillful management. As a rule about
one person in four succeeds in raising
them. Thoy are very high, and a good
cabbage-patch is a small fortune.
renting farms.
The annual season for renting is about
Christmas. Renters pay from two to
four dollars per acre, money rent, or
one-third the corn and one-l'ourtli the
cotton.
wages.
Farm hands receive from $15 to $20
per month, and have little trouble in
finding employment. Mechanics get
from $2 to $3.50 per day, but work is
by no means so suro for them. As a
rule the towns and villages are over-
stocked with labor, which tends to de-
press wages aud keep a largo percent-
age of men idle.
cost of living
ture, for the chances are your first
habitation will be small, and a surplus
would only bo in the way. If eoming
by wogen bring mules, as they aro
more hardy and less liable to climatic
influences than horses. Whether com-
ing by wagon or by rail bring money.
No person should come hero without
sufficient means to sustain himself for
at least a year. Money begets money.
A thousand profitable openings present
themselves to a man who has surplus
cash to one for a man who has only
muscle.
what to expect.
Expect upon your arrival to find ev-
ery man like yourself—looking out for
the main chance. Expect labor, priva-
tion and occasional disappointments.
Expect to find some who are ready to
extend tho stranger a welcome, and
others who are ready to toko him in.
Expcct to find human nature the same
not be
Is greater here than in the older states,
particularly in towns where everything
has to bo purchased. Meats aro very ! hero as elsewhere and you will
low, but rents aro higher, and most of j disappointed.
tho articles of consumption aro more j what not to expect.
expensive. Do not expect to find Texas either
rate of interest. an asylum for gentlemen of leasure or
Ten per cent, is tho legal rate, but ( a paradise. Do not expect to find a
twelve per cent, is allowed by law. Still j class of men who can lie oasily gulled or
tho ruling rate of interest is about two j who know uothing of the ways of tho
find
money
per cent, per month, and very littlo j world. Do not expect to
money is loaned for less, either by banks J growing upon trees or to be had in any
or private individuals. other manner than by hard labor.
society. ! Above all things, do not expect to make
Much has been said of tho desperate j a living by your wits or by stepping in-
character of the people here, and the | to a good fat office, for the wit depart*
favorite picture of a Texan is that of a J mont is full to overflowing, and the
man with flowing hair and bloodthirsty I offices are engaged for a quarter of a
eye, two revolvers in his belt and a I century ahead.
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Denison Daily News. (Denison, Tex.), Vol. 6, No. 264, Ed. 1 Tuesday, December 31, 1878, newspaper, December 31, 1878; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth329264/m1/4/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Grayson County Frontier Village.