San Marcos Free Press. (San Marcos, Tex.), Vol. 11, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 19, 1882 Page: 2 of 8
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SAN MARCOS FREE PRESS.
L If. JULU. PuUiaber.
BAN MARCOS
TEXA8
TEXAS TOPICS.-
Crops in Montague arc the best
ever known.
The latent wrinkle vX Houston is
courting by telephone.
The coul Hcam now Wing worked
in "Wise comity is threo feet thick and
gets thicker tlio further down it is
worked.
Freight on tlie Texas and Pacific
railroad has been reduced on wool
from the wstcm counties ho objec-
tinn can bo offered to this generous
nf freight-tariffs on tins com
modity bat it might bo done in favor
of cotton Alto.
Jim Alexander of Concho went
alone brio the 'Guadalupe mountains
recently to seek a ranch location and
never returned. Search was instituted
ni.;man1 his dead . body found fif
teen miles from Roewell New Mexico
where it appears he perished 01 wirsi
Vmm renorts tmst received tfrom
fin mi r nkntations it is estimated by
experts that the Texas sugar crop will
exceed this year that of any previous
year. The cane growth is larger than
heretofore and the quality of .product
superior to former productions. The
productof J. W. House's plantiition at
Areola for the year is estimated at 650
hogsheads of sugar. and V&u uarreis oi
molasses. The crqp of the state is es-
timated ;at 4.000 hogsheads of .sugar
and 5300 barrels of molasses.
(laXunUm News: The road law of
Texas crfght to be greatly modiikid.
It imposes an oppressive servitude on
laborers and exempts the owners of
veluclen as owners! from contributing
to the sepair of ithe public highways.
Such a law could not have been orig-
inated in these days. It is a re-enactment
df .the law that existed before the
war; but .at .that time the bulLof la-
borers were slaves and when their
k time waa .required by law to repair
roads the demand '.was practically a
tax on the planters. The present ar-
rangement .has an entirely contrary
effect. A . wealthy planter of over 45
years of ago having numerous wagons
running over the public highways is
not callod .upon for any sacrifice in
nronortion ;to the benefit he derives
from road improvement while his hired
laborers may be required to give ten
days' labor each; year onsthe roads and
board themselves. Such a requisition
is virtually indefensible. It is virtually
a poll tax of ten dollars on every man
under 45 years while those over that
ago are cxtanpted. It can not be sur-
passed for injustice and the wonder is
it has not been tested ai'd declared
unconstitutional.
Rev. W. E. J?enn has been con-
ducting religious . exercises under his
gospel tent at .the. little town of Alex-
ander on tle Texas Central railway
about eighty miles. north of Waco. On
Saturday the .7th of October a
heavy rain set in. and that night after
services had concluded about.800 peo-
ple mostly women and children re-
mained in tlie itant tto sleep. Shortly
after midnight .a .heavy wind storm set
in accompanied .by .hail thunder and
lightning during which the big tent
blew (down covering. it.i occupants with
the immense caihvas. The screams of
niotheis for children of husbands
and wires for ea.di.oth?r of brothers
seeking. sisters aota selfish struggles
and appeals for relief .were heard above
the stojcoi which jraged for several
hours. Jo add to tlie iorrors of tlie
situation .tlie tent Lad beau pitched on
low gioual which overflowed a foot or
two deep and trunks boots shoes
hats clothi'ig ete. wore .-soon afloat.
The tent was cut all to pieces to get
tlie people out. The winter p ole of tlie
tent fill acrtvH and lodged on the pul-
pit thus saving many from death.
.Several were cut and bruitftd. A
child's skull ws fractured anJ it will
nbably die. A Miss Leslie is re
ported injured aim is in a critical con
diiion.
Iwn-asinjr Demand For Meat Abrwdd.
Tlif English live stock industries
are alive to die fact that other coun-
tries xnmt furnish a considerable u-
ply it AhhI and this condition of
tilings i rapidly increasing. Kt-ferrin
to the fact tlie .ifMi I.irf Stmt
.htmal Minima rizts tlie English view
of tlie question as follows: A careful
otimate according to the figures given j
Limes out the Lict that a comparison
tithe production mitli that of con-
mmption tho a deficiency of 703000
tons of meat and 8500000 tons of
prain. These deficienciea must le
made cp by impcrUticn from other
forui tries.
Returns show that the wuu y
Franco end the sheep of Great Britain
are decreasing in number; while the
population of Eurdpe is growing more
dense the annual increase being k
000000. The present food supply
produced in Europe is said to be sum-
tient for its inhabitants during eleven
months of the . twelve but at the rate
of decline the opinion ja given that not
very far ahead the shortage will be
represented by two. months instead of
one or a doubling of the deficiency.
v i.vi. ia nuite inclined
naturally to keep attention directed
i i nwn colonies as sources
of supply. Especially is Australia
quoted as already giving a good supply
in tliis direction; and it is predicted
that the prospective development of
w resources will enable her to send
.forward frozen canned and otherwise
preserved meats in incredible quanti-
ties. South Australia is said to grow
about one ton of wheat to each inhab-
itant counting all ages. New Zealand
i aa A to 1 able to send annually
1000000 frozen sheep. The annual
increase of sheep in Australia is re-
iA oi.mit 22.000.000. one-half
of which can bo spared for shipment.
Reference is made to the prediction
of Consul Murray in 1834 that the
day would come when America would
feed Europe; but the English .while
they naturally expect to look to this
country for heavy supplies take pride
in citing the resources of their own
colonies as great aids in this direction.
That they will be of course there can
be no doubt. However while the
English are great eaters of beef and
tlievreouire this to be of the best
grades they will find that for a long
time to come the quality of Australian
ill Iia miite ordinary when com
pared with the product from the States.
This latter too is undergoing rapid
improvement and the quotations of
the best grades will always be high.
The principal consumers of meat are
those who' discriminate very closely as
to the quality; and die largest portion
of this class are able to uuy guuu
meats and will have no other. In
this particular they will not go back-
1 Lnt. nn the contrary any culti-
vated taste becomes more ana more
exacting as it is habitually admims-
Tf4.9 "I
tered to.
We ouote the
following figures as
meat product of tlie
These figures (.tlie
showing the total
.a.
countries named.
first representing the product of each
and the second the consumption) refer
to the three articles beef mutton and
pork: United Kingdom UlJ; consump-
tion 109. France 55 70; Germany
01 GO; Russia 49 47; Austria 57
53; Italy 20 18; Spain and Portugal
in 4ft- Holland. G2. 48: Belgium 44
74; Denmark 124 76; Sweeden and
Norway 70 70; Eoumania 56 59;
Europe 55 60.
r ' ' -i i nor nnn
During lbbl Jiurope paia aou.uu-
000 sterling for meat from abroad and
85000000 sterling for grain. This
is an increase which'is shown by tlie
following figures: In 1660 91230
toons; value 4390000 sterling. In
1870 144225; value 7708uuu ster-
ling. In 1880 650300; value 20-
012000 sterling. For each inhabitant
this was in 1860 7 lbs; 1870 10 lbs
and in 1880 40 lbs. It is claimed to
be shown by these figures that tlie
English supply is sufficient to give
their own people as much meat as is
consumed by Frenchmen or Gennans.
The imports of living animals for
food have thus far. according to the
English trade returns as given by the
English press been greatly in excess
of any previous year. For the first
five months of 1882 the number of
oxen bulls and cows imported xas
21 431 in excess of the same period
last year. On these tlie increase in
value was 485916 sterling. The
importations of sheep have exceeded
those of last year by 104828 at an
increased value of 210453 sterling.
The importation of jigs has greatly
fallen off. The importation of dead
meats is alao stated to have fallen off
largely. The quantity of bacon is re
ported to be much less than heretofore
nuly one-tlnrd less tnan m ioou
daring same period.
It is quite clear we think that tlie
Imof animal of the future must be an
improvement rmou what be has been
in Alie past with 4is if we would main-
! tails .the full advantage of our position
I in finishing beef io go into tle better
niarkils abroad. o matter wiiat the
coniwrition from other quarters so
far as ttie character oi that competi-
tion is vow concerned if it falls below
our standard tlie same rule will gov-
ern that acts in fixing values on all
other rnxlncts. The rule that holds
with creamery butter as compared to
roimtrv firkiii-rwuked. will apply to
mr W st Uww: and. notwithstanding ;
the efforts made
on tlie other side to j
keep np a
distinction against beef
crown and fed on tins side evcrv day s !
opt rations w u! go to establish that (
such distinctions have no basis upon !
any diMuahfying characteris-tica in the
meat itself and. like any other disin-
;e any other disin- I
drop out of sight. I
$cncoEj effect will
SENATOR BEX HIM-
-WAV
.9 - -
Tb Dead Koatbera SUtaa.
The fact is unauestionable that
fact is unquestionable
Georgia is the most progressive of tlie
Southern States. Several or ner sons
are distinguished in the legislature of
the nation and many are excellent
business men with large capital enter
prise and push. The State is develop-
ing great wealth in multiplying forms
of activity and is represented in the
councils of the nation by men abreast
with tlie age and who while intensely
loyal to local interests take a broad
and advanced view of national ques-
tions. Perhaps only second to Alexander
H. Stephens among these honorable
men is the subject of this sketch who
is a Georgian by birth of Irish decent
on his father's side. Benjamin Har
vey Hill was bom in Jasper County
September 14 1823. ae was gradu
ated from tlie State University when
twenty-one years of age after which
he studied law and was in due time
admitted to the bar. His career as a
lawyer proved very successful. In 1851
he was sent to the State Legislature
as a Union man. Four years later
he suffered defeat as a canditade for
Congress. When Buchanan and re-
mont were nominated in 1856 he
gained notoriety as a speaker opposing
them. In 1857 he ran for Crovernor
but unsuccessfully. He
was a member of the State in 1859
and an earnest supporter to the Bell
and Everett ticket in I860. He op-
posed secession in tlie beginning but
afterwards went with his State and
was a Senator in the Confederate Con-
gress throughout the period of the
war. The upshot of this was his ar-
rest bv Federal officers in May 18GG
and his confinement for two months
in Fort Lafayette New York harbor.
In 1867 he presided over the Macon
Convention which reorganized the
Democratic party of the South on the
Union basis and subsequently opposed
Thaddeus Steven s scheme of recon
struction bv vigorous work with his
pen. When Horace Greeley was nom
inated he strenuously supported the
ticket. In 1873 he was an unsuccess
ful candidate for tlie United States
Senate. After his election to tlie House
of Representatives in 1875 he distm
guished himself in debate with the
redoubtable Blame. When the .elec-
toral Commission after the Hayes-
Tilden campaign was proposed as
necessary he advocated it with char
acteristic energy and was elected to
the United States Senate before that
memorable body addressed itself to its
difficult task. He has distinguished
himself in the Senate and statesmen
of both parties are one with us
mourning his sad death.
in
How Russian Girls are Courted.
Love is tlie same the world over
but "courting" is managed very differ-
ently in different countries. Russian
courting among tlie middle classes is
peculiar. The first Whit-Sunday af-
ter tlie young girl is acknowledged by
her mother to be of marriageable years
she is taken to the Petersburg summer-
garden to join the "bridal promenade."
This consists of the daughters of the
Russian tradesmen walking in process-
ion followed by their parents. Up
and down they go pretending to chat
with each other and to take no notice
of tlie young men tlie tradesmen s
sons dressed in their best clothes
who walk in procession on the other
side. However every now and then
some young fellow slips out of his ! of
projH?r ranK ana auus uimsen io me
line of girls on the other side speak-
ing to one particularly. The parents
of the gill join in the conversation in
a few moments and soon they leave
the promenade and are joined by the
parents of tlie young man. Generally
the old folks have talked it well over
before but on this occasion everyone
pretends to be surpnseo. un the next
day a female confidante calls on the
I A f -irr fit
TV I"
girl a
sides meet and argue about the per
tion to be given with the girL If this
is not satisfactory all is at an end; if
it is what is expected the betrothal
takes place.
The tride and bridegroom kneel
girls rrnU and request her hand.;gyman satirically how the patriarchs' UC 6 UUieni 'iC!
This granted all the relations on both' clme to live so long. -BVnce northontheuown roadtoDen
down upon a great fur mat and tlie
bride takes a ring irom ner unB
: tn fi kridrfrrooM. who returns
the gift by another. The brides
mother meanwliile crumbles a piece of
bread over her. daughter's head' and
her father folds the image of his
daughter's patron saint over his future
u'nll -brushed locks. As
Dvii " " JIT
they arise bridesmaids 6ing a wedding
m ' A- 1. Vmmm fnMt'O I'll
song llie gueBis eucu wiug
a present of some sort. Wine is
handed about and some one says it is
iftr nnd needs sweetening. Upon
i5a tha hrilffTrnom kisses tlie bride
the sweetness being supposed to be
provided by this kiss salutes the com-
pany and takes his leave on which tlie
bridesmaids sing a song with a cho-
rus something like this:
"Farewell happy bridegroom
' But return to be still more happy.
. Courting time has now begun. Ev-
ery evening the lover cornea to his la-
dy's home with a present which is
always something good to eat gener-
ally cakes or sugar plums. He makes
love under rather awkward circum-
stances for the bridesmaids sit about
the betrothed pair in a circle singing
son its deHcrintive of their happiness.
The last evening of the courtship is
enlivened by tlie presentation of the
gifts of the bridegroom which must
include brushes combs soap and per-
fumery. On receiving these the
bridesmaids instantly carry the bride
away and wash her dress her hair
and perfume her pocket-handkerchief.
Thus touched up she returns to the
company and the bride's father gives
his future ' son-in-law the marriage
portion which he takes home with
him in a neat bag. The next morn-
ing he returns for the lady herself.
She receives him with her hair un-
braided and flowing down her back.
They are married by tlie ceremonies
of the Greek Church and the old folks
never go to the wedding dinner..
Those eternal bridesmads whom
they must hate by this time are there
VinwPVAr. still nn dutv. and the even
ing closes by the bride kneeling down
and pulling off her husband's boots to
prove her intention to be an obedient
and submissive wife.
Good-natured bridegrooms generally
hide jewelry or money in their boots
which tlie bride may take possession
of as a balm for her pride. After the
wedding day the parents begin to give
feasts and keep it up a week and it is
not till all this is over that the "young
Couple" see those blessed bridesmaids
take their departure. They are then
compelled to kiss th
to kiss them thank them
and give them each a present
Babylon.
About thirty-eight years after the
capture of Babylon by Cyrus the Great
in 538 or 539 B. C the Babylonians
revolted against the Persians and Da-
rius Hytaspis 500 B. C marched
against their city put many of its chief
inhabitants to the sword and demol-
ished its marvelous gates and walls
which Cyrus had suffered to stand.
Later Xerxes plundered and destroyed
the Temple of Belus one of the won-
ders of the world. Alexander the
Great found a wealthy and wonderful
city here although it was by no means
such a city as Nebuchadnezzar had
left it. Soon after Alexander's death
Seleucus Nicator founded Selucia
some forty miles distant on the Tigris
and made it the seat of his empire.
From this time the decay of Babylon's
trade and influence was rapid. A little
more than 150 years later the Par-
thians got possession of the place
burned its temples and destroyed the
greater part of it. Still another 150
years and Strabo tlie great Grecian
geographer described Babylon as
nearly deserted and fast becoming a
rtaaort. A limit Kft vniirn lnttr nr Vie
tween 60 and 70 B. C Pliny declared
that it was then "decayed unpeopled
and lying waste. V When Lucian wrote
(about 200 A. D.) the site of Nineveh
Babylon's great rival was unknown
and this historian described Babylon
as an utter ruin whose place "in a
little time would be sought for and
not found like Nineveh." It had been
abandoned to wild beasts and the last
mention of it made in tlie writings of i
j the old historians represents it as used
by tlie Persian Kings for a hunting
Eark where they pursued the wild
oar leopard tiger and other fiercest
The prophesies of the
Hebrew prophets and prediction of
Lucian were literally fulfilled and the
very site of Babylon was unknown for
centnnes. Unlv within the present
Only
century have the explorations of Rich '
Layard and others located it with rea-!
sonable probability at and about tlie
cnnalii) mmlcm Tnrlidi tin '
LU about sixty miles south of BaLuL
The family physician asked the cler-
took no physic said the rranister.
"Ye" said Mr.
LanrhiDrstock.
speaking of her daughter recently mar-
Tied she became enameled of the
young roan and would have Lira." '
KORTHWEST TEXAS.
UUU lid KhMf Baltlag ChMf luit
V.' Corr Olob Democrat.
Vernon Tex. September 28 1882 -
Northwest Texas is developing faateT
perhaps than any other portion of
the vast Southwest. This is the em-
pire of the "cattle king."
Sheep-raising however is ramdl.
gaining ground and it is said by those
who have thoroughly tested the mat-
ter that no other occupation is so h.
crative as that of sheep-raising. WTrile
this is an excellent stock country it
none the less a fine wheat region pro.
ducing from tlurty to forty bushels of
wheat to tlie acre. The Indians have
until tlie last four years had sway over
the beautiful Pease River and Upper
Red River country. Where the town
of Vernon the county seat of Wil-
barger . county is now situated the
wild Indian and wild buffalo were then
the only ' denizens. Now in their
stead fine farms and vast herds of fat
cattle are to be seen. : Thousands of
acres of fine wheat and grazing land
are waiting the enterprising settler.
The cattle men dd not own the land
nor is it fenced for pasture as in other
parts of tlie State but the herds roam
at will and are looked after and
"rounded up" occasionally by the "fes-
tive cow boys." Wild turkey fish and
antelope are plentiful. But a very
small portion of land in Wilbarger
county is patented to private persons.
and the larger part of it being railroad
and State school land.- ' This land is
not yet put on the market and will not
be for sale before next spring but un-
der the present law settlers and others
fencing and improving the same will
have the preference in the purchase of
it on the terms now afforded by the
school land law of 1881 which is $2
per acre for land having living water
on it and S1 for other land. The
purchaser has twenty years in which
to pay for the land with 8 per cent.
interest on deferred payments. Inter
est must be paid annually but the
State allows the purchaser to pay the.
whole amount at once or the principal
at any time within twenty years. The
Fort Worth and Denver City railroad
is rapidly approaching this place is
located through this town Una is com-
pleted and the cars are running to
Wichita Falls fifty miles southeast of
Vernon. A daily hack runs between
Vernon and Wichita Falls so that
persons wishing to take a look at this-
country can readily get good convey-
ance.
A good stock-raising and wheat-
! growing country; plenty of land (rick
and cheap) a neaitnnu cnmaie ngiii.
taxes nnd a hearty welcome are the in-
ducements Wilbarger county holds out
to immigrants. F. P. McG.
Big American Guns.
The Army and Uivj Reyhter makes
the following important statement:
The annual reports of General Ben-
net and Commodore Sicard chiefs re-
spectively of the army and navy ord-
nance bureaus we feel justified in say-
ing will both speak in very high
terms of the system of wire winding
in tlie construction of heavy ordnance.
Our ordnance authorities are rapidly
approaching the conclusion that wire
winding will be indispensable to the
construction of heavy ordnance in fu-
ture because it will prove to be the
simplest strongest cheapest and safest
method of construction. The truth is
that a steel gun of ten and a half
inches caliber could be built by the
South Boston Iron Company to-day
with present appliances and we ex-
pect to 6ee a number of steel wire gups
of various caliber tinder way at no dis-
tant day. There is no reason why we
cannot make in this country as good
guns as Armstrong Whitworth or
Krupp and when once our govern
ment enables the work to begin we
predict that our manufacturers will
outstrip all tlie factories of Europe in
tlie strength lightness and cheapness
of their heavy ordnance.
A Long Way Around.
A few days ago a block of coal four
feet wide four feet high and ten feet
long ' weighing 12900 pounds
12900 pounds was
taken west on a flat car on the way to
t.llfl IVnrpr YTnfiitirn. wlirrp it IS to be
I
j exhibited. It was taken from a coal
J mine in Utah owned by the Denver &
I Rio Grande railroad company who are
now building a road from Salt Lake
City east to intersect their hue to the
Rio Grande. This company is at war
! with the Union Pacific and rather than
patroniziui? or accept a favor
from that road they send the coal.
which was mined within a few hundred
miles of Denver north on the Utah
C . . ii 1 tlio
CcntS pirlZn. California;
j thence bonth to luma and east to
-
Whex an editor refers to a man m
!"a mic!. rWaf " -n i nrorarUr
accused of gross flattery it looks r'
er dubious for the person referred to.
IWum Po$i.
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Julian, Isaac H. San Marcos Free Press. (San Marcos, Tex.), Vol. 11, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, October 19, 1882, newspaper, October 19, 1882; San Marcos, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth295421/m1/2/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; .