140 MISSOURI STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



sandy, black pebbly, hog wallow, gray sandy, red sandy, sandy loam 

 and alluvial. 



Black waxy soil is the richest and is adapted to grain-growing. 

 Black sandy soil for fruit-growing. The alluvial soil is especially 

 adapted to sugar growing. So much for the soils. 



Well, we reached Austin on the morning of the 14th, St. Valen- 

 tine's day. The cold rain had stopped as we reached Fort Worth, and 

 a clear cold night set in. 



On the morning of the 14th we found the ground covered with a 

 heavy white frost, which it seemed to us would injure garden truck and 

 fruit, and I suppose it did. It is said that this was about the coldest 

 they have had, for they have had absolutely no winter. 



Grass is green and they have been having gardens all winter, but 

 it seemed strange to us not to find the peach trees in bloom. I had 

 expected this far south to find them fully out, but such is not the case, 

 and they seemed little farther advanced than they are with us in Mis- 

 souri. 



The capital, Austin, is finely located on the north and south sides 

 of the Colorado river. Tfle capitol building is on the top of a hill, 

 looking down Congress avenue to the Colorado river. This building 

 is a fine granite structure, the second largest in the United States, and 

 is built entirely of granite from Granite mountain, about sixty miles 

 from the capital. The length of the building is 566 feet, width 288 feet 

 and height 311 feet, and it was built by Chicago parties for 4,000,000 

 acres of land in the Panhandle — probably as good an investment as 

 could be made with their lands, for Texas is like the millionaire who 

 has more land or money than she knows what to do with. 



About Austin is located a number of State institutions — the uni- 

 versity, asylums for the deaf and dumb, blind, insane, and also the 

 State university. 



It would take too long to tell you of half of the advantages of 

 Texas and her wealth, but will close this with a statement of the wealth 

 of her public schools. The State endowment of the public schools is 

 large— now about $7,000,000 in interest-bearing bonds, $10,000,000 

 in interest-bearing land notes, and 28,000,000 acres of unsold lands. 

 Besides this each county has an endowment of 17,000 acres of land. 

 There will be no need of uneducated people in Texas long. 



The American Horticultural society arrived on Saturday, and will 

 begin its session on Monday, when I will report progress. 



L. A. G. 



