﻿"^ 
  

  

  314 
  Harper: 
  A 
  week 
  in 
  eastern 
  Texas 
  

  

  ooo 
  

  

  small 
  portion 
  In 
  Fort 
  Bend 
  County, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  several 
  counties 
  

   occupied 
  chiefly 
  by~coast 
  prairie. 
  

  

  This 
  is 
  not 
  exactly 
  a 
  delta, 
  as 
  one 
  might 
  iniagine 
  from 
  the 
  map, 
  

   nor 
  even 
  a 
  flood-plain, 
  for 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  noticeably 
  lower 
  than 
  the 
  

   adjacent 
  country, 
  and 
  it 
  does 
  not 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  subject 
  to 
  frequent 
  

   inundation. 
  At 
  Columbia, 
  about 
  25 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  coast, 
  both 
  

   banks 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  are 
  something 
  like 
  30 
  feet 
  high 
  and 
  rather 
  steep, 
  

   which 
  is 
  quite 
  a 
  dififerent 
  condition 
  from 
  that 
  along 
  most 
  rivers 
  

   from 
  New 
  Jersey 
  to 
  Florida 
  at 
  that 
  distance 
  from 
  their 
  mouths, 
  

   where 
  the 
  banks 
  are 
  usually 
  low 
  and 
  swampy. 
  . 
  (The 
  Brazos 
  

   differs 
  also 
  from 
  most 
  rivers 
  of 
  Its 
  size 
  farther 
  east 
  in 
  the 
  coastal 
  

   plain 
  in 
  having 
  practically 
  no 
  navigation. 
  Although 
  it 
  is 
  about 
  a 
  

   thousand 
  miles 
  long 
  and 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  a 
  drainage 
  area 
  of 
  over 
  

  

  uare 
  miles, 
  the 
  highway 
  bridge 
  at 
  Columbia, 
  though 
  

   equipped 
  with 
  a 
  draw 
  span, 
  had 
  that 
  permanently 
  closed 
  at 
  the 
  

  

  time 
  of 
  my 
  visit 
  so 
  that 
  It 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  turned 
  to 
  allow 
  steamers 
  

   to 
  pass.) 
  

  

  The 
  soil 
  varies 
  with 
  the 
  distance 
  from 
  the 
  river 
  and 
  coast, 
  

   but 
  much 
  of 
  that 
  which 
  I 
  walked 
  over 
  between 
  Columbia 
  and 
  

   Brazoria 
  is 
  a 
  chocolate-colored 
  stiff 
  clay, 
  designated 
  on 
  the 
  govern- 
  

  

  " 
  map 
  just 
  cited 
  as 
  "Trinity 
  clay." 
  A 
  few 
  of 
  the 
  charac- 
  

   teristic 
  trees 
  were 
  listed 
  by 
  Loughridge, 
  and 
  Carter 
  described 
  

   briefly 
  the 
  vegetation 
  of 
  nearly 
  every 
  type 
  of 
  soil 
  in 
  the 
  whole 
  

   area 
  mapped 
  by 
  him, 
  except— 
  curiously 
  enough— 
  the 
  "Trinity 
  

   clay," 
  which 
  covers 
  the 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  alluvial 
  region. 
  Both 
  

   Loughridge 
  and 
  Carter 
  make 
  special 
  mention 
  of 
  the 
  "wild 
  peach," 
  

   Prunus 
  caroliniana, 
  and 
  Carter 
  states 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  the 
  most 
  character- 
  

   istic 
  tree 
  of 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  less 
  extensive 
  types 
  of 
  soil, 
  the 
  " 
  Pledger 
  

   silt 
  loam," 
  the 
  boundaries 
  of 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  traced 
  by 
  its 
  presence. 
  

   But 
  strange 
  to 
  say, 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  happen 
  to 
  see 
  any 
  of 
  it, 
  or 
  of 
  Juniper 
  us 
  

   virginiana, 
  which 
  according 
  to 
  Professor 
  Bray* 
  was 
  formerly 
  abun- 
  

   dant 
  in 
  this 
  region, 
  at 
  least 
  near 
  the 
  mouthof 
  the 
  San 
  Bernard 
  River. 
  " 
  

  

  My 
  observations 
  In 
  this 
  rather 
  unique 
  area 
  were 
  all 
  made 
  on 
  

   August 
  26, 
  from 
  the 
  train, 
  for 
  about 
  ten 
  miles 
  before 
  arriving 
  at 
  

   Columbia, 
  and 
  in 
  walking 
  down 
  the 
  west 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  river, 
  probably 
  

   nowhere 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  mile 
  from 
  It, 
  to 
  Brazoria, 
  and 
  then 
  from 
  an- 
  

   other 
  train 
  from 
  Brazoria 
  a 
  few 
  miles 
  northeastward 
  to 
  the 
  edge 
  

   of 
  the 
  prairie 
  again. 
  T 
  he 
  commonest 
  plants 
  seem 
  to 
  be 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  

  

  soil 
  

  

  U. 
  S. 
  Forestry 
  BuU. 
  47: 
  54- 
  1904; 
  Univ. 
  Texas 
  Bull. 
  92: 
  68. 
  

  

  1907 
  

  

  