TEXAS. 



727 



Virginia second. The annual product of the 

 State varies from 20, 000, 000 to 25,000,000 Ibs., 

 or from 13,000 to 22,000 hogsheads. The aver- 

 age yield per acre is between 700 and 800 Ibs., 

 though as much as 1,800 Ibs. can be produced 

 upon the best soils in good seasons. The soil 

 and climate are well adapted to the cultiva- 

 tion of grapes; much attention has recently 

 been given to this industry, and also to the pro- 

 duction of honey. 



There has been a marked progress in many 

 industries since 1870, especially in the manu- 

 facture of cotton, iron, liquors, and carriages 



and wagons. In 1876 there were 40 cotton- 

 mills, with 55,384 spindles ; cotton consumed 

 during the year, 6,701,718 Ibs., or 14,443 bales. 

 There are no United States customs districts 

 in Tennessee, but Memphis and Nashville are 

 ports of delivery in the district of Louisiana. 

 At the close of 1875 there were 27 national 

 banks in operation, with a capital stock of 

 $3,455,300, and a circulation of $2,474,323. 

 Tennessee had 466 miles of railroad in 1855, 

 1,253 in 1860, 1,296 in 1865, 1,492 in 1870, and 

 1,641 in 1875. The lines lying wholly or partly 

 in the State in 1875 were as follows : 



TEXAS. The most important public event 

 in this State during the past year was the fram- 

 ing of a new constitution. The chief reasons 

 which led to the assembling of the convention 

 for this prupose are thus stated in an address 

 to the people of the State, made by a committee 

 of the convention : 



For six years the ''people have borne the burdens 

 and oppressions inaugurated by the semi-military 

 constitution of 1869. The evils fastened upon the 

 State by that instrument are generally understood. 

 Heavy taxation ; an unwieldy and expensive judicial 

 system, impoverishing to both the State and its coun- 

 ties ; a vast political and partisan scheme under .the 

 pretense of sustaining free public schools ; an unwise, 

 expensive, and irritating system of registration ; a 

 vicious, partisan, and mercenary State police ; multi- 

 tudes of irresponsible partisan and useless officers ; 

 irregularities, confusions, ignorance, and prejudices, 

 and in some cases corruption pervading the various 

 departments of the public administration; money 

 subsidies voted to railroads to the enormous sum of 

 twelve million dollars of the people's money ; high 

 salaries, even to petty and useless officers in the 

 school department, combined, until the inauguration 

 of the present State government in January, 1874, 

 with a partisan, oppressive, and often vicious admin- 

 istration of the law, thrice accompanied by declara- 

 tions of martial law and the suspension of the great 

 writ of right, the habeas corpus these, fellow-citi- 

 zens, were some of the evils complained of by you, 

 the freemen of Texas, under the constitution of 1869. 



The election to decide whether the conven- 

 tion should be called, and for a choice of dele- 



gates, was held on the 1st of August. The 

 convention, composed of ninety-nine delegates, 

 assembled in Austin, on the 6th of September. 

 The new constitution was ratified by the peo- 

 ple February 15, 1876, to go into effect on the 

 third Tuesday in April following. Under the 

 new government the executive officers are a Gov- 

 ernor (annual salary, $4,000), Lieutenant-Gov- 

 ernor, Secretary of State ($2,000), Controller of 

 Public Accounts ($2,500), Treasurer ($2,500), 

 Commissioner of the General Land-Office ($2,- 

 500), and Attorney- General ($2,000, besides 

 fees not exceeding $2,000). They hold office 

 for two years, and are all elected by the quali- 

 fied voters, except the Secretary of State, who 

 is appointed by the Governor and Senate. 

 The Lieutenant-Governor is ex officio President 

 of the Senate, and in that capacity receives the 

 pay of a Senator. The Legislature consists of a 

 Senate of thirty-one members, elected by dis- 

 tricts, and a House of Representatives of nine- 

 ty-three members, distributed among the coun- 

 ties. At the apportionment in 1880 the num- 

 ber of Representatives may be increased to not 

 more than 150. The Representatives are elect- 

 ed biennially; the Senators hold office four 

 years, one-half being elected biennially. The 

 sessions are biennal. Two-thirds of each House 

 are necessary to a quorum, and a two-thirds 

 vote is necessary to overcome the Governor's 



