TEXAS 



5774 



TEXAS 



commissioners' courts, and justices of the peace. 

 In the judicial system there are many traces of 

 the old Spanish government in Texas. 



The county is the unit of local government. 

 The commission form of government originated 

 in Texas, and has been widely adopted in the 

 state. Atheists are excluded from all offices. In 

 1907 local option was established; in 1918 state- 

 wide prohibition was defeated by the Supreme 

 court. Workmen's compensation acts and other 

 progressive measures have been passed. 



Exploration and Settlement. The history of 

 Texas reflects the struggle between the Span- 

 ish, French and English for the possession of 

 America. The earliest explorations were made 

 by the Spanish, soon after the conquest of 

 Mexico. In 1540 Coronado, in search of the 

 famous Seven Golden Cities of Cibola, reached 

 Ysleta, a Pueblo village on the Rio Grande. 

 Two years later De Soto reached Texarkana, 

 and in 1582 Espejo established a mission at 

 El Paso. Upon these explorations Spain based 

 its claims to the region north of the Rio Grande. 

 The French entered into the contest for the 

 possession of the territory when La Salle, in 

 1685, founded a colony on the shores of Mata- 

 gorda Bay, and from 1712 to 1803 Texas was 

 alternately under the control of France and 

 Spain. 



After the purchase of the Louisiana Terri- 

 tory from France in 1803, the United States 

 claimed the territory to the Rio Grande, but 

 in 1819, in the agreement with Spain whereby 

 Florida was acquired, the claim was abandoned, 

 and the Sabinas was made the southern bound- 

 ary of the United States. 



Americanization and Struggle for Inde- 

 pendence. In 1821 Mexico gained its inde- 

 pendence from Spain and Texas became a 

 province of Mexico. The Americanization qf 

 Texas began in the following year, when Ste- 

 phen F. Austin led a great immigration of 

 United States citizens to Texas. By 1830 over 

 20",000 Americans had settled in the province, 

 and Mexico not only forbade further immigra- 

 tion but began to persecute the American set- 

 tlers. The Texans took up arms to defend 

 themselves, and on March 2, 1836, the inhab- 

 itants of the province declared it a free and 

 independent republic. On March 6 occurred the 

 memorable Battle of the Alamo at San An- 

 tonio, where all of the Americans who had taken 

 refuge in the old Spanish mission were killed. 

 On April 21, 1836, Santa Anna, the Mexican 

 President and general, was overwhelmingly de- 

 feated at San Jacinto by a small force of 



Texans under General Sam Houston. The in- 

 dependent government of Texas was then es- 

 tablished, with General Houston as President. 



Statehood. Afer a long controversy over the 

 slavery question, Texas was admitted to the 

 Union in March, 1845, on the conditions that 

 the state should retain its unappropriated and 

 vacant land ; that new states not to exceed four 

 in number might be formed within its bounda- 

 ries; that the United States settle all questions 

 of boundary with foreign countries. This last 

 provision brought about a second war with 

 Mexico in 1846 (see MEXICAN WAR). By the 

 treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, February 2, 1848, 

 the Rio Grande was definitely fixed as the 

 southern boundary of the state. 



In spite of strong Union sentiment, Texas 

 joined the Confederacy and furnished 90,000 

 troops to the Southern armies. A new constitu- 

 tion abolishing slavery and renouncing states' 

 rights was adopted in 1866, but it was not ac- 

 ceptable to Congress, and in 1867 Texas was 

 placed under military government. Another 

 constitution was adopted in 1869, and the fol- 

 lowing year the state was readmitted into the 

 Union. 



The growth and prosperity of the state have 

 been remarkable, especially during the last 

 twenty years. In 1900 much of Galveston was 

 destroyed by a tidal wave, but the city has 

 since been made safe by raising its level and 

 by the construction of a great sea wall and a 

 causeway between the island and the mainland. 

 Disastrous river floods caused much loss of life 

 and property in 1913. The public warehouse 

 system for the storage of cotton was established 

 in 1914 to relieve the critical cotton situation. 

 In 1915 a resolution was introduced in the legis- 

 lature providing for the creation of a new state 

 to be called "Jefferson," in the northwest corner 

 of Texas. As yet no definite action has been 

 taken upon this matter. The adoption of 

 woman suffrage was defeated in the legislature 

 in the same year. 



Other Items of Interest. On the Llano Esta- 

 cado the air is so clear and dry that it is almost 

 impossible to estimate distances. 1 A man may 

 set out to walk to a point which is apparently 

 not more than five or six miles away, only to 

 find hours afterward that it is still a score of 

 miles distant. Mirages are of frequent occur- 

 rence. 



Galveston, Texas, is often known as the 

 "oleander city," for practically every yard and 

 garden displays those beautiful flower-laden 

 shrubs. 



