HARDEMAN HAPPENINGS.

Another fine rain and crops are booming. Considerable wind but no damage.

Ed Wadsworth, from near Pledger, passed through a few days ago and reported crops as some better there than here.

Dr. Boulden was over one day last week. The Doctor left his saddle horse at his plantation and went back in his buggy, may-be there is something in the wind, young men don't like to ride in buggies alone. The Doctor has an excellent crop on his plantation, which is managed by J. A. Elmore.

Capt. Frank Rugeley is interested in about 1200 acres cotton and is highly pleased with the outlook.

Capt. White our rustling mechanic has been somewhat under the weather, the effects of a collision with another player in a base ball game, but is improving rapidly and contemplates another trip to Rackensack soon.

Everybody here seems highly pleased  with our new court house and officers hear of no grumbling about high taxes among the farming class.

Walter Brown and Henry Rugeley left for N. Orleans with their beeves.

CANEY CULLINGS.

 The picnic on Buckner's Prairie was certainly a grand success every way. Those whom were in charge certainly deserve great credit.

Mrs. Jesse Matthews, we are sorry to note, was on the sick list this week.

A. Currie was in Caney Monday enroute to Bay City.

Willie Bell had an exhibition at the picnic Friday - several stalks of corn over six feet high. Who can beat that for May!

V. L. LeTulle passed Caney Monday on his way to Bay City.

Rev. Hammond left Tuesday for Col. Hawkins after a weeks sojourn on Caney.

Menifee, the rustling insurance agent, went to Matagorda Tuesday.

BAY CITY

Rev. A. J. Anderson preached here  Monday night.

J. M. Sims was among the people of the west side the past week.

W. J. Phillips and Arthur Stewart were up from Matagorda Monday.

Jno. C. Underwood and W. J. Shelton were over from Columbia Tuesday.

E. W. Pendecrest, of Elliott, Iowa, is in the city prospecting with a view to locating.

T. F. Baldwin, of San Antonio, has accepted a position with the W. E. Austin Abstract Company.
 

A SPICY ADVERTISEMENT.

 The following we clip from "The New Test," a weekly paper published at Lockhart in the interest of the colored people, which gives a vivid description of the festivities here on the 19th of June:

"Attention, citizens! All citizens of Matagorda and surrounding counties are invited to attend the great reunion of ex-slaves and their descendants at Bay City, Texas, on June 19th.

"Come and hear ex-slaves tell of the sudden change from slaves to citizens; hear them make the chains of slaverydom rattle once more.

"Oh that lamb! A free dinner will be provided for all; come and eat mutton, pork, beef and cakes once more on that day the grandest of the nineteenth century; come and hear Judge Wego Jones express himself and sing that good old song about

"After old Sabine has left this world!"

"Prof. B. T. Richardson will tell of slavery from its birth; Prof. N. B. Moore will tell of the rise and progress of the slaves from 1865, to the present time; Rev. John Sidney will trace the Negro from Adam down through the generations of Ham, Solomon and the Queen of the South, while Prof. A. G. Hilliard will tell of the Negro as a Soldier. Those great and eloquent orators, Rev. Thomas Roberson, Rev. O. Dorse, Hon. Jeff Robbins and Bro. Richard Ruffin will tell of the fidelity of the slave during bondage and of his past and present manhood.

Deceitful ways. Come and see our new court house and jail; hear our city clock strike the hours, as they are second to none in the state. Brother Jefferson Robins says he is very willing to whoop that in less than ten years Bay City will be the hub of the solid south.

The great Colorado is only two miles away. Go to the livery stable and hire a span of Norman horses (rates low) and drive your lady love out to the river that she may behold the greatest catfish stream in the known world.

The Grand March will take place at one o'clock sharp commencing at the corner of Avenue L and Moore street thence southward to Hamilton Plaza, thence westward to Austin street and thence northward to Sims' Avenue, under command of grand field marshal Harris Anderson and forty aides de camp, and the far famed Eagle Lake Silver Cornet band of seventy-five pieces and a mascot.

A Grand Emancipation Ball will take place at night in Hamilton Hall. Come one and all, both young and old and witness the wonder of the 19th century!

COMMITTEE OF ARRANGEMENT.

Rev. O. Dorse, chairman; Lee McRoy, Arthur Gee, Wm. Ranger, John Robbins, Willie Thompson, Wm. Duncan, Samuel Norris, Lewis Thomas.

  COMMITTEE OF INVITATION.

Parris Roberson, Ike Standford, Joe Williams, Octave Herman, George Ambore, Cato Clay.

  COMMITTEE OF RECEPTION.

Prof. R. H. Harris, chairman; Hall McHenry, Allen Sawyer, Wonder Farris, Lee Jones, Ben Griggs, R. A. Roberson, Alfred Sidney, Raney Anderson, Mack Herman, Prof. A. G. Hilliard.

Solomon Jones, Assistant Manager; Isiah Jones, president of the company; Prof. Henry Smothers, collector."

COLORED TEACHERS INSTITUTE.

Persuant to the call of Prof. H. F. Smothers, president of the colored teachers institute of Matagorda county. There was a meeting held at the Warren Bridge school house May 1st, 1896, for the purpose of reorganizing the institute for the scholastic year. The following officers were elected: R. H. Harris, president; W. W. Cooper, vice-president; and A. G. Hilliard, secretary. The necessary committee being appointed the following program was arranged to be executed in the town of Bay City, May 22nd, 1896:

                PROGRAMME.

Introductory Address... Prof. H. Smothers

Annual Address..........R. H. Harris

School Management....Prof. W. W. Cooper

The Participle.....Prof. W. B. Moore

Addition in connection with multipli-cation, best method...J. J. Grundy

A. G. HILLIARD    H. F. SMOTHERS
      Secretary.               President

The grounds were in a beautiful grove at the Coulter store and post office, with a fine dancing platform and plenty of seats under the big live oak trees. As the people drove in, their teams were taken in charge by a committee, who when the guests were ready to depart had them brought around again, fed and cared for. About noon the orchestra arrived and dancing began, which was kept up until the early hours of the following morning. The dinner, which was served about 3 o'clock, was simply something immense, but the good people did not stop with simply dinner, but also served supper and lunch in the early morning hours, and then enough was left over to feed a half thousand starved people. Not only did they give this magnificent spread, but during the entire day had ice cream and cold drinks of all kinds in abundance, which were also free. Oh, they do things up down there, and they know how to do it, too.

And then they had a way of making each one feel as though he were the guest of honor, that they had done all of this for his especial benefit, and this makes a big crowd feel mighty good, when each thinks that he is the pet of the occasion. It seems those who had it in charge tried to out do each other, and we never saw anything in the way of a public frolic pass off more pleasantly than this picnic did. Then they deserve double credit when the fact is taken in consideration that those who had it all in charge are a very few, and live some distance apart, and there was much work attached besides the day of the picnic. For days they were at work on the grounds while the good wives were at home doing the cooking and baking.

Those who had the matter in charge and to whom we are indebted for personal favors shown us are Messrs. P. M. and H. W. Bowie, V. L. & L. LeTulle, J. J. LeTulle, C. H. Williams, L. P. Coulter, W. E. and T. E. Bell, R. T. Chinn, F. V. Vaughn and J. D. Ogburn. Long will they be remembered by those who were fortunate enough to be their guests for one day, and who only desire an opportunity to show more deeply their appreciation.

Copyright 2004 - Present by Carol Sue Gibbs   All rights reserved

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