Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 267, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 November 1910 — City Thrives op the Bermuda Onion [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

City Thrives op the Bermuda Onion

SAN ANTONIO, Tex. —That this city \Owes its great distinction as a metropolis of the wonderful state of Texas to the Bermuda onion as grown Jn Rio Grande bottom lands, the residents are proud t'< admit. Seven years age a mat named Nye, •who thought he had been cheated in a land trade, asked the Agricultural department what he could raise on the land. It was dry and sandy soil near San Antonio. Bermuda onipns, was the answer. This yoar the Bermuda onion crop marketed from this district -exceeded $2,000,000 in value. As soon as Mr. Nye demonstrated that the._so-called desert land near Satt Antonio would return a profit ’of ,♦SOO to s£oo an acre in onions, ii

slightly irrigated, someone tried cabbage. The cabbage shipped from this district brought $1,000,000 this year. Then other garden truck followed naturally and this brought back $3,» 000,000. When truck growing with river irrigation proved successful, an effort was made to -get water through bored wells. Artesian wells have added more than a million acres to the cultlvatahle land. Of course, as the business grew, San Antonio prospered. From the trading point for a cattle country it became the distributing center for one of the richest small farming districts in the world. The population of the city was 37,673 in 1880, and In 1900 It had Increased to 52,321. This year the total soared to 96,641, and, with suburbs, It far exceeds the charmed 100,000 mark. The nearest rival in Texas is Dallas, with 92,104. What gives the greatest joy locally is that eight years ago all Texas tyas saying that San Antonio had reached its limit.