Concerning  that  portion  of  the  Prairies
which  lies  south  of  Red  River,  in  Northern
Texas,  I  learn  firom  some  interesting  memo-
randa, poUtely  furnished  me  by  Dr.  Henry
Connelly,  one  of  the  principals  of  the  pioneer
expedition  from  Chihuahua  to  Arkansas,  of
which  I  have  already  spoken,  that,  besides
some  beautiful  lands  among  the  Cross  Tim-^
bers,  there  is  a  great  deal  of  delightful  coun-
try still  further  west,  of  a  part  of  which  that
gentleman  holds  the  following  language: —
**  Between  the  Brazos  and  Red  River,  there  is
surely  the  most  beautiful  and  picturesque  re-
gion I  have  ever  beheld.  I  saw  some  erf*  the
finest  timber,  generally  oak — not  that  scrubby
oak  which  characterizes  so  much  of  the  Tex-
an territory — ^but  large  black  and  bur-oak;
such  as  would  answer  all  the  purposes  for
which  the  largest  timber  is  useful  Between
those  two  rivers,  no  doubt  there  is  destined  to
be  one  of  the  most  dense  and  prosperous  settle-
ments. The  fertility  of  the  soil  is  not  exceed-
ed by  any  I  have  seen ;  and,  from  the  high
and  undulating  character  of  the  country,  there
can  be  no  doubt  of  its  being  very  healthy."

To  the  westward  of  Rio  Brazos,  and  south
of  s5me  sandy  and  saline  regions  which  bor-
der the  upper  portions  of  this  stream,  the  same
enterprising  traveller  represents  many  of  the
vaUeys  as  rich  and  beautiful,  and  the  uplands
as  being  in  many  places  sparsely  timbered
with  mezquite  trees.  Tbis  is  particularly  tlie
case  on  the  sources  of  the  Colorado,  where
the  country  is  delightfully  watered.     But  im-


RIYERS   OP   THE   PRAIRIES.  195

mediately  north  of  this  sets  in  that  immense
desert  region  of  the  Llano  Estacado.
