Editor's Note.---Following is the thirteenth of a series of articles by Mrs. Foster, a resident of Dallas for many years, concerning interesting people and events here a quarter of a century ago.

     Shortly after coming to Dallas in May 1890, Mr. Foster and I drove over to Fort Worth to inspect the long distance telephone line. Away up on a high hill, to the left of the road in the vicinity of Chalk Hill, we were impressed by the beautiful and extensive view from an old-fashioned mansion set among blooming shrubs and with Texas wildflowers blossoming on the heights.
     We wondered who lived there, and it was some years later before I knew it as the old Horton homestead, and that my friend, Mrs. H. H. Smith, then Ellen Bond, a native of Virginia, was married in 1875.
     Mrs. H. H. Smith came of a pioneer family. His father moved from Covington, Ky., to Dallas in 1860, when Henry was ten years old. He grew up on a farm, living first above the Exall property holdings, now Highland Park.

$20 Per Acre for Land.
     In 1867, his father bought twenty acres on McKinney avenue between what is now Pearl and Routh streets, and running back to Cedar Springs road. Here, he built the first house on McKinney avenue, between the old Jack Cole home, where now stands the North Dallas High school, and the foot of Orange street.
     Twenty dollars an acre was what was paid for this property.
The Smiths cleared it and had a truck farm.
     Henry Smith went to school in Dallas, and later to Carlton college in Bonham. He then farmed, taught school and clerked.

Lived a While at Bonham.
     After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Smith lived for three years in Bonham, and then for several years, in Dallas, going from Dallas to a country home near Chalk Hill, where Phillips cafe now stands on the Fort Worth pike.
     Their first Dallas home, for which they paid $1,250, was a five-room cottage on a lot 150 by 200 feet.
     It stood then, and still stands, on McKinney avenue, across the street from Trinity Methodist church. It was not in the city limits, Harwood street marking the boundary. Mr. Smith recalls the extra mule hitched to the street car to pull it up the hill on McKinney avenue. When the car reached the summit, the mule returned to the foot of the hill and waited for the next car.

Served as Postal Clerk.
     Mr. Smith served as the one clerk under Postmaster William Jones in 1870, and well remembers the first money order ever issued in Dallas. There were then no railroads, and the mail came by stage.
If the rivers were up, and the horses could not ford, (there were no bridges), the mail was delayed a week, more or less. When it did come, everybody in town appeared at the postoffice and postmaster and clerk were kept busy.
     Mr. Smith says that some little time ago, a high official of the postoffice appeared at the bank with a heavy remittance for Washington and told of how long and hard the force worked to get this report ready, when Mr. Smith said to him: "Oh, you're not nearly as smart as we were in 1870. Two of us, then, did all the work!"

Hauled Water.
     A boyhood reminiscence of Mr. Smith as to do with Brownlee Langley. Both lived then between Cochran's Chapel and Farmers Branch. Both had come from Kentucky, and they were boyhood chums. In that day, it was necessary to haul water form the nearest spring or stream.

Recalls Eagle Ford.
     Mr. Smith has entertaining recollections of Eagle Ford when it was a live town. Even before the Texas & Pacific railroad was built to Eagle Ford, it had a mill, and ox teams hauled flour to Millican. When the railroad came, there was a dry goods store and a daily paper. It was a shipping point for cattle to Baxter Springs, Kansas. There were big stock pens at Eagle Ford and every once in a while, a buffalo would be included in a drove of cattle. The town boomed for about three years. Then, the railroad went on to Fort Worth and Eagle Ford died.

Served As County Treasurer.
     Mr. Smith ably filled the office of county treasurer for six year, beginning in 1884. He was twice re-elected, each time receiving a larger majority. He is a past chancellor of Coeur de Leon lodge Knights of Pythias, and a Democrat. His father served three years in the Confederate army as a member of Captain Welsh's company. This was known as the Gano guards, named for Gen. R. W. Gano.
Mr. and Mrs. Smith and family lived for some years in West Dallas. He served as a member of the first city council of Oak Cliff, and the last of Dallas just before the commission form of government went into effect.

How He Lost "Job."
     It was decided that there was too much land in Oak Cliff, and because of excess taxation, some of the land was taken away, so Mr. Smith says, laughingly, he lost his job as alderman of Oak Cliff.
     Mrs. Smith recalls that when they lived in West Dallas, she frequently drove to town during an overflow of the Trinity river, when she couldn't see the ditches at the side of the road and never was afraid until the water ran inside the buggy.
      Mr. Smith pays a tribute to those men of vision, T. L. Marsalis and J. S. Armstrong, and wishes they might now view the cities of their dreams, Oak Cliff and Highland Park.

Possesses Old Directory.
     Mr. Smith has in his possession, a Dallas city directory of the year 1875. It was printed by Butterfield and Rundlett. Every other page shows advertisements, and there are but forty pages of names. Locations and names of streets are also given. Printing is on one side of a page only.
      Mr. Smith was one of six children, all well-known in Dallas, of whom Ed C. Smith was the eldest and Dr. Willis Smith, who died not long ago in El Paso, the youngest. One sister, Mrs. Ellen Hardy, lives in Chicago. Another married Oliver Thomas, also of a pioneer Dallas family. She lives now in Richardson.
     Mr. Smith told me another story of Banning Norton.
     He carried always, a cane of hickory, cut for him by Henry Clay on his estate. The top just fitted a silver half dollar, also given to him by Henry Clay and commemorating the anniversary of his birth.