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A line drawn from the eastern escarpment of the Staked Plains, where that escarpment crosses the Double Mountain Fork, to the Horsehead crossing on the Pecos river, would represent the northwestern limit of the Cretaceous formation in Texas. But the formation along that line is now entirely covered. During the deposition of the earlier beds of the Tertiary which finally covered the entire Staked Plains, there was a high escarpment of Cretaceous along the line indicated, and that escarpment was the seashore of the then Tertiary seas and against which these lower Tertiary beds were deposited. Northwestward from that old shoreline these earlier beds of Tertiary are known to be full of water, and it is more than possible that the Trinity Sands along that old shoreline may become saturated with water from that source. If that be the case, then they will be good water-bearing beds to the southeastward, where the strata has not been cut into by the canyons at the head of the North Concho river.

It is highly probable that the water from the large springs at the head of the Concho rivers, Dove and Kickapoo creeks, comes from this source, and it may be that the large spring south of the Llano and Mason Paleozoic area are supplied in the same way.

The water in the head of Dove creek, in Tom Green county, reaches the surface through the upper part of the Caprotina limestone, and San Marcos Spring reaches the surface through the Arietina clays, yet the water in each may have the same source of supply.

AGRICULTURE.

In discussing the agricultural possibilities of any country there are three principal things to be taken into account. Fertility of soils, length of seasons, and amount of rainfall, and where the rainfall is not sufficient and at proper seasons, the possibility of obtaining water for the purpose of irrigation. A general statement in regard to these sub- jects is all that can be attempted in the present report.

SOILS.-The soils of the high plateau of the Staked Plains is mostly red sandy loam, and where the vegetable matter has been mixed in sufficiently large quantities with the soils, the upper part is black. The origin of this soil is evidently from the broken up and disintegrated strata of the Cretaceous and the Triassic. The great fertility of these soils has been proven by actual test, and is shown in the abundant crops that have been grown there for several years, consisting of wheat, oats, barley, corn and cotton, as well as millet and sorghum.

These soils are especially adapted to the growing of wheat, and the time is not far distant when this immense Plain will be the great wheat producing region of the State.

Fruits of all kinds where tested have done well, especially peaches and plums. Grapes and berries grow luxuriantly and produce excellent crops of fine quality.