TX BIOS:  Sam Lazarus
   Selected and converted.American Memory, Library of Congress.
   
   Washington, 1994.
   
   Preceding element provides place and date of transcription only.
   
   This transcription intended to be 99.95% accurate.
   
   For more information about this text and this American Memory
   collection, refer to accompanying matter.
   
   U.S. Work Projects Administration, Federal Writers' Project (Folklore
   Project, Life Histories, 1936-39); Manuscript Division, Library of
   Congress.Copyright status not determined.
   
   00011
   
   McGuire, Delise. P. .
   
   District 17. Words 383
   
   Motley County
   
   Matador, Texas
   
   230
   
   pg. 1 TEE PEE City
   
   Sam / Lazarus, now deceased, of St. Louis, Missouri, President of the
   Quanah, Acme & Pacific Railway Company, related this story concerning
   Old Tee Pee City:
   
   "In 1877 I was traveling for Leon and H. Blum, jobbers of Galveston,
   Texas, and reported to the house by wire at Henrietta. " " They
   directed me to proceed to Tee Pee City in Motley County to collect an
   account against Armstrong, who operated a general supply store at Tee
   Pee City. " There was no town or settlement between Henrietta and Tee
   Pee City, so I equipped myself with a pack horse and a horse to ride
   and made the trip. When I reached Tee Pee City I found Armstrong had
   gone to Liberal, Kansas , with a load of buffalo hides and to bring
   back merchandise. / The smallpox was raging in the town, many people
   suffering from the epidemic. I went down the creek about a mile and
   established my camp and waited. " In about three or four days
   Armstrong returned, and I took up the matter of settlement with him. I
   had learned by wire, when I left Henrietta , that there had been a
   sensational rise in price of buffalo hides and I found a mountain of
   hides stacked up at Tee Pee City. Armstrong offered to pay me off in
   buffalo hides and sold me [DEL: as :DEL] the balance of what he had on
   hand. He had not learned when he left Liberal that the rise in the
   buffalo hides had taken place so I bought all the hides he had and
   gave him credit for the account he owed and wrote a draft on the house
   for the difference.
   
   I then chartered all the wagons that could be had, which were 7 or 8
   that had returned in a caravan from Liberal, Kansas. I loaded the
   hides on these wagons and started them for Fort Worth. I then hastened
   back to Henrietta to wire my house about the draft. In the deal I made
   several hundred dollars for my employers. " At that time Tee Pee City
   had one or two saloons, a dance hall and a gambling hall in connection
   with the saloons, a little hotel and one or two eating houses and
   several other small establishments, with most of the population living
   in 00022dugouts and tents. "
   
   The above story was related by Mr. Lazarus to G. E. Hamilton, pioneer
   attorney of Matador, Motley County, Texas.
   
   G. E. Hamilton, General Attorney for Q. A. & P. Railway Company and
   local Attorney for the Matador Land & Cattle Company, Ltd. Head
   offices, Dundee, Scotland; American offices, Denver , Colorado.

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