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(1) (Surface? East? of the Pecos) The country embraced within the limits of the military "District of the Pecos" comprises a wide area of territory extremely diversified in its (surface) physical peculiarities. The eastern portion near Fort Concho is principally open, rolling prairie land covered with mesquite grass, and is valuable for grazing purposes wherever water is within convenient distance. There is a few isolated peaks and low ranges of hills scattered over the surface of the prairie and these rapidly increase in number towards the south-west, north and west, where they finally becomes more elevated and broken in character forming rocky mesas or table-land, with intervening mesquite valleys of considerable extent, clothed with verdure, but almost entirely destitute of water.

(Soil) The soil over the greater portion of this region consists of sandy alluvium with here and there quite extensive plateaus of table-land covered with the fragments of disintegrating rocks. In the valleys of the streams forming the unclear Concho river the soil is richer in quality and only requires an abundance of water for irrigation to produce good crops of any of the cereals capable of cultivation in this climate.

(Staked Plain) The country to the northwest on what is known as the Llano Estacado or Staked Plain is gently undulating, the soil poor and sandy, and contain no water except