Wichita eagle., 1888-03-01
ARKANSAS CITY AND THE OKLA
HOMA COUN TRY.


tons for l had very enjoyable time.
Arkansas City is variously estimated
as having anywhere from six to ten
thousand population, just in proportion
to the boom enthusiasm of the esti-
mater. 1t is, indeed, a good town, ano
bids fair to be one of the best towns on
the southern border of Kansas.
My companion and hired fine sorrel
team and took dash of few miles in
the territory, having as one OF our OBJ
jective points the Indian school called
the '.Chilocco Industrial school, sit
uated four miles south of Arkansas City,
in the Indian territory. However, we
were obliged to drive further than that
to reach there, as the bridge across the
Arkansas river was gone. We drove
west about one mile and half. then
south through a fine section of farming
country. We were somewhat surprised
to see SO many good farm houses and
! general appearance of thriftiness In the
farmers. We can recall but few-three
or four-farm houses of less than from
seven to nine rooms. Some of the farm
ers had already started the plow,
while Others were out intending
their ways by blowing up the ridges III
the road and filling up the holes.
AS one suddenly comes to the territory
{; line ne meets with a strange and peculiar
! sight. In front Of him, stretching away
! in the distance as far as the eye can reach
| is vast tract of open rolling land, with
scarcely shrub or tree, or anything to
! break the samenesS of the wide expanse
before him, save the lowing herds which
! wind slowly over the prairie, and few
! telegraph poles in the distance along the
Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad,
which winds through the territory in its
march to the sea. Behind him are
| farms. dotted with farm houses.
| The farmers build their houses right on
the line so they can have their farms all
under fence and Craze or NOV on the
| territory. Here the line. SO to speak, be-
! tween civilization and savagery, enter
prise and inaction are plainly marked.
We reached the Indian school in good
time, and as it was not visitors day we
thought perhaps we would have some
trouble in gaining admittance, but as we
had certain credentials we found no diff
fculty The institution is managed by
Prof. T. G.. Bradford, very pleasant
and agreeable gentleman, formerly Of
Mississippi. He very kindly informed
us of the following facts, viz:
There We're now one hundred and sew
enty-five Indian pupils in attendance,
taught by ten instructors, three in the
literary department, seamstresS, laun-
dress, tailor, carpenter, shoemaker, black
smith and farmer. The institution re-
ceives from the government one hundred
Il Ipl1 fnr oh .f,rl
figuring on the basis Of average attend
ance. The Indians are more proficient
in writing, drawing, spelling, history and
geography than in any other branches OF
study. Prof Bradford states that they
We're very deficient in any frame of
study that requires any reasoning
power, that arose from the fact that the
Indians never had an opportunity to ex-
ercise their reason, as is well known
their methods and customs Of life are
very simple. The professor said he be-
lieved a great deal in heredity; he once
knew cat that had lost her tail and all
of her progeny We're without tails. 1t is
very hard to keep up the average of the
school, which ought to be two hundred,
as the old Indians looked upon the in
stitution as to its aims as an innovation ON
their habits and customs. Heretofore
the officers of the institution have been
compelled to so among the different
tribes and induce or persuade
the Indians to let their
children attend the school, it some
times taking five or six weeks to induce
the Indians to let their children go, but
recently an agent has been appointed
by the government to go among the diff
ferent agencies and induce all he can to
attend the schools. When he gets the
consent of some he can send them where
he desires. The Indian schoolsat Law
renee could accommodate one hundred
more than it now does, and the institu-
ton of which we write could accomnlo-
date twenty-five more. The main build
ing of this school is a large three and
half story building, built of stone; on
either side, north and south, there are
three small frame houses.
The grounds embrace thirteen and one
half sections or eight thousand six hun
bred and forty acres all fenced in with
wire, about three hundred of which are
cultivated by the institution farmer and
the students.
They are feeding this winter four hun
dred cattle, one hundred hogs and twen-
ty-tive horses and mules. They consume
about fifty thousand pounds of beef. and
four thousand pounds of pork annually.
This cOntradlcts our former impression
that Indians are very fond of ..hoggy
meat. The current expenses of the
institution last year We're thirty thousand
dollars. The following tribes are repre-
scented at this school: Seneca, Quapaw.
PattawatOmie, Caddo, Wichita, Ottawa.
Iowa, Usage, Delaware, Pawnee. :kiowa,
TakawaS, Arapahoe, Cheyenne, Otoe, and
at one time the Indians children repre-
sented twenty-one different tribes. We
were told that of the above tribes the
,OSages are the wealthiest; there are now
but eighteen hundred of them. The
Ottawa tribe is almost extinct, being
scarcely one hundred left.
On our return home to the metropolis
of Kansas Wichita-we fell in with
Buckskin Joe, of Greer county. Texas.
He was engaged in distributing a ''Nav-
aloe emigrant guide" in the interest of
''Buckskin Joe's Texas Oklahoma col
ony." He is an intelligent long-haired
parsonage Of the border type. He seems
to be very much concerned about
Greer county, oklahoma" mo
Mans Land" and the Cherokee strip"
There seems to be quite a fight about
whether Greer county will ultimately
fall to Texas or the Springer Oklahoma
Territory" Buckskin Joe said he was
largely instrumental in getting some five
thousand settlers into Greer county, and
he is determined that they
shall have clear deed
to one hundred and sixty acres of land,
when the question is settled or he will
rose hail. He does not want Texas TO
get the county as the state of Texas can
not give them a clear deed and title 10
the land rs there ara some old unsettled