St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-01-23
FRAUD is ALLEGED.
Were Wausau Land Entries in the
Interest of Lumber Rings?


1t will be remembered that on Dec. 20, 1890,
a large tract of public, situated within the
the borders of the state of Wisconsin, was
thrown open for settlement. The United
States land office. where homestead claims to
that land were filed, was at Wausau, Wis.
1t will be remembered also that the daily
newspapers chronicled some wild scenes In
connection with the filing OF claims. Men
formed in line two days prior to the date TOR
filing ana often fought for precedence in the
line The crowd at the land Office on the
opening day was more mob than anything
else. Men, and even women, from all parts
of the Northwest were collected there,
striving to secure some land at NOM
inal cost Not a few good suits
of clothes were ruined, bodies were pounded
and jostled into discomfort, and even heads
were punched, and i'll many cases, after all
this expenditure of human endeayor and
submission to personal discomfort would-be
settlers were crowded to the wall and com
PEELED to return home without that for which
they had sacrificed so much-'a strip, OF
land Now these men who were crowded
out or who were forced to take pieces OF the
earth other than those sought by them, come
forward and allege fraud i'll connecuon with
the taking up of this portion of Uncle Sans
pasture. They have drawn up petition
containing all these allegations and the
reasons therefor. This petition is signed by
over 200 men from all parts Of the Northwest
men who were in Wausau on the DAY the
land was thrown open for settlement. The
petition is backed up by eight affidavits
in the petition. Before the congress OF the
United States this petition viii! be laid. The
petition tells the whole story as follows:
To the Congress of the United States-We.
whose names are hereunto subscribed, re-
spectfully represent that we were at the city
of Wausau Wis, ON and prior to the goth
day of December, 1890, and that we believe
| that the homestead claims on that date were
/ 10 5 Wnrrc
frau6ulently made IN the interest OF Wausau
| and Merrill lumber rings and for the purpose
of defrauding and cheating honest home
steaders by, among other things, OF the fol
| lowing:
That line was formed on the 18th Of De-
cember, 1890; that the chief of police of Wau-
sau notified the line that they must disperse.
and thereupon the honest homesteaders did
leave the said line, but parties working IN the
interest of the lumber ring remained In line
that said elected homesteaders applied TO the
Wausau police force for reinstatement and
were denied the same; that the men in line
who were acquainted with the Wausau police
force did leave said line, go home to meals,
and sometimes remained for hours away
from the line and were reinstated by the
police while the honest homesteaders were
crowded out of line and said police
force refused to reinstate them;
that on the Goth of December, !S9o,
when the water reserve lands came into
the market and before daylight, the court
house grounds where said land office had
advertised that applications would be re-
ceived, were occupied by a pretended body
of soldiers or guards who refused admission
to the grounas except at the rear ,ofethe line
formed by the lumber ring; that homestead
ers were prevented, at the point OF the bayo
net, from forming line or presenting an ap
plication in any manner, except at the real
end of the line as before stated: and further
that said Wausau police did. by force, change
the position Of men in said line against the e
will so that. by such change, they were de
prived OF all chances to file an application.
That is the petition. The affidavits assert
ing its truth are made by Elmer r. Ryan. o.
Minneapolis; Waiter Alexander and Thema
Alexander, of Wausau, Wis: George W
Webb, of Chippewa Falls. Wis; Charles h
Rupp, of Menolninee, Mich; Isaac G. Christ
iieb of Long Lake, Mimi; j. E. Wander
walker of Minneapolis; DR.. R. Berry, of MIN
neapolls All claim to have been eye wit
nesses of the acts set forth in the petition
Annual Red Figure Mark-Dowr
Sale.
, The Plymouth Clothing House.