The World. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1891-1896, 1891-09-23
OPENING NEW LANDS.
A WILD RUSH OVER THE BORDER
BY BLACK AID WHITE
HOME SEEKERS.

Especial to Tur WOMB. /

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GUTHRIE, Sept. 23.--At noon to-day
$4,000 home seekers made grand rush
over the border into the new lands.
The widest excitement prevailed, and
several shooting ARRAYS are reported
by persons returning from the lands.
The story Of every arrival from
Langston, where 1900 negroes and
500 cowboys crossed the border, agrees
that there has been rioting between
the whites and blacks. Two negroes
were killed in the new lands south of
the negro colony, but the stories as to
how they met their death are conflict
ing. Ex-Auditor McCabe, Of Kansas,
the founder Of the negro colony Of
Langston, was shot at by three COW
boys, and he fled back to Langston.
A bullet struck the pommel Of his sad
die.
Ex-Auditor McCabe says; /" Our
people agreed this morning to form a
line and at the discharge Of shots rush
for the lands. This was done at Il
o'clock. II located my claim and i'm
mediately left for Guthrie. There was
much firing going on when ] left, but
/ do not know whether any one was
killed or injured. The bullets from
one mans gun whistled 50 close to my
ears that it was uncomfortable.
AT point five miles below Tokee, a
woman, whose name is not known,
fired at deputy marshal !who had ar
rested her. The marshal returned her
fire, and shot her in the leg.
Several serious alterations took
place at other points. News is anxious
~ awaited from the two county seats,
where United States troops are sta
toned to defend the sites against
claimants. Gov. Steele is at the lower
county seat, which is fifty miles from
this place, and news from there is not
expected until tomorrow.
The Government supervision of the
opening of the lands seems to have
been sadly deficient. The entire Gov
eminent force was composed of two
companies of United States troops, or
200 men, under Capts. Hayes aud
Styles, and the forces of three United
States marslals, numbering go men,.
OF these latter fifty were sent to Lang
ston to preserve the peace between the
cowboys and negroes; fifteen were re-
quired at each Of the three landefices,
and twenty-five at Tohee. Of the regu-
lar troops. squad Of men was sta
toned at each of the two county-seats.
This left only some 300 men to patrol
the borders, Of about 200 miles in ex-
tent, or one man to every two-thirdsof
mile of border The men, however,
were not stationed atregular intervals.
In some places there We're ten and
fifteen men TO a mile, while at others
there were stretches Of five or ten
miles entirely un9uarded. Under these
it might have been expected
that numbers Of boomers would enter
before the appointed time, and they
did.
The 'so6ners," at unguarded portions
of the border, were very numerous,
and it is estimated from all reports
that the number of settlers who enter
ed the land before the legal time was
5000 The boomers were distributed
among the various starting points
about as follows I:
At Tohee, $1,000; Langston, 1900
and 500 whites; on the Kicka-
poo border, 5000, and on the Potta-
border, 1000. The allot-
ments to the Pottawotamie Indians
nearly exhausted the lands in theify
so the home seeker had
little chance of locating claim there.
One of the unique sights at'Tohee was
q company of young ladies.from Guth-
RE who formed colonization company
to proceed to the new lands and settle
on adjoining claims. They were
on Texas ponies and were at
tired as near as might be in cowboy
costume, armed with revolvers and
for camping out. They made
the race in a body.