Los Angeles herald., 1891-09-22
The Scramble for Home
steads in Oklahoma.
Boomers Waiting for the Drop
of the Hat.
About 100000 Acres to Be Opened
to Settlement Today. q
Twenty Men for Every Quarter Section
All Sorts of Tricks Resorted To-
Negro Settlers Prepared to
Defend Their Rights.
Associated Press Dispatches.

Associated Press Dispatches
GUTHRIE, o. T., Sept. 2l.-From early
morning the streets of this town were
blocked with wagons, horses and people,
women, boys and girls, scrambling to
get here to take part in the race for
government land. Liquor is plenty and
gamblers are here with their outfits.
Governor Steele will go to county seat,
named Tecumseh. The intention is to
clear the town and with a signal let the
race for town lots commence. Trains con-
tinue to arrive, bringing people anxious
to secure homes. The men in line be-
Gore the land office are still there deter
mined to make entries. The hotels and
shops are taxed to their utmost capacity.
Some establishments, especially those
of newspapers, are seriously crippled on
account of their help leaving to join in
the race.
THE LAND TO BE OPENED
for settlement tomorrow noon, consists
of the country OF the Sacs and Foxes,
Iowas, and Pottawattomies, in all l,101,-
$50 acres. The Indians do not lose all
their lands. Each buck gets a quarter.
OF section, and not only that, but he is
a lawful sooner" and has already
picked out his prize spots. He cannot
sell his land for twenty-five years, but
during that time does not have to pay
taxes. After the Indian land and the
land held for school purposes have been
deducted from 1101, 800 acres, about
100000 acres are opened for actual set
tlement. And about
TWENTY MEN FOR EVERY HOMESTEAD
are on the ground. Some are lowering
along the line, and some are already in
what is until noon tomorrow forbidden
country. 1t is the old Oklahoma rush
over again, with some notifications.
There are not as many boomers, and
smaller number are in wagons. For the
last two weeks there has been an almost
continuous stream of wagons over the
Santa Fe trail across the Cherokee strip,
and there are wagons all around the
border. The nearest point of the new
counry is only little over nine miles
from Guthrie, and the greatest crowd
will enter from near this point; but the
truth is, the greater part of the crowd is
not waiting to enter. The country is
already full of "sooners." The plan is
for one man to go in and Jump" a
claim, and then turn it over to his part
ner, who starts in after the legal hour.
Thus, between them, they will get
good claim. There will be
GREAT RUSH FOR TOWN Lo S.
The government has selected sites for
county seats, although there is now not
even a shadow of a town in either coun-
ty. The one that is to be the county
seat of the northern county is Chandler,
named for the assistant secretary OF the
interior, and the southern town is Te-
cumseh. The government surveyors are
not through with their work on the
town sites, and Governor Steele has an
nounced that the sites shall not be
taken up until the survey is finished.
No attention will be paid to this, how
ever, and the force of soldiers on the
ground will not be large enough to keep
them off. A crowd of Guthrie men has
been organized to move on Chandler.
Everyone is going Cooks have deserted
their stoves, lawyers their offices and
merchants their stores.
MANY WILL BE DISAPPOINTED,
whether they go for lots or quarter
sections, for there are at least $4,000
people waiting for the hat to drop at
, noon tomorrow. A courier from Lang
ston City, the negro colony, came in
this morning and purchased twenty
carbines and hastened back to the
front. They report that the entire town
is covered with tents of the emigrants,
and that they are determined to protect
themselves from any attempts on the
part of whites to prevent them from
taking up land in the Cimarron valley.
A squad of negroes visited the cowboys
camp, last night, and declared their
intentions. They said they would make
race for the lands, and if they got
there first they would defend their
rights with theirlive If the cowboys
do not imbibe too much whisky, that is
being sent out by the wagon load, there
will probably be no trouble, but, on the
other hand, if they grow reckless under
the influence of liquor, bloodshed is GER
tain.
THE BooMERs' FIRST VICTIM.
WICHITA, Kan, Sept. 2l.-The first
victim to suffer at the hands of the
boomers is A. L. Glazier, Santa Fe
conductor, who was badly cut and other
wise injured by an enraged mob on his
train. Some of the boomers had no
tickets, and Glazier demanded the ex-
ira 10 cents levied in such cases. This
caused trouble. A number OF the rioters
were arrested, and are in Jail.