The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1893-09-17
Pell-Mell, Helter-skelter and
Hurry-Scurry.
ON TO THEIR NEW HOMES.
Exciting Scenes ON the Strip When the
Guns We're Fired.
Two Hundred Thousand Human Beings
Make Run for Real Estate Such
as Was Never Before Seen
in the West.


minutes before noon, rs, 900 men and wo-
men gathered on the north and south
boundaries of the Cherokee strip, await
ing breathlessly the signal which should
announce the arrival OF the hour when
the possession of the land of that modern
Eldorado should pass from the ownership
of the government into that OF its indi-
vidual citizens. Some were mounted on
thoroughbred racers, some on less feet
but surer-footed cow ponies, some on
BICYCLES others were in buggies and
wagons.
The throng was made up OF all classes,
from the shrewd financier and real estate
speculator to the sturdy young farmer,
bent only on securing homestead for
himself and family.
As the minutes decrea sed to seconds,
reins were frightened, girths were cinched,
stirrups and straps looked after, and
every muscle intense with CULVER
ing excitement. When exactly at
high noon, at signal from the
commanding officer, the revolvers OF
Uncle Sam's represen tatives rang out the
skelter, hurry scurry, the great sDecula-
tive army rushed across the lines and
raced for home and fortune.
The shouting of men, the cracking OF
whips, the rafting OF wheels, the CHATTER
ing of hoofs, the explosion of firearms,
all combined TO make a confusion of
sound in keeping with the general dis
order of the start, to render it scene of
indescribable pandemonium.
The serried ranks soon broke and the
rushing boomers spread out over the
strip. Those best mounted were in the
lead. There were collisions and mishaps
here and there; break downs OF vehicles,
dashing not only the boomers but their
hopes to the ground; horses refusing to
cross deep guilies and the riders abandon
ing them, continuing the race on foot or
making long detours to avoid the bad
ground.
Here was a neck-and-n race, be-
tween horsemen who had chosen the same
town lot or quarter section OF farming
land; stumbling over rocks, wading
streams, climbing precipitous banks,
on they go.
The chivalry which relinquished places
in the line to women all disappeared in
the scram BILE for the actual results; the
women had to take chances with the men
in the race and it is to their credit that
some of them made as good a showing in
the struggle as the alleged lords of crea-
empt the desired bits of mother earth.
The boomer trains, loaded with town
siters, crept along, being forbidden to
exceed twelve miles an hour, while the
horsemen passed them, waving their hats
derision.
AS the train pulled into the townsite
the boomers sWarmed out of the cars like
ants, and in fifteen minutes what was
merely waste country became a populous
community. Innumerable fights over
lots resulted and, in the absence of other
means of settlement the right of might
carried the day. The stronger took
possession. Tents went up, town meet
ings were held, officers elected and in an
incredible short time full-fedged NUM-
cipality had sprung into existence.
IN the meantime, out on the prairies
the farmers continue to race for home
steads, leaving the women folks to follow
in the slow moving prairie schooners,
bringing the household implements and
shelter, till such time as a permanent
abode can be erected. Enough people
made the run to furnish each OF the 81, :
800 homesteads with an occupant and
give every town site 1900 inhabitants.
Over 125, 900 certificates were issued, but
as a large number took both homestead
and town site certificates, the number of
certificates does not represent the number
of boomers. 1t is estimated that 80. 600
raced from Arkansas City; IL, 900 from
Caldwell; 25, 600 from Orlando; 10, 900 from
Hennessy; 10000 from Saltwater; 5000
from Kiowa; s, 1000 from Hunneweli; 5,
600 to 5000 from other points. In all,
nearly the double number which raced
into Oklahoma.
The weather was all that could be de-
sired; the sky was clear with cool north
wind. The greatest rush is in the eastern
ri, VIII oh tai 10
land in the entire reservation. Perry, on
the Santa Fe, is the most favored town
site. and Milfords and Pond Creek on the
Rock Island, are all objective points of
hundreds who made the rush from Cald
well.
Arrived in the strip, the throng found
a desolate waste. Most of the hay had
been cut off and what remained was
either burned off by prairie fires or
scorched brown by the drought and sun.
The creeks had run dry and the Arkan-
sas and Cimarron rivers nearly so. There
will be great suffering Tor lack of water.
In some places it was almost impossible
to obtain any and in others it had to be
hauled many miles and then it is of poor
quality, probably entailing much sick
ness. The work of digging the wells in
the sandy soil is very slow and they will
have to be put down from 100
TO lou leeJ W SECURE WaeSAs Inc 1tct
that in the towns the survey was only by
blocks, not by lots, has caused much con-
fusion and numerous disputes. The strip
contains nearly 6,40O, 600 acres and in esti-
mating the families of the boomers who
will follow to-day's rush, it is safe to say
this will make total of 200. 600 souls.
The strip has been added to Oklahoma,
which now, therefore, has ample popula-
ton to justify its demand for statehood.
The engineers OF the trains were in
structed to run carefully, as it was feared
the track would be tempered with. A
discovery was made yesterday that the
straps and spikes had been removed from
some of the bridges, consequently the
trains were so slow that those on wagons
and horseback easily outstripped them.
THE FIRST TRAIN.