The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1893-09-11
THROWN OPEN AT LAST.

In ten days. that is TO say, on Septem-
be-7c3,; the tract of public land known as
the Cherokee Outlet will be thrown open
to settlement, and will become part of the
Territory of Oklahoma. In the act of
May 2, 1890, organizing the Territory of
Oklahoma. it was provided that whenever
the interests of the Cherokee Indians in
the land known as the Cherokee Outlet
shall have been extiDguished, and the
President shall made proclamation
thereof, said outlet shall thereupon and
without further legislation form part of
the Territory of Oklahoma. The procla-
nation has been issued and the thousands
of settlers who have been encamped for
months along the southern border of Kan
sas are now making ready to invade the
new country and TO make themselves
homes there. The territory thrown open
embraces an area OF about 100000 acres,
one-third of which is as fine land as can
be found in the world. 1t is between the
niDetY-sixth and one hundredth parallels
Of longitude and the thirty-sixth and
thirty-seven th parallels of latitude. The
Gina IRON River bisectS it and the Atchi-
sop, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad runs
through its western end, while the Rock
Island traverses its eastern portion. It
should prove an excellent and productive
country, heing admirably adapted to the
growth of wheat.
This is the last territory that will be
offered in bulk to settlers at the upset price
of 81 % an acre, for Alaska can hardly
count. There is still a large area of unoc-
cupied public land, but from the fact that
the sales of such lands in the Missouri
Valley have declined from an average of
about million acres a year to an average
of about four hundred thousand acres it
may be inferred that all or nearly all the
choice lands have been taken up and that
the lands which remain are either broken
or sterile or arid or swamp and that they
cannot be brought under cultivation with
out an expenditure which is beyond the
means of the average settler. The last
refuge of the imL ecunious land-grabber
was the Indian Territory; when Oklahoma
was thrown open in 1890 the refuge was
reduced to the Cherokee Outlet. In the
course of next week the best portions Of
that will be taken up by the usual formal
ity of four crossed logs.
Thus, at the end of a hundred years, the
era of free land will come to an end. 1t
needed persuasion to induce the provin-
Gals of Wasnington's time to occupy farms
in Ohio at 81 an acre; the spectators who
bought them of the Government in blocks
of a million acres at pence an acre were
regarded as daring Some OF them. in
deed, made no money at the business.
Later on, when the Government sue
ceeded in gridironing the prairies by means
OF land grants to railroads, the companies
had to bestir themselves to dispose of their
lands at 81 80 an acre. There was so much
that for long time people could not be
persuaded that it was bargain. Still, by
degrees, the lands found purchasers and
occupants, and the great States west of
the Mississippl filled up with thriving.
prosperous communities. They grew year
by year until the center OF population
moved into Indiana and the center of polit-
ical power into the river valleys.
Now the United States is going TO occupy
the same plane as other countries. In
England. Scotland, Ireland, France. Ger
many and Italy every acre Of land has an
owner, and he who desires TO buy must
deal with that owner. Thus land comes
to command q much higher price than
wild land does in this country, for the
owner will not sell unless he gets some
thing worth accepting. Land in Germany,
on which a farmer can scarcely make 6
living, sells at 500 an acre. A premium
is paid in Ireland for leases of land really
only fit for pasturage at G1 an acre pei
annum. We must expect to see similar