The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1893-09-14
TOO hot FOR THE BOOMERS
Many Succumbed to Heat While in
Line at the Booths.
Six Deaths Reported from Arkansas
City, Where the Thermometer Stood
100 in the Shade Yesterday.

KANSAS CITY, Sept 1a.-One hundred de.
grees of heat in the shade, the air filled
with g suffocsting dust. and one of Kan
sass noted hot winds blowing across the
parched prairies. as il straight from the
mouth OF q seven times heated furnace,
were the severe conditions the boomers
along the Cherokee line were forced to
endure to-day. Some of them could not
stand it. and sucoumbed. Some rallied.
but others died.
At Arkansas City over fifty persons
were overcome by the heat. most of item
being among those who were standing in
line before the registration booths. Of
those stricken. six have died. while others
are in dangerous condition. At Caldwell
twenty were sunstruck, and two died. At
Orlando twenty-five sunstrokes were re-
ported and two deaths. and at Hennessey.
eighteen. with one death. The sun was
down in q clear sky to-day and the indi-
be . repetition of to-day.
The crush at the registration booths at
Arkansas City has become 80 great that
from now on they will be kept open TWEEN
ty-four hours. with day and night forces
of clerks at work. During the three days
ending tonight 1880 claims were issued.
IL the sarno proportion is maintained in the
three succeeding days the mum ber Of home
az noon SaturdayswiIf6e IN the neigh bor-
hood of $4,000. The total number Of certifi-
Gates does not indicate the number of home
seekers, for most Of the boomers take ont
certificates for both homestsads and town
lots.
At 3 o'clock this morning o serious fight
took place near the booths at Ark kansas
City. A gambler drove out in O carrl ege
with two women TO SEQ the sights. A
couple of drunken soldiers took otter the
women. and their companian attempted 10
defend them. He took a bottle of whisky
out of his pocket and proceeded to beat one
of the soldiers over tho head with it. The
soldier tried to get at his revolver, but. not
succeeding the other soldier got IL and
commenced TO shoot wildly. He created q
panic among the boomers. who fed In all
directions. The sheriff. coming up OF this
time on horse. got In the line OF the bull
let's and his horse was killed. Other sol
dleTs secured the drunken trooper.
The Santa Fe brought in sixty-fve car
loads of home-seeking excurNonists. Some
of them came 20 take up bomesteads, but
the big majority came simply to SEQ the fun
and will return when it is ali over. The
sooner" ls trying 10 get In his work again.
At Orlando. to-day. the soldiers brought
fifty-thrse ''sooners" into camp. and more
are reported to be concealed along the
streams In tho forbidden land. The men
who were captared yesterday protest that
they crossed the border in good
faith. They ell bear certificates
of registration, and they claim that
they thought tho certificate entitled
ed them TO enter the strip and take up
homeeteads. Iheir etory was not credited
and they were deprived OF their certificates
and will not 0e permitted to teke MP land.
The boomers at Orlando. In order to get
rid of spectators. would not permit any
one in the line TO take his place. In conse-
day, and Is now composed wholly of bona
fide bome-seekers. Two OF the twenty
persons who were overcome by the heat
to-day have died. one of them being Kate
Say les of McPherson. Kan.
Reports from Saltwater are that hun
dreds are arriving there every hour and it
IE said that since onday the crowd has
been almost as large as yesterday. A band
of Texans left there to-day and went to
Orlando. hoping TO register more quickly.
afternoon they put their horses Oh cars and
went to ArkapSss City.
The Rock 'siarI took forty three car
loaas Of people into Caldwell to-day and
added at least three thousand to the twen-
" thousahd already there. Only q small
number OF these are home-seekers, the ma
lorlty being exoursi0nists who have come
TO look on. Tho hoat there to-day WAS
Oreautui, anu tnfsy-tWO 5unstIOkcs were
reported and two fatalities. Most of the
people overcome were those waiting in line
before the registration boOths The two
men who died were both old and weak.
Their bodies were taken to their camps by
their friends and the deaths have not been
reported to the coroner.
At Hennessey. %. r., just south of Caid-
we'll. in Oklahoma. the pr0stTatiOns from
the hsnt u numbered eighteen. The Young
Peoples Society of Christian Epdeavor has
undertaken to relieve the suffering caused
by lack of water. The suggestion was
made 10y the Leavenworth society. which
pledged sum of money TO pay the ex.
ponses OF hauling water from Arkansas
City to the booths south of there. The So
cleties here adopted the plan with entbusi-
asm. and three water carts full of free
water W ere put into service to-day.