Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1900-05-27

CHICAGO, May ga few minutes
after 2:30 O'Clock this afternoon 800
police officers of the city of Chicago,
headed by Chief Ripley, and every
man bearing a repeating rife, march
ed from the East Chicago avenue sta
ton on the North Side, to the foot of
Superior street, where Captain George
Streeter had fortified himself on a
strip of land created by the washing
up of soil from the bed of Lake Michi-
gan and which Streeter claims as his
property by right of discovery.
In the entertainments were about
seventy men armed with rifles and
two gatling guns.
Earlier in the day a party of Lincoln
Park officials had been fired upon by
pickets around the improvised fort,
and a boy fourteen years of age had
been wounded severely in the right leg.
A horse driven by the park officials
had been killed.
This shooting resulted in a call upon
the city officials for the arrest of the
occupants of Streeter's fort, but the
city authorities declined to take the in
itiative, owing to the fact that the
Supreme Court of the United States
c declared the land to be a part of
the territory of Illinois. 1t was finally
decided to mobilize 300 police officers
under the leadership of Chief Ripley
and to march against the Streeterites
and demand their surrender.
Sheriff Magerstadt went with the
chief of police, and it was planned that
in case Of refusal to surrender that
the sheriff should Immediately swear
in the 300 police officers as deputy
sheriffs, again demand the surrender
of Streeter's forces on the ground of
riot and disorderly conduct and to pro-
coed to arrest the occupants of the fort,
regardless of cost.
A fire boat with a gatling gun aboard
was dispatched up Lake Michigan
To Make n Demonstration
from that side and to cut off the es-
cape of Streeter's men by means of
their yacht.
1t was arranged that the joint dem
onstration of land and water forces
should occur promptly at $3.50 o'clock.
at $50 o'clock, Brigadier General
Niles and four of his men perceiving
the overwhelming force of police ap-
preaching, climed over the emplace-
ments of their improvised fort and Of
fered to surrender to the park police.
providing they were protected. The
surrender was accepted and the park
policemen started on foot toward the
police station, followed by an immense
crowd. Those in the crowd pushed and
Jostled Niles roughly and he suddenly
wAlrled around and tried to bayonet
one of his prosecutors. A rough and
tumble fight ensued in which Niles's
rife was wrenched from his hands and
clubs were freely used on the erst-
while "~brigadier generals head. He
was knocked uown and was about %
draw a revolver when he was man
acled and dragged off by the officers.
The four men with him were also
roughly handled in the melee.
The remainder of Streeter's force.
seeing the fate of their leader, desert
ed their guns and escaped in the
throng. The police at once took charge
of the fort with its entire store of
arms and ammunition.
naAto;~ C+rooto, NO. -
the fort.
Cause of 1t All.
With an armed body of twenty men.
two rapid fire guns and some barbed
wire for making entanglements. Cap
tain George Streeter to-day took pos
session of 1856 acres of land here. Al
ter hosting the United States flag his
men threw up two interenchments and
planted in each one OF the rapid fire
guns.
Captain Streeter claims 10 own the
land which were the title clear would
be worth between thirty and fifty mil
lions of dollars. In 1885 CAPTAIN
Streeter and his wife were stranded
on a little sand bar a lew yards from
the shore at the foot of Superior street,
The spot was not down on the maps
and the doughty navigator laid claim
to lie land and declared his right. be-
ing the whole population, to elect him
self to all the offices which he, in franz
Ing a constitution, deemed the territory
In need of. As the years passed by
the dumping of all sorts of refuse and
earth washed up by the lake formed
a large tract, and Captain Streeter be-
came a man of Importance. With his
Importance and the increased value of
the lands his troubles began. The
tract became connected with the shore
and owners of adjoining property re-
sented the presence of Captain Street
err and the retainers he had gathered
about MIN. They carried the matter
into court. The Supreme Court of
the United States decided that the
land was within the jurisdiction of
Illinois. Streeter t%hereupon offered
the district
To the Federal Government.
year g he organized under the