The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-10-13
IN THE NEW COUNTRY.
How Things Look in and About the
City of Tents.

City of Tents.
There are eight or ten miles of tent
frontage in Lawton, the capital of the
new country, writes William A Allen
in the Empor.a Gazette. In Hobart and
Anadarko, two other county seat towns,
there are four of five miles each of tent
frontage. In these tents live at the very
least computation $4,000 American citi-
zens. They are living peaceably and in
order, as American citizens do and should
live. The first four days of last week
one man was killed at Lawton by high
waymen one man died of heart disease,
and two babies were born. There1 are
many grafters of all sorts and condi-
tons in the country-some of the leading
grafters in the United States are there
the star men in the business; butathey
are not doing much They did a big
business among Texas people for few
days, but one night the worm turned.
There was a. mob. The mob charged
down the tented street crying, Hang the
gamblers!' 1t was vicious-looking
sight. The gamblers drew down their
tent covers and put out their tent lights
An hour afterWard the eight miles of
tented streets in LaWton were silent as
the tomb. The next morning the gam
blers and most of the grafters got out
of Lawton; they went out in a good
natured caravan. They knew they were
up against the American love of law
and order, and they accepted the sitUa-
ton without complaining.
Now as to the $4,000 people in the new
country, they are having d butterf1y's
summer. Life in the new country is az
great big Emporia street fair Every
thing goes. People are spending their
money fiuently. In the booths two in
dustries prevail-acid lemonade and law
yers. There are not over twenty meat
markets in Lawton and not over forty
grocery stores, but there are by actual
count, over 200 law and land locating
real estate offices. 1t looks odd to see
a law library displayed under tent;
also, it looks dangerous. For some one
has got to pay well for that library The
people will pay for their lawyers all
right, and well, too. But here is the
alarming part of it. The pay must come
from past savings brought into the coun-
try.
There is nothing but accumulated saw
1ngs for the people to live on. Those
who go through the winter in the new
country must go on what they saved
last winter. Now. the great majority
OF the $4,000 people in this new country
didn't save much last year-if they saved
they wouldn't be in the new country now
looking for snap. People who are doing
well are not looking for new loca-
ton; and the people in the new country
are mostly looking for a snap. They will
lind tit will be cold snap along about
December. Then-look out for trouble. =
Next spring excellent claims may be 4
had in the new country for very little 4
money There are only about 5000 farms I
worth having in the new country. Di- i
vide 50,OOO by 5000 and see how much. each
of the 1900 farmers will have to carry
through the winter. Old Atlas who car
ried the world, didn't grunt nearly as
hard as these farmers will grunt before
rot I7r1
and II 1T should happen there should be
crop failure next year-which is en-
tirely possible, as the farmers are not
FAMILIAR with the soil and the season. and
the way to produce results even and
the scrip of the county commissioners
Will nave to take care of the country
Then $4,000 people will rise up and hurl
large, unanimous, brown damn at the
new country, and will say in their haste
that the soil is no good, that the people
are no good, and that the climate is sim
ply sheolic.
Which is absurd, for the soil is excel
lent. A richer soil never lay out of
doors than that of the new country.
The writer hereof travelled in buggy
over eighty miles of the new country,
and the wheels didn't CRATE on the gravel
once during the journey. The soil is
deep and rich. The grass is thick as
the hair on a dogs back There are no
bald spots. They say the uplands are
worthless. Thirty years ago they said
the same thing of the Kansas uplands.
And now the kaffir and sorghum and the
alfalfa and the small fruits and the hv-
products of the farm prove that the
prejudice against upland land in Kansas
twenty years ago had no basis in fact.
IL VIII be thus with the new country.
| When men learn how to farm the new
| lands they will blossom. But men must
learn. The conquest of land costs as
much blood in peace as in war Thou
| sands and thousands of American citi-
zens will die-wear out and fall fighting
lin this new Country trying IL l,o,..a....