The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-05-02
SETTLERS FOR THE WEST.
Yesterdays HOME-SEEKERS' Elk
CURsIoN TRAFFIC. WAS A
RECORD BREAKER
THOUSANDS WERE TAKEN OUT
Record for Season VIII Approach
6O,OOO-AbOut $500 Were on the
Seven Sections Leaving
Yesterday.

With today closes a notable season IN
homeseekers' excursions Since the sec
ond week in February multitudes of set
tiers have weekly left for the West, and,
as a result of the cheap rates granted
by the railroads, nearly $4,000 souls have
gone to the far West in search of new
homes. Yesterday was the climax, and
seven heavily loaded trans, none of them
of less than twelve cars, left the union
depot in the morning
The flyers Of the Great Northern and
the Northern Pacific left in three sec
tions, and the regular train of the 500
road was composed of fourteen heavily
loaded passenger cars. Officials at the
depot declare that it was the heaviest
day for excursion travel In the history OF
the station, and the figures of the pas
senger departments show that all pre-
vious records were put in the shade. AT
a conservative estimate $500 passengers
We're hauled out of the depot, and Of
these fully 30 per cent were bound for
the state of Washington.
None of the trains left before o'clock
in the morning, and long before this time
the depot was crowded to it's utmost eA-
tent with families who were going out on
one or other of the three roads All Of
the trains were labeled, and even the
tourist cars on those of the Great North
ern were numbered in order to avoid, as
far as possible, mistakes which might
tend to delay the departure Of the trains.
The first sections of the Great Northern
and Of the Northern Pacific flyers left
almost Immediately on the arrival Of the
Great Western train from Chicago. On
board this were 400 passengers bound for
the West, and they were about equally
distributed between the two trunk roads.
with a scattering for the 500. The trans
fer of passengers was made as quickly
as possible, and the first sections, carry
ing the mails, drew out and started on
their way to the coast. The other sec
tions were not in so much of hurry.
and did not start until they were pack
ed to the limit with human freight. The
last Of the seven trains left the depot Al
about 1870, and by that time $500 Pc sssOns
were on their way West.
About the most pathetic sight witnessed
at the rush for the trains was that OF
an old couple going to the western part
or Washington state to join their son,
who has been there for several years.
The wife was over seventy years of age,
and the husband was considerably older
He was blind, and his devoted wife led
him through the surging crowd as bem
she could. Both were feeble, and both
looked as though they had not often seen
the interior of railway depot. Once
past the gate the aged wife was all at
sea. There were trains on all sides, and
the noise was something bewildering. She
stood holding the hand of her slghtless
husband until porter, busy though he
was at the time, took in the situation
and stepped forward and volunteered to
pilot them to the right train They were
soon placed and a few moments later
had started on their long journey to the
Pacific coast
Last night the trains of the Great
Northern took out large crowd of set
tiers for Manitoba, and today the tain
end of the excursion, consisting of those
who purchased tickets in the Eastern
state, will pass through the city Both
the Great Northern and the Northern
Pacific will be compelled to send out two
sections and, when the last of these has
started on its way West, there will have
rates.
OF course all of these are not bona ide
settlers, many Of them are merely on
pleasure trips, but a careful estimate
places the number of actual settlers for
the season at 5000.