The Savannah morning news., 1901-07-11
MANY SEEK HOMES
OKLAHOMA FARMS ARE IN GREAT
DEMAND.
OVER $4,000 APPLICANTS
THE PRIZES TO be DECIDED by
LOTTERY.

Men and women by Hundreds Re-
main In Line All Night Before the
Registration Offices ut Ell Reno and
Lawton-The New System Does
Away With the Grand Rush Which
Has characterized Former OPEN
ings-Mnny of Those Now in Line
Haze been Waiting Two Years.
Ell Reno Okla, July 10.-Following out
the proclamation of President Mckinley
opening up to settlement by whites the
1900 farms in the Kjowa- Comanche coun-
try, the first registration of homeseekers
was made here and at Lawton al 8 o'clock
this morning Hundreds were lined be,
fore the various registration booths when
darkness came tonight. and tomorrow
and Friday the registrations will continue
until all who come shall have been given
an opportunity to file their names. The
drawing by lottery will begin on July 90
and until then none of the $1,000 appli-
cants will know whether or not he has
been lucky enough to receive a home>
stead.
The lottery scheme robbed the opening
of the picturesque run and the exciting
times incident to the great opening of the
great Cherokee strip ten years ago. Com
pared with that event the affair to-day
was tame in the extreme. Although there
are perhaps 10000 people In town, practi-
cally no disorder prevailed. As a rule
the homeseekers are well provided with
money and provisions and aside from the
long wait in the sun before the registra-
been experienced.
Hundreds Slept in Streets.
Last night hundreds of people slept in
the streets to maintain their places in
lines which began forming yesterday at
the six registration booths at Ell Reno.
Many had waited on the border of the
new country for two years or more but
the last night of their long vigil was the
most trying they had experienced. The
line was made up Of the hale, the lame
and the brawny frontiersmen The
crowd before each booth selected a cap
tain and each man and woman in line
was given a number which each pinned
conspicuously ON his or her clothing A
company member was PERMITTED occas-
ionally to absent himself from line for a
short Breathing spell and invariably his
place was protected by his fellow watch
ers.
As the hour of o'clock neared, inter-
lopers tried to push in and break the
numerical order of the line organization
This instantly raised bad blood and when
word was passed down the line a little
later that the booths would not recognize
the line organization, but would register
the first persons to present themselves,
there were threats of violence and riot
ing.
No Show for the Rowdies.
Trouble was prevented by the early an
| nouncement that the line organization
| would be respected by the government of
| ffcfals Cheers and waving of hats greet
| ed this word, and from this time forth
| there was no sign of trouble Applicants
| were admitted to the booths four at a
time, and the filing proceeded rapidly all
| day.
During the day the heat became in
tense, but no serious suffering was re-
ported. The numerous women in line were
treated gallantly by the men, who shaded
them from the sun with umbrellas and
furnished drinks from the lemonade ven
ders who Piled their ranks.
The second place of registration named
in the proclamation wasNat Lawton, 25
miles over land, where similar scenes to
those enacted al FL Reno were witnessed
The total registration of homesteaders
at Ell Reno is 4,O1S, 1913 being women.