The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-06-16
Lands in n n555,:o AWAITING 7o5 Half
7 1st,s Settlers $: Oklahoma

One million and a half acres Of land
are awaiting the advent of white settlers
in Oklahoma Territory, says the Chicago
Inter Ocean. 1t sounds like a big prize
to be had for the mere compliance with
Uncle Sans easy land laws, but the
white people who come here with the eX-
peotatton of finding an agricultural para
disc are bound to be sadly disappointed.
In the first place these lands lie Withered
and burned for fully nine months out Of
the twelve. There is little rain in the
summer, and the sun burns with relent-
less force. Such lands as are really suit
able for farming purposes are already in
the possession of the Indians, and the
federal authorities have confirmed their
right to hold them This leaves the set
tiers but small choice in the selection of
farms, and the result is almost sure TO be
disappointing.
AT this time of the year the weather is
fine. The mercury Is usually between 70
and 50, and an ,exhilarating breeze is
continually blowing from the southwest
The grass is some six inches hign, and
the trees are in full leaf The camper
views this with pleasure. and his antici-
pations are increased by the booming of
the prairie chickens in the mating season,
giving promise of plenty of sport with
the gun and an abundance of game The
nights are cool, and heavy blankets are
a necessity, five or six of them being
none too much if a man is sleeping out
doors, as nearly everybody has to do in
This part of the country just now.
But here the Illusion ends. Rattle
snakes and centipedes make the life Of
the camper unpleasant, if not actually
dangerous, and the snarling of the coy
otes as they quarrel over the refuse Of
the camp is not productive of pleasurable
sensations.
FIT ONLY FOR GRAZING
About the time the seeker after a farm
begins to realize that the Oklahoma par
adise has its drawbacks, he is also forci-
bly, impressed with the fact that It's going
to be a tough job to find a tract of I'M
occupied land on which he can settle with
any reasonable prospect of making a
living. If he is looking for a grazing
ranch its all right, but the farming prop
osition is a different thing. The Wich-
tia reservation, which is the best of the
country to be opened for settlement, Is
bounded on the north by the Canadian,
and on the south by the Washita river.
1t is much cut UP by small streams Of
water, which is bright and clear, but Is
disagreeable, as 1t contains salt and a
the Canadian and the Washita are a num-
Der of broad fertile valleys, the soil of
which is dark and loamy, and which.
even under the Indian methods of cult
corn, wheat and oats. The trouble Is
that all this valley land Is held by IN
dams. The white settler must seek g.
location on the upland prairies, and here
the conditions are vastly different. These
great stretches of plains are only fit for
grazing purposes. They are poorly wa
tered and the soil is thin. About the
only thing 1t viii grow is grass, the pre-
blue stem and mesquite. Those portions
OF the uplands included in the public do
main that cannot be classed as grazing
lands, are covered by gigantic piles OF
granite. The Wichita mountains cover
an area twenty by thirty miles, and while
between the peaks some good valleys and
streams are to be found, the foothills
composed of great masses of broken
rock, extend for miles in every direction
making the country ValueleSs for any Dur
pose save possibly that of mining There
is some hope that the mining industry
may become a profitable one, as indica-
tons OF copper, cobalt, lead zinc and coal
have been found but although a number
of experienced prospectors have been at
work in the mountains for considerable
time, no strike of any magnitude has been
made.
Timber is reasonably abundant, the wal
blackberry. ash, elm. and mesquite
Astounding along the streams, while fine
groWths of cedar are found in the noun
tains. AS regards the rainfall, an idea
may be had from the records a. Fort SILL
which give the Kiowa reservation an av-
erage of nine inches annually for the past
nine years. This is the greatest in the
territory.
Candor compels the straightforward dec
laration that this country Is not a good
place for the homesteader. 1t would be If
the Indians had not been allowed to take
up their lands in advance of the formal
opening This having been done. how
ever. there remains little Of value for the
white man