The Birmingham age-herald., 1902-11-11
NEGROES GROW RICH FAST.
Many of Those Living in the Creek
 Nation Are WeII-to-Do.

From the Memphis Commercia1-Appeal.
 It is not in the south that the richest negroes are found, although many in that region have amassed a goodly store of property since the war. Doubtless the wealthiest community of colored people in the world Is found among the Creek Indians in Indian Territory. There are about 1000 of them, and they are worth on an average 5000 each. The wealth of the more industrious foots up even higher certain individuals being the own CTS of from $1O.o0O to S15,0o0 worth of land each.
 These negroes are the descendants of slaves of the Creek tribe of Indians and are known as Creek negroes. They are entitled to share in the division of Creek Indian lands, also part of the trust funds. Together the 1000 negroes own g, GOO, 900 acres of land. And yet their education is far from complete. Their social environments are crude in the ex- treme and progress goes slowly amid their huts and fields.
 Unlike the other Indians of the rich five civilized tribes, the Creeks insisted upon freeing their slaves to give them an equal share of the lands and money. At that time there were few slaves, but the number grew through descendants, until now fully 1000 have laid successful claim to a head right on the Creek rolls of citizenship. They have their own representatives In the Creek Indian leg islature, their own schools and their own churches. Everything bids fair to make them the model community of negroes in the United States when Indian Territory Is recovered from the tangle wilderness of reconstruction, its jaws made uniform and itself a state of the Unlon
 There is little culture among the Creek negroes They have a social set all their own, to which not even the Indians are invited. Their characteristics are in a great measure different from the negro of the south and north. It is a mixture of both with additional peculiarities.
 Like the Indians, these negroes have their dances in the open, which have come to be a sort of religion with them And, following in the footsteps of the southern negro they have barbecues, 'possum hunts and the like. As a north ern type of the negro they are more In. dustrious and independent of the whites know how to work hard and save their money, and, like the type from the city, are well dressed-gaudily, but at the same time wearing expensive clothes
 These 1000 Creek negroes live in a tract of rich land called the Canadian river bottoms, and Okmulgee. Is the capital of the Creek Indian nation and has been for years a negro town. Recently. however, white people 1ocked in and have taken possession. The negroes are starting their own towns along the branch of the Frisco railroad.
 Notwithstanding that many of these Creek negroes are industrious. there are some among them who rent out their es- tates and lounge in idleness about the railway stations. It is a common sight to see a 5O0-acre tract of rich land in the Canadian bottoms being titled by white man. Invariably, upon inquiry as to his landlord he will refer to the negro owner in no complimentary terms. Mean while one will find the owner shooting craps or enjoying himself eating turkey and 'possum in a neighboring village
 When the Creeks freed theIr negroes in 1884, the two fraternzed for a time, and even intermarried, but that has all passed now. In accordance with the terms grant ing their freedom, the Creek negroes are allowed a voice in the tribal government, and so they have their own members in the council, and have their own schools and all that; but the Creek Indian feels above the Creek negro and refuses to associate with him.