The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1904-07-02
Claim They Are Waiting for
BeIated Harvest to Begin.
IDEAS OF SOCIALISM
Have a Government by Which
Every Member Abides.
There Are More Than Three
Hundred in the Gang.
Like. COxey's Army They Forage
from the Community.

Salina, Kan, July 2.-The Journal
says:
The congestion of the tramp traffic
under the guise- of harvest hands is
becoming more intense each day and
Salina is suffering from a surplus.
Yesterday Sheriff SWedenburg was
called upon by the Union Pacific local
nagement to- clear the westbound
harvest hands attempting to beat their
way to the wheat fields in the western
part of the state. Before the train
left Salina he drove thirty of these
knights of the road from fiat cars and
box cars, some of them at the point of
a revolver. Walking on top of the cars
the sheriff came upon one coal car
about the middle of the train in which
were seventeen tramps lying fiat on
the floor OF the car. In response to the
officers order for them to clear out and
Keep clear he was greeted with a laugh
from the hoboes who jeered him with
JeerS, but when from his vantage place
on top of the car the officer pulled a
revolver from his pocket and pointed
it at the nest of tramps it was not nee
essary for him to repeat mis- order and
they went over the side of the car like
a drove of sheep, with the exception
of one hobo who was lame and begged
OF. The sheriff told him to stay where
he was until the next stop and then
to chase himself of the right of way.
Between Salina. and Ellsworth the
sheriff drove 120 tramps from the train
at different points where stops were
AlduG AT every STOP Lney SWarmeQ out
OF hiding places along the track and
attempted to board the train as it pull
ed out only to be met by the sheriff and
ordered of On the train was thresh-
ing machine boiler and out of the
bowels of this he chased eight men be-
fore the train left Salina- At Ellsworth
the sheriff visited a hobo camp on the
river bank where nearly three hundred
tramps and harvest hands are camped
waiting for harvest. The heavy rains
of the past few days have delayed har-
vest and here the harvest hands are
camping until 1t begins. Some of them
doubtless never intend going into the
harvest field and are simply tramps
taking their annual outing in Kansas.
Sheriff Swedenburg searched forty of
these in the hopes of finding on their
persons some clue to the parties that
robbed the store at New Cambria Sun
day night No clue was found but ev-
cry man searched had from a dollar to
forty-f1ve dollars on his person and
one man mad a twenty dollar bill.
The camp is on the bank of the river
near a potato field and Tuesday the
owner discovered that about half his
potato crop had been harvested and he
went on guard with a shotgun loaded
with small shot. Tuesday night he got
one Of the prowlers, shooting MIN in
the leg with bird shot, making a pain
ful though not serious wound Sunday
the tramps had a chicken dinner after
a successful forage of the night before
IN neighboring poultry yards. and il is
estimated that at least fifty chickens
were slaughtered to feed this semi-in-
dustrial army that is waiting to go
into action in the harvest fields.
The camp is governed by commit
tee selected by the tramps and in this
committee is vested the civil govern
ment of the camp. Except for stealing
chickens. potatoes and other provisions
no depredations have been committed
that anyone knows of in that neighbor-
hood. They are living on the country
and say that they are ready to go to
work as soon as harvest commences.
Every day witnesses new additions to
the camp and one of the peculiar fea-
lures is that two-thirds of them are
negroes.