The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-10-29
DESERT BOOM 0 {. \
IN KANSAS 4 | S
How a Wagon Full OF Money
Was Taken From East
cri, Men.
4 e I:7. SCHEME
Turns Up After Thirty Years to
Conlplicate the State Poll
teal Campaign.
4 eET.RlCH.QulCK SCHEME.
tspeclal to The rirnes-Dlspatch.)

Especial to The Times-Dlspatch.)
TOPEKA, KAN. October 2S.-A queer
story Of early flnancierns In Kansas mas
been revived by libel suit brought ~
three State officers against newspaper
publisher Of Topeka.
The newspaper recently printed story
which in euec, charged Secretary Of
Z state Burrows, State Superintendent
4 Dayhofr and Attorney General Coleman
with coalniving with bond agent 70 m
vest State school funds controlled pS
them In Conp4nnhe county bords-a pul>-
chase which, as the newspaper salo. lh moi
Gated q reckless disregard for the salety
Of the funds The three men, beng noih-
inees on the Republican ticket Tor re-elec
ton. sued the newspaper for $1,000 dam DAM
ages, The reply OF the newspaper mas
aust been fled, and it brings out UNIQUE
chapter In Eet-racn-Qulck schemes thirty
( IN iSn the Legislature Of Kansas, in a
eenerOns mood created Sumner, Harper,
= Conan che BARBOUR una Otnei% countieS out
~ The uninhabited section OF the state,
and defined their boundaries. Conlan iNs.l
county is on the southern border. nu! JON
y ing The Indian territory, aAu q e1>'.
It's altitude and its location place It
beyond the rain belt. 1t Is composed ~, -
high bluffs. deep chnons d g "a Min ind fer
j ent worth as a grazing county, ~ 100
the Indians and hunters were kllilng pIta
4 ialo all over that section. and Coman .e,a
was uninhabled save ny occas tolSA1 1litl~a
Z rau ding bands Of Indians.
In the fall Of 1878, as was atterWAlu
estabi. shed BY legislative investigation,
j.. Mowry and four or I'VE o.ltr t.,e.1
4 started in wagon from HUTCHINSON y son.
oiY,tF on q
ganche county seventy-five miles ulstdnt,
taking with them city directory OF :; -.
Joseph, Mo-, and g scheme 1ol COZ ~ a,.a
E a D ie OF Doodle. The scheme was ,, TO Or, OF,
4 canlze the county, issue bonds, sell 1he1l1
and divide the proceeds. - 49, .,,o
III Inder the law it was necessary thal
the county be shown TO nav. Sov i.ousf
holders to entitle it to organization. AS
soon as the party arrived the ne1I Is;s.
proceeded to take the census OF me couh,
ty5byF writ ng in u book names they ioulio
they sent to Topeka. and in Que tin N'i
4 n,S rs.rrce we'd otlic.ai sanctlon 70 proceto
with their organ zatloh. ,,.,s
a pretended county election was heio.
at which Mowry was eieclea = nae INV.
II school superintendent, ana ". A .ll'
county clerk AS matter OF fact, lh t'i..
was no one in the count! /. lilll mrs ~ ~. )
he ,y;.ron-load OF hutchinson men.&At
,,i1S73ln,ss. e.t:ci. on = the county, by
ma irr,o,is vote. ordered the commission,
+ tar.s 10 issue bonds for bridges. for general
4 ..s.,s i,S,.s sattd 10 butd a c9urthouss.
The total issue agsregated $500 a'.e anu ,ha
as The interes, rate was generous. me
t.or,Gs found ready sale IN the s>a;St lc
raen wtt.o knew none of the facts. y n s,,a
the tirst interest payment Decai1ie Laue
they discovered how they haa oee'' : VIZ
,rs,c bondholders wrote much and pro-
tested loudly; but could do nothing. ihey
put the bonds away n tnsis al 1vh s..u
n ai;ed Their lime came in 1917, "!'en
the boom struck Kansas.
The overflow sent about 800 persons
into Comanche county. Whlch was no
3 sooner orsar.zed than II was served Win
,ofIce of q suit by the Eastern bondhold-
ers The county tried TO evade payment,
ard the legal fight went from the state
I courts into the Fedora! tribunal. peihs
finally decided In favor Of the pohdhoso l
Meanwhile an exodus had begun from
the county. At present there are not
more than la inhao tants :, m NAL ~ ,; nna
trying MOTTO Accumulate enough property
TO make the bonds valuable, by a&com-
promise effected In 1880 the bond tissue
was reduced to sl33,0Jo. sum much less
than the amount Of the judgment with
interest and costs. ,
Mowry and his confreres, finding bona
Issuing an easy road TO wealth, then
formed two school districts. anu issued
Two bonds OF 1000 each. which they SOLD
70 the State Board OF Educational Lands
and Funds for sS75.
A1owry's vanity and desire tor po;ltical
When the Legislature met at Topeka IN
January, 1874. he appeared with his Gre
dentials and obtained seat as the mem
Der from comanehe soon a atter noan a .r,e
a resolution Of inquiry was adopted. The
committee reported that Mowry was not
entitled 10 seat, and he left town.
A special session Of the Legslatnrs met
in September OF 1875, and The Attorney
General was instructed to investigate the
story, He visited the county. found no.
body living there. and learned that no.
body ever had resided there for long.
The final paragraph of his report reads:
AS Marius rat amid the ruins OF Garth
age and wept, camped upon me Town.
site OF smallwood !named after one Of
the State officers who bought the school
Donds), the county seat. and toasted upon
wild turkey with no (white2 man to mo,
lest or make me afraid. In ,SmallWood
Of course, without doors. windows, sashes
or blinds About lie off Is another de.
serted ranch, and these compose the
houses of the householders of the county.
Y land or a dollars worth of property sub
y ject 70 taxation. Its sole inhabitants are
The Cheyennes and the coyote. the wolf
and the Arapnhoes, and It's organization
81 Island always WIS a fraud
Whom the Legislature of 1876 convened
4 MoWry turned up aga n us d member
'4 ms ttnt IRON lIpHlpi'ih tbHiltS' lluiS'
,ant members had a committee appointed
II 10 investigate his conduct IN Comancht
county and lie was expelled. The com
,nitee's report shows that. not havns
enough men In the party TO effect an or
,anizaiionfof the Two school districts, tic
II ols names were signed 10 the bond'
IF lssy Monty, who deposited the money re-
~ cnved from the sale 10 his own crci
f III bunk, The blank school bonds bein.
.e urfd by him from lie state Supeiin
"A ieadeni, a criminal proceeding was
tntn8teued. but Monty dropped out o
sight The two State officers who bough
,te bonds we're baniShed from pDlit ca
8s$trhe bonds themselves are still held b.
81 the State School iund
Champion Pool Player of Vir,
ginia.
Especial e The Times, pispaa'eh;3