Lewiston evening teller. [volume] (Lewiston, Idaho) 1903-1911, 1906-10-30
STAkED CLAIMS
PREVIOUS NIGHT
Cries Of Fraud Follow the
Opening Of Walker
Lake Lands

Robert LOVegroVe made the SenSa-
tional statement this morning that y.
). engineers who We're sent ttcre Tor
the purpose of carrying out reclaim
alton work on the portion of the wal
ker Lake reservation that has been al
lotted TO the Indians, had occupied their
time in placing launches on the edge
of Walker lake for the purpose of par
ticipating in the rush, contrary to the
law which states all persons shall keep
off a reservation until the time fixed
for it's opening
With the firing of a mighty blast
of dynamite from the top of Grant
peak, the highest point in the ada
cent mountains, the reservation was
O. ened at noon today. At the given
signal hundreds of searchers for gold
hurried heller SHELTER over the bound
airy lines of plains and mountains ana
before the great cloud of smoke which |
rose into the air from the dynamite ,
explosion had drifted away, spectacu-
lar race of autos, race horses and We |
hcles was on SO great was the rush |
across the desert from the line nearest |
Hawthorn that number of Iersons
/ narrowly escaped being run over and
in numerous instances ini"i'es were
| reported Horses were ridden until
they dropped and men recounted their
i'll fortune when their automobiles be-
came stalled in the deep sand. Jaded
and overcome by thirst. numbers of
prospectors barely summoned sufficient
strength to make their locations. Those
who had waited for the signal from the
top of Mount Grant for rushing into
the reservation found that all the most
valuable claims in the vicinity of the
rich Dutchman, Cottonwood and nu-
merous other creeks emptying into the
southwestern portion of Walker lake
had been taken UP by men who had
rushed in the night before. Even men
who employed launches to take them
across Walker lake from the eastern
side found that their efforts were of
no avail, as they were much too late
to be on an equal footing with the
men who had disregarded all law
The opening of the reservation was
not as imposing as it promised to be
: owing to the fact that countless num-
, 1t during the night and early morning,
= completely overwhelming the Indian
= police, of whom there were but IA to
guard rs miles of territory. While the
opening was taking place Special Agent
Frank Parks of the general land office
was waiting for an answer to his dis
patch sent to the land Office at Wash
y ing be postponed on account of the ir-
Irregularities that had been discovered
r, Parks pointed out that the Indian police
who had been named to guard the
line were not only inadequate and In
- efficient, but they had taken money
and liquor as bribas and were intoxi'
Gated most of the time. He stated In
his dispatch that on account Of the la,
methods observed, hundreds of pros
Lectors had paid no attention to Ill,
time aset for the opening. This new
soon spread through the camps wher
bonafide prospectors had gathered t
make rush and as a result there wa
a great deal of discomfort
Reports have reached here OF mum
erous shooting ARRAYS in the vicinit
of the old Arastra gold mine. whic
was the objective point for hundreds O
fortune seekers who had arrived onl
to find that the land had already bee
taken up. They then attempted to sc
y small sections, with the result tina
\ blood was shed in numerous instances
although no fatalities have been re
ported. Special Land Agent Parks dc
plores the fact that the rush was a
lowed to take place. when 1t wa
known that the laws of the Unite
States in regard to the opening OF
reservation had been evaded. He sal
that there is yet a possibility that tt
+ present opening may be declared II
valid and new one called for.
AS rule the people who wait.
until the regular time before rushir
into the territory did not secure an
thing for their efforts and many no
. est prospectors who had spent ;
their savings to participate in t
opening turned back defeated.
much of country has been open
that numbers of prospectors display
fee gold that they had washed fro
II their claims this afternoon. The ne
of the strike that was made spre
like wild fire.
= Indignation prevails tonight
re Hawthorne, Warrington and Sch,
-. where disappointed prospectors hs
re returned after finding that they
p- no chance against those who rusl
*. in ahead of time.
at. III
but