Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-07-22
SHOSHONI, NEW METROPOLIS
Town Springs Up on the Wind River
Indian Reservation.
EARNEST HOMEsEtKERs AFTER LAND
No Rush, but steady Column of Men
and Women ReEistertng for
Chances 60 Draw a Right
to File.

sHosHoN1. wyo.. July IA remark
ably businesslike air characterizes the
hundreds Of applicants for a slice Of
the big Wind River or shoshone Indian
reservation which is to be thrown open
to white settlement next MONTH Their
number. so far, lie not so large as at some
recent similar events but It is clearly
noticeable that those who are here are
here because they want land; moreover
the majority of them have come with full
knowledge of what land 1t is that Uncle
Sam has here to offer.
When the United states land Office booth
opened at 9 o'clock last Monday morning
about 100 homeseekers were in line. Many
Of them were from nearby states-Nebraska,
Iowa, Colorado and Kansas-but a sprink-
ling had come from points much farther
east. with scarcely an exception the men
and women. for the applicants are not all
of the sterner sex. who have appeared
during the first week are an orderly law
abiding people. cheerful and good-natured.
They are anxious to secure homesteads in
practical, businesslike manner, and have
no desire whatever to engage in gun play
pyrotechnics or other melodramatic antics.
AS usual during the preliminary days of
such openings, since the adoption of the
drawing system by the government, the
rush has been comparatively light. This
was expected It need in no way lead to
the conclusion that the interest in the
matter is small. Shoshoni is a long way
from the centers Of population, or even
from the thicky populated farming section.
Railroad men point out that the low rates
are in effect for some time to come and
that doubtless many persons who expect
to register are waiting so that they will
not have to make a second trip for the
dra wing and selection of land, II they are
successful. They will come here in the
later days of the registration and remain
for the drawing.
Tent Trust "8uHted."
Shoshoni is now to a great extent city
of tents. Most visitors have to be content
with cot in one of these shelters. For a
few days at the start the owners of tents
organized themselves into a miniature trust
and there were loud complaints of high
prices for inferior accommodations. A
similar howl was raised against the way
the restaurant keepers sought to take adj
vantage OF the situation. But it did not
last. The railroad people. fearing the eff
fects of such policy, took a hand in the
llldNNtl anu now Dtub anu meals may De
had at prices that are reasonable.
Judge c. W. Smith police justice of
shoshoni-the town has been duly incor-
porated, having a mayor and councilmen-
was the first to break the Food trust. Judge
Smith is a public-spirited citizen of the
most pronounced type, and II was more in
defense of the good name of Shoshoni than
as a money-making proposition that he de-
cided to open a restaurant. But he found
that his place, the first day it was open.
was literally mobbed by the hundreds who
had been previously trying to get some
thing decent at decent prices.
Surprise for visitors.
Those who Journeyed here to take a
chance in the land drawing and thought
to find wilderness have been surprised
at the wealth Of the crops which the Ind
ians and white settlers already here are
raising. Those who thought to find that
the days they spent in this far-away spot
would be lonesome and lacking in interest
have also had their expectations shattered.
Indian war dances, held every evening on
the outskirts of the town by about 200
Arapahoe braves have alone furnished a
source of real interest especially 10 the
many visitors who never before saw an
Indian on his native heath. The cb,ofs
In fun regalia and all the panopiy of Indian
warfare with war bonnets of gorgeous
hues and faces painted in every conceivable
and grotesque manner. present a striking
spectacle.
Apart from the interest attaching to the
Indians and their dances, there is a keen
sense Of life about this new town that is
decidedly refreshing. The street ,fakir,
The gambler and the sure thing man may
be met at almost any turn. and the home.
seekers are being warned, especially
against the "old pioneer" who knows
every foot" of the territory about to be
opened and who is willing, for a slight
consideration, ito put you next to a good
thing" regardless of whether you draw a
claim or not.
Passing OF Indian Domain.
With the opening OF the Shoshone res
ervation to white settlement on August
is will pass away to the pale-face another