The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1908-07-19

lively estimated at $4,000, 900. He
owns more than 100000 acres of the
best land in the Rio Grande valley.
Every foot of it can be irrigated. At
the rate which other land in this sec
ton of the same character is selling
$50 per acre for this 100000 acres
would not be an excessive figure.
Hill is a full-blooded Choctaw. He
is proud of his Indian blood. and a
stranger is not long in his presence be-
fore the fact is made known by Hill
that he is an Indian. His looks tell
the tale without words on his part.
This Indian has been able to take
care of himself he will say. Il never
received anything from the govern
ment and l am not expecting any
thing"
This is true. Hill never shared in
any way of the allotments in Indian
Territory. He has been making his
way alone and unaided ever since he
was a boy. The most marvellous thing
about the great fortune which Hill
now possesses is that he has accum-
ulated all of it during the last six
years. He was living in Brownsville,
twenty-five miles below here, little
more than six years ago. That was
before a railroad had been built into
this region. 1t was then 100 miles
to the nearest railroad outlet to the
arrived in Brownsville he YVES worse
than broke, financially speaking He
did not have any money and his debts
amounted to 5000. He had been prac-
ticing law at Beeville, Tex, and it did
not bring him any great amount of
money He had made good reputa-
ton as a lawyer in southwest Texas.
but the fees he got were small. He
had seen north and middle Texas de-
velop and he believed the time was not
far distant when the valley of the
lower Rio Grande would be transform
ed from it's primitive wilderness of
chaparral into cultivated farms and
gardens. Dissatisfied with his pro
gress at the bar, he determined to
turn his attention to the land. and he
prepared to take advantage Of such
inevitable thrush of investors and
home-seekers came.
He left Beeville and moved to
Brownsville. He was without funds,
but he had friends and was possessed
of an abundance of capital in the way
of energy and native shrewdne S.. He
knew that all that was needed to make
the semi-tropical region pulsate with
the life of progress and developmen mt
was direct railroad connection with
the markets of the country. When
Hill took up his abode in Brownsville
he found the town in that state of
somnolence which is typical of Me XII
can border places. Opportunities for
moneymaking were on every hand,
but no one had the energy and fore
sight to grasp them. Situated upon
one of the main streets was a three
story brick hotel building which had
upper story were gone and for many
years it had been the abiding place for
bats. The Indian went to the owne r
of the building and proposed to lease
it for term of years. His offer was
quickly accepted and the monthly rem
tai was fixed at a figure so low as to
be ridiculous in the light of subse-
quent events. Hill got hold of enough
money to renovate and repair the
competent parties, it was opened as a
hotel. For several weeks the only pa.
irons were Hill and one or two Of his
friends. The awakening came, and
there has not been day during the
last two years that this very same
hotel has not been crowded to its ut.
most capacity with guests.
When he had got we'll settled in the
border town Hill began the work OF
interesting capital to build a railroad
to the place. He enlisted the efforts
of wealthy land owners in the project
and a party Of them, accompanied by
Hill went to ST. Louis to lay the
scheme before men of finance
of that city. 1t was the original in
tention to submit the proposition to
the chief officials of the Missouri
Kansas & Texas railroad company
which was at that time building into
SdlA @hAtOllio e1ilu vas utdutu III l1S
direction of the lower Rio Grande re
gion
1t happened that B. F. Yoakum. now
chairman Of the executive committee
of the Rock Island and Frisco sys
TENS was personally known to Hill
and other members of his party, and
they naturally thought it would be a
good plan to get his advice before call
ing on the Missouri, Kansas & Texas
people. They called on Mr. Yoakum
at the general offices of the Frisco in
st. Louis and laid their plans before
him. Yoakum surprised the commit
tee by telling them that they need &C
no further; that he was perfectly fam
iliar with the resources and require
| ments of the region which was so bad
| ly lacking in transportation facilities
and that he would enlist the necessary
capital and build the road. The com.
mittee returned to Texas without TAX
| ing up the matter with the Missouri
| Kansas & Texas officials.
Possessed of this knowledge of the
| practical certainty Of the building OF
the road, Hill began to secure options
upon the rich valley land adjacent
(