The Washington herald., 1908-06-28

The richest Indian in the world IS Lon
Hill. of Harlingen. Tex. His wealth is
conseTatively estimated at $350l.000 He
owns more than 10000 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 section Of the
same character is selling, so per acre for
this 500000 acres would not be an exces-
sive figure. Figured on that basis, this
Indian is worth S6.COO,0O0. He IS not given
10 Overrating things and the FIRST estimate
is his own.
Lon Hill is a full-blood ChOctaw. He is
proud Of his Indian blood. and q stranger
is not long in his presence before the fact
is made known by Mr.. Hi that he is an
Indian.
This Indian has been able 70 take care
of himself he will say. I never have
/ received anything from the government
and 1 am not expecting anything"
This Is true. Ho has never shared in
any Of the aliotments in Indian territory.
He has been making his way alone and
Unaided ever since he was a boy
The marvellous thing about the great
fortune which Hill now possesses is that
he has accumulated it all during the last
six years. He located at Brownsville.
twenty-five miles below Harlingen, a lit
tie more than six years ago That was
/ before a railroad had been built into the
region. II was then 160 miles 10 the near
! est railroad outlet 10 the outside world.
! Hill says that when he arrived in Browns
| VILE he was worse than broke" He
did not have any money and his debts
amounted 20 500. He had been pracJicing
/ law at Beeville, Tex. He had made a
good reputation as q lawyer In South
west Texas. but he reached the conclusion
! that the time was not lar distant when
\ the valley Of the Lower RIO Grande would
/ be transformed from its primitive wilder
ness Of chaparral into cultivated farms
/ and gardens.
When he had got well settled in the
/ border town. this progressive Indian be-
gan the work Of interesting capital 10
/ build a railroad 10 the place. He en-
/ listed the efforts Of wealthy land owners
/ In the project. and a party Of them. ac-
/ cOmpanicd by HILL went 20 St. Louis
/ 10 lay the scheme before men Of means
/ Of that city. II was the original intention
. 10 submit the proposition 10 the chief
officials Of the Missouri Kansas and
I Texas Railroad Company which was at
/ that time building into San Antonio. and
/ was headed in the direction OF the Lower
/ Rio Grande region
The Railroad Was Promised.
! Il happened that p. +. Yoakum. now
| chairman Of the executive committee OF
/ the Rock Island and Frisco systems. was
! personally known 90 Hin and other mem
I bers of his party. and they naturally
I thought it would be a good plan 20 get
/ his advice before calling on tle Missouri.
/ Kansas and Texas people. They called
\ upon Mr Yoakum az the general Offices
/ of the Frisco IN 81. Louis and laid their
plans before him. Mr.. Yoakum listened
\ 10 what they had 10 say. lie then sur
/ prised the committee by telling them that
/ they need go no further, that he was
/ perfectly familiar with the resources and
I requirements OF the region which was 50
/ badly lacking in transportation facilities.
\ and that he would enlist the necessary
capital and build the road. The commit
! tee returned 20 Texas without taking up
the matter with the Missouri, Kansas and
I Texas officials.
+ Possessed Of this knowledge Of the prac-
teal certainty OF the building OF the road.
/ the redskin lawyer began TO secure Cp-
/ tiOnS upon the rich valley land adjacent
7 90 Brownsville. This wild land was COW
cred with an almost impenetrab-e growth
Of brush and small trees. II was con-
sidered almost unfit for grazing purposes,
I so thick was the chaparral upon H. The
value placed upon the land ranged from
/ 81 TO $50 per acre. and some Of the own
/ ers perhaps thought that they were rob-
| bing the prospective purchaser when they
/ fixed those prices in the options. Hin,
for his own purposes, was willing al that
/ time TO concede that he was agreeing 70
! pay an eXorbitant price for the land.
! When the plans for building the railroad
/ had progressed sufficiently far Mr.. Yoa-
KUN and his associates secured the sery-
] ices of HUl IN getting options on other
vast tracts of land for them. He was
well paid for this work and was able 70
/ purchase outright the many thousands Of
acres upon which DE had secured options
| 20 buy on his own account
Buys Up the Land.
The building of the railroad was begun,
and as each mile Of track was completed
the land adjacent thereto and extending
back for several miles came into demand
for farming purposes, and its value
doubled trebled. and QuadrUpled IN a
| short time. In the meantime Lon Hill
was buying more land and loading himself
up with options 10 purchase stIl more.
The land which he had bought for 81 and
I Sl.5J per acre went 90 s. per acre before
the railroad had reached Brownsville.
When the line was finished and the in
flux Of investors and home-seekers began
land values mounted higher and higher.
Mr.. Hin just now is completing a sys-
/ TEN Of irrigating canals and bitches 10
irrigate 5000 acres OF his land. The
main canal is more than twenty-five miles
long and runs from the Rio Grande 10 4
point a short distance east OF Harlingen.
More than twenty-five miles of laterals
are being built. All Of this land is 20 be
planted I'm sugar cane. Three large sugar
mills are to be erected to care for the
cane crop when the land is placed IN
cultivation. Sugar cane in the Rio Grande
| Valley grows 10 a height OF twelve feet
and tests show that each stalk yields one
and One-third pounds of sugar. One acre
Of cane will make about 12000 pounds OF
sugar. worth about cents a pounds.
/ In addition 10 his vast landed holdings
Hill owns the townsite of Harlingen.
This place is situated at the junction OF
the main line OF the St. Louis. Browns
VILE and Mexico Railroad and its branch
line which runs % San Fordyce
Hill is married He is devoted 10 his
wife and children. Concerning his early
life. he says,
I punched cattle in Indian Territory
| when a young man. 1 saw the need Of an
/ education, and had acquired a fairly good
start in that direction when I entered the
] University Of Texas was tWenty-seven
years old when I began TO study law. I
went through the University OF Texas.
and graduated In the law department OF
the University Of Virginia. 1 now am
forty-nine years Of age"