Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1908-08-26
IA TIDAL WAVE OF
HOMESEEKERS
Northern Farmers and Investors Rush,
to Fertile Plains Of South Texas.
The Last Of Cheap Land
An Opportunity That viii Never Re-
turn, Offered by soash, "The Em-
pire Builder"
JOIN THE GREAT EXCURSION

A tidal wave Of eager homeseekers
is sweeping down upon the rich. cheap
lands of the South Plains of Texas.
The exodus from the high priced farm
ing sections of the Mississippi Valley
to this new land of promise gains VOL
ume daily. hourly. The public has
awakened to the startling fact that this
Is the last Of cheap land!
And the one man whose Intrepid en-.
terprise and ceaseless activity this re-.
markable opportunity is due, is a clear
eyed, square-jawed Iowan
soash, 1.-THE Empire Builder"
w. p. Soash has been student Of,
the land situation for years He stud
led the movement of population. He
noted the fast disappearing opportun-
tiles for the younger generation Of
farmers and investors to acquire cheau
homes. He looked up the government
lands available for free homesteads
and found all the desirable land taken.
Turning his attention to Texas, the
only state in the union where large
tracts Of rich land Were still untouched
by the pillow, he found the long sought
opportunity. The millionaire cattle.
men were in full control of the best
undeveloped land and bitterly opposed
to his plans of throwing the country
open to settlement. Most men would
have confessed defeat in the face of
such powerful opposition. But W. +.
Soash only set his square jaws with
greater determination, for his keen
eyes, looking a few years into the fu-
ture, saw in the fertile South Texas
Plains an inland empire, peopled with
prosperous farmers, dotted with
thriving towAs, cris-crossed with rail-
roads and teeming with untold wealth.
He would make the dream 4 splendid
reaIityl
History repeats itself and Mr. Soash
realized that the next great movement
of population would be toward these
fertile plains. His judgment told him
that the history OF rising land values
in the Mississippi Valley would there
be repeated. The cattle kings with all
their millions, could not change tho
manifest destiny Of the South Platns
| Of Texas.
| Then 1t was that w. u. Soash became
| in very truth 'The Empire Builder =
lie organized the w. p. Soash Land
Company, with abundant capital and
resources to successfully cope with the
cattle kings. He engaged expert land
men to assist him in making thor
ougl1 investigation OF the various ranch
properties and other large tracts Of un-
developed land in all parts OF Texas.
He laid his gigantic colonization plans
before high officials of the Rock Is
land railroad and secured their ey "A
dorsement and promise of powerful N
sistance.
Tho Homesesker W. The Cattle Kings.
Then began the most intensely inter-
esting and at times dramatic land
contest ever waged in the interests Of
the whole people. It is we'll under
stood that the big cattleuan wants
unrestricted range splendid isolation.
His hand is raised in protest against
the railroad, the settler, the town
builder.
Mr. Soash began buying up lands
lying adjacent to some OF the finest
ranches on the South Plains He en-
couraged the extension Of railroads i'm
to the forbidden territory. He laid out
towns. He bought South Plains land
steadily, carefully, in larger and larger
tracts. He opened up whole counties
Z
Texas land grew apace. proving his
abiding faith in the future of the rich
South Plains country. The cattle
kings grew FESTIVE under the steady
encroachments Of the Empire Builder.
The close proximity of the settlers lo-
Gated by Mr.. Soash compelled cattle
men to expend great sums for wire
fencing and defend many suits for
trespass and damage. Accustomed aa
they were to freedom from restraint,
the new order OF things gradually be-
came intolerable to the cattle kings |
and one by one they yielded to the In
evitable by selling out to the Soash '
Land Company.
Company Controls 700 900 Acres.
Thus it was that the w r. Soash |
Land Company became the power ia
Texas that it is today. With over 700.- t
900 acres of land under its control the |
Soash Land Company is now one of
the largest land owners in the entire
state Of Texas. The purchase Of the
famous Running Water Ranch of 81,
900 acres ranks as the greatest
achievement of Mr. Soash in opening
up the South Plains to northern capi
tai and enterprise.
company"s vast possessions. Instead Of
holding it back from settlement until
his other lands were sold, at which
time its value would undoubtedly In
crease trem endously, he is letting 1t
go to settlers and investors at $1e.5e
to $50 per acre, on easy terms. It Il
today the choicest undeveloped land In
America and the most remarkable
cheap land opportunity of the decade.
A Rush Of Homessskers.
That the people of the middle west
recognize 1t as such, is shown by the
stampede of landseekers that is now
under full 1leadway. Hundreds Of eager
homeseekers have already been car
ried on "Soash Special Pullman
trains down to the Running Water 4
ranch Thousands of its fertile acres 4
have already been sold. Over half Of
the entire ranch has been purchased
and at the present rate Of sale the OPP
portunity to acquire a Running Water
ranch farm at $16.5O to $50 per acre
will soon be a thing Of the past.
An interesting sidelight on the char
acter of Mr.. Soash is AFFORDED by his
voluntary offer to stand all the ex-
penses of the trip If an actual inspec-
ton OF the land does not prove that II
is all that he claims