The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1931-05-08

They said the evidences of his Indian
blood were plain; look at his skin. his
hair, his manner of walking. And
why did he, protest in his newspaper
against the governments treatment of
those dirty, thieving, lazy, good-for-
nothing wards of benefcent coun-
tryl AS for his newspaper-fts very
name was scandal: The Wichita
Wigwam. And just below this: All
the News. Any Scandal Not Libelous.
Published Once Week If Convenient.
Wichita, processing scorn Of the Wig
wan, read 1t. Wichita perused his
maiden editorial entitled, "ShaIl the
Blue Blood of the Decayed South
Poison the Red Blood Of the Great Mid
die West?' and saw him, two months
later, carry off in triumph as his bride
Sabra venable, daughter of that same
Decay. Sabra .Venable, at sixteen,
might have had her pick Of the red
blooded lads Of Kansas. all the way
from Salina to Winfield, Not to men
tion more legitimate suitors of blue
blooded stock up from the South, such
as Dabney Venable himself, Sabra's
cousin, who resembled at once La
fayette and old Lewis. even to the
premature silver of his hair, the length
Of the fine, dolichocephalic. slightly
decadent head. and the black stock at
sight Of which Wichita gasped. When,
from among all these eligibles, Sabra
had chosen the romantic but mysteri-
GUS Cravat, Wichita mothers Of mar
riageable daughters felt themselves re-
venged of the Venable airs. Strangely
enough, the manageable daughters
seemed more resentful than ever, and
there was a noticeable falling off in
the number Of young ladies who had
been wont to drop round at the Wig
wan office with notices of this or that
meeting or social event to be inserted
in the columns of the paper.
During the course of the bountiful
meal with which the Venable table
was spread Yancey Cravat had eaten
almost nothing. Here was an audi
ence to his liking. Here was tale
to his taste. His story, wild, unbe-
lievable, yet true, was of the opening
Of the Oklahoma country Of wilder
ness made populous in an hour; Of
cities numbering thousands literally
sprung up overnight, where the day
before had been only prairie. coyotes.
rattlesnakes, red clay, scrub oak, and
an occasional hester hidden in the
security Of a weedy draw.
Coat tails swishing, eyes flashing,
arms waving, voice soaring.
"Folks, there's never been anything
like it since Creation. Creation!
HI! That took six days. This was
done in one. It was history made in
an hour-and helped make it. Thou
sands and thousands Of people from
all over this vast commonwealth Of
ours' Che talked like that) travelled
hundreds of miles to get bare piece
of land for nothing. But what land!
Virgin, except when the Indians had
roamed it. Lands Of lost gods, and
godlike menu They came like pro-
cession-a crazy PROFESSIONAL the
way to the border, covering the ground
as fast as they could, by any means at
understanding over the ground.
pushing and showing each other into
the bitches to get there first.
"They came from Texas, and Ar
kansas and Colorado and Missouri.
They came on foot. by Cd, all the
way from Iowa and Nebraska! They
came in buggles and wagons and on
horseback and muleback. In prairie
schooners and OK carts and carriages.
I met up with one old homesteader
by the roadside face dried and
wrinkled as nutmeg-who told me
he had started weeks and weeks be-
fore, and had made the long trip as
best ne could, on foot or by rail and
boat and wagon, just as kind-hearted
people along the way would pick him
up. i wonder If he ever got his piece
of land in that savage rush-poor old
devil"
He paused a moment, perhaps in
retrospect, perhaps cunningly to whet
the appetites Of his listeners. He
wrung a breathless, "Oh, Yancey, go
on! Go on!' from Sabra.