364 Wisconsin Academy of Sciences, Arts, and Letters. 
on was due to several different things.. In the first place, the 
territory enjoyed exceptionally abundant harvests in 1899 and 
1900, and this prosperity of the Oklahoma farmers was: exten¬ 
sively advertised throughout the Union by the different advance¬ 
ment associations and railroads interested. Elaoh summer the 
railroads ran frequent homeseekers’ excursions at very low 
rates, bringing thousands of people into the country, many of 
whom remained. Moreover, the old fashioned mode of migra¬ 
tion had not become obsolete, for, as the Governor reports : n 
1898, “not a day during the year but the white-topped prairie 
schooner can be seen wending its way from north, south, east 
or west toward a new abiding place in Oklahoma.” 1 
Another cause of the increased rate of settlement in western 
Oklahoma in these years was the ultimate: success of the 
agitation for free homes. As lias been shown, a price of at 
least a dollar and ai quarter per acre was charged of homestead¬ 
ers on all land in Oklahoma except that included in the first 
opening of 1889 and in the Public Land Strip. The settlers 
of the territory were unanimous in feeling that this was an un¬ 
just discrimination, since the public domain had hitherto been 
free to homesteaders, and as early as 1892 local organizations 
were formed to agitate the subject. In 1894 the Republican 
party in the territory took up: the cause and elected Hon. D. T. 
Plynn delegate to Congress to urge the issue, which he did, de¬ 
claring that the people were entitled to free 1 homes as a matter 
of right and justice. In 1895 a free homes convention was held 
at Perry, and a league was organized to carry on the work. 
The legislature of the territory appropriated five hundred dol¬ 
lars to further the objects of the league and to> secure the desired 
legislation. In 1896 the agitation became general, and each of 
the three leading national party platforms declared for free 
homes on all public land. Even then, when success seemed 
assured, the efforts of all the congressmen from 1 the public land 
states failed to secure its passage by both houses until May 14, 
1900. 2 
1 Int. Dept., Misc. Repts., 1898, p. 726. 
2 Ibid., 1901, pt. 2, p. 402. 
