The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1870-01-10
For the Dispatch.
Observation-Disclosures.
HOGS.

Gon't mean the bipcd animal, although
thc$c can be found in Florida, as every
where else. / mean the genuine porkcr.
lie is very useful in every new settlement,
md especially in brush country like Flo
,iia for he destroys snakes, frogs, and
o.kcr varmints, and acts as general sea-
rcngcr. regard the hog rs great ma
tional institution; indeed, think that our
national prosperity and the great llnmigra-
ton to this country arc due to the abund-
.,ncc of hog and hominy among us. No
thing else could induce all Europe to pour
ont uron us as they have done.
In such country as Florida the hog is
necessity. De Soto, when he marched his
a,nv through this land, had another army
of hogs driven along. Thus he not only
secured certain food for his men, but q
quic: rcsting-place at night; the hogs cat
inGup every serpent or frog that mlGht nave
disturbed their repose before INDUCING IN
any sleep.
Lo.d Bacon, OF Fcrulan, that learned
hor. knew the value Of this animal. and
lciur man Of taste, adopted 70" his crest
and motto hog with this inscription on
his side: Neeliocra .frma ; which might DC
l..pc allv translatcd--thc mi,idiing is the
best. And although Noah cursed Ham, and
tie devil did &c. into a herd Of swine. yet
!; has not spoiled the bacon.
Florida would be land Of snakes If it
were not for this animal. He is fond Of
them, an, shows his affection by eating
tilcm. The noise of rattlcsnake Is music
il h;s cars. lie rushes up at once, setting
10 his bristl2s, 50 that when the serpent
strikes he gets a mouhful Of toothbrush,
Jut hs foot On his neck, thus getting his
head in chancery, and then proceeds to cat
bin, Consuming him ust as q lawyer does
IN estate in court and there is no appel
late court. Tic euuke may demonstrate by
wlirc}ing as much as he pleases; he Is,
n&crthcicss, eaten up alive, and is never
troublesome afterwards.
Tho chief enemy of the hog when Young
is the alligator, which is 90 fond Oh him a.
he is OF scrucats. When better grown, MS
ch.cf assajiant is tic free negro, OF "hoW
Tic Florida hog has an Instructive abhor-
renee. Indeed, some Of them will run IRON
q black face JUS; rs The chickens out west
Will from Il circuit-ridcr. As soon as one OF
these i;incrau. preachers comes into set
t!cmcnt, some old hen will give squawk just
as size would when . kite appears, and every
ca;ab!c chicken will run OF and hide, and
have to he hunted down with terriers.
s. It is with the sensible hogs IN
some ra:ts Of Florida; they run or
stand, according to the color OF your yl6agc.
Several 1.iantcrs informed Inc that they
protected themselves from loss in this man
rrr: They called up their hogs every day
and administered arsenic mixcd with meal,
ard let their colorca friends be Informed OF
dis thing. Sometimes hog was shot anu
eaten, and negro family would be made
rcry sick extensive cholics prevailed, and
cholera morbus and death sometimes re-
F,.t;.l. When The hog was wanted Tor la-
uiir use he was pcnncl and fed for week
or ~, and ;Iica become perfectly whole
:lmc. llora wandered perfectly free i'll that
section o; country, and the negro appetite
f.. .gcsh FORK was entirely destroyed. The
arsenic fattcncd the hog, although ! do not
l.I0w low much vas given Ut 4 dose. 1t Is
woy;A trying.
LAND N FLORIDA.
Whoever the boa; stopped | went ashore
md inquired OF :hc people met the price
6! land etc. They all took Inc for a land
..uccula;cr, AID l learned everything about
= r!lu lands. Not an acre on the 1t.
ruhn's worth having can be bought Tor less
tnun 500, and much OF it Will cost Sl30. |
never smoke with a man i'll Florida about
buyinc lpnl who did not offer to sell me the
y"rr llacc I've lived on. did not like this {;
il looked as though there was something
wruuy: ana wien man, yellow as n
pam kin and shaking with aguc, sworc that
lis place was perfectly healthy, yet was
anxious to sell out and 90 away, l felt
"Gub;,s." One man was very anxious to
eel but | noticed that the rivcr-current
was wraAin@ the sandy bank away very
rapi.Ily, and learned, on inquiry, that the
course Of tie current Lad changed in the
last lew ycale--probably deranged by the
war-and was washing his farm away.
Even if he could not pay lis debts, l did
no; lie 10 buy, rs thought his estate was
undergoing process OF liquidation.
Ii is really curious to find so much pro-
perry offered for sale in Florida, and how
anxious every one is to part with his own
homestead. Land titles are very insecure.
iAc.c were, fast, the old Spanish grants
previous To 1850; then the English grants
.hyn a-oin the new Spanish grants; then
tic territorial United States grants and
now, modern possession. In addition, the
wy claims, property sold for unpaid taxes,
covering everything else, aud YOU can ina
line what Florida title must hc. These
wax claims arc most Ubiquitous. Many OF
;>u:,usl descent went of to Cuba to avoid
:sc war: others went into the Confederate
j:ucs: some we're forced in because covet-
olD o!liccr wanted their property. a law Is
maze that no tax shall be paid by an agent !;
il E.ust be paid by the owner, or declared
forfeited aud sold. Many an estate of two
Or i've thousand acres was sold and bought
fer tax Of five dollars, and is still held by
the rascally purchaser. In many caseF,
suit was brought after the war; but the
,urpct-hag Judges had also bought ax-pro-
pcrly, and decided for the present holders.
Justice in Florida is Il rascal. know many
worthy men who arc thus kept out OF their
property.
The most singular land in Florida is
wha: is called b" llummock Land" Amid
barren, piuc-covercd, sandy soil you will
find spot of from fifty to five hundred
acres of rich, deep-black mould covered
with dense growth Of live oaks, &C.,
which, when cleared, will yield the finest
crop Of everything. These are either dry
6r-,.ct hummocks, and require great labor
10 drain and clear. Such land will be
worth 500 per acre, anu costs seventy COL
lars to clear it yet it will make them four
hogshcads Of sugar per acre, and is per
fectly inexhaustible. The advantage OF
such spots is, that you may dwell in the
pine lands in health, and yet work the
hummock lands alongside. However, dry
land i'll Florida will produce q crop. Fruit,
at leust, will grow; you may plant the
orange in naked sand and obtain fine,
valuable orchard. Even if you have only
naked sand, you have constant heat and