Knoxville daily chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1870-1882, 1871-11-19
A LETTER FROM FLORIDA.
Some Facts About the Climate, Fruits, |
Products and Prospects Of the Peninsula |
State,
JACKSONVILLE, FLA, Nov. IA, 1871.

| "a. O-ASfAcONN1l11lE, Lag 4NON. Ii, 1OfIs
Florida is favored with a climate which
In winter is very delightful. 1 do not
wonder that hun dreds come here during
this season to shelter themselves from the
cold blasts of a protracted Northern win
ter. Since the war, the number of visitors
or lnvalids visiting this section for their
health has largely increased, until almost
every available point on the st. Johns
river or near the coast has its winter re-
sorts. Jacksonville has several very pleas
ant hotels, and they are generally well
filled all through the season extending
from the middle of November until the
first of June. AS an indication of the
climate, l was shown yesterday cucum-
Der vine in bloom, the gardener informing
me that with very little care and protec-
ton from occasional frosts, he expected to
supply his hotel table with cucumbers all
throughIwinter.
L have been here several days, and find
light overcoat very comfortable with the
thermometer at $50 at noon.
5000. FLORIDA FRUITS.
This has been termed the garden State
of the South. do not see much in the
soil to induce me to think much of its pre-
tensions in the respect referred to. The
whole peninsula is vast bed of sand, as
level-as a plain. In it is little lime, but
there is no strength or body to the land,
and great care with abundant fertilizing is
required to grow even garden products.
Though / saw an enthusiastic New Hamp-
shire Yankee, away up the st. Johns riv-
er, who declared he would get four hum
dred bushels of sweet potatoes from one
acre of his garden, / am very skeptical of
any substantial or certain reward even for
the diligent husbandman. But while
there is little encouragement in this re-
spect in the way of fruits, Florida presents
great attractions to the visitor. In passing
about this city I have seen orange and
lemon trees loaded with half matured
second crop, and banana trees that have
just been plucked of their yearly yield.
These trees are of course the object of in
terest to visitors. So curious was to see
a fine orange grove that in company with
q little excursion party, visited Mrs.
Harriet Beecher Stoves place at Manda-
rim about fifteen miles SOuth-up the st.
Johns river-Of this place, where we were
gratified with a novel sight. She has one
hundred and forty large orange trees all
now bnrdened with the ripening fruit.
Some of the trees will yield as many as
fifteen hundred fine oranges, and the trees
will average about a thousand. The
fruit sells on the tree at about two
cents an orange. [ had great de-
sire to eat thoroughly ripe orange
from the tree and have been gratified. The !
fruit in that State is far more luscious than
as we get it in market in Tennessee. 1t is |
sweeter and fresher, as any one will |
readily understand. The skin is, how |
ever, much stronger with the oil, so much |
so that unless carefully removed your
hands become stained and your lips and |
mouth burned. The Florida oranges and |
bananas are mostly sent to the Southern |
markets, and only shipped North on or
ders. They are larger than the Cuba |
oranges. and guess finer favored.
The bananas grow better on the coast |
and little further South. The tree is |
very sensitive to the frost. It grows I'D |
annually from the roots, yields it's fruits |
in one large cluster and then perishes. |
Though not as highly favored as the red |
Havana species, they are preferred by |
many and are readily sold at fair profit. |
.. OTHER FLORIDA PRODUCTS.
In addition to the fruits named, the pro-
ducts of Florida are sugar cane, tupentine,
lumber and alligators. The lumber trade |
is the largest and most remunerative. The
State is literally a vast pine forest and |
cypress swamp. On the excursion refer
red to, we steamed up Black Greek, where
thousands of alligators,. varying in size
from three to fifteen feet, are killed an
nually. Printed cards, WANTED 1000 AL
ligator Hides" are numerous. In the
shops of this city, alligator's teeth, worked
into jewelry and ornaments of various
kinds, are offered and sold to visitors from
other States
Florida has population of 1884, 900. It
is sparsely settled, and its growth, under
the most favorable circumstances, will be
SLOW The eastern shore will prosper most,
because its attractive winter climate is
drawing a large class of wealthy residents,
who live about one half the year in the
State.
The st. Johns River, which is fine
body of water rising in the southern part
of the State, made up, in fact, of series
OF little lakes about five miles wide, has on
its banks many resorts for invalids. At
Green Cove, about thirty miles up the
river, we found a large white sulphur
spring, the water of which stands at a
of about seventy-six degrees
all the year round. 1t lisa powerful spring,
about twenty-five feet in diameter, and af-
fords a fine bathing pond, which is sur
rounded with bath houses. The water has
great virtue, and has worked some perma-
nent and remarkable cures. Often, the
gas thrown off is suffocating. Several
persons of great wealth, from Northern
States, have bought locations on the banks
of the river and highly improved them.
These are some Of the points of interest
about Florida, and L give them for what
they are worth In another letter 1 may
have something to say of its condition,
politically aud otherwise. .r i
Brufa Outrage.
The following dispatch we copy from the Gin