The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1881-12-31

NAV say that it has not yet been demonstrated
that the raising of those easily perisahble is a
paving investment. 1t is the prcttlcst thing
worked up ON paper that | ever saw. 10 the
uninitiated immigrant the sprlng-hke sun OF
January lights up the evergreen tohage OF ms
Florida home, and with visions of thousands
almost within his grasp, he sits down to figurei
first on his crop OF peas, then snap beans ana
cucumbers. and last, though by no means
least. his crop of Irish potatoes. Everything
looks lovelv-little cost for seed-less for
labor. and then, few weeks of this lovely
sunshine, and the railway will hardly have
cars sufficient to move the enormous yield
that has been taken from the small patch IN
which he had snap beans planted.
Snaps you know,
We're all the go
that wear, as the previous year pea crop had
been a failure, and the knowing ones said Il
told YOU so, of course 4; didn't you know that
snap beans paid best ?" so he planted snaps,
and his success was so fattering that at the
mere recollection he grew poetical-
an the month of March we shipped them
Shipped them all, our garnered store,
And the only wish that filled us
Was that we had raised far more:
This the wish that filled and thrilled us,
This the thought, and nothing more
Whilst we counted up our treasure
Marked with chalk upon our door,
Every cent which they should bring
To our increasing golden store.
We conceived the thought of making
H9lfa million, If not more
Three months passed, through which we waited,
Sick at heart and sad, and sore,
When there came postal stating
THEY'D have written long before,
But the snaps came here all rotten,
And although we much deplore,
We had to throw them on the dump-heap
You owe US fifty cents or more!
The growth of early vegetables in Florida,
as | said before is, or has been up to this
time. losing business Some persons have
at times made money at it, but so many acct
dents attend their growth and shipment, that
for several years past their cultivation IN mid
die Florida has been mostly abandoned with
the exception of Irish potatoes.
About three or four years after the war; a
man by the name of A. +. 0. Miller left his
home in Minnesota, came to Tallahassee, and
rented piece of land to raise crop OF peas
for the New York market. 1t was almost too
late, the people told him, nevertheless he
plowed his ground, fortified it heavily, and
planted his peas. The weather was fine land
they growed. and they growed," and i'll few
weeks he commenced shipping them in bushel
crates to New York. Every morning for sew
eral DAYS Millers wagon was seen passing
through the main street of Tallahassee to the
railroad depot, loaded with crates OF green
peas. Fortunately for him, the weather along
the South Atlantic coast, as far up as Charles
ton. had been cold and rainy, and the early
pea crop in that section of the country had
been set back con siderably. In Il few days
Miller began to get returns for his peas from
his commission merchant, netting HIM the nice
little sum of from four to seven dollars per
crate, and the whole crop, from only few
l. ,l,A hnnHrpH
dollars.
Miller. like the man in the poem. was jul
biant,
And the only wish that filled him,
Was he had not raised far more.
Thus encouraged, he concluded to purchase
place, and soon become
a prince of the realm"
lie had read in the newspapers printed IN
Middle Florida how anxious those owning large
bodies of land were to have good industrious
immigrants settle amongst them, and offered
Inducements of all kinds They were willing
10 divide up their lands and sell off portions
to these settlers mt almost Il nominal Inquire.
Poor, weak humanity.
As soon as they found such a success as
this man had made, the price of lands were
placed at such figure as to almost make 1t
crosity of one of the large land owners he was
enabled to purchase one that suited him near
town. He soon got possession, giving his
notes PAYABLE at differ dates, which were re.
cured by Il mortgage on the land. The next
wear he took it into his head to change his
crop and planted cucumbers. This crop was
only partially successful, but he made some
money and was thereafter known by the So
briquet of Cucumber Miller.
After the closing up of this crop, the citi:
zens held a meeting and resolved to send
Cucumber Miller into the far west to tell
his story of the Pea and Cucumber, and try
to induce colony to come with their tami-
lies and cooking utensils to this El-Dorado
of the South. A paper soliciting subscriptions
of money was sent around to the citizens, and
a liberal sum was collected for this purpose,
and 'Cucumber Miller" with his portfolio
check full of what he knew about the growth
of early vegetables in Florida, started for
his old home in the North-W Arriving at
st. Paul and Minneapolis, he went earnestly
to work, and by making speeches and ''pilng
it on and rubbing it in he at last got together
from and near the two cities mentioned, as
good a crowd as ever pulled oakum or
''scuttled a ship and journeyed with them
to the ''land of promise A few of this col
ony were exceptions good hard working,
honest men, but the largest portion took adj
vantage of the ''rates Of travel to
Leave their country for their countrys good"
However they came, and reIc0me was on every
door-post. They were partitioned out among
The planters, some buying land some renting,
&c, and as the season opened fair, the mer-
chants advanced them money and seed to
plant their crops, expecting tenfold return,
of course The soil around Tallahassee teem-
NJ with cnpumbprS
Some, in addition, filled the hillsides with
watermelons, expecting to send them to the
great marts of the West and North West, and
load the cars in return with produce. Alas. .
Alas,
Man proposes, God disposcs.'
The season was disastrous. but they gathered
half crop. Cars loaded with vegetables of
all kinds were leaving every day, and soon
the mails were scanned for letters showing
met proceeds" but, like Il thunderbolt came
the following order from the General Freight
Agent of the Southern Dispatch line" Here
after no vegetables will be received at this
depot for shipment until the freight is prepaid.
This order will be peremptory, i'll consequence
of the vegetables reaching New York, Phila-
delphia. &C., in such condition that they
cannot be sold for money enough to pay the
freight and hereafter shippers must prepay
freight before shipping BY order OF, NC.
This order dissolved visions of those met
proceeds that had since the planting been
blooming up before the eyes, not only of the
Minnesota colony, but many of our home
folks who were led to believe that
There was millions in it,"
and the merchants, who SO confidently adj
vanced supplies Of all kinds to the colony,
were losers to large amount The bubble
burst, and when in a calmer moments they
began to look at the amounts and items of
such of the accounts as belonged to the ma
jority of the colonist they found that many,
very many articles had been purchased, such
as ''Old Bourbon, cold Rye, ''Concha Re-
galias," &C., &C., that were entirely unneces-
sary to the making of a crop Of early vegeta-
bles. One by one this ''motley crew
Laid down the shovel and the hoe"
and with what was left of such advances as
were made by the merchants, quietly slipped
i 41. go1 i 1ol ;Jo, fl,ot Il