The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1883-11-27
TAyares Herald, Nov. Is
Sanford. the DiSstOn Purchase ia q
the state A0 nlmfst raakON.t

TAvares Herald Nov. 10
Sanford, the Disston Purchase and
the state AID nalnistraitoA.
Several weeks absence from the State hat pre-
vented our paying that attention to our Stake ex
changes We usually do Among the articles we
find marked on our desk Is one in the Key p the
CUR which declares that the Tavares Ieyi.H is
the only paper in South Florida hat suS,aits the
Disston purchase, and which Furthermore al
tempts to combat our claim that i, hadtteen
found impossible to sell the lands in large Es,!ieS
before Disston bought, by asking for nhrns-;ion
concerning Henry $. Sanfords of,i al :Griy
cents per acre.
Our contemporary is altogether mistaken T. his
declaration that this is the only paper in SOUTH
Florida which sustains the sale OF lands 10 ~ IS
ton. decided majority OF the press IN lhR sec
ton sustain and endorse the sale l:ui it}rFen
this Was not The fact If il were even ,taS .lha'
We stood solitary and alone in our endorsement
of the sale we would still feel thai we were doing
oui whole duty, and that in selling tie lands 70
DisstOn, Governor BsXhams admi1is cation
made The most sgnally successful mosIineri inr
the benefit and prosperity OF Florida ever made
by all the previous administrations OF this state
put together.
AS for Henry 5. Saniord's offer OF forty Gents
per acre we opine that We can furnish ou, Co
temporary all the information he seeks The
editor of this paper was the agent ard alt4fney
of Henry S. Sanford throughout the entire trans
action. During the last month OF Governor
Drew's administration, the Trustees of lie EEter-
nal Improvement Fund agreed 10 sell Henry =.
Sanford two hundred and fifty Thousand aer,> At
fifty cents per acre, he TO pay tor the land WI hin
a specified time. He did not meet this engage
ment but after the Inauguration Cf GovGgnor
BlOXham, he sent Tor us aud requested Us e: en-
deavor TO negotiate for him the purchase O! go.
600 acres at thirty cents per acre in boiies RI $40
and 800 acres, with privilege 10 purchase $50
600 acres more on the same terms aud nir The
same price We accordingly visited each lad
every member of the Board Of Trustees and COON
found that the land could not be purchasefi Al
these figures The Board wanted fifty cents. and
was not willing To make it in less lhah notif' OF
5000 acres.
On seeing NJ Sanford We conv. uctaFa.r
that ne could not purchase On ANY su,l .tdim-,
and ultimately he authorized u to negutist o5l
such basis as would give him one mil,loI scre>
for $4,000 if he took million, ana 4p..tD0
acres for fifty cents per acre. We sCcnttia3gty
renewed the negotiation, and at CT sittne Cine
succeeded in securing contract from The fHaFd
to sell Henry S. SANFORD one million screA ior
$40O 900 in selected bodies of not less lbAu fAU
acres Sanford to pay fifty cents PER acre fns the
first $4,000 acres, forty cents per acre ;orj me
next 100000 acres and thirty cents pes acad FOR
The last ESQ 900 acres. He was to pay 81 mach
money in thirty days, and for the entire prize
period OF twelve months was given him to fs.sh
paying.
Sanford authorized us 10 ccepl this contract
and We did So At the expiration of the jai'sly
days he detaulted, but telegraphed US requesting
us to see the Board and get him an exlensi"ta oi
thirty DAYS We did SO, and the Board grAgled
the extension on one application. Whea Nhs
period expired he again defanited, and The Beard
declined to grant any further extension, bnt in
formed Mr. Frank Fleming, of The firm Of Yen
ing & Daniel, that if Mr. Sanford would deESii
the first payment any time within ten days stiry
would carry out the contract He then, peie
graphed us 10 60 TO Tallahassee again. which
we did, but it was too ae The contract sih
Disston had been closed.
This is the story of Saniord's readiness 10 ;av
forty cents per acre He was never ready 10
pay this price. Even, after our urgent soHEIa
ton he authorized US 10 accept The contrac4le
told us 10 conversation that he had agreed 10
pay too much. When We warned him ;hai |
other men were negotiating for these landShe |
pooh -poohed the idea of anybody else but ham
self buying one million acres. He declared THAT |
the lands were a rine plum ready 10 drop snta |
his hands al any time. SO he went on hlgg3rng |
like fisherman with the holders Of The coupon /
certificates, trying TO huy them for iiilc Gr ngih-
ing and never paying dollar nor SlienpEins |
to carry out his part OF the contract. un!ii " %hs |
too late !
But was his offer Of forty cents per acrest"r |!
one million acres in bodies OF GAO acres Is iad
vantagcous 10 The State ~ Disstnns "fte! os 81 |
cents per acre for four million acres in bhiet 81
10000 acres. Clearly not. II SanioId f.ad !
bought The land he would have taken HE 4erv !
cream of the State lands, and left but lii;t&rt- !
ally good land on hand II wA>a very foFilIaie |
thing for Florida Tint Sanford did contr,ly !
with his part OF the contract. We take iiSsu. |
granted that Mr. Dis>ton would chrrrin!ly lg.ye
paid forty peg :,,r million aCraSah.i
The same terms Rui The Trustees did l.e;ieih, /
ham than they hal bv Sanford aud Succecici .iu /
The most brilliant land negotiation /
ever made in Florida
We are fully justified in asserting tl,a tSs:ai' ,
this sale was effected it had lteu innd imHIssi. /
bile t" SCH these lands in large tplirs -, ilns .
price. We know how earnestly the TFus5te>
endeay"red To sell these lands aud We alsC K s3w /
that they gave Sanford every opportunities" !
b,ty; and when they succeeded IN getting Hiss
ton 10 purchase 1000 600 acres Tor 81 900 a0S ii I
bodies Of 10000 acres they effected sonlcilG,ie ,
that Sanford would have laughed a, had il leen
to him.
All the denuncialions Of Governor Bic kam
by disappointed and incompetent oficc.seelsrs, /
or by men ignorant of the facts and unwilling TO /
learn, cannot dim the lusirc of his adrninisjra- I
ton in this achievement Hints and nuenXoes /
against him of corruption and jobbery in tJrp |
nection with this sale are as cOwardly "a Nt,y !
are infamous in their falsehood Facts wchtn /
our knowledge show how utterly l.bellous aud !
untrue they are.
We shall sustain this sale, because III mas |
proven the greatest boon Florida ever had We /
shall defend Governor Bloxham, because his Id !
ministration has merited the plaudi,s of all Ii |
success be test of merit, he has bad ho esAal !
among the Governors OF Florida Our p.s,s
perity of to-day is something real, tangible End |
permanent. The successes OF Drew's adIrh,is-
tratien were negative; those of Bloxham I5si- |
tive Ii Drew did no harm Bloxham has d3ne |
absolute good In the immensely and toe grim
deur OF his achievements we can afford TO 1g-
more his errors That is a gloomy mind whach |
can only see the spots on the sun, and is unsI,le
TO discern the lustre Of that lumnary Biloxi Sam |
way be Of the Tallahassee Ring We d.n't !
know. We have never seen the King BJA If !
that Ring commits no graver blunGer than 1he |
Disston purchase. and has no worse mau.in |
It's midst than William D. Bloxhsm, wistit.ns,
prudence, good policy and proper regardyor !
The future Of Florida would dictate its cGntins.e4
and indefinite retention in power \