Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-03-17
THE .fASATEE REGION.
A Profitable Truck Farm-SOmething
About Freights.

gressf The Erst copy Of the Manatee -fet-s
received bv me- since left AaDatee came
70 hand yesterday; only one lie" 7papeF
in q month. ard that one eleven Gays on
the vvav al Of our friends II Manalee
might die. be buried and their graves COW
ered with grass before we could hear by
tba overland mail route, As al present
constituted. between Manatee and Tampa.
I see that the mails TO Tampa and south
Of that place are now carried by rail. !
am Glad to see this improvement, but
would b. rejoiced to see a similar spirit Ct
improvement in giving US mails by steam
eTs.
To properly appreciate the local village
newspaper one has to be away from home
some time and fail entirely to hear any III
teIigeuce from home. L nder those circum-
stances every little item Of what has trans
pired since leaving is read and reread with
sincere interest: even an old patent med'-
cine advertisement looks familiar and
takes on new charms.
After very cold winter spring has put
I'm an appearance. and the fig, peach,p plum
and even orange trees, which l see IN an
adjoining yard while ! write, appear in
half leaf and blossom. Just little be-
vOnd see some banana stocks. killed to
the ground. but young shoots have sprung
up nearly q foot high, looking fresh and
tender.
TIE cabbage palmetto. of which there
are numbers in front Of various residences
IN the city. have such familiar and home
like look and look like strangers ii
strange land, although their tropical ap-
pearance, rich green fans and stately
trunks make them great fayOrites among
the ornamental trees Of savannah.
The magnolias and oaks. which tower
here I'm grand magniicence. are the pride
Of the s.FOrest CITY" and their scared and
dust-coyered leaves still show spring re-
clining IN the lap Of winter. and April
will possibly come and 20 before they take
on their yernal dresses.
One day last week. in company with
friend ] visited the twenty-five acre truck
farm Of Mr.. y. a. Graham an entire
stranger. however located just beyond
the western suburbs Of the city and just
a half mile from the mammoth wharves
Of the Central Railroad and Ocean Steam
ship Companies. and which. on that ac-
count. coupled with this fertile soil, make
il one Of the most valuable truck farms in
this vicinity. although they are quite nu-
merOus, and some containing an area Of
100 acres.
TO show how profitable this industry is
in this locality. I may state that Mr.. era
ham pays a yearly rental Of $50 per acre
for this land. the parties who own it being
Young men from Bingham county named
EXley, and who purchased some 800 acres
Oflthis land about 1876 at very lOwthgures,
and are now renting about 200 acres which
they have put under fence for truck farm
iny al the figures stated. Even at this
high rental Graham is steadily increasing
his bank deposits, and, while he has had
TO contend with a very severe winter,
which has caused him much loss, still his
present prospect is good for some $1,000
net profits. besides the sales OF milk and
pOrk-the former selling in the city at 10
cents per quart, and the latter in the mar
/ ket at the same figures per pound. lie
has large number Of fine hogs, which he
raises for the purpose Of increasing his
manure piles. constantly selling the pork
a. they attain sufficient age and marketa-
bic condition. The hogs and cows are fed
principally on the Stops obtained for the
hauling away at tie various hotels, with
the aid Of the refuse turnips and cab
! bages. some Of our truck farmers IN
Manatee county might learn some bene-
fetal lessons in that business if they could
see how thorough the methods used by
I Mr.. Graham, who is well up with ali the
modern improvements in this important
/ industry.
The cabbage crop has been mostly dis
posed Of and Mr.. Graham remarked that
he wished he had 10 acres more TO put on
the market, as they are readily bringing
! and cents in Atlanta, 50 il our truck
ers have any cabbages on hand they had
better send them forward.
English peas are in bloom and some few
have made their appearance in the market
and at very high figures. Irish potatoes,
beans, cucumbers and muskmelOns are
just above ground, while tomatoes are
just being set out. Our people can, there
fore, judge Of the great advantage they
have in rearing early vegetables in com
L 4
ness here. The comparative difference is
very great in favor Of the Manatee region,
/ but there Is still one fact the Importance
Of which should not be overlooked, and
| that is that what they lack here in point
/ Of temperature they make up greatly in
| heavy fertilizing, which, added to already
/ very rich soil, hastens very much the de-
/ vel0pment Of vegetable life and growth,
! and closes up considerably the wide gap
as to difference in latitude.
In the large strawberry beds to be found
/ in many gardens, only here and there
peeps out one Of these delicious and costly
fruit, while | see in the papers that large
quantities are being shipped from Florida.
| There is no doubt but strawberry plant
ing on a large scale might be made very
profitable in certain localities on the Man.
aztec river.
In the hot houses rare and beautiful
flowers greet the eye Of the passer-by and
many exquisite bouquets are daily pre-
pared for those lovers Of flowers who are
! fortunate enough to purchase at the high
! prices asked. In the flower gardens, in
the open air, roses, yerbenas, fox, Gala
lilies, viOlets and japOnicas make their
appearance in beautiful contrast even
this early, and many special plants at
tract the attention of the hundreds driving
along the shell drives on the bright sunny
afternoons which arc 81 frpnnQut a This
season.
Those engaged in fruit and vegetable
culture in South Florida will do to bear
this particular fact in mind, that one of
the principal difficulties in the way OF
getting them through in good condition
arises from thorough knowledge as to
the proper ime to ship, so as to make
close connection with the outgoing steam
ships from Savannah and Fernandina.
Whenever there is failure to connect the
Express Company claims the right to have
the articles sold TO cover expenses, or to
send by the first chance to any point where
they will reach soonest. This is a large
and very arbitrary discretion. and one
which should be thoroughly investigated
The officers Of transportation lines claim
that, when pe-ishable articles like Vege-
tables and fruits are shipped from Mana
tee, say, without regard to the time of the
steamship sailing, and they are to lie over
for several days, that it is an advantage to
the shipper to sell them at once and get
expenses even, rather than to send them
forward later in such a damaged condi-
ton as to be worthless, thrown on the
steamships hands, or if received by the
cOnsignee, will bring nothing, and the ex-
penses paid by him charged to the ship
per, as is frequently the case, with the
hackneyed words, "Receiyed in bad or
der"
These troubles can be largely obvated
by having these perishable freights put
down at something like reasonable figures,
paid for in advance. the stuff inspected:
and once received by the Express Compa-
ny, let them be held to a simple and sum-
mary liability for damage while IN transit
tn. The large area planted in vegetables
and fruits along the Manatee coast will
warrant the expense Of putting a special
agent at Cedar Key or Tampa, to see to
the shipping of every crate. Then we
would hear very little about detention and
''bad order" The great prospective in
crease in these freights will certainly war;
rant reduction in charges of at least
half of the present rates. Why should
the producer Of fruits and vegetables pay
as much on crate to New York, worth,
perhaps. couple of dollars, as the pro-
Queer pays on his bale Of cotton, the same
distance, worth at least $50? There is
neither sense, nor justice in such discrimi-
nation, and the time will come when the
movement of our immense fruit and vege-
table crops from South Florida will war
rant the establishment Of a commission
by law to regulate what is now a ruinous
system OF charges, which enriches the car
rier and impOyerishes the producer. The
thing must be mutual, or this industry
will languish.