The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1886-12-24
CALIFORNIA AND FLORIDA
Both sIdes-Truth and Lies.


the people and press of California TO Sc
cure emigration. Many of them have
exposed as falsehoods and misstat ements.
and when truth is used at all il is so am
biguously laid that it conveys an impress
sion directly opposite to the fact. as for
instance in the Holder article furnished
THE News in September. These false
statements are continually paraded be
fore the people. Ii is not an occasional
indulgence, but standing SANDER. One
cannot take up a California paper now
a-days but what he will find more or less
vile and contemplate trash about Flor
ida. These are presented as honest ar
guments TO advance the interest of Cali
fornia to the injury of this State. II
they were true we would accept them
and embrace that State as our future
home. But they are not true in sub
stance nor IN fact.
The press of Florida. as far as am ac-
quainted with it, is abundantly able to
refute these ISLANDERS, yet they are passed
by. Perhaps the writers of Florida ig
more them as worthless. or without IN
fiuence, and unworthy of notice. If
this Is the cause. ask pardon i'm saving,
they, the writers, are mistaken. These
statements have great influence in favor
of California, and t. our disadvantage.
The writer knows of large number of
persons who have been warned from
Florida, their first love, through these
mIsstatements. The time has come
when we must fight these slanderous
pens or else hold our peace. and confess
that Florida Is what the California pa
pers would have their readers believe 1t
to be. Not long since the Press, of Riv-
erside, contained correspondence
headed FLORIDA and California Com
pared, and every statement in regard to
their State was false. | now take the
liberty to cut from the same paper, pub
lshed DC. 1llh. the following letter,
and we agree with the editorial note
that it Is interesting:
"FLORIDA CORRESPONDENTS.
I'VE are permitted TO make the follow
ing selection from a letter received yes
terday 10y Mr.. II. J. Rudisill, that will
doubtless prove interesting To our read
ers:
Tell Mr.. Evans am getting him up
a collection Of Florida soils and other
items of interest | think these soils
placed on exhibition. with an account of
what it costs per aunum to fertile" the
''piney" lands and what II costs origi-
nallv to clean and cultivate the ham
mock lands would have a decided ten
dencv to dispel a good deal of the gla-
mour surrounding every thing Floridian.
Poor old State; she has received several
black eyes of late. and was II not for the
fact that English and Scotch tender
feet seem to be literally ineXhaustible.
must be relegated To the shades of obscu-
rity. The New York Times is particu-
larry bitter and outspoken over the vast
swindles being perpetrated every day,
and to offset this weekly entitled the
Sotth is being published.
Riverside to-day, in comparison with
Florida, is selling her lands full fifty per
cent. below their full value: here lands
are rated according 10 the income at ten
per cent. interest. | saw n grove of seven
acres. one year bearing, in wretched con-
dition, grass and weeds knee high, which
was sold to Jas. y. Harris last year for
500, 900. Mr.. Harris is the largest raiser
of oranges In Florida-a keen, sharp
man-and bought this property for spec
ulation and knew what he was doing.
This is only a specimen sale of dozens
could enumerate, at figures equally high
and sumo higher. Our poorest kept
groves are paragons of health and clean
illness alongside Of Florida.
Yours truly.
JNO. u. BRowNLEE."
We are perfectly willing for Mr..
Srownlee TO publish a statement of what
IL cost to make grove in the ''piney
woods" and how much fertilizer is used,
and if Mr.. Brownlee will keep truth on
his side we are very anxious for the COM
parison. Florida can stand an honest
comparison with California or any other
state on fruit culture, especially orange
growing. But being fearful that you
will not furnish a statement or compar-
ison, or il you do it will be like your
correspondence, the writer will present
one. In the same paper we found a
number OF real estate advertisements and
the lowest price for land was offered by
a land and water company near Pomona.
Prices for land near that place are
from SO to $50 per acre according 70
location" Lands similarly situated near
towns in Florida are from 81 30 to $40.
Now for the comparison, as Captain Cut
tie would say, has is comparisons:
10 acres of land in California. 49,. 81, SOC
| 10 acres Of land in Florida. ... l0C
Comparison in favor of Florida. 81, 400
The inference one gathers from Mr..
| Brownlee's letter Is that oranges cannot
be raised in Florida without fertilizers.
We trust that Mr.. Brownlee will pardon
US for saving that one cannot raise or
anges in California without water. The
trouble and expense of fertlliZing will
about offset the cost and trouble and
expense of irrigation. You never thought
of that, Mr.. Brownlee, did you:
But the reader must not be CONVINCED
| by Mr.. Brownlees cunning that oRange-
groves in California are not fefilized.
The cost of land in California is TO be
duly considered. 1t is a little fortune.
and poor man cannot hope to sit un-
der his own vine and fig tree when the
foundation costs so much more than he
can command. The difference in the
cost of land is 81 400 In favor of Florida
We call your attention, Mr.. Brown
lee, 10 the fact that a man can buy ten
acres of land in Florida. make it into an
orange grove or mixed fruit orchard,
and Lrin.. II mn h.anrirIc FIR los rnnnr,ar-