The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1888-09-01
Florida Letter.
For The REPUBLICAN,.

MY GOOD FRIEND HAYDEN -
During all the months that have
passed since my last letter to the Re-
PUBLICAN, l have not failed to think
OF You, at least once every week for
every week we have enjoyed your
friendly visits, bringing US always
something of interest from the sold
ola home." And have you wonder
cd sometimes whether indeed Florida
nad finally "gone UNDER" or whether
her climate has tendency to make
one obliyious to promises given :?
well, we are still some Is feet above
high tide at Switzerland, and there
seems no Immediate prospect of our
oelng overwhelmed by the aqueous
catastrophe foreshadowed by the
learned assertion of one of your
neighbors, to the effect that our whole
41enlnsnla is surrounded by a threat.
enlng mass of water, elevated some Is
fed above the land, and kept out only
6yarange of unstable sand hills ! In
deed, a few years residence here.
panlshes from ones mind all appre-
hensiOn of harmful visitation by
storm or flood. Do you not think il
must be a delightfully."- quieting sem
.spti5n. TO gaze daily upon this, in
'lDmt respects, grandest river on the
globein the consciousness that rise
of eve. so much as three inches, aside
from tial variation, is never to be
feared ? Compare this quiet feeling
of assurance with that possessing the
thousand,of robbed, ruined, home
less and begard souls along the grand
but fierce Nonongahela and its tribu-
taries. and ell me, is there not some
thing sweetabout life in far-away
Florida? bw dreadful are the re-
ports of sudden, devastating storms
and floods o'er all the North and
West! And he Old World is faring
no better. Lie has its hardships and
drawbacks here: this no honest Flor
idian will deny but ho,O many of the
hard experiences common to your
cline, are we not delivered from ?
I conceive that country>life in the
Northern portion Of our state, can be
made about as quiet, comfortable,
and danger free, as anywhere else in
all the wide world. Winds we have,
as constant and refreshing as any
land; but no destructive storms:
rains, too, we have, in quantity con-
siderably above the average for the
whole country, through the year;
floods we know nothing of, as a ruin
Gus visitation though indeed large
portion of the land is submerged dur
ing the rainy season. Sicknesses also
visit our homes but how many Of
the sudden, acute, alarming and fatal
types of disease common in higher
are here unknown, or rob.
BED of their alarming and fatal char
rE&ta City life / would neither
venture upon, nor commend to a
friend, coming from the North ; it is
for obvious reasons, so very difficult
to maintain perfect sanitary condi-
tions in our towns. But country
lIfe!-well, pity I k'aooo it to be that
very many Northern sufferers are
unwilling to try it.
Do you know for one thing, that
the death rate of Florida is consider
ably lower, in proportion to popuIa-
ton, than CT any other state or ter
ritory? Figures in the Statistical
Bureau at Washington will prove
this. But what we now rejoice over.
is this fact, namely: Florida out
does all the uorld in healing or cur
ing the afflicted. coming as health
seekers from other and sterner chimes.
This IS our glory and boast and 1t is
enough! What better could the
world ask ?-what better could we
give? For fortune-seekers Florida
is not much but for health-seekers,
por excellence A tour through the
country portions of the newly-settled
counties of the state, will afford to
any one the pleasing fact that at least
half of our population is made up OF
restored or partically restored inya-
lids from the North. Many of these
people are not in very comfortable
circumstances, it is to be admitted
but 1 fancy fen of them indeed
would prefer to be- in Northern
oroues, rather than in their even in
different Florida homes !!
And, while we have room for
million more afflicted households, ]
trow there are as many who would
in a sanitary point of view, be wist
to come.
The question frequently arises =
can man, or family, without incur
ring guilt. continue 10 face a condi
ton of things that must inevitably
hs.~ i