The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1889-01-16
The Kissimmee Valley.
A GREAT COUNTRY FOR SUGAR CANE, RICE
AND VEGETABLES

The following interview with Mr.. Ham
ilton Disston was published in the Jack
sonvile Times Union of Friday
81 don't know really what | stopped
over in Jacksonville for, began Mr. Diss-
ton; 81 actually had no particular bust
ness here, and was in fact rather anxious
to get back to Philadelphia But never
before came to Florida without stopping
in Jacksonville, and, if | were to search
carefully for my reasons for doing so now
these might be found in thefact that peo-
pie might say: We'll, there is DisstOn
going to Florida and steering clear Of
Jacksonville! He's afraid of it appar-
entity. He doesn't want to take the risk
guess I'll keep away myself And then,
you know, my friends and business asso-
GATES at the North would guy me upon
my supposed timidity, and didn't pro
pose to give them any chance. | don't
mean to lay myself open in that way AS
| said before, had no real business here
except to show that had no fear of the
place. like the town, too, and feel that
trip to Florida would be dead failure
without taking in Jacksonville"
81 am glad, Mr.. Disston, that you have
taken SO sensible and practicablea view of
the situation. Every visitor who comes
y
word for us, will bring dozens and scores
more in his train. But | want to talk
sugar with you You have lust come
from Kissimmee, and you must be chock
full of interesting information with re-
gard to this new industry
"Well, | naturally would be. The bust
ness is an experiment with us, and we
have shown our faith in it by investing
lots of money in it. From the results of
my trip to KiSSimmee and Runnymede
am satisfied that the sugar industry is
bound to be the most profitable one in
Florida"
is your mill running at present?'
Eyes; it started up about the middle Of
December-alit tlelate. The rains in South
Florida have been almost unprecedented
this season. People down there tell me
that they do not recollect such wet sea-
son in the past fifty years. Jack Brack,
one of the sons of the soil, veritable
cracker, with a memory as long as the
moral law, said: Mr. Disston, I've seen
rain before in the summer time, but
never see so much of it in the winter
before. The water was never so high in
my recollection, nor the land so wet
except in the rainy summer season. Col.
l.. A. Brin9ier, the superint ndent of the
ST. Cloud sugar mill, told me that this
extra moisture in the land had been alb
sorbed by the cane, and that in conse-
quence the yield of syrup was not SO
great as it would have been in q sea-
son more dry But for all that, the yield
is magnificent one.
'AbOut what is the aggregate of it, Mr..
DisstOnW
Counting our own lands and those of
the neighboring farmers, about seven
hundred acres have been planted in sugar
cane this year. Allowing a product of
thirty tons to the acre "a low estimate)
this will make the aggregate yield 21 900
TONS"
"AbOut what is the value of it?''
From 500, O0Oto $11O,0OO Let me
cite case. Did you ever hear of cow-pen
land? No? Well, it is common pine land
fenced in and with cattle allowed to run
at large on it. This is all the fertilizer it
gets. An old farmer down near Kissm-
NEE planted an acre of t. is land in cane
He raised twenty tons from it, and his
crop brought him at the mill $5.04 per
ton-over 500 an acre. WHAT'S the mat
ter with that?''
The Times-UniOn man simply remarked
that there "were no flies on it, !" but asked
what it had cost this sample grower to
produce this crop
''Not over $40, SO he assured me. With
fertilizers the yield could be increased
from 40 to so per cent"
What about these farmers, Mr.. Diss-
ton? Do they engage in cane culture ex-
tnnSiVolV now that tho Suorar mill ic in