Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-05-04
FLORIDA WONDERS.
A MAMMOTH SPRING UPON WHICH
STEAMBOATS, SAIL.
dance--A Black Eye for Florida Fruit,
Ncgetables, and FISHING.
tcOrrespOndence Of the Richmond Dispatch,
snvFR SrnNo. d.. Anil 30. 1sa0.


never saw Florida letter from this re-
markablo SPOT ard it is good place. too.
60 write a Florida letter from, for here is
one OF Florida's greatest wonders-the
largest spring IN America, and probably in
the world; AZ The deepest port il is 70
feet, 500 feet long. and COO feet wide. 20
clear that shirt-button may be seen on
the bottom, dlscharging $1,000 cubic feet
OF water every minute through a channel
worn IN the solid limestone 30 feet in ave
race depth and 100 feet in width. nine
miles long spring branch that is river
WITH steam boats coming and going daily
and anchoTing in the spring.
I he tory is where al this fresh water
can come from. and why It's temperature
never varies from scvcnty-two degrees
Fahrenheit winter or summer. u can't
have SIS origin IN Florida. IL would drain
the largest lake in the State in three DAYS
IL hoiis M IN great volumes from the long,
WIDE chasm ~ the great rocks that lie at
tho bottom, and as you bend over the side
81 your boat and gaze down into its depths
ald watch the big tsh that come and go,
or float IDLY IN the current. you are lost in
hi manner Of speculatious. Can IT be q
part of a great underground current that
sweeps across the continent. breaking out
ln tne clear warm springs Of California and
again lu the great Makullah spring. similar
g this. near Tallahassee. shooting up "a
port ou OF It's overflow here and az Blue
Springs, and then bursting out OF the
coast feeding tho Gulf stream, which
l. its s'art some eight miles OF the
Tower rock, on the coast. or-Cr -what is
- au. whore does u come from! Let the
reader speculate some.
DAYABD AND EDISON.
Fx-Secrctarv Bayaid, with his wife and
her mother Mrs. Clymcr, was here a few
days oCo and was lost IN wonder and adj
miution. lie said IL surpassed bis imagi-
nation. and was the most beautiful and
wonderful thing he had ever witnessed.
CAeuucey Dcpcw has been to see II lately.
J. Olson was here some time ago. and want
,l to pat an electric light in the bottom of
o.. bat 10 can't b0 improved upon by any
artificial means. Then there Is the pictu-
j. que. weird trip down the deep, rushing
O.iuwaha l35 miles to Palatka. so crooked
iiat the wagon road takes YOU there in
ify miles, and 50 narrow that the moss
Crsnod trees overlap the steamer tine
hanks crowned with the most magnificent
c.prcs.-trecs ! ever behcld. and tho tall
Iamettoes looking Ike "a picture. Oh! its
d spring and q river worth coming thou
Ciad miles TO see.
FLORIDA PHOSPHATE.
You have read accounts OF this new
wealth Of Florida that promises 10 reyOlu-
tonic tho agriculture Of the world.
Jaw. been looking into Il some. 1t -
O.. varied IN color and consistency az the
IRON ore Of Virginia. Ihaye seen the white
ana yellow phosphate rock Of DunncltOn.
tho soft pUtty-hko phosphate Of Citrus
county. the hard black fossil pieces. bones
ull teeth of Peace river. and the smooth,
white uodulcs of Polk county sticking like
I'lms in a pudding IN the soft shell aud
sand MOSES dug ont of the earth. But II
s. ail phosphate, mineral, and fossil, ana
l1'uc from 30 to 90 per cent, driving crazy
capitalist and cracker alike with the pros
poet Of millions or the possession OF few
thou ands.
BTGINNISG OPERATIONS.
Mining companies are forming and com
mucing operations all over the State. The
H. roads are building branches and run
ping sde-tracks to tho mines, following up
ths operators as they do IN Virginia with
tle IRON and cOal-w0rkcrs.
Freight trains are daily loaded with it
carving IL TO the coast. Ships are on the
way across the ocean after the precious
freight. ! saw a long line OF loaded cars
waiting al Fcrnandina for a Hamburg vos-
SD. aud the Florida Central was adding
FIVE cars a day to the freightage. An old
operator says that the supply IS now very
limited In Spain, Germany, and England,
and the demand long way ahead Of 1t,
and IL seems that this Florida supply IS
1royidential discovery Just in time to meet
the urgency of the situation.
Its convenience and abundance ls beyond
ANYTHING before known to the trade.
Where IN South Carolina the business has
been very profitable mining the rock two
or three feet thick, we find II here ten,
fifteen. and even twenty feet III some
places, and still no bottom. At Dunnelton,
where IL first attracted attention, saw the
miners shovolling It right out of the bank
into the cars which stood on the side-track
receive II. and the next train hurries 1t
oil To deep water, and 1t finds market IN
Hamburg at 500 or even SD per ton. Pros
poctive operators are here from all over
'ne country. and it is thought that IN
twelve months scores of them viii be at
work distributing millions Of dollars III the
State.
FLORIDA GETS BLACK EYE.
The phosphate boom is just in time this
euriuc for Florida, for she GOT qultea black
c,e i'm March from Jack Frost. IL IS dis
tressing sight as you pass down the PENN
sun to see the orange-grOvCs along the
tnt3 for miles and miles with their beauti-
fu' foliage withcred as though storm OF
fire had passed over them, no hopes OF q
crop tins year and o scauty and dwaried
Dle for years TO come, the largest ana
finest groves in the State ruined for the
time Those were lucky who had their
groves near lakes and in sheltered spots.
Many have escaped IN that way, and on
such there is promising crop. so there
VIII he some Florida oranges next winter,
Iut thov will be scarce and high. The
erlvVcrotables too were cut short Just a.
they were beginning to ship North at hne
plccs such Us - and 50 a peck Tor
i.s,.s &c. and the strawberries
were rubbed ont In Central Florida,
about Lawtcy and Starke. the great straw
berry section, where there are five or SIX
hundred acres IN berries. they had been
clipping some all through February, and
tle trade was getting very lively with Der
r.s. bringing fifty cents per quart IN New
York. when the frost came down on the
poor truckers like a torrent and swept
everything.
I- is wonderful though how soon vege-
t.tion In this genial climate gets itself up
u-ain after such visitation. \ new crop
was ON the vines. ripe, red, and luscious IN
tvo weeks. aud passing through that sec
Son to-day ali was activity.
FACTS FOR rARMFRs.
Speaking of rapid growth, ] noticed to-
day Young banana leaves five feet long
Town out since the frost five weeks ago.
a foot "a week y not bad. 1t VIII interest
Virginia farmers % know how lar al
vanced crops are here. Though the season
slavery dry one corn is from two TO three
feet high and some soon to be lmd by;
Oats are headed out. cabbage, beets, and
squash are in. and green peas out OF sea
son. The best crop know Of though was
gathered from one urangc-tree IN Polk
county, near Lakeland. Ten thousand
oranges was the crop. and though the
owner got only one cent apiece ia market
Sl0O from q tree is good enough. But that
was veteran tree. about thirty years old,
the largest orange-.ree have seen. The
best crop Of com / hear Of was planted IN
December in Polk county, laid by III March,
and gathered in June.
rHE ONLY ONE IL THE WORLD.
! visited az Fernandiua two new enter
prises that are well worth seeing. One Is
factory for manufacturing the palmetto
lure into a substitute for hair and IS
coming INTO general use by plasterers. The
process is a very ingenious one invented by
DR. LOOMS. of Fornandina. The factory
,GJ'ite extensive and the only one IN the
world. Gathering the palmetto gives
profitable employment 10 number OF
poor persons who in their eagerness TO
make something ont of il. would remind
Won of the suruac-Oathcrer ia Virginia.