The Newtown bee., 1890-12-19

ASH, magnOlla ana gum, while the soil is
black and generally underlaid with mari.
This land is adapted to the growth of ba-
nanas, sugar cane and vegetables gener-
ally. Unlike most of the high hammock
land of the State, that on the Indian riv-
er, like Rock Ledge, for instance, is per-
fectly healthy. The soil is of that fertil-
ity that an orange grove will come into
bearing and pay handsome revenue be-
fore fertiliziug is necessary, an item of
no small Importance to the poor man.
No more charming picture can be inn
agined than the palmettoes with their
long fan-shaped leaves lining the rocky
banks of the river and swaying gently to
the fresh morning breeze, while the oaks
and hickories lift their proud heads far
above, ahuge mass of living green leaves,
deliberately festooned with pendant mass
es of gray moss; background of orange
trees, the golden fruit contrasting so
charmingly with tine deep green foliage
and then the foreground, the grandest
body of water l ever saw, sparkling like
diamonds in the first rays of the sun.
The Indian river orange needs no de-
scription or eulogy at my hands. In
whatever market they may be placed
they at once lead all others, both in de-
mand and price. The thousands of tour
lists who visit us invariably pronounce
| them the finest ever tasted. Our list of
fruits comprises oranges, lemons, lines.
grape fruit, citrons, shaddocks, pineap-
Piles, custard apples, guavas, bananas.
loquats, pawpaws, grapes, mangoes and
cocoanuts.
Gardening, as a business, is followed
to some extent, but our transportation is
yet too slow for tomatoes and like per-
ishable articles, and the freight too high
for much profit to the producer.
Our list of fish is large and varied.
The mullet. channel bass, crevalle, salt
water trout, sheephead, red fish, POM
pons, jew fish, tarpon and blue fish
abound in great numbers. The hunting
is good, if the hunter goes after his game
and knows how to get it after he finds it.
Deer are plentiful out on the st. Johns
prairies. Wild cats, raecoons and opos-
sums abound in our hammock and prowl
around our hen roost at night. Occas-
ionally panther is seen or heard, but
the bears are in the dense swamps and
jungles. Our oysters, as rule, are not
fat, consequently not good for the table
until December, owing, no doubt, to our
late season. They continue good, how
ever, correspondingly late in the season.
The health of the Indian river is as
good as any part of the United States. If
one takes reasonable care, there is no ex-
cuse for sickness. BY exposure and
drinking impure water, one can get sick
even here and have the double satisfac-
ton of paying doctors bill and swal-
lowing lot of nauseating drugs.
10 the prospective settler would say
most emphatically, Come and see for
yourself. You will find land and, per-
haps, some few improved places for
sale, but the whole orange growing part
of the State is so different from any 9TH
er country that all the articles or letters
written in description would fail to con-
vey proper or correct idea of its many
peculiarities. Therefore 1 repeat, Come
and see for yourself and then you can de-
eide, if you look about intelligently,
whether a change of home would be
desirable.-[G. s. Northrop, Rock Ledge,
Florida.