Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1891-08-28
Florida Letter.
Hartland, Brevard Co., Fla,
August is, 1891.


Editor EXPosIToR;
AS some of my friends in and around
Yale have often enquired of me by
letter how / liked this portion of the
United States, thought it would be a
good idea to tell them through the
medium of your paper. THE EXPOSITION
is weekly visitor to my house, and
appreciate it very much as il gives me
news of people and things at home
that / would not otherwise get. | left
your little burg one year ago last De-
cember, being here now about one year
and eight months, and | think | can
answer some of the many questions
which have been asked of me at differ
ent times by my friends in the north.
One young man wants to know what
chance there is TO make money. | an
swer that a young man with Anew nun
dred dollars and willing to work. can,
in a few years, become quite wealthy.
For instance, let him buy ten acres OF
land, plant out 1000 orange trees, III
ten years his ten acres will be worth
$40 200, or 81 ,000a acre. The fruit on
his trees will, when ten years old,
bring him 50 1000, and will do it year
after year, as orange and lemon trees
bear fruit every year, there being no
failure as with apples in the north. !
came here with but little money, only
about 5000, and bought 49, acres of
land on the west side of the Indian
river, 80 miles below Gitusville, estab-
lished a post Office so that now the
mail comes to my Office, whereas be-
fore the settlers here had to cross the
river, which is one and one-half miles
wide, for their mails. | bought wild
land, paid Sl5 per acre, have now Il
$500 house and four acres cleared, haye
100 orange trees out, 800 bananas and
1900 pine apples. am offered 5000
for half interest now. Some OF my
banana trees stand over eleven feet
high, and n good many have fruit on
them. planted them n little over Il
year ago when they were slips about
six or eight inches high. Some of the
leaves are four feet long and make Il
great foliage. There is not much rails
ed here in the summer season. | have
a fine crop of sweet potatoes and cow
peas growing. We plant sweet pota-
toes any time from the first of April
to October. / am digging some now
for use on the table, and selling some
that | planted last September, and
which are worth ~ per bushel. There
is no trouble in raising them, as we dig
we cut the vines in places about
one foot long and stick them back in
the ground: that is all that has to be
done with them till they are dug. We
have very healthy climate, as healthy
as any on the globe, and Is great
winter resort for invalids. Land along
the river has advanced in price some
since | came. the land joining mine be-
ing worth from $50 to $50 an acre.
Twenty acres joining me on the north
is for sale and can be had for $40 per
acre, and is excellent orange and gar
den land. | should like to see one or
two good men come and buy and plant
out groves. | have about three acres
that | am preparing for winter garden
ing. | shall plant about the first of
October. My plan it to plant Irish po-
tatOes, beans, peas, tomatoes, onions,
etc. My potatoes last winter
brought me 50 per bushel, beans 81 a
peck, turnips 81 II bushel, onions from
D to cents per pound. ! will send TO
the editor few pods of the COW pea,
which are nine inches long and have
Is peas i'll pod. They are good eat
ing when picked just at the right time,
not sweet like your northern peas, but
with rich, mealy, nutty taste. We
eat them green or dry, and they are
also good for chicken or pig feed, and
are very nutritious for COWS or horses.
was told before coming here that the
country was alive with alligators and
but have not seen Il live
RATHER since came and only two dead
ones. The natives told me to get whis
key to drink in case | was bitten. |
got the whiskey last spring and have
been looking for the snake ever since,
so as to have an excuse to drink that
whiskey, but nary a snake can | find.
AS for alligators, | see them every day,
md there is one that stops in the river
close to the house all the time, and is
so tame that he will let me come with
m rod of him and not take alarm.
intend to capture him this winter and
send him to my wife to exhibit ut the
store.
TorrNr ~ II Ann