The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-09-14
The Water Hyncinth Pest.

Tt begins to look as If the government
would have to do for the Florida and
louisiana boatmen and lumbermen in the
matter of water hyacinths what 1t did for
the farmers of the northwest in the mat
ter of the Russian thistle-take hold Of
the pest with a view of Graduating 1t.
In some of the inland waters of the states
named the hyacinths have become not
only a nuisance. but a positive block to
commerce., and the limited efforts of indi-
viduals and small corporations to check
their spread have proved ineffectpaL The
plants are very fruitful of incfease, and
will multiply themselves by. ten within a
few months. .sAf
1t is believed the hyacinths came from
the Nile. The story is that a Florida wo-
man travelling in Egypt saw and admired
some Of the beautiful blossoms on the
Nile and secured a few bulbs, which she
brought back with her. 1t was found that
the climate of Florida was exactly suited
to the flowers. They grew luxuriantly
and it was not long before the original I'M
porter had more of them than she knew
what to do with. BY some means few
of the plants got into the st. Johns river,
and a year or so later it began to be no.
tieed that a new species of water lily"
was flourishing in the creek mouths and
still water coves. In two or three years
more the fact began to dawn upon tho
log foaters and the fiat-boat men that
the small arms of the river were bein 3
choked with the flowers to such an eX-
tent that navigation was seriously inn
peded. The rapid increase of the hya-
cnths has continued until 1t is now the
case that steamboats, are hampered, and
even the channel of the river in some
places is threatened. The river people are
taking council among themselves as TO
what shall be done in the premises.
During the time of the great freeze in
Florida the frost killed the hyacinths, and
the roots sank to the bottom. 1t was then
hoped that the pest had been destroyed.
But the hope was vain. With the sue
ceeding of warm sunshine, the luxuriant
foliage of the hyacinth once more flecked
the water with living green. TO be followed
by the appearance Of the blossoms in in
creased instead of diminished numbers.
Florida, however, is not the only sec
ton troubled with the flowers. 1t is re-
ported that they are making their appear
ance in the waters Of South Georgia. while
some OF the lakes and streams of Louis
lana are rendered we'll nigh useless by
them. Public meetings have recently
been held in the parish of Terre Bonnie TO
see what could be done with the hya-
cinths. The bayous OF Terre Bonnie, Blue.
Gallon, De Large and others are said TO
DC nearly covered with the flowers. And
even the Atchafalaya, the largest river in
Louisiana, after the Mississippi, is dot
ted with hyaciuth islands. The belief is
that II something is not done TO rid the
lakes and sluggish streams Of the pest,
they will have to be abandoned to 1t.
It is pretty hard to decide just where
Mr.. John Temple Graves stands in the
current campaign. He seems to be on
all sides, and not a great deal on either
side, 10 Judge from the following, which
he sent to the Jacksonville (Fla.) Metrop-
oils; 81 am a gold standard democrat and
am fighting the state democratic machine
in Georgia tor its bossism and its utter
corruption. l shall vote for the demo-
cratic state ticket-with its head cut
off. / am as sound a democrat as there
is in Georgia. but 1 am as independent
a man as lives In the south"
Now that Corbett and Fitzsimmons have
been matched, it is presumed that they