The representative. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1893-1901, 1896-09-09
STRONG PRAISE OF FLORIDA.

Some weeks ago you published letter
from L. S. Rowell, of Dayton, Tenn, in
regard to Florida, which, with your per-
mission, l would like to review in brief
article for your columns, for in times
like these, when the life of the nation is
at stake, it would be great wrong to in
terrupt, except briefly and for the mo-
ment, the grand educational work that
THE Representative" is doing to give
place to anything else. Knowing, how
ever, that many of your readers who are
canvassing the subject of removal to
Florida, are liable by such articles as
Mr. Rowell's to get very wrong i'm
preston. l have thought that, in the
interest of truth, and to aid in the bet
terment of their condition, you would be
willing and anxious to give both sides
hearing
In the fall of rs l went to Tallahassee,
| and there raised fine crop of watermel
Ions, with far less expense in first living
than would be necessary in Minnesota,
and but for dishonest commission men
in Cincinnati to whom 1 shipped
should have done splendidly. Nine
months after l went to Jacksonville and
| raised good crop of cabbage, potatoes,
| strawberries, etc. At both places l was
surprised that with so little labor and ex-
| pense for fertilizers so fine crops were
! secured
From Is months residence in Florida,
and close observation, | came to very
| different conclusion as to the deSirabili-
| ty of a home in Florida from Mr.. ROs-
well. l firmly believe that, all things
considered (after residing in various
! parts of the country, there is no section
| of the United States that offers the at
| fractions that is to be found in Florida
| and especially to the laboring man. AS
| to mosquitoes, to which Mr. r. Alludes
| there are much more mosquitoes in Min
nesOta and the Northwest, as we'll as
| much larger, than here; and the same
may be said of cliffs and fern. The
| government statistics, as we'll as from
official reports from officers of govern
ment forts throughout the country,
| show Florida to be absolutely the most
healthful state in the Union
So much for my personal observation
| cut the following out of the Farm and
Fireside, which l have been taking for
years, and which l have come to regard
as of the highest authority in statements
of: facts, for the benefit of the farmers
! and it certainly is little strange that
out OF its 10000 subscribers, scattered
in all parts of the land, not note of
( protest to its statements of facts in re-
gard to Florida should appear save this,
while on the other hand hundreds of
unsolicited statements fully indorsing all
| they have said editOrially Gas we'll as
corroborative of the advertisements of
the Clarke syndicate'o are to be found
in nearly every leading publication of
| the country.
V. FELL, M. D.
Dr. Fell's several letters of recon-
| mendatiOn of Florida. We have only
| space to quote the first It is as fol-
| lows):
TALALA, Ind. Ter-Editor Farm and
Fireside, Springfield, Ohio: Gents-I
| have been quite interested of late in
| reading the advertisements in your paper
of Florida. Of course, | could not help
but think you had things concerning that
| country considerably exaggerated, so
myself and wife just took a trip down
| there too see for ourselves, and to our
surprise we found everything just as you
have represented, if not better. Of
| course we found Florida, like all other
states-found some poor country: but
the Tallahassee country we thought the
most delightful country that we ever
saw.
diIl IOW ot years Ola, ana nave fol-
lowed farming all my life, and think I
know good land when l see it, and I
will just say to all the readers of your
valuable paper that l don't think | ever
found better country for poor man
| Tor rich one, either) to make a living in
than Leon or Wakulla counties. | would
say that the land is very productive, ca
pablo of raising anything that a farmer
wants 10 raise The country is rolling,
with fine springs Of pure running water
the year round. l did not taste a bit of
pad water while there, and a more
healthful and delightful climate is not
10 be found any place on the earth
and more clever and hospitable class of
people are not to be found than we found
IN and around Tallahassee In fact
we just fell in love with the country
and all the people, so much so that we
purchased tract of land six miles from
Tallahassee, and are going there to
spend the rest of our days
(Signed.) w. F. Hiatt and Wife