The St. Johns herald., 1896-02-01
GOPHER FARMING.
Successful E-pcri-ae [ Of 2 Dis
 couraged Tloridc O-ckardist-
The Unique Iadustry zs the Outcome of Having Ills Orange Grove Killed
 by Last Winters Severe

Gopher farming is one of the unique industries which an C-i;, mai man of FlcriGa has rone into since his orange grove was killed to the roots by Icst winters cold weather. Henry DalJT- welle. a German by birth, but who has been i.l Florida for Gecc le, expects to have fifty thousand gophers on the market inside of two years. Fifty thousand gophers ouglt to contribute i1 some degree to the discorIfiture or the beef trust.
 The gopher of Florida. says the St. Louis Republic, is not the gopher of more northern attitudes. He is called by the encyclopedias the testudo polyphcrnus. a species of turtle. which can claim first cousinship to the tor toise. He makes his home i1 the high, rolling p,ne land of this state. He and the rattlesnake arc the best of com panlons. Wherever Q gopher noic IS to be found, there also will be found rattlesnalze. The gopher snake is also a friend of the gopher.
 Mr. Dal+-welle's farm is situated on the banks of the }yel1iva river. The Wekiva is named for the central figure "a maiden--in a Seminole Indian legend. WeEiva. the beautiful daugh- ter of the ancient Thomas Tiger Tail, celebrated for the number of scalps he had taken, was once in love with hand some Indian youth, who stood six feet in his moccasins, and could shoot an arrow through the heart of bear. The youth tilted Wel1iya, and she wept so copiorsly that where once was arid sand there is HOW beautiful and cool river.
 Alr. Dalywelle lives with his family of wife, three blue-eycd girls and two tow-headed boys, in two-rooncd resi- dence. the walls of which are of hewn pine. In his first struggle for exist tence in this state gopher more often furnished the piece de resistance Of his dinner than Florida beef. Why woull it not do," he asked himself one day. ''5o raise these tlilgsfor marllet?" There was ample demand for gophers in all of the Florida mar,1cas, the resi- dents of the country as well as those of the ciey regarding the gopher, properly cooked. as delicacy equal to diamond backed terrapin. He resolved to carry out his idea, so he and his boys secured the country for miles and miles, and gathered together all the gophers they could find, and placed thcrn upon a two-thousand-acre tract Of virgin pine. The gophers took kindly 10 the spot, and industrioIsly set to work to dig themselves homes in tho yellow sand. The place is now literally honey combed with their tunnels.
 The only unpleasant feature of gopher farming, according to DalyWelle, is the snakes. Hundreds of rattlesnabe3 have nocled to the homes of the gophcrs. Not a day passes but the gopher raiser and his boys kill from three to dozen. They never venture into the farm with out heavy top boots, heavy stick and a pint of antidote. The snakes, while dangerous, are also made to yield a revenue to this provident farmer. He cures the skins and sells them to curic dealers. The curio dealers have them manufactured into purses and hand satchels, and sell them to the visitors from the north who visit this state dur. ing the winter season. Rattlcsnallc oil is far-fanled as a cure for rheumatism and number of wholesale drug houses buy their oil from Mr. Dalywclle.
 There is a rare flavor to the gorhcl that carnot fail to tickle the palate O the epicure. Mir. Dalywellc says tha in the course of a few years the people of the whole union will be educated t gcphers. Then, he predicts, the gophe will not go a begging ct twenty-five cents apiece, but will command thirty six dollars a dozen. He proposes to in augurate the kindergarten movement and says that in a few weeks, whel gophers are fattest, he will send pai to President Cleveland, and other dis tinguished men. All he asks in return is an honest testimonial as to hoy gopher compares with other meat.