The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-12-28
PROTECTING ORANGE TREES.
THE COLD SNAP MADE FLORIDA
PEOPLE UNEASY.

The Number of winter Visitors
Promises to he Large-They Are
Great Help TO the State-The PhOs-
pbate and Naval stores Industries.
other Matters of General Interest
in That state.
Sanford, Fla, Dec. 26-The cold wave
came along Saturday night and not
few people were busy Sunday and Christ
mas day covering up tender plants vines,
etc. and banking their trees. The more
cautious ones had done their banking of
trees early in the season, 1t having been
decided that we are liable 20 have another
freeze this winter. Few people outside
of Florida realize the extent of that ca
lamity. They talk of the big freeze" a
few years ago, and yet we really suffered
more as a state from the freeze of last
winter. 1t was far-reaching in hs re-
suits and sent away for good many old
settlers who, after the "big freeze" al
though financially ruined, bravely made a
new start and were getting hopeful when
the calamity of last winter hit them hard
again.
Sawmills, carpenters and store dealers
are just now reaping harvest equal to
that of the proverbial ice man and plumb
er, and the cry of ito your tents, orange
growers is creating a swarm of patent
devices for protecting orange trees from
another freeze. But the poor man, with
his little pineapple patch and small
orange grove, can't stand the expense of
sheds or tents and stoves. Just think of
it, 200 stoves for one pinery alone, while
some of the covered orange groves have
fifty or a hundred big furnaces. Wood,
coal and oil are used, according to char
acter of the stoves or furnaces. Well,
millionaires, like Stetson and Hopper and
Dommerich. etc, who have money TO
burn" may as well burn it in these stoves
as anywhere else.
Down in Manatee and the other fav-
ored counties where the orange trees have
escaped the deadly cold snaps in the past,
they laugh at all this big expense in the
way of protection. 10 trees and pineap
pies, but their turn will come bye and
bye, if the big saw mill and turpentine
enterprises do their work in that section
as well they have done 1t elsewhere.
Lands are being sold by the thousands
of solid acres for these purpose and
mills and stills are getting into early
operation. In a few years, in my humble
opinion, they will wipe out the imagin-
airy frost line" and put all Florida or
ange groves on an equal footing as to
protection from cold.
But with all these drawbacks for the all
the-year-round dwellers in our state, the
wealthy winter residents still hold on with
a strong grip and are spending their thou
sands of dollars in yearly improvements
on their elegant winter homes and for the
protection of their trees, etc. 1 have al
ways claimed that the backbone of Flor
ida was in her winter residents and her
winter visitors, who swarm our big hotels
and spend money with a free hand. But
for these our phosphate and other indus
tries would not keep the wheels of a pay
ing commerce in steady operation. Few
people realize how largely this state is
populated by well-to-do winter residents
the care of whose residences and groves
also bring money here in the dun summer
months.
Everything now indicates a big rush
of winter visitors the present season, and
yet our hotels are slow to open. The Park
| House al Maitland the Altamonte Springs
Hotel the Sanford House and others are
| nearly, if not quite, a month behind in
| opening their doors. The demand for fur
| nished houses, however, began early and
| is still brisk The trains come along late
on account of big loads of passengers,
and the freight trains were never before
so large and so numerous. Somebody is
prosperous and many i-nes of business
are in a fiourishing condition. And yet
| thousands of people in this cold and blus-
| tering Christmas season are dreading an
! other freeze. If we escape it-as God
grant we may-this winter the coming
summer will be one of unusual hopefulness
| and activity.