The Savannah morning news., 1904-03-24
HOTEL To RIVAL
PONCE De LEON
CHICAGO MAN INTERESTED.
WOULD INTEREST NORTHERN CAP
ITAL IN THE PROJECT.

1Tr. Nathan h. Higbie, Connected
with Swifts of Chicago, Urges
Needs of Better Hotel AccOmOda-
tiOns-BeIieves savannah Would
BE More Popular Than Florida Re-
sorts-says Fact Is Well Adver-
tised That City Is Unable to Pro-
vide for Any Great Number OF
Guests.
Savannah may have a hotel that
will rival the Ponce de Leon.
Mr.. Nathan B. Higbie. closely asso-
ciated with the Swifts of Chicago who
is in the city. advocates the building
of such a hotel and if the local capital
can be interested he is willing to in
terest sufficient Northern capital to
erect the hotel
He declares that Savannah is one of
the most popular of the Southern cities,
and with the proper hotel accommoda-
tions the tourists would come to Sa-
vannah in preference to Jacksonville,
st. Augustine, Palm Beach and other
Florida resorts.
In speaking of Savannah's great
need for a new and up-to-date tourist
hotel, Mr.. Higbie said yesterday that
during the early part of the year he
was spending some time in New York,
and among the tourists coming South
he heard the talk of the need or more
hotel accommodations in Savannah
He is confident that the new project
would be a paying one and would
mean much to Savannah's commercial
interests.
why savannah Surpasses Florida.
Savannah is far ahead of Florida in
climate, and all will admit that you
have here one of the most beautiful
cities in the United States" said Mr..
Higbie. Jacksonville is without the
proper hotel accommodations since the
fire, and the other Florida resorts are
too far South. With another large
high-class hotel here the best class of
the tourists would stop in Savannah
rather than go on to Florida.
1.-THE roads in and around Savannah
are not excelled by any other city in
the country, and the number of au-
tomobiles here is an indication of that
fact. What the city of Savannah neads
is the new hotel, and then to adver-
tise the advantages of the city as
tourist point. 1t will be a matter of
only a few years when 1t will be the
most popular winter resort in the
South. The only reason the tourists
do not stop here now is because of
the fact that it has been well adver-
tised throughout the North that the
city has not the proper accomoda-
tions for her guests"
Hotel Should Be on Bull Street.
Mr.. Higbie believes that Bull street
is one of the most beautiful streets in
the country and say the new hotel
should be erected somewhere on Bull,
between Broughton and Forsyth Park.
He is very enthusiastic over the prop
osition and has talked the matter over
with several of the most prominent
business men.
This is the fourth year that Mr.. Hig-
bic has visited Savannah and he is
loud in the city's praise. His trip this
time is for business and pleasure COM
bined. While here he will purchase 49,
600 barrels of the highest grade of
rosin. He visited the Board of Trade
during the day and viewed the naval
stores exhibit which has been collected
TO be sent to the Worlds Fair at ST.
Louis.
He viii remain in Savannah for sew
eral days and will then go to Ashe-
willie to spend a few weeks with his
family, before returning to his home
in Chicago. Hr. Higbie hopes to see
the movement for the erection of the
new hotel we'll under way before he
leaves the city,