The weekly true Democrat. (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1905-1912, 1906-03-09
EVERGLADES INJUNCTION SUIT.
Continued from Page II


and distinct from the Okeechobee and
Everglades basins? In other words,
ought not the drainage commissioners
to know just how they propose to drain,
irrigate and reclaim the entire drainage
district, and particularly what CONNER
cial canals they proposed to cut for the
benefit of the people of Florida; and,
further, ought not the drainage COM
missioners to have published some out
line Of their progress, and at least to
have informed the private land owners
what they proposed to do with the
money that there private land owners
were to be forced to pay annually at the
rate of $50 per annum per section, and
possibly $64 per annum per section for
an indefinite period of years?
BUSINESS PROPOSITION.
All these questions clamor for answer
and are now being earnestly discussed
throughout the length and breadth of
the victimized drainage district. The
people of Florida evidently do not
understand the business proposition in
volved by the action of the drainage
commissioners. Take the case of pri-
vate land owner within the drainage
district: Here he is confronted with an
annual acreage tax of 5 cents, with no
limit Of time to it. Next year it may
be 10 cents per acre, and there is no le-
gal end to this tax. The law does not
specify any limit of time. What is his
position? He can not sell out and get
rid of his predicament Who will buy
his land under this unlimited annual ad-
ditional tax? The result is that the
private land owners are deprived of
their constitutional right to the enjoy
ment and use of their property. Fig
ure 10 cents per acre on a pond or
slough worth I'D cents, and see the re-
suit, not counting the regular annual
county and State taxes; Who can sell,
or who will buy, an acre of land within
the drainage district under these condi-
tons? The situation simply amounts to
this That all the private lands lying
within the drainage district are practi-
cally taken off the land market by the
operation of this act. There can be no
market for them as long as the present
acreage tax is levied. No one will buy
pig in a poke" 1t is against every
business instinct to go into any blind
enterprise.
EXPERT TESTIMONY.
The suit now pending raises all these
questions, and has brought out mass
of expert testimony as to the topog-
raphy of the drainage district, the char
acter Of the lands, the formation of the
Everglades and their agricultural value,
the best solution Of the problem of re-
clamation and cost of same, the prob
able length of time required for the
completion of the work, the effect of
draining them on the outlying parts of
the district, and many other remarkable
features of this interesting case
ENGINEER KELLER's VIEWS.
The chief witness for the complain
ant is Civil Engineer V. P. Keller, as
sistant engineer of the late Col. Jas. M.
Kreamer, of the Atlantic and Gulf Coast
Canal and Okeechobee Land Company
which was the original drainage Com
pany that cut the existing canals out of
Lake OkeechObee many years ago, I'M
der contracts with the trustees of the
Internal Improvement Fund. Keller is
undoubtedly the best living authority on
the problem of draining the Everglades,
havin exhaustively covered the whole
question many years ago under the en-
ployment of the company.
He states positively that within about
twenty-five miles south of Lake Okee-
chobee there is a fall Of IL feet, and
that therefore below that point, a dis
lance of about IS miles to the Gulf,
there can only be a fall of about feet,
the water level Lake Okeechobee be-
ing about 20 l-2 feet above sea level
He further states that this upper part
of the Glades is the only portion that
has any agricultural value, and is suffi-
ciently high to warrant drainage, the
remainder of the Everglades being too
low for successful reclamation, not TO
mention the fact that they are not as a
whole sufficiently rich to be worth the
cost of drainage. He also states that
the lower Glades within this stretch of
20 miles is too rocky for practical canal
work; that is to say, the cost Of reclaim
alton would not justify the expense
The upper part of the Glades, however,
embraced within what is known as the
Big Saw Grass Ridge, he considers can
be economically reclaimed The depth
of muck on this ridge varies from Is
feet on the shores of Lake OkeechObee
TO 3 or feet at its lower end. Through
out this tract excavation would be easy,
the material being entirely muck.
SHOULD CONSTRUCT A LEVEL.
In his opinion, the only practical
scheme Of reclamation is TO lower Lake
Okeechobee by a system of drainage
and irrigation canals out through the
muck deposit and draining into the low
~ Glades. He insists, however, that
the first essential in the construction of
IL