The weekly true Democrat. (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1905-1912, 1906-07-27
THAT J.. I. BOARD
AND JOS. JENNINGS
What Some Florida Newspapers are
Now Saying Of lt-AdditiOnal
Evidence Cited.

Joseph Jennings says he bought that
mangroVe land for the "bark"-to sell
it to those who were extracting the acid
for tanning purposes. But there's an
other story to this. In the Miami notes
in the Times Union, published in that
paper May 10th, it is stated that the
street railway company "are receiving
mangrove ties from the keys. 1t is
said that the mangTove ties are much
better than pine or cypress" What
about this, Mr.. Jennings? Do you ex-
pect to cut railroad ties from this land?
Lake City Index.
Joseph jennings, the man who bought
go, 900 acres Of State swamp land at al
cents per acre from the Internal I'M
provement Board and then sold the
same to the leather trust at 81 per
acre, rushes to the defense Of the board
and claims it was square deal. A
square deal is judged from ones point
of observation, and this one seems to
have been square enough from the
viewpoint of 49, Joseph. That is, Of
course, If Joseph was acting either for
Joseph or as the paid agent of the
trust. But the transaction has quite
different aspect TO the people of Florida,
or at least that part of them who object
to being buncoed. - Palatka News.
If Mr.. Jennings could sell that land
(41a cents per acre. for SIPS per acre
before he bought it from the State,
doesn't it seem that the land was worth
$l.25 If it was worth this, why did
Gov. Broward and his board sell It for
41s cents an acre? They did not guard
tho interest Of the people as they should
have done. If they had, the State
would have gotten the value at the time
II was sold-$l.25 per acre, instead of
the pitiful sum Of 4la cents per acre,
causing the State to lose about $35, 900
defend in this gross failure to protect
the interest of the people. He has no
excuse. Lakeland Sun.
1.-THE Florida News Bureau and those
papers that get their inspiration from
the same source have been having much
TO say the past week or two about the
sale Of those swamp and overfiowed
lands, with the intimation that was more
like an insinuation that there was some
thing crooked about it. Now, the whole
truth of the matter is that the land
sold was wholly submerged in salt water,
and the only value that they have at
all is the mangrove trees that grow on
the margins Of the lands. 1t is not only
wholly submerged, but submerged in
salt water, and affected by the tides
Just the same as the ocean itself, and
utterly impossible of drainage. If the
anti-drainage people want their express
sions TO carry any weight, the sooner
they drop the policy of misrepresenta-
ton and get down to provable facts the
better.
Not in advocacy Of drainage, but in
the interest of the truth, we publish
the above excerpt from the DeFuniak
Breeze. There would be much less diff
hculty in arriving at proper conclusions
on public questions If it were not for
the miserable Misrepresentation of |
facts that are too often INDUCED in by |
the advocates on either side of meas |
lre, and it Is a wise and discriminating |
man who can tell which of them lies Is |
true that are put forth abundantly on |
either side of every important question. |
Unless man can take q course in engi- !
neering and go down to the Everglades |
and take observations for two or three |
years, how is he to be dead sure he is
right in his opinions about drainage?-
Nassau Star.
IAN such efforts to discredit the |
,harge the True Democrat made, based
IN information furnished from the rec
,rds Of Monroe county, have fallen fiat.
Paragraphs we have copied this week
md for the past several weeks from
)ther newspapers show that the lands
ire not covered with salt water, as was
'laimed; and you will find information
n this week 8 editorial columns tending
o prove that other parties besides the
jennings Leather Trust-C Chemical Com
,any did try TO buy those same lands. -
Cd. True Democrat.
~--~~~N~-~~~~~~~~-~---
After the water is drained off of
ONE Of our swampy lands, it will be
discovered that the reclaimed acres are
ust as liable TO suffer from drOuths as
ny others. Then IL will occur to some
4 the owners, as they see their crops
'urning up in the hot sun. that while