The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-01-08

Miami, Fla, Jan. 7.--Where the swift Miami River, draining the Ever glades, discharges Its limpid flood into the crlstal waters of Bscayne Bay, stands what its people delight to catl '.the Magic City of Miami." Miami nas . story like that of a mushroom town of the great West. It was porn inc Seminole war the Government built Fort Dallas at this site. A portion oi the old barracks remains to tell tne story. Fifteen years ago there wAs one store at Fort Dallas, a trading post for the Seminoles of the Evergiades' There were three families of wnite peo. pie and the only connection Wnn .ne outside world was by schooner and the long sail behind the keys to Key West. .. In April, 1sss, the railroad came 70 Fort Dallas and the city of Miami wes created. In six months It hao -.ovv people. Now 1t has 10000 the year round, and to dazzle the eyes ot .n wondering stranger within the ss
 as likely a lot of paved streets, .S,,. fer works, electric lights ana pupns hvtidinga as any enthusiastic boaro of Trade could wish. It is more hxe an Oklahoma city than one expects " And on the Atlantic Ocean. ana tno sururise is so great that one mas himself lending a willing, If not c.eu
 uious ear. to the glowing predictiohs | of the town booster. .,.. Everything about Miami is surpris- tng After two or three hundred miles l of Florida sand and pine and paimetto | scrub. one Is willing to swear that hs \ will not believe that there Is such | thing as a rock in Florida. But Jus' l north of Miami there is little rIver | That stream is the boundary nns | North of 1t there Is nothing put san.
 South of it there is nothing put rusms
 RroSen uieces of coraline limestons | iiterally clutter up the face or tns earth. In many places close 10 haiani 1t costs as much as $500 an acre V clear the land of surface rocks' piep' aratory to planting an orcharo' | z These rocks are the surface out fcropping of the great coralinS nMe stone mountain whose top Is called sn' state Of Florida. This limestone ha' been used in building the court house
 hosa,~ and other large buildings I'll Miami, 1t Is easily cut and dazznns,! white in the sun. It probably wouls not stand the weather In q NortneIl l climate. but there is no winter ner' and consequently no strain or freezins
 Another surprise. after some nun
 dred of miles of Florida hatness, is lswift .riyer. with rapids ana an ,acins l WAteTIallssF1uG 4AA1hae se ].
 stream<6f the eastern drainage systen
 of th6 Evefgiades. A few miles apov
 its-lIiouth 1t narfows Into gorge pc lfween rocky banks. falls few rec II and rushes away over the rocky rap
 ids to the sea level, where It meet
 the tide. |,
 A trip up the Miami to the rapids !
 a motor boat is one of the delights 2 .seeinE Miami.'' Leaving from th rear of the magnificent Royal Tau Hotel, another of Flagler's retreats 10
 mlllionaires, the boat winds apou
 among the many craft which hnds
 haven in the mouth of the river. Ther
 are dozens of yachts, house-boati
 schooners, fishing and pleaslire craft And there Is the immense iron. hun o
 what was once great floating hote
 on the Indian River in the days pc
 fore the railroad had opened the de lights of Florida to everybody. l The open river Is not wide. but on cannot see the banks because on bot . sides stretch mangrove swamps. Tn mangrove trees, with their big trunk , supported by pyramids and pyramid } of tiny roots. give wildness to th . ! scene that makes it impossible to bt 7 iieve that there is any human habits | tion within miles.
 } Then there Is tiny pier. the land
 ling of Alligator Joe's Alligator farm