Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1909-11-22
A Warning From Florida.

lJaekSonVlile (Fla-) Times Union.
New Florida colonies are springing
up like mushrooms, but it hoped that
they will last longer. a colony PROPOSE
ton, to be handled correctly and fo-
the best interest of the state as a
whole, takes an immense amount Of
work as we'll as a large outlay of capt.
tai.
Selling wild lands, remote from all
transportation facilities, and Represent
ing these lands as being suitable for the
cultivation of every known tropical and
semi--ropical fruit and vegetable is all
wrong and will hurt the state to a
large extent when persons buying these
lands come 10 settle on them and en-
deavor to raise some Of the fruits and
vegetables that they have been led to
believe will thrive and bring great re-
turns.
To advertise Duval county lands as
being perfectly adapted for the cultiva-
ton of oranges. grape fruit. pineapples,
etc. is bad policy, 10 say the least. Ev-
cry one who has lived in this section O.
Florida for as much as fifteen years
knows that such advertisements are
calculated 10 do the whole state, as well
as the county of Duval, an injustice. It
4 is true that oranges will grow in Duval
county, but as an orange producing
section. this county has not been a sue
cess and there is great danger of it
never being. Disastrous freezes have
occurred time and again during the
past twenty years, and While some or
ange trees escaped, the vast majority
of groves We're cut down 10 the ground
and in many instances the trees were
killed outright by the cold.
Duval county lands are we'll suited tc
large enough variety of other fruits
such as peaches and pears. and to g
large enough variety of vegetables, Il
enable the honest dealer to sell them or
their merits without attributing II
them qualities they do not possess.
The various colony propositions tina
are now before the public will no doub
result in many thousands of peopl
. near future. These people, as a rule
have not seen the lands they hav
bought and are relying almost abso
, lutely upon the claims made by tn
colony promoters. 1t is safe to say tina
large majority of these colony pro
moters are honest. straightforward
: men and would not knowingly deceiv
j or make false statements, but thes
companies have agents in many cite
who are not so scrupulous. Thes
q agents sell colony lands on commissio
q and they are sometimes reckless
their statements about the productive
ness of the lands they have TO SCI
They make all kinds of Statement
: about what the lands are best suite
a for and, as a result, some people a.
n going to be terribly disappointed,
: The United States department of az
riculture is about to have made 81
survey of Duval county and when tn
survey is made and the result is pu1
= lished, then the public will have son
official and authentic data, but as
II usually takes a year or two for an,
e, thing of this kind to reach the pu
Re lie, it will be of no special value
people who are now buying land
this and other counties of the state.
lie The Real Estate Guide of the Time
Of Union has as its motto can expone
E. of correct investing" In living up
rt this motto care will be taken to wa
re the readers of the Guide not to
a misled by glowing announcements co
&c corning what the soil of Florida
-, various localities will produce. Inve
=. tigate; get a copy Of a newspaper pu
% lished in the county in which the la
III is 1ncated Write tn county and G.
BY officials. or to boards Of trade, and fl
TO- out something definite about the car
r. biltties of the soil and the standi
ca of the companies. firns or individu
go placing the lands on the market.