The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1911-12-18
| WISE AND NIFTY WORDS
Speech of Governor GfIchriat at the
Fermentation Of the Silver Service
to the Battleship Florida ut Pensa-
cola Today.

/
cola Today.
| Following is the speech which Gov
| ernor Gilchrist was to have made at
| Pensacola today, on the occasion OF the
| presentation of a silver service from
| the state of Florida to the officers and
| men of the battleship that bears its
| name:
| Mr. Chairman, Ladies. Officers and
| Men OF the Navy. and Fellow Citizens:
| December IS. 1911, will long be re-
| membered in Folrida day on
| which our people became more close
| ly allied to the navy, through the pre-
sentation of this beautiful silver SER
vice. in behalf Of all our people, to the
pride of the navy, the great battleship
Florida.
| One Of the pieces is decorated with
oranges and orange blossoms. suggest
| i've of the delightful fruits and flow
ers of our great state. Orange bios
SONS are also suggestive of matri-
mony. The name and deeds Of this
great battleship are forever married
| to the highest and best thoughts OF
our people.
| There is also a representation OF
the landing of Ponce de Leon, Easter
| Sunday, three hundred and ninety
nine years ago. Beneath this is a
| likeness of the discoverer of Florida.
Ponce de Leon. While in search of the
fountain of youth, Ponce de Leon
landed in Florida on Easter Sunday, a
day celebrated throughout Christen-
| dom as the day on which the fountain
| of eternal youth is freely offered to
whomsoever will freely partake.
But few people realize that owing to
our climatic conditions and healthful-
ness. we are renewing the life and
| youth Of thousands OF men and wom-
en- who could not live elsewhere, max
ling them valuable and useful members
of society.
In our berries. fruits and vegeta-
bles, we are making life worth liv-
II ing to many people Of the other states.
In our millions Of pounds of fish an
nually shipped to all parts of our
country, we are rejuvernating the
brain of the nation. Through our
phosphate. of which we furnish more
than half of the nations output, we
lare rejuvernating the lands OF the ma
ltion Through our pine forests we are
furnishing one-third to one-half OF
the turpentine with which, as a basis
ljuvernating most of the buildings OF
the nation. In our cotton seed oil, we
are furnishing our part Of the delight
full oil you use; through this oil we
are out Heroding Herod in providing
you with the lard of king hog, and
through the meal of our cotton seed
we are providing the meat on your
cattle In our high grade Sea Island
cotton, of which we produce about one
I half of that raised in this country, we
are furnishing without their knowing
. it, a part of the fiber of the sill
dresses of the women. Through oul
plume birds, we are furnishing tn,
hues of the rainbow of promise" tt
the hats of our women.
Though not a corn producing state
we are furnishing in many instance
so, rs to 115 bushels of corn to th'
acre-bread, the staff of life. In al
that contributes to the necessities. tn
comforts and luxuries Of mankind, AM
] of womankind, we are an ever increas
ing factor.
On the reverse side of this piece i
a representation Of two Seminoles, il
a dug-out canoe. Florida tropica
5 scenes being in the background. TIL
Indian canoe is the first dreadnough
known to our waters. Great as wa
the dreadnought fleet of Ponce d
: Leon, yet it would be as insignifican
to the dreadnought battleship Florid
as the dugout canoe was to this grea
fleet. In the great battle of supremacy
in every line of human endeavor, Flor
ida is one of the dreadnought state
of the world. Extending through owe
= five hundred miles Of latitude, our eli
mate varies from sub-tropical to tenn
perate, producing the varied product
j. incident to such climate We ar
great in the products of the field, for
:. ests. mines. manufactures, fish an
= commerce. Our lands are all easil
. drained and easily irrigated
With the exception of one-Texas-
we are the only state on the Gulf i
whose waters a silver service coul
be presented to the battleship bearin
n it's name, the same being of the d
mensions of the battleship Florid
R Only in Maine. Massachusetts,, Ne
York. Pennsylvania, .aryland. Cal
fornia and the state of Washingto
could such a presentation take -plac
After the completion OF the Panam
canal. binding more closely togethe
% the rising sun of the Orient with tf
setting sun of the Occident, this fat
will certainly be realized at least
the extent OF revitalizing the gres
navy ward already established at tt
important harbor Of Pc sacola-
n 1t will be observed tL.-- the handl,
v of the bowl are formed in the shaI
] Of pelicans. I know Of no more dis
nified bird than the pelican. / kno
of no bird which more gracefully rid
p the waters. 1 have never in my lii
seen a pelican without at once thinl
ing Of its resemblance to the cartoe
representations of one of the gre:
- national senators. Roscoe Conkling.
You will observe that the supper
are in the shape of alligators. All
gators used to be very plentif
y throughout our state. They used
n play very important part in Il
>, drainage of some of the low lands
c. the state. by cutting trails from OF
g. pond to another. the trail being gra
ually enlarged into bitches and sma
10 streams Their rapid destruction ms
ho be illustrated in the following rhym
q Hush little gator, don't you CT
You'll be a suit case by and by.
!" There will { observed, too. II
Y name of our state and the name of t
great battleship Florida Shakspe
has asked. Whats in a name? TO
by any other name would smell
le, sweet" II there were no Florid
We there would be no battleship Florid
,u or l grant you that there would be ba
ep tleship, but it would not be the ba
IT, A,S - -,