Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1911-01-25
A TRIP TO FLORIDA

time. The soil is very sandy, and
fertilizer at $40 dollars ton must
be applied to the soil to produce
the best crops. The climate is GER
tainly the most lovely imaginable.
Here along the east coast are win
ter resorts of the people from
the north. Large hotels may be
found at several places along the
coast. Mr.. Flagler, president of
the railroad has a fine summer
home at Palm Beach.
Here are a few samples of prices
which l picked up:. Hay, S48 per
ton, none being raised here: oats,
$3.50 per 100 pounds: bran and
feed, $36 per ton; butter, 4Oc:
eggs, Goo; flour. $6.25 per barrel:
kerosene, 15c; sugar, $500 per 100
pounds; pork 20 to Csc: beef, zoe.
A team Of horses is worth from
$500 to $500, and team work brings
about $3.50 per day. Tomatoes on
car, $1.25 per crate: ice, } cent
per pound; potatoes are worth
81. so: sweet potatoes the same;
lumber costs from $40 to 80 per M:
board is Sc to SIS per week: chick
ems Csc per pound: milk Is to 20
cents per quart. Railroad fare is
three cents per mile and up. Com
mon laborers. all negrues, COM
mand $3.50 per day and board
themselves; servant girls receive
500 per week. Land sells from
$40 to 81, 900 per acre.
The elevation Of the company's
land is 81 feet. One man planted
one peck Of potatoes and picked FIVE
bushels. Another man told of rails
ing a sweet potato that weighed 16
pounds.
Jan. 9Th company Of "a of US
visited the Parker farm. Here we
saw lot of cocoanut trees. The
cocoanuts were fed to the hogs.
There were plenty of the latter and
turkeys and chickens. We also
visited the Brown place, another
truck farm. Mr.: Brown claims
that he sold SIS, 900 worth of truck
from his Is acre farm last year.
We visited the Flagler hotels at
Palm Beach. One has a capacity of
2,4O0 guests and another will &C
comodate $500. The rates are $40
to Sis per day. With the Atlantic
rolling in and the finely fixed up
grounds I thought this was one of
the finest places had ever seen.
One can see the ships passing along
the coast on their way to and from
the West Indies. There is however
no accommodations for shipping
to land along the shallow coast, so
ievery one is as vet largely at the
mercy of the East Coast Railway.
Orange groves are usually plant
ed about 100 trees to the acre. The
young trees cost about 40 cents
apiece. Fertilizer must be applied.
When trees begin to bear, it re-
ouires from ! to 2 tons to the acre
every year. In five years they will
begin to pay expenses. In IL years
they should yield 1000 boxes of
oranges to the acre. The proceeds
on both oranges and grape fruit
trees when fully matured is placed
at 81. ZOO per acre per year.
| Pineapples are one of the staple
crops here. and l saw large planta-
tions of them. They are very much
more sensitive to frost than other
tropical fruits. l saw appliances
all thru the pineapple plantations
for burning crude oil on nights
when the cold was threatening.
i On the whole l can say that l was
pleased with the country. The
temperature at this time is about
70 or above in day time. There
is very good water in abundance.
The annual rainfall is over so inch
, es. do not think it is any place
for poor man to get start. For
t myself would wish to stay there
a year before l decided about in
( vesting in the land. l have tried
: to state things just as l found
! them. but don't wish to be under
stood as discouraging anyone who
: feels inclined to try that country.
} On my way back had interest
ing visits at Atlanta, Chattanooga
5 and Lookout Mountain, Chicago,
$ St. Paul and Minneapolis. In
e Georgia we passed fields where the
$ darkies were picking cotton and in
Minnesota the sleighbells were
!. |jingling and people were dressed
in furs. | arrived home Tuesday. :.
t Jan. II, having been gone two
r weeks and travelled about 1900
e miles.
e. c.. w. L0nn.