St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1913-02-19
LETTER FROM FLORIDA
John N. Gale Writes from Winter
Haven and Delightful Climate

Haven and Delightful Climate
Dec. %, 1912, myself and wife
left the home of our younger days
and started out TO seek a more con
genial cline for the winter months.
Stopping in New York two days and
in Jacksonville two more d ly5 for
rest, we went on to the emf OF on
contemplated journey, namely Win
ter Haven more generally called
Winter Haven, and truly it is a hav.
en- of rest. 1t seems strange
to hear the natives talk about this
winter. l ask them if this is winter
and what will the summer be?
They reply about the same as now.
Truly, the weather has been delight
ful--only about two hours rain since
our arrival and the temperatul g
runs from 60 in the morning to 30
and SO. In the afternoon it c. Ills
down about four p. m, and is not
too hot for sleeping at night. FRS
place is in the Orange belt of Flor
ida about 175 feet above sea level.
There is no malaria in this loco lily
and no deaths reported among the
natives. They occasionally hang a
man, no a merchant said to me not a
man, but a niger. | believe there
has been only one such case since
our arrival, and that ar the county
seat IL miles from here. 1t was a
public execution and many went.
This town is made beautiful by
its mild climate, its pure water
which is pumped from 600 feet b.
low the surface. There ara about
1900 inhabitants living mostly in
cottages all painted white. There
are some fine residences and some
millionaires. The streets are very
wide. Sidewalks are cement feet
wide. The land owner has to pay
for the walk in front of his prop
erty at cost of 1917 cents per
square foot These walks are put
in whether there are any houses on
the street or not, which makes it
very expensive to the land owner.
The inhabitants are mostly Amer
leans and are here from most every
state in the union. There are no
saloons and no dog fights Oh the
street, no mosquitoes and but few
flies. The houses all set up from one
to two feet from the gro md. :. it'll
no cellars thus giving a good circu-
lation of air under them. There
is a Methodist, Baptist, Christian
and Presbyterian church here, also
outside the city limits a colored
Baptist and Methodist church, good
schools, three hotels, two banks,
two livery stables and one garage.
Industries
There is no gardening done here,
simply for want of ambition. II
am told that the soil is all right for
two, and of some kinds of truck,
three crops a year. But in this mar
ket can be found cabbage, lettuce,
celery, beets, carrots, turnips, |
squash, peas, beans and strawber-
ries, all of good quality. But the
main industry is the orange ana |
grape fruit culture. / am told that
there are 10000 acres all set and |
in bearing ondition-.vithin
the town limits. They began pick |
ing and packing in December and |
say it will take till the last of May
70 harvest the crop. 1t is all piece |
work. The man who picks fruit, gets |
seven cents box for tan
yerines, five cents for oranges
and 2 cents for grape fruit When
hey are kept supplied with empty
boxes they can pick so to so boxes
If oranges and rs to 100 boxes of
grape fruit day. The fruit is
LII dumped into large watts of water
md by endless chains is carried past
| row of women who throw out all
fruit as it goes by them.
The good fruit keeps on till it finds
| hole in the carrier to fit it's size
t then drops out and down to a row
IF bins for each size of fruit and
here are stationed men who do
nothing but wrap and pack, aver
lging in number and price per box
anne as the pickeTs.
There are three factories in town
md their combined output is As car
Dads per week and 800 boxes per
ar. The three factories employ
bout 14J hands, all white people,
md no bare-hand is supposed to
ouch the fruit either in rickira or
,acking till it reaches the country
tore. In the larger factory one
nan makes most of the boxes after