The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1913-11-21

apt ana eloquent SpedhcT. his duui-
ence was surprised, however, when
he arose and, instead of delivering his
Grafton off-hand, read it from manu-
script. 81 have suffered loss of the
memory of names" was his apology.
He said that 1T is the first falling of
the leaves of memory"
AS | am almost submerged by these
falling leaves, l shall be compelled
to follow the example of this famous
diplomat aid poet.
II is useless for me to say that the
press has always been potent fac
tor, and has had much to do with
shaping the destiny Of the south. I'm
til recent times it was devoted exclus-
lively to the discussion of themes al
most solely political, social and sec.
tional Oftentimes the discussion of
these themes led to great rancor and
bitterness of spirit, and dueling pis-
tolls were almost as much part of
the editorial outfit as pen and scis-
sors.
Our ante-bellum editors, brilliant,
eloquent, dignified, and the very soul
of honor, deemed it outside the pale
of the press to devote their columns
to matters of industrial and CONNER
cial enterprise.
They believed in the English sys-
TEN of large landed estates, and dwelt
upon the theory that this was an agri-
cultural section, and in the provi-
dence of God its destiny was to fur
nish the great white staple to clothe
the world. So they rather .discourag-
ed immigration than otherwise.
All that is now changed. The press
of the south is devoting its energies
to the development of the rich re-
sources of this section along all lines.
The press of Florida is particularly
awake along this line, and its efforts
are bringing forth fruitful results.
With everything conspiring in our IA
vor, a soft, .salubrious climate, a fruit
full. soil and magnificent waterways,
and a press. teeming with its praises,
it is not unnatural that our state is
making greater progress along many
lines than many of the other states
of the Union.
We feel that we are particularly
fortunate in this immediate vicinity.
Blessed as we are in so many ways
we feel that we art not receiving our
full share of the tide of immigration.
We want to be discovered. SO we
are glad to have you with US. We
want you to see with your own eyes
our rich and splendid lands. We want
you to note our elevation. We want
you to see our farms and note the
character of stock and the abundance
of hay and grain. We want you to-
examine our lakes and rivers and
measure with your own eyes the
shortness of the distance from the
Oklawaha to the Withlacoochee riv-
ers and examine the maps that have
recently been completed showing the
easy feasibility of connecting the At
lantic ocean with the Gulf of Mexico
by uniting these rivers by canal De
want you to examine our lime, phos-
phate, turpentine and lumber indus
tries.
An eminent author has said that
lime is the very basis of civilization.
Its practical and scientific applica-
ton to the soil of Egypt and China
kept their soils in a high state of fe-
cundity through the centuries with
out the use of commercial fertilizers,
We have lime deposits enough to sup
ply the world for perhaps hundreds OF
years. We want you to familiarize
yourselves with these things so you
may help discover us to the world.
We all recognize the fact that the
press is powerful and potent, but we
fear that it is gift horse that is
being ridden too freely" We are so
interested in the general welfare that
we often lose sight of our own.
We want the Cost Congress" to
change this. The larger the receipts
in the business office the more potent
for the general veal the newspaper
may become and we sincerely hope
that this congress will help in this
direction.
We trust that it will fulfill in a
large measure the sanguine anticipa-
tons of Mr.. Harry Brown and that
| the next time We meet we shall be
able to return to our homes in auto
! mobiles.
J Mr.. r. W. Storrs, editor OF the De-
Funak Breeze, responded to Mr.. Har-
ris' address His speech was inter
4 nnfirnIV i'm