The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1913-06-13

of Georgia and Florida. When once
drained they are dry, mellow and fer
tile. For years, if ever at all, no fer
tilization will be necessary, and no
fears need be entertained as to over
flows or to an excess of water, except
perhaps at certain seasons of the
year from natural fainfall
A noted engineer, in writing of Hol-
land says: The land of Holland, COW
ering about 1900 square miles of
area, is susceptible for nearly two
thirds of this to oyerf1ows, either from
the sea or from the rivers, Rhine or
Mas, during their high states, the
lower part of the Rhine being given
in Holland the names of WAL, LEX
and Yssel The western anda central
northern part of Holland is generally
below sea level, in some instances as
much as fifteen feet, notably in the To-
cality known as the Haarlem-Mer-
Meer-PlOder. This stretch of coun-
try below the sea level is separated
from the sea by the sand dunes or
natural sand levees which are from
thirty to sixty feet high, and have
been built up in the course of ages
by the action of ocean waves and by
the winds. These dunes, however,
are not continuous, and in some in
stances have been preached by the
sea rendering possible the overflow
of the lands below sea level Had not
these breaches been closed by the
sea dykes or levees, at the present
time all of these lands, which vary
from sea level down to a depression
of fifteen feet below sea level, are sur
rounded and protected either by natu
raj sand dunes or by artificially built
sea dykes This describes in general
terms that part of Holland which has
been wrested by the people from the
sea to provide habitation for the
thrifty Dutch"
Holland is a country now noted the
world over for its fine mich COWS, and
for a system of intensive farming that
produces on these lands vastly more
per acre than We are growing on the
alluvial lands of the United States. In
comparing the made-lands of Holland
with the swamp lands of Georgia and
Florida two things should be kept in
mind:
1. The marsh and swamp lands of
Georgia and Florida are nearly all of
them above sea level.
2. The land instead of being most |
ly of sand is rich alluvial deposit |
and ready for cultivation just as soon
as the levees are constructed, the |
water pumped out and the lateral |
bitches provided.
For years the states of Georgia and |
Florida have had many artificially |
drained plantations on which sugar
cane and celery have been grown with |
great profit. Truck gardening has
been an important industry on these |
artificially drained farms. Such lands |
produce from 5000 to $1,000 per acre,
and cannot be bought at any price.
The adjacent unreclaimed swamp |
lands, when properly drained, become
equally fertile, and in time will be
as valuable.
1t is important that the reader of
this letter keep in mind the fact that
the muck lands already referred to
are located within 100 miles of Jack |
sonville, Fla. Some of them are SO
accessible that one can take an auto |
mobile in the heart of the city of |
Ocala, and within one hour, over
a good hard road the entire distance, |
reach one of the large prairie marsh
es now being dyked and drained, not !
an acre of which is on the market for
sale. Four hundred acres of which
is in cultivation principally in celery |
and producing, without fertilizer,
luxuriant growth of every kind of
vegetable, on land that four years ago
was covered with water-now per
fectly dry, mellow and exceedingly
fertile.
1t is not easy for us to appreciate
how so many people can be support
ed on a square mile of territory. In
Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan
and Indiana. only from four to six
families, with an average of seven
to each family, or less than fifty peo-
pie to each square mile would be the
extreme limit while Holland and 9th
er countries dependent upon reclaim
ed swamp lands, support ten times as
many people This is strong testi- !
mony in favor of reclaimed lands. The