The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1914-05-20
AND| IS
MANY ADVANTAGES
MRS. C. A. Cole


to Florida she wrote an article de-
scriptive of the State, its beauties
and advantages, to her old home pa
per in Winterset, Iowa, the letter
being written from Kissimmee. The
Telegram takes pleasure in repro
ducing this splendid article:
Editor Madisonian, Winterset, Iowa:
Dear Sir-The thought came to
me that possibly some of the read
ers of your paper might be interest
ed in what we have seen, and our
impressions of Florida, THE Land
of Sunshine and Flowers.
Our travel has not extended over
any considerable amount of terri
tory. However, we have but recent
ly returned from most interesting
trip along the west coast, so will at
tempt to tell you some things | hope
will be of interest to you all +"
Ever since the days when Ponce
de Leon wandered through this
country seeking the fountain of
perpetual youth" our people have
looked upon Florida as a most de-
lightful place to spend the winter
season. And as winter resort she
stands unchallanged. Last year more
than 100000 winter-driven north
erners were basking in her gentle
climate. The palatial and exclusive
hotels of the fashionable places were
filled with the wealthy class, but a
large portion of the tourists are men
and women of moderate means who
patronize the smaller hotels and pri-
vate boarding houses which every
Florida town provides for the ac-
commodation of the tourist.
To me, coming down here as | did
! from region of snow into land
| of summer, felt almost like | had
come into a steam-heated State, for
| it was more like June than Febru-
airy, there being no sting Of cold.
Warm days there are, Of course, but
those days, tempered by cooling
breezes from ocean and gulf, are sell
dom, if ever, oppressive.
The land, where the first settlers
planted their feet on American soil
is Gods heritage to every man and
woman who can avail themselves of
it's beauties and comforts Florida is
land Of green palms, blue water
white beaches and yellow oranges,
where flowers bloom perpetually, and
where its effect upon human energy
appears to be this-that it is easy to
be lazy and live comfortable. 1t is
a we'll known fact where nature does
SO much, man is rather inclined to
let nature do all it will for him,
and surely she has made Florida a
paradise for the pleasure-seeker
She has entertainments peculiarly her
own. 1t is not the. charm of a long
settled, well-caredfor farming COM
munity, but the charm of the I'M
altered wilderness, the long stretch
of pine forest, the lure of the water,
of the rivers, and palm-lined lakes,
which never loses its attractiveness.
However as a matter of course,
there will be found much variety,
some sections being much more beau
tiful and attractive than others. The
beauty Of the scenery is a source of
never-failing fascination to the
traveller, with its vast reaches of vir-
gin forest, dense with tropical fol-
iage, rubber trees draped with flow
ering ivy, pine and oak trees fes-
TONED with Spanish moss, which,
by the way, is common sight
through Florida. Many streets are
rooted with branches of these giant
oaks, draped with long streamers of
this gray moss, sometimes hanging
from two to three feet below the
branches of the trees, and the effect
is very beautiful.
This scenery is varied by the
tempting truck gardens, which are
yielding carloads of vegetables to
be shipped to the north, and by the
magnificence of the golden fruit pro-
duets of the orange and grapefruit
groves, the trees bending with their
load of ripe fruit.
1t is a common sight to see an or
ange tree laden with blossoms, with
green and golden fruit all at the
same time. During the poisoning
period the travellers approach to an
orange grove is heralded by the de-
licious perfume-laden atmosphere,
To one from the north an orange or
grapefruit tree is a beautiful sight.
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