The Pensacola journal., 1914-12-28
PAST YEAR At
GRAND RIDGE
THERE HAVE BEEN SOME DIS
APPOINTMENTS, BUT EVERY
ONE is HAPPY AND. HOPEFUL
FOR A GOOD AND PROSPEROUS
1915-FARMING DEVELOPMENTS
ARE GOING ON.
SPECIAL TO THE JOURNAL.

| Grand Ridge, Dec. 27.-The year 1914
health, has come a season of great
disappointment. Spling opened with
unusual promise and good weather con-
| ditions. Spring work was early, and
! crops giving great promise. Early i'll
! May dry weather set in and corn, oats
! and melons, began to wilt and shrivel,
| and ca hcbecame comparative fail
| ure. Cotton held up, and good
! average, of good grade, was gathered.
! Sugar cane acreage had been reduced
owing to the expected tow prices. Hog
cholera had decimated their numbers,
! so that peanut fields have gone a beg
ging. The unexpected freeze of No
Vember caused much of the syrup 20
be graded frosted and no cash mar
ket for cotton at any price has put
upon this section the hardest times of
the past quarter of a century. We
have just passed through the coldest
wave" and longest continued of any
December in many years past.
Our public school is fuller than any
former season, with three rooms, and
three efficient teachers. In addition to
the regular studies literary society
has been formed, and an exhibition was
gwen Oh uSSudy d4IGEnOOn WHICH was !
largely attended, and greatly enjoyed.
At the close, the three teachers sur
prised the pupils, and their parents,
by giving great treat of apples and
oranges.
On Thursday evening last Miss Mar !
tha Conely of Mariana, gave par
Ior recital by her music class, at the
home of Judge and Mrs. Porter that
was exquisite in its conception, and |
most delightful in it's execution. The |
music was high class, too high for |!
your correspondent vocabulary. The |
house was tastefully decorated, the |
color scheme being green and white.
Grand Ridge stands at the head of |
the class of Jackson county in music /
and elocution, the result of the best
teachers for years past, notably Miss
Martha ConeIy, of Mariana, who has
taught three seasons; and Miss Effe
Forester of Cairo, Ga, who has taught
the same length of time.
A great program was presented
Christmas night at the Presbyterian
church. For twenty-five consecutive
years-without a single miss-thiS |
church, and Sunday school, has given
a delightful program, and = bounteous
treat of candies, nuts, apples and
oranges, and this Christmas was no
exception for cards, and books, and
reward medals exceeded all past times.
This church edif1ce has recently been
rebuilt, it's capacity increased nearly
three fold, and for Sunday school, and
public entertainments, is not surpassed
in West Florida. The school has an
enrolment Of about a hundred, and
doing good work.
About fourteen hundred barrels of
syrup have been shipped from here this
season by one shipper.
Farmers have began p1owing for
spring crops and very heavy amount
Of vegetable matter is being turned
under The three-horse disk plows are
coming into use, by which a depth
Of twelve to sixteen inches is made,
and an amount of grass is turned un-
Ter, that could not be done with any
common plow.
Twenty-Five years ago, before Grand
Ridge was started, the plowing was
much of it done by the single OK,
md the 'scuter'' ploW, and the surface
burned clean of all former growths,
md the results are that full three times
Us much of all crops are grown on
he same area. One field within one d
nile Of our depot Of near twenty acres r
rielded more than a bale to the acre f
his season. Grand Ridge has the
ongest mileage of good hard-surface :
oads, in this county, most of them I
icing on section lines.
Burning of stumps is the order now, | .
nd a field with stumps is now as
are as a clear field twenty years ago. >,
All in all we are on the map, and =
will close the year thankfully, and -
nter the new year hopefully. .