The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-01-02
A COMPARISON OF NORTH AMER
ICAN EXTREMES

sition that made life for him about
as smooth as a rat-tail file The only
things he believed in was work and
socialism, and he didn't know which
to blame for the other This was up
/ in Canada.
Just because his neigAbors told
him not TO, he invested in farm in
Florida. The neighbors gathered to
see him off and the LAST thing Bill
heard vas their haw-haWs.
! met Bill yesterday in Ocala. Bill
led me off to a corner and endeavor-
ed to force one of his cigars on me.
(but don't smoke, and tod ne all
about it.
His farm is down in tn southern
part OF Marion county. not lar from
the Oklawaha river. He hired a rig
and drove out to his land. After gaz-
| ing a while. he tried to pick q fight
with the driver for bringing MIN TO
the wrong place. The land was fiat,
of rich. black loan, and apparently
was capable OF growing anything.
Bill said he sat down on rock and
looked and looked. and then he re
membered that it was 20 degrees be
low zero about that tine back home,
and the only things that We're growing
were snow drifts and the fuel biz
Right there his pessimism began to
slip. Bill started in right away. He
had figured on a crop OF potatoes, or
! something, and the driver was talk
! inc about four crops from the land in
one year-and Bill got excited.
To make q long story shory, Bill
kicked his pessimism in the ribs, in.
vested in some real farm machinery.
got a lot OF advice from his neighbors
and the railroad land department, and
! began trucking You couldn't buy
Eius farm for 5000 an acre right
now although he paid only $40 He
has q bank account, gained - pounds
OF flesh. and can shake hands with
la banker, without squirming.
The trouble with me-" said Bill,
was lack OF ambition. One crop a
year with my farm. and | always knew
just about what was going 70 make.
Didn't have any ambition. Down here
I don't know whether l will make
/ $1,000 or $1,000 in year. That is, |
know | will make the last i: / work
right. and that means l am going TO
put every ounce OF work and brains
and hope l can get right into my
farm
Florida has gained 10 per cent. in
population in the last ten years Why?
Because the railroads and the state
agricultural department have demon
strated that Florida lands and Florida
climate are just naturally the finest
agricultural combination in the world
/ Florida, at one time. was consider.
able swamp. Part OF it still is, al
| though even that part some day will
be the finest farm lands obtainable
The swamps have been depositing de-
cayed organic matter and vegetable
matter for hundreds of years, and
when the water is drained. the newly
uncovered land is going to be reve-
! lation. However, there is no use in
! figuring on that now unless you hap
pen to have a million 10 invest in a
drainage system and make possible
| the cultivation OF a tract of muck
lands along the rivers of Florida or,
may find some owner of reclaimed
muck land willing TO sell or colonize.
IN neither event, there are thousands
of acres of land that are free from
water, and crying aloud for settlers
and seed. If you buy land by mail,
you may or may not get what you ex-
pect.
What the men and the railroads
and the great land companies that
are doing the real and very wonder
full development in Florida want is an
opportunity of showing the land.
That's about all they ask The land
viii do the rest, without any aid from
/ salesmanship.
There are great sections OF this
land all along the west coast, near
Ocala, Tampa-and Miami, on the east
/ coast There are the Indian river,
/ the Oklawaha river and the Suwan-
nee river districts, the Oklawaha Riv-
or Farms and the F4llsmere Farms
district, and the Dade City district
These lands need settlers, and the
settlers need them. Millions of dol,
| lars are being spent to make the lands
and the nearby towns as near per-
lection for the home-seeker as they
can be brought.
There is little necessity to talk
about Florida winter weather. The