The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1917-01-27

HOW properly named Dy Ine company
its Scenic Highland Branch-eighty
more miles are under construction
and when the road reaches some fine
harbor, perhaps Naples, far south in
Florida. this is bound to be an i'm
portant route to Cuba and Central and
South American states.
The Atlc-.tic coast line points with
pride to its safety record. In three
years. from July l, 1913, to June 30
1916, it carried 24,607,34 passengers
over its various lines, and uring that
time not a passenger riding ON any
one of its trains lost his or her life
from an accident, a collision, a run
off. or to the imperfection of its road
way or equipment.
From Cincinnati south the Queen
and Crescent and the Louisville and
Nashville take all the travel. Prob.
ably the time is not far distant when
the Atlantic Coast Line, by the con.
struction of short gap between
Perry and Monticello in Florida, with
out going TO Jacksonville, and with
the development of the region along
the Gulf of Mexico it will become very
attractive 10 winter tourists as a
splendid resort district, with Tampa
as its leading city
Stronger than ever is the convic-
ton that the development and pro
gress of the South, durin gthe next
balf century, is to be something won
derful, and Florida, as it garden land
and fruit land, cannot fail to grow in
population, and wealth and prosperi-
ty. Not only the North, but the peo-
pie of the whole world, are begin
ming to see that the South is the most
promising portion of the earth. Its
climate, its short winters, its great
variety products, are controlling eco
nomic factors.
What we already see is that the
South can supply the greater portion
of the worlds cotton and feed itself
at the same time. The war will end
this year. and wJ.i4 conditions will
make the opportunities of the South
greater than those of any other large
area of the western hemisphere.
1t is already beginning to dawn up
on the minds of intelligent people
everywhere that both America and
Europe will have to look to the South
more than they ever have done in the
past for the material needed in their
industries.
Roger Babson. widely known as the
head of a bureau of information in
Massachusetts, which is world fam.
Gus for its statistical inquiries and
conclusions, in a recent letter on the
business situation discusses the pros
rerity outlook after the war in Eu-
rope is over, and referring to our
southern states says:
Watch the South in particular, for
not only are the cotton states improv-
ing now, but they will probably be
the most prosperous after the war
ends"
Observation convinces one that the
South has entered upon a career OF
amazing prosperity. Conditions are
causing many eyes to look this way
as they see a great and prosperous
future reflected in the economic ad-
vantages of tn eclimate, the products,
and the markets that are open and
available for this section of our COM
mon country.
An acre of land in this superb fruit
region will furnish a carload of or
anges or grapefruit, for the production
of which it is specially adapted.
Thousands of acres are being planted
and cultivated with scientific care.
Increasing railroad traffic, an expan-
sion of general business, rapidly en-
larging factories, greater farm pro-
duction, and the development Of hith.
erto latent possibilities indicate with
inerrant certainty wonderful future
| for the South.