The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1919-05-03

EDITOR Courier and Freeman;
This is not a valentine, but a few
,,,os IN relation to our trip down to
~. sunkissed land of flowers, and
,,scribing the section of the State
:, Florida through which we are tour
ing.
Mrs Ives and myself left Potsdam
~ Tuesday the 4th inst. with our
BAGGAGE checked for Jacksonville,
Florida. We made the trip by easy
stages all by daylight, stopping over
night at Albany, New York, Washing
.or D c.. and Hamlet, N. c., arriving
i Jacksonville about 10 p. m. on
tbe 9TH inst. We enjoyed the journey
much better than the old sleeping
cor method of travelling. We stopped
Of Jacksonville until Monday the
11th leaving for Lakeland, Fla.
II has been my fortune to have Wis
tied nearly all the towns and villages
IN the East Coast of this state but
tbis is my first inspection of the cities
and villages on the West Coast. We
stonped over one day at Lakeland
eynecting to meet some of our North
ern friends there Lakeland city is
bv far the most complete and beauti-
FIJI city we have ever visited in Flor
ida or any other state for that mat
fer. The city, which has been built
during the past Is years and gives
one the impression of its having been
built on contract and just completed
and accepted The city is the center
of large section or rather township
of fine orange growing lands, mostly
devoted to grapefruit. Of course
they claim to raise the finest grape
fruit in the world. However, be that
as it may We are prepared to state
that their claim is at least half right.
The name of Lakeland applied to this
section Of the state of Florida, seems
to the writer to be to some extent a
misnomer. A better and more oppro-
pirate name in our judgment would
be Pondland. There are about 500
small bodies Of water within its encir.
cling boundaries with but few if any
one of them containing enough water
to have earned the right to be called
a Lake. It would seem to the writer
that after one had run around the
most of them three or four times and
getting we'll warmed up and thirsty
that he could turn around and lie
down and drink them all up and get
up and sing "How Dry | Am"
The climate on the west coast OF
Florida is far and away ahead of the
East Coast, doubtless due to the fact
that the prevailing winds come di
rectly from the Gulf of Mexico ant
for that reason they are not charged
with that malarial odor which they
acquire after sweeping over the low
swamps of Florida Surely this sec
ton of the state is blessed with thu
most delightful climate-not too no
but just about hot enough.
We left Lakewood on the morning
of the 18th for Fort Myers, about 1O|
miles south of Lakeland One would
be slow to believe the marked
change In the climate in that shor
distance for as matter of fact tn,
frost line is crossed on the way dow
and as We reach Myers we also reacl
the home of the royal palm an adven
from sub-tropical to a tropical eli
mate, and yet even in the good oil
summer time the thermometer wa
never known to register higher thai
IS in the shade. We beat that rat
to standstill in our cold Nortl
country.
On our way down from Lakelan
to Fort Myers | had a very funny e1
perience On the morning OF tn
18th at $3.50 a. M, We proceeded o.
our journey to our destination at Fl
Myers, expecting to get space on
Pullman sleeper coming from Jaci
sonville. On applying to the sleepin
car conductor for space, we were toll
that he had large party on boar
who had chartered nearly all OF tn
car, but he thought he could squeez
US in somewhere, which he did late
While waiting for the train to star
to pass away the time I marched u
and down the platform. Present.
an old gentleman came out OF IN
Pullman and joined me in my tram
He seemed about my age and it wa
not long before we were visiting U
gether as though We had Known eac
other for years. After while h