Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1926-01-13
CORRESPONDENTS.
A Little About Florida.
Ocala, Fla, Dec. 26, 1925.

.JdchSOuNIll 10 Tic main SatCWoy
of Florida. 1t is rapidly growing in
population. We passed through
there on our way down State, but did
not have timo enough in the city to
give it a fair description.
We kept on to Summerield,
where we found some friends, and
there made our headquarters for ten
days We pitched our tent on the
front lawn. with the permission OF
the owner Of the land, and proceeded
to get settled, and acquainted with
the southeners. And soon everybody
seemed to be doing their hospitable
bit for our entertainments and com
fort Every day we went 10 some
new section, and one can see much
of Florida in ten days with good
company and good car.
Scenery is in the northern states.
Florida is low land, and the south
ern portion stretches away for miles
and miles of level country There
are fine trees. many groves, large
and small. These are the pitch pines
that they tap for the turpentine and
pitch. The life of these trees is
about three or four years, andfheh
they heal over their great scars Flor
ida is sacrificing hundreds OF young
pines. Turpentine camps manu-
facture and distribute the valuable
product, and it is an industry all
through the northern section or
Florida.
October in Florida is like our late
summer. There are fields Of beauti-
full tall grasses with heavy plumed
heads Along the roadways are wild
berries and abundance OF wild
flower blossoms of many shades.
There are tall palms of many kinds
date. cocoanut, cabbage, many of
the kind that we have our palm leaf
fans made from, and still other
kinds as one goes farther south.
There are cabins and little old
wood eolored houses all through the
rural districts of the state, mostly oc-
cuDied by negroes. They don't look
very inviting. butt the inmates man
age to exist, and many little
pickaninnies l saw on their way TO
school. There are miles of orange
groves, with oranges from green TO
bright yellow in color, grapefrults
and lemons, tangerines, grape vlne-
wards. pecan nut trees, and many
useful and ornamental trees.
Many yards are filled with bright
flowers. and rose bushes that bios
som all through our winter months.
However. many homes have no
flowers or green lawns. Sand and
sunshine seem to have dried up
everything in these places, and they
look gray and uninviting.
While in Summerfeld, we met
some southern farmers, and they IN
vited us to visit their fruit farms.
One farm has seventy-five varieties
of fruit. Many of these were out of
season, but there were loads OF
grapefruits, oranges. tangerines, and
| saw lemons as large as the largest
grapefruit, papaws, that Just melt
in ones mouth, perslmmons, natlVe
and Japanese. | couldn't describe
the luscious flavor of this fruit, but
I wished we camped in that portion
of the farmers orchard.
Then there were guavas, a pc
culiar-favored fruit. When L ate
this fruit with relish, the farmer re-
marked. in his southern way: You
all shure will make a good cracker.
This is the name applied to real
native. | told him if liking all
kinds of fruit made one good
cracker, that | thought | was born
that way. This farm borders on
beautiful lake, Lake Weir In the
lake is large island that has re-
Gently sold for $4,000. Orange
groves on this island are to be re-
placed with winter homes, and
bridge built to the main land. Much
of the soil in the northern portion
sof the state is called hummOck land,
and grows fine crops of vegetables
and fruits, Acres are planted to
peanuts, and here the farmers turn
in their hogs to fatten for market.
The native pork has a flavor all it's
own, and the natives eat their own
Jproduct. Beef comes next. Cows
1vam all over the state, and many
niss You see them all along the
Dixie highways. Occasionally there
is a dead piggie that had at
temnted to cross the road at the
wrong time. l saw the carcasses of
two young cows that had evidently
been victims of the auto. However,
these accidents are very few now,
for even the animals have become
accustomed to the steady stream OF
cars that never seem to end.
The buzzards are the scavengers
of the South, as our gulls are in
the North, and no dead body lasts
long after their sharp eyes have dis
covered it.
Just now Florida is experiencing
her winter It's like our early fall
days, without our colorful scenery.
Things are gray, with here and
there a patch of green grass, or
garden of NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.,
celery, beets, turnips, carrots and
some green peas, are now in market.
The new green leaves are just begin
ming to show. Prices are as high as
in the North.
Oysters are plentiful and OF good
n,,.s1,<v hut mt Ie1a 0YDenESiV0 than