CHAPTER VIII 
THE SOUTH-EASTERN STATES 
The inhabitants of the south-eastern States, which I shall 
endeavour to describe in this chapter, form, in many respects, 
a great contrast to those of the continental basin. The greater 
humidity of the Atlantic States produces that characteristic 
wealth and profusion in floral life which constitutes so at¬ 
tractive a feature as we approach the ocean from the west. 
And no one can fail being struck by the change in vegetation 
even in travelling southward through the Atlantic States from 
the north. The oaks, chestnuts and hickories become more 
varied, evergreens of all kinds increase in number, new and 
magnificent magnolias make their appearance, while vines 
and creepers mingle their foliage with that of shrubs and 
trees. The splendid white pine of the north is replaced in 
the south by the long-leaved yellow pine, whose hard, strong 
and durable wood serves such a wide range of uses. We also 
notice an entirely new conifer, the cypress, which, like the 
tamarack, sheds its leaves in the autumn. Further south in 
Florida, still greater changes await us, and in the extreme 
tip of that peninsula we are surrounded by tropical vegeta¬ 
tion. Low fan palms and the palmetto grow even further 
north, but here we meet for the first time with the royal palm, 
which for height and grace of shape is unequalled, and many 
other characteristic denizens of the tropics. Indeed, as Mr. 
Brendel * points out, the flora of southern Florida should not 
be looked upon as part of the North American flora but as a 
link between it and that of the West Indies. Over two hundred 
and thirty species of plants do not extend north of Tampa, 
whereas southern Florida has one hundred and eighty seven 
in common with the West Indian Islands. 
This affinity between the floras of southern Florida and 
* Brendel, F., “ Notes on the Flora of Florida,” p. 449. 
