4- KNOx IHLL CUUiXTRY. 221 



Asplenium Fi'ix-foemina (A fern) VVet woods 



+ Epiphegus Virginiana On roots of beech 



K Pentstcmon hirsutus Rich woods 



+K Triliium Hugeri Sandy viplands 



H Carex debi'.is (A sedge) Wet woods 



^-K Tipularia discolor (An orchid) Rich woods 



K Phlox amoena Dry woods 



K Polygala nana Open woods 



The common short-leaf pine {Piiiiis Taeda, the "loblolly pine'' of the books 

 and of the Marianna red lands, here called "black pine"), the two little cucum- 

 ber trees {Magnolia macropliylla and pyramidata), the tall huckleberry (Vac- 

 cinium virgatuni) , the handsome shrub Stuartia, with flowers looking like those 

 of the dogwood at a little distance, and the grass Danthonia, all seem to be more 

 abundant in one or both of these regions than anywhere else in Florida; but 

 they are all commoner in Alabama. They evidently prefer rather rich soil, but 

 just what element or combination of elements it is that determines their abund- 

 ance cannot be stated, in the absence of analyses. 



The pond cypress, cedar, all hickories, live oak, mulberry, elm, hackberry, 

 poplar, crab-apple, haws, plums and saw palmetto are scarce or absent in the 

 Knox Hill country, though more or less common in neighboring regions. 



In the two regions together about 56% of the trees are evergreens, 25% of 

 the shrubs are Ericaceae, and about 1% of the herbs are Leguminosae. This 

 is a high proportion of Ericaceae and low of Leguminosae for such clayey soils; 

 but the shrubs form a comparatively small part of the vegetation, so that the 

 proportion of Ericaceae to total vegetation is not very high. And if notes could 

 be made in this region in summer and fall the proportion of Leguminosae would 

 doubtless be increased, though such plants are not usually very abundant where 

 there is plenty of humus. 



Economic Feahires — The Knox Hill country, on account of its 

 clayey soils and large proportion of deciduous trees, attracted set- 

 tlers early in the history of Florida, when sandy pine lands were 

 considered almost worthless. A colony of Scotchmen settled there 

 ■n 1823, and Scotch names still predominate in that region and for 

 a considerable distance around it. Up to 1883, when a railroad was 

 huilt through Walton County, this small area probably contained 

 rrost of the inhabitants of the county, and Eucheeanna was the 

 county-seat. It is said that most of the land was under cultivation 

 before the Civil War; but with the drift of population toward more 

 sandy lands, that has been going on throughout the South for the 

 bst few decades, many farms have reverted to forest, and the pro- 

 portion of cleared land at present is probably not over 25 per cent. 

 As nearly as can be estimated from the census returns for the pre- 

 cincts lying in this region, there were about 26 inhabitants to the 

 S(|U3re mile in 19 10. The proportion of white people appears to be 

 larger than in most other parts of northern Florida with equally 

 rich soil, though no statistics on this point are available. 



