THE VALUE OF ORANGE GROVES. 21 



Who has not heard of the famous * ' Big Tree " of Flor- 

 ida, which oftentimes has ten thousand oranges at once; 

 oranges so fine that they have sold for two dollars and 

 forty cents per hundred, thus netting from this one tree 

 two hundred and forty dollars in one season? It seems 

 incredible, does it not? Yet it is strictly true; and 

 not only so, but this tree is only one fiftieth part of a 

 grove, where each individual tree seems to take a pride in 

 bringing to its fortunate owner an annual offering of from 

 two to five thousand oranges. This famous "Big Tree" 

 stands apart from the rest in solitary grandeur, and is a 

 glorious sight, whether clad in its every-day uniform of 

 green, or dotted all over with its fragrant white blossoms, 

 or laden with golden fruit. Note the fact that it is of the 

 same age as the rest of the grove, was budded with them, 

 and has received the same treatment, but it stands alone. 

 We shall have more to say in this connection by and by. 



So now we have seen what one poor ignorant soldier did, 

 in a careless, hap-hazard way ; he might have done much 

 more had he known all that we know nowadays. 



John Eaton died, but his trees lived on and prospered, 

 and their fame at last reached the ears of a relative of his, 

 then living in Canada, and he came to Florida to try to 

 claim the estate, but we believe he failed. The story he 

 told of the events that led him here may well seem to 

 " point a moral and adorn a tale" in the wonderful con- 

 trast between the work of the pioneer of the North and 

 him of Florida. 



Ten years before Eaton settled in Florida the father of 

 the gentleman alluded to settled in the wilds of Canada. 

 For thirty years he toiled and endured hardships and priva- 

 tions, and by that time he had cleared and brought under 

 cultivation one hundred acres of land. But all the time 

 he was working, the climate was working too; it killed 



