FLORIDA. 



349 



FLORIDA. State Government. The fpllowing 

 were the State officers during the year: Gov- 

 ernor, Edward A. Perry, Democrat; Lieuten- 

 ant-Governor, Milton H. Mabry; Secretary of 

 State, John L. Crawford ; Comptroller, Will- 

 iam D.Barnes; Treasurer, Edward S. Grill; 

 Attorney-General, C. M. Cooper ; Superintend- 

 ent of Public Instruction, Albert J. Russell ; 

 Commissioner of Lands and Immigration, C. 

 L. Mitchell. Supreme Court: Chief-Justice, 

 George G. McWhorter; Associate Justices, G. 

 P. Raney and R. B. Van Valkenburgh. 



Financial. The assessed value of property in 

 1885 was $70,667,458; general revenue tax, 

 $237,816.53 ; school-fund tax, $70,823.69; total 

 gross tax, $308,640.22 ; net tax, after deduct- 

 ing insolvencies, etc., $277,770.64; license- 

 taxes, $132,350.58 ; county tax proper, $292,- 

 817.11; county school, $233,566.48; county 

 road, $60,784.11; county special, $86,920.52; 

 total for county purposes, $674,088.22. In 

 1880 the assessment-roll showed the value of 

 the taxable property to be $31,157,846 ; in 1881, 

 it was $36,243,543; in 1882. $45,285,977; in 

 1883, $55,249,311 ; in 1884, $60,042,655 ; and in 

 1885, $70,667,458, being an increase of about 

 $40,000,000 in five years, of 100 per cent, in 

 four years, and $10,000,000 in one year. 



The bonded debt is, 7 per cent, bonds of 

 1871, $350,000; 6 per cent, bonds of 1873, 

 $925,000. Total, $1,275,000. Deduct bonds 

 of 1871 and 1873 in sinking-funds, $207,600. 

 Outstanding, $1,067,400, of which $594,700 

 are held in the different educational funds of 

 the State. 



The following taxes were collected from de- 

 faulting railroad companies: Florida Railway 

 and Navigation Company, State taxes, $67,- 

 368.49, and county taxes, $122,705.12; Jack- 

 sonville, Tampa, and Key West, State taxes, 

 $1,320, and county taxes, $2,835; Pensacola 

 and Atlantic, State taxes, $1,600, and county 

 taxes, $1,753. 



Education, The number of public schools in 

 operation for the year ending Sept. 30, 1885, was 

 l,724,an increase of 220 for the year. The num- 

 ber of total school attendance for the year end- 

 ing Sept. 30, 1885, was 62,327, an increase of 

 4,016 in the total attendence of pupils for the 

 year. The reports of the county superintendents 

 of amounts taxed the counties showtli at, togeth- 

 er with the State tax of one mill, and the com- 

 mon school fund, there was raised and expended 

 for public schools alone, outside of the semina- 

 ries, normal schools, and State College, $335,000 

 making a per capita cost of education for all 

 the school-children of lawful age of $5.01, and 

 a cost of $5.37 for each child enrolled, and a 

 cost of $7.35 for each child in daily average at- 

 tendance upon the schools. 



The Institution for the Education of the Blind 

 and the Deaf and Dumb Children of the State is 

 open to all between the ages of nine and twen- 

 ty-one years, and has excellent teachers. But 

 as yet it has seemed impossible to move the 

 parents of these unfortunate persons to send 



them to this school, and there are now in at- 

 tendance but eleven pupils. 



There was organized a normal school at 

 Tallahassee for the instruction of colored teach- 

 ers, continuing two months, at which there 

 were forty-six teachers in attendance. There 

 was also organized a similar school at Gaines- 

 ville, having in attendance fifty-three students. 

 The Superintendent complains of the small at- 

 tendance at these normal schools, and ques- 

 tions the policy of continuing the appropria- 

 tions. 



The East and West Florida Seminaries are 

 in successful operation, doing excellent work 

 in both a literary and normal course of instruc- 

 tion. 



The State Agricultural College, at Lake City, 

 is prepared for the reception and instruction 

 of students. During 1884-'85 the Superintend- 

 ent held public meetings at important points 

 in twenty-two of the counties of the State, and 

 addressed the people upon the subject of popu- 

 lar education, and conducted teachers' insti- 

 tutes in sixteen of these counties, holding them 

 in session one and two weeks. Four hundred 

 and ninety-seven teachers were brought under 

 the influence of these institutes. 



Political. On the 2d of November two mem- 

 bers of Congress and members of the Legisla- 

 ture were chosen. The Democratic candi- 

 dates for Congress, Robert H. M. Davidson, 

 First District, and Charles Dougherty, Second 

 District, were elected. The vote was as fol- 

 lows: First District, Democratic, 14,493; Re- 

 publican, 7,392. Second District, Democratic, 

 18,890; Republicans, 15,762. 



The following is the composition of the Leg- 

 islature: Senate, Democrats, 24; Republicans, 

 5 ; Independent Democrats, 2 ; Independent, 1 ; 

 total, 32. Democratic majority over all, 16; 

 House, Democrats, 55 ; Republicans, 13 ; Inde- 

 pendent Republican, 1 ; Independent Demo- 

 crats, 4; Independents, 3; total, 76. Demo- 

 cratic majority over all, 34. Democratic major- 

 ity over all on joint ballot, 50. It is thought 

 the Independent Democrats and Independents 

 will work with the Democrats. 



At the same time the new Constitution was 

 ratified by a vote of 31,803 for, to 21,243 

 against. Article XIX, separately submitted, 

 was ratified by a vote of 29,931 for, to 12,902 

 against. The next session of the Legislature 

 will convene on the first Tuesday after the 

 first Monday in April, 1887. 



Censns Statistics. The following are the re- 

 turns of the census of 1885 relative to farms: 

 Acres of land improved, 739,752 ; acres of 

 land unimproved, 2,245,171 ; value of farms, 

 including land, fences, and buildings, $60,884,- 

 392; value of live-stock, $7,779,064; number, 

 of horses, 11,843; of mules and asses, 7,704; 

 of neat-cattle, 577,566 ; gallons of milk sold in 

 1884, 82,905; pounds of butter made on farms 

 in 1884, 373,370; number of sheep, 100,662; 

 pounds of wool, spring clip, 193,558 ; number of 

 swine, 190,442 ; of poultry, 480,225 ; dozens of 



