PINE LANDS AND HAMMOCKS. 95 



this grade of land, and although rated as "second," their 

 quality and productiveness in actual cultivation is little, 

 if any, below that of the first-class. 



Second-class pine land is timbered with a medium size 

 growth of pine trees, with here and there a solitary black 

 oak ; a great many willow oaks, as bushes or small trees, 

 and an occasional clump of palmetto in the lower spots, 

 but elsewhere there is little underbrush. 



These lands are frequently rolling and, like their su- 

 perior grade, interspersed with crystal lakes. 



Many of the finest orange groves in the State are located 

 on the second-class pine lands. The famous Spear grove 

 for one, the Ginn grove for another. 



And now we come to a class of lands much abused and 

 heretofore despised, but like many other things, especially 

 in a new, progressive country", improving on acquaintance. 

 These are the third-class pine or black-jack lands. 



They do look poor and discouraging enough, and unfor- 

 tunately these are the lands that lie along the lines of sev- 

 eral of Florida's main railroads, in full view of the trav- 

 eler, who naturally judges from what he sees rather than 

 from a hidden reality. 



The surface soil is light yellow, sometimes even white ; 

 the wire-grass is short and thin, and often missing alto- 

 gether; the pine trees are stunted in height and their 

 foliage sprawling, often only thirty or forty to the acre, 

 with plenty of crooked, gnarled black-jack oak trees and 

 sprouts, sickly clumps of palmetto, and altogether a tired, 

 out-of-heart, don't-care sort of look. 



This land costs less to clear than any other, and when 

 put under cultivation and the same fertilizers, no more, 

 given to it that are bestowed on the two superior grades, 

 its productiveness is wonderful, and it takes a very close 

 observer to detect much difference in the ultimate results. 



