FLORIDA. 



313 



post of the United States, and has considerable trade. The Tortngas are a cluster of Keys 

 on the extreme west of this chain. 



5. Harbors and Shores. The sea along both shores is for the most part shallow, but pre- 

 sents some good harbors and fine bays. On the Atlantic coast there are harbors at the mouths 

 of St. Mary's and St. John's rivers, and at St. Augustine. On the western side are Char- 

 lotte, Tampa, Appalachicola, Jlppalachee, Choctawhatchce, St. Jlndrew''s, and Pensacola Bays. 

 Surveys have been made for the purpose of ascertaming the practicability of constructing a 

 canal across the peninsula, which show the level of the waters of the gulf to be above that of 

 the ocean. 



6. Climate. There is little diversity of climate in Florida, although tlie northern belt, bor- 

 dering on Alabama and Georgia, is less decidedly tropical in its character thar. the peninsular 

 portion. Water never freezes, and even in the winter months, or rainy season, the heat of 

 the sun is oppressive. Except in the vicinity of marshy tracts, the air is in general pure ?nd 

 healthy, though in some parts humid. 



7. Soil. The soil maybe described in general as poor, but there are many favorable ex 

 ceptions. There is much swampy and marshy land, but the pine barrens constitute a great 

 part of the country. The hummock land, so called because it rises in small mounds among 

 the pines, has a good soil. 



8. Vegetable Productions. The warmth and humidity of the climate compensate for the 

 poverty of the soil, and give to Florida a vegetation of great variety and luxuriance ; its forest 

 trees rise to a great height, and its flowering shrubs are remarkable for their brilliancy. The 

 northern and central parts are covered with a dense forest, in which pine prevails ; but the 

 palms, cedar, chestnut, and live oak, attain an extraordinary size. The magnolia, so much ad- 

 mired for its beauty, the cypress, the pawpaw, with its green foliage and rich-looking fruit, the 

 shady dogwood, the titi, with its beautiful blossoms, &c., are found here. The low savannas 

 are covered with wild grass and flowers of prodigious growth, and the cane in the swamps is 

 of great height and thickness. 



9. Springs. These form a remarkable peculiarity in the natural phenomena of the country. 

 They exist in great numbers all over the territory, and burst out from the earth in large col- 

 umns of water, remarkably transparent ; this bubbles up from so great a depth, as to lead to a 

 general belief, that there is a prodigious cavern beneath the surface of the whole country, with 

 openings in the rock above it, through which these fountains are discharged. The most re- 

 markable of these springs is the Wakulla Fountain in West Florida, 12 miles from Talla- 

 hassee. It rushes up from its depths like a cauldron of boiling water, and forms a circular 

 lake, the source of the Wakulla River. The water of this vast fountain has a bluish tinge, and 

 is almost as trans])arent as air ; it has been sounded with a line of 2.50 fathoms before the bot- 

 tom was found. It is of an icy coldness, even in the hottest of summer. A person floating 

 in a skiff on the surface of this pellucid spring, which reflects the hues of the sky with inde- 

 scribable softness, appears to himself suspended between two heavens. On Musquito River, is 

 a warm mineral spring, which forms a large basin in which boats may float. The water is 

 slightly sulphureous, but clear, and abounding in fish. 



10. Face of the Country. The country in general is flat, but in some districts is undulating 

 and in some places hilly. The elevation of the ridges or table-land, between the rivers, does 

 not exceed from 200 to 250 feet. 



POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY 



1 . Divisions. By the Spaniards, Florida was divided into East and West Florida, sepa- 

 rated by the river Appalachicola. These names are retained in common use, though the polit- 

 ical division has ceased to exist. The territory is now divided into 21 counties,* with a popu- 

 lation of 50,000. 



* Escambia 

 Jackson 

 Walton 

 Washington 

 Franklin 

 Calhoun 



Gadsden 



Hamilton 



Jefferson 



Leon 



Fayette 



40 



Columbia 



Madison 



Alachua 



Duvall 



Hillsboro' 



Mosquito 

 Nassau 

 St. John's 

 Monroe 

 Dade 



