AGRICULTURE AND LANDS OP FLORIDA. 
117 
shown by Mr. McIntyre; and his, though good, will 
not rate with some I could show you in this neigh¬ 
borhood. Indeed, I was disappointed throughout 
in the Southdowns I saw everywhere. The Bake- 
wells, unless I may except two or three very fat 
wethers, fell far short of my expectation. The 
Cotswolds, on the other hand, as far exceeded them. 
With greater size than the Bakewell, and a much 
more valuable fleece, they seem to me, and I am 
confident are, animals of much better constitutions ; 
they breed readily and regularly, which the others 
do not; though I presume the Bakewells will fat¬ 
ten at an earlier age. Mr. Sotham, of Albany, had 
a small lot of these beautiful and valuable animals, 
that pleased me exceedingly. At New York I af¬ 
terwards saw a few from the flock of the Messrs. 
Hallock, which showed better keep than Mr. So- 
tham’s, and were consequently much larger, and 
equally fine otherwise. 
At Woodbury, Conn., is another flock of very 
fine animals—that of Mr. Marvin—which he asserts 
are pure Saxony. The wool is beautiful, nicely 
washed, and neatly put up and stowed away, wait¬ 
ing for a higher price. He and his neighbors 
assure me that his flock averages 3£ lbs. per head, 
of well-washed wool. What flock of pure Me¬ 
rinos, producing wool worth fifty cents per pound, 
will yield more, washing the wool clean, so as to 
remove the yolk ? At Lowell I met a number of 
the western Pennsylvania and Virginia growers, 
with their wool for sale ; and in the Messrs. Law¬ 
rence’s store-rooms I saw a number of the clips of 
that year. Much of it is finer than any wool grown 
north <qf them, and was so pronounced by Mr. Law¬ 
rence in my presence. The samples I brought with 
me from Lowell, as also those I took from the 
hacks of the sheep when amongst them, tell the 
same tale, and it is all Saxony-Merino. I cannot 
now specify the flocks west of the mountains; but 
enclose you a few loose samples, the growth of 
western flocks, which you can examine and report 
upon. They have simply been washed on the 
sheep’s backs. Mr. Aaron Clement, of Philadel¬ 
phia, showed me some very superior Southdowns 
and Bakewells, which he had purchased to fill 
orders—which he makes a business of doing; and! 
I know of no one 1 would sooner trust with a com- ; 
mission of the kind. 
Your northern and eastern sheep-masters charge: 
smell prices for their animals as we cannot afford to i 
pay, unless it be for a single ram occasionally. 
The freight and expenses upon stock brought such 
a distance are enormous; which, added to the 
prices asked, will prevent many being sold south 
or west. The breeders in Pennsylvania and .Vir¬ 
ginia have caught the lesson from their eastern 
neighbors, and ask equally exorbitant prices, so 
high that I came home "without buying a hoof. 
They have all got an idea that the demand is going 
to be very great, and that it behooves them to 
charge accordingly. They will spoil their market. 
The inquiry of which is the best breed for this 
latitude, I have discussed at some length in the New 
Orleans Commercial Times, and regret that "want of 
leisure prevents my saying anything more at this 
time. Thomas Affleck. 
Ingleside, Miss.* 2d December, 1845. 
AGRICULTURE AND LANDS OF FLORIDA. 
While so many farmers are emigrating from the 
east to the prairie lands and forests of the West, and 
even to the country whose shores are on the 
Pacific, it may not he unacceptable to many readers 
to know the capabilities of this southern land. 
There-exists a very general impression that Florida 
consists almost entirely of swamps and lowlands, 
the exhalations arising from which are so destruc¬ 
tive to human life as to render the country almost 
unfit for agricultural purposes. There is unques¬ 
tionably much lowland, but very many locations 
can be found where it is high and entirely healthy, 
even in the summer. The river, St. John’s, a wide 
and noble stream for 50 miles, is navigable for 200 
miles from its mouth. For the first 30 or 40 miles, 
the land on its banks is very sandy, and its natural 
growth is pine. Such is the climate, however, that 
even this land is said to be quite productive, and 
will yield very good cotton, sugar, tobacco, and 
com. As you proceed up the river towards Lake 
George and Monroe, the land becomes better, and 
there frequently occur rich hummocks, whose fer¬ 
tility is indicated by heavy growths of the cabbage, 
palm, ash, maple, and wild orangfe trees. These 
lands produce excellent sugar, the canes measuring 
several inches in diameter. At Pilatka, the climate 
is of a decidedly milder character, and orange trees 
which have been seriously injured below-, have 
there entirely escaped the injurious effects of the se¬ 
vere weather of the present season. Immediately 
opposite Pilatka is one of the best orange groves 
in Florida, and 1 can imagine few things more beau¬ 
tiful than this collection of some 500 bearing trees. 
They are planted in rows twenty feet apart, and 
present a regular symmetrical mass of rich, glossy 
foliage. This grove, and those above it, have 
hitherto escaped the ravages of the insect, and the 
fruit produced is said to be of a remarkably rich and 
luscious quality. As the river passes into Lake 
George, there is an island of some 3,000 acres, 
called Drayton, on which are several fine groves, 
from which some 50,000 oranges were sent to mar 
ket the past autumn. This also has thus far 
escaped the ravages of the insect, which has been 
so destructive in St Augustine and other parts of 
the South. 
Lake George is a fine sheet of water, about fifteen 
miles in diameter. The land on its banks is said to 
be of good character, but very little is yet taken up. 
From Lake George to Lake Monroe the river winds 
beautifully among the hummocks, and is fringed 
with the elm, the maple, and the alder, now in full 
leaf and bloom, while an occasional grove of wild 
oranges or clump of palms lend their novel beauty 
to the scene. As evening approaches, the tall 
cypresses become the roosting-place of numerous 
wild turkeys. They are often of great size, and 
are scarcely inferior to the domestic ones. 
Some 30 miles before you reach Lake Monroe, 
the boat passes Beresford Lake, a small sheet of 
water, on which is an old plantation, formerly 
taken up and cultivated by Lord Beresford, but now 
deserted and overgrown. Just beyond this is Blue 
Spring, said to be the gem of Florida. Some 500 
yards back from the river, is a very large spring, 
and a multitude of smaller ones, throwing up to ■ 
