FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
143 
In a county where there is practically 
nothing but citrus culture; the $1,500,000 
sold at a premium, and the second bond 
issue, or second mortgage you might call 
it, of $325,000, sold at a premium of 
$10,075.00. That proves that there must 
be some value to citrus lands. 
I stated to you at Jacksonville at the 
hearing there, that I believed on a seven- 
year-old bearing grove, or older, it would 
be extremely conservative to put a valu¬ 
ation of $300.00 per acre on it for pur¬ 
poses of loaning money. I base that val¬ 
uation first of all upon the enormous 
profits which result from the business 
when the trees are not injured, and upon 
the limited area in the United States upon 
which citrus fruits can be raised. 
I offered a man across the fence from 
me, $11,000 for twenty-two acres of 
land, twelve acres in six-year-old bearing 
trees, the other ten acres not planted. We 
came very near trading but not quite. 
Now, if every tree on that place were 
killed tonight, I would be glad to give him 
$300.00 an acre for the twenty-two acres, 
the trees killed to the ground, because I 
would think I was getting a bargain. 
I want to allude to one more thing; 
that is, the people who live in Florida, the 
people who are supposed to know the 
actual value of real estate, have in the last 
few years taxed themselves to build $14,- 
000,000 worth of roads in this state. That 
must add to the productivity of this land, 
at least so far as net profits are concerned, 
because these roads will lessen the cost 
of hauling, it adds to the facility with 
which people can get their farm products 
to a market or shipping point. 
These $14,000,000 expended to the bet¬ 
terment of the state, must increase the 
intrinsic value of the lands of the state, 
and I believe it will be perfectly safe for 
the Farm Loan Bank to act on the as¬ 
sumption that citrus grove properties are 
among the most profitable agricultural 
or horticultural businesses in the world. 
(Applause.) 
Mr. Hume: When the district in which 
we are included under the Farm Loan 
Act was made up, the Bank was located 
in a South Carolina city, but they came to 
Florida for the president of the Bank. 
I am now going to introduce to you, 
Mr. Von Engelkin, the president of the 
Farm Loan Bank at Columbia, South 
Carolina. (Applause.) 
Mr. Von Engelkin: Mr. Chairman, 
ladies and gentlemen: If that is an in¬ 
vitation for a speech, it is going to meet 
with failure. I hope you are glad to see 
me now, and that you will be glad to see 
me a year or two from now. (Laughter.) 
We have come down here for you to 
help us to arrive at a determination as to 
what shall be done in a matter in which 
you and we are vitally interested; that is, 
to determine a valuation that will be safe 
and secure. Naturally, this being my own 
state, it is a matter of the deepest concern 
to me, and you may, of course, rely upon 
me to do everything possible to meet the 
situation as fairly and amply as it is pos¬ 
sible to do. 
It was at my suggestion and invitation 
that Captain Smith of the Farm Loan 
Bank has come down here. We felt in 
Columbia we might need the counsel of 
our superior officers in this situation, and 
I hope before we leave we may get from 
you gentlemen your frank and honest 
