24 
FLORIDA STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY 
stock raiser, and we are going to widely 
and loudly proclaim the merits and the 
rewards of the calling which you men rep¬ 
resent, and we are going to invite the dis¬ 
satisfied thousands of other states to come 
and cast their lot among us. 
We will preach the doctrine of the soil, 
and recommend that they get close to 
Mother Earth and delve into Nature's 
secrets, assuring them that they will find 
not only that wealth which all men crave, 
but a veritable storehouse of happiness 
and contentment—and the life which God 
intended. 
The country is the backbone of the city. 
Among the cities of Florida, Tampa is 
the natural and logical center of the busi¬ 
nesses in which you are engaged, and 
while we expect to derive great and last¬ 
ing benefits from your industry and ad¬ 
vancement, just as all cities do from the 
country back of them, we want you to feel 
that you have our co-operation and sup¬ 
port, and that in every way consistently 
possible, we are spending* our time and 
our money in the promotion and ene©ur- 
agement of the things you represent. We 
intend to give you ample proof of this 
in the years that are just ahead. 
But, I digress. I have not forgotten, 
though, that I was to extend the hand of 
welcome, but sometimes I get so enthused 
about Florida as a land of fruit and vege¬ 
tables, of palms and flowers and hidden 
wealth, that, were it geologically possi¬ 
ble, I would be inclined to believe that the 
Garden of Eden had been located here. 
Voicing the sentiments of the business 
men of Tampa, I want to bid you a wel¬ 
come which will not end with your de¬ 
parture. As an organization, or as indi¬ 
viduals, you will always be welcome to a 
share of anything we have. 
Today, we offer you as many as you 
can smoke of the 4,000,000 cigars which 
our factories will make during the four 
days that you are with us; 
We offer you the use of a land-locked 
harbor and a twenty-four-foot channel; 
The use of 75 miles of paved streets 
and boulevards, and 52 miles of street 
railway; 
The use of 82 miles of gas mains, and 
complete possession of our two and one- 
half miles of bright White Way; 
We offer you the use of 5,500 auto¬ 
matic telephones, and for irrigating as 
well as drinking purposes'', 4,500,000 gal¬ 
lons of pure water each and every day. 
We offer you the use of our clubs and 
the hospitality of our homes; we offer 
you our fine hotels and our public build¬ 
ings and the strength of our financial in¬ 
stitutions, and in the future years, as we 
grow in wealth and in those things which 
make for greatness, we hope to share our 
prosperity and our successes with you. 
On behalf of Mr. Louis A. Bize, Presi¬ 
dent of the Citizens Bank and Trust Com¬ 
pany, I extend to the members of this As¬ 
sociation a cordial invitation to view the 
city of Tampa from the top of their ten- 
story building, Citizens Bank and Trust 
Company. On behalf of Mr. J. T. Ma¬ 
honey, President, I extend to the mem¬ 
bers of this Association the courtesy of 
the Tampa Yacht and Country Club. On 
behalf of Mr. Frank Bentley, Vice-Presi¬ 
dent, I extend to the members of this As¬ 
sociation the privilege of the Tampa Au¬ 
tomobile and Golf Club. On behalf of 
Mr. George Steelier, President, I extend 
