Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume VII.djvu/288

 280 FLORIDA tion, and 71 from dropsy ; 333 from diseases of the nervous system, of which 82 were from encephalitis and 138 from meningitis; 129 from diseases of the circulatory system ; 385 from diseases of the respiratory system, in- cluding 268 from pneumonia ; and 393 from diseases of the digestive organs. Florida, ex- clusive of islands, consists of a long narrow strip of territory extending S. from Georgia and Alabama from 30 to 90 m., and from the Atlantic ocean to the Perdido river about 360 m. ; and of a peninsula extending from the mainland S. through five degrees of lati- tude between the Atlantic and the gulf of Mexico. Its coast line is of much greater extent than that of any other state, having a length of 472 m. on the Atlantic and 674 m. on the gulf ; but this immense stretch of sea front is almost inaccessible on account of shallow soundings, and has few good harbors. S. from the mainland a chain of small rocky islands, called cays or keys, extends S. W., ending in a cluster of rocks and sand banks called the Tor- tugas.- S. of the bank upon which these keys rise, and separated from them by a navigable channel, is a long narrow coral reef known as the Florida reef, which here constitutes the left bank of the Gulf stream. The most im- portant of the keys is Key West. For a long period the haunt of smugglers and pirates, it is now a naval station of great importance, and the seat of a band of wreckers whose business it is to assist vessels in distress. This key is about 6 m. long and 2 broad, with a large, well sheltered harbor. The extensive ponds there yield annually a large amount of salt. The Tortugas derive their name from the vast number of turtles found in the neighboring waters. The most important harbors are : on the gulf coast, Pensacola, Appalachicola, St. Mark's, Cedar Keys, Tampa, Charlotte, and Key West; and on the Atlantic coast, St. Augustine and Fernandina. Jacksonville on St. John's river has also a good harbor. The rivers of Florida are numerous, and many of them afford great facilities for internal naviga- tion. St. John's river rises in the great south- ern marsh, and reaches the ocean after a N. course of 300 m. in lat. 30 20' N. ; for nearly 100 m. from its mouth it is a wide sluggish sheet of water, more resembling a lagoon than a river. It is navigable to Lake George, about 100 m., for vessels drawing 8 ft. of water, and nearly to its head for smaller craft. Indian river is a long lagoon on the E. side of the peninsula, and communicates with the ocean by an outlet in lat. 27 30'. It is proposed to connect these two waters by a short canal, and by this means secure an inland navigation from the mouth of the St. John's to Jupiter inlet, a distance of about 250 m. Charlotte and Amax- ura are the principal rivers on the W. side, the whole of which S. of the Suwanee contains only small streams. The Suwanee is formed by the Withlacoochee and Allapaha from Georgia, and reaches the gulf at Wacasasa bay. The Ockloconee also rises in Georgia. The Appalachicola, formed on the N. frontier by the junction of the Chattahoochee and Flint, falls into the bay of the same name after a navi- gable course of about 75 m. The Choctawhat- chee, Escambia, and Perdido rise in Alabama and flow S., the first into Choctawhatchee bay, the second into Pensacola bay, and the last into Perdido bay, arms of the gulf of Mexico. The St. Mary's in the N. E. is common also to Georgia; it flows into the Atlantic in about lat. 30 40' N., and is navigable for steamers to the town of St. Mary, and much further for sloops. The surface of Florida is dotted with numerous lakes, some of which are navigable for large steamers. Lake Okeechobee, in the Everglades, is about 40 m. long and 30 m. wide. The S. portion of peninsular Florida, from about lat. 28, is mostly an extensive swamp or marsh, called the Everglades, which during the rainy season between June and October is impassable. N. of this tract to Georgia the surface is generally a dead level, but in some parts it is undulating, and occa- sionally hilly. W. of the neck of the peninsu- la the ground is more uneven and rugged ; but still the elevations are inconsiderable and of very limited extent. The substratum of the E. part of the peninsula is clay mixed with sand, and that of the W. a kind of rotten limestone, which in many places is undermined by subterranean streams. The central district is the most productive, but even here a large portion is composed of poor pine barrens ; yet in the midst of these are found gentle eminences (called hummocks) of fertile land, supporting a vigorous growth of oaks and hickories, while numerous rivulets of pure water flow through the country or expand into beautiful lakes. Further W. the land is more generally poor. The warmth and humidity of the climate com- pensate in a great measure for the inferior char- acter of the soil, and give it a vegetation of great variety and luxuriance. The productions of Florida are chiefly those which require a tropical sun. Sea island cotton (the produc- tion of which was formerly confined to a few small islands off the coasts of South Carolina and Georgia) will grow luxuriantly even in the centre of the peninsula, and a fine quality of this staple has been produced on the Suwa- nee. The soils are also adapted to the suc- cessful cultivation of the coffee plant, the cocoa palm, the sugar cane, cotton, tobacco, rice, indigo, arrowroot, Sisal hemp, New Zea- land flax, &c. ; and the climate is suitable for the cochineal insect and the silkworm. The principal forest trees are red, live, and water oaks, mahogany, palmetto, magnolia, dogwood, and in the swamps, pines, cedars, and cypresses. Oranges, lemons, limes, pineapples, olives, and grapes flourish luxuriantly ; and garden vege- tables are produced in the greatest abundance. The driest seasons are relieved by heavy dews, and the sun that would bake the earth in other parts, and wither vegetation, is so tempered by