_By Frank S. Hastings, Manager of the S. M. S. Ranch, Stamford, Texas, who spent two weeks studying conditions in Florida just previous to the Sixth Annual Convention of the Florida State Live Stock Association, at which he was one of the speakers. These impressions have been prepared by Mr. Hastings for the benefit of the cattle men of Florida._ Before coming to the State I asked that I might see as many classes of cattle as possible and in as many different parts of the State as possible. My first trip was through the Everglades. I then made a trip near Gainesville, and visited the registered Hereford herd owned by Mr. N. A. Callison; also the grade herd of both Herefords and Shorthorns owned by Mr. A. L. Jackson of Gainesville, and the pure-bred and graded Shorthorn herd owned by Mr. S. H. Gaitskill of McIntosh. Then followed a four days' careful trip over the properties and herd of the Kissimmee Island Cattle Company, where I saw Brahma cattle, Hereford cattle and Shorthorn cattle in various grades, and their herd of Florida cattle bought last year. Then over the Indian Prairie country, the Osceola prairie country, including Halpatioka Flats, the marsh country of Okeechobee, with an unusually good opportunity for seeing the cattle scattered over the open range and to observe conditions on the open range. Incident to this great expanse, comprehending over six hundred miles in actual auto driving, I did not see a single windmill, or other artificial means of furnishing water, although I am told that on not a single acre of that entire property is there any difficulty in finding water at a depth of from ten to fifty feet. I shall come back to this item, only pausing here to call your especial attention to the fact that over this vast area of undeveloped water conditions, water can be supplied at a very small cost sufficient to increase the carrying capacity of the range at least several hundred per cent, and as against developing a similar water supply over the average Texas pasture country, it can be done at twenty-five per cent of the cost in Florida as against the Texas cost. Probably the most important thing that I saw in Florida was the registered Hereford herd of Mr. Callison. I recall that he boasted that in eight years they had never been given any winter help, and there were no evidences on his property that the cattle were in any way pampered. He had about thirty or forty of last spring's calves, which he was just weaning, and they were as good, on the average, as any bunch of calves I have ever seen in the great registered Hereford producing districts. I saw his yearlings and twos and his cows, and the entire herd shows in general development and quality a very favorable comparison with anything in the great breeding districts outside of distinct show herds.