grown _only_ in the soil of Florida, therefore competition with foreign countries need not be feared. Florida will soon be able to supply the cities of the Mediterranean with a superior fruit to that grown on their own shores, and more cheaply. Increased production and transportation will cause a corresponding reduction in freight, and also insure greater and better facilities in the modes of transportation. There will also be a large reduction in price to the consumer, which will enable the man of limited means--in other words, the poor man--to indulge with the millionaire in the daily luxury of the golden apple of the Hesperides--the Florida orange. The above may be deemed by some persons chimerical, but time, the great arbiter of events, will solve the problem. By every mail I am in receipt of letters asking all manner of questions in relation to the climate, soil, productions, etc., of this part of Florida. At first I cheerfully complied with the requests of my numerous correspondents, but the novelty has worn off, and the task has become slightly monotonous. Recently, I received a four-page capsheet letter from a gentleman in Utah Territory, to which was appended seventeen interrogatories in relation to the Gulf Coast of South Florida. That straw broke the camel's back, and, in reply to the following question: "I see by the last census that Manatee County has a population of over 4,000, and not a death recorded for 1880. Do people ever die there?" I wrote immediately, "Hardly ever. When we want to start a graveyard, we kill a man." I am firmly impressed with the belief that my Mormon correspondent, with a "family of ten persons," will not immigrate to the Land of Flowers. Below will be found twenty-five questions in relation to Florida, from correspondents the "wide world over," with answers appended: 1st. "At any time of the year do you have severe storms of thunder and lightning?" During the rainy season, thunder showers, accompanied by lightning, frequently occur, but they are not more severe than in the Northern and Western States. 2d. "Are venomous reptiles numerous?" During my residence and travels in Florida, I have never seen a rattlesnake; I have seen a few moccasin, garter, coachwhip and blacksnakes. The two latter are harmless, and are seldom killed by the natives. Alligators are not numerous in this vicinity, and are comparatively harmless. Scorpions and centipedes are seldom met with. Their sting is no more severe than that of a bee. 3d. "Is the land about Braidentown sandy or clayey?" The land on the margin of the bay is sandy; further back in the hammock, the soil is dark gray and chocolate color, underlaid with clay and limestone. 4th. "Are the people mostly Northern?" Like an Englishman's favorite beverage, they are 'alf-and-'alf. 5th. "What is the name of your nearest town of any importance?" Have no towns of "importance" in this section of the country; they are in the womb of time--not hatched yet.