is ever encountered here, and yet it is as near to
Boston or New York as is the city of Chicago. The temperature, we are
told, never falls below 64 deg. Fahrenheit, nor rises above 82 deg., the
variations rarely exceeding five degrees in twenty-four hours. In
Florida a change of twenty degrees is not unusual within the period of
a single day. The thermometer stood at 73 deg. on the first day of March,
and everything was bathed in soft sunlight.

It is somewhat singular that an island like New Providence, which is
practically without soil, should be so remarkably productive in its
vegetation. It is surrounded by low-lying coral reefs, and is itself
composed of coral and limestone. These, pulverized, actually form the
earth out of which spring noble palm, banana, ceiba, orange, lemon,
tamarind, almond, mahogany, and cocoanut trees, with a hundred and one
other varieties of fruits, flowers, and woods, including the
bread-fruit tree, that natural food for indolent natives of equatorial
regions. Of course in such a soil the plough is unknown, its
substitutes being the pickaxe and crowbar. However, science teaches us
that all soils are but broken and decomposed rock, pulverized by
various agencies acting through long periods of time. So the molten
lava which once poured from the fiery mouth of Vesuvius has become the
soil of thriving vineyards, which produce the priceless Lachryma
Christi wine. This transformation is not accomplished in a lifetime,
but is the result of ages of slow disintegration.

Among other flowering trees, some strikingly beautiful specimens of
the alligator-pear in full bloom were observed, the blossom suggesting
the passion-flower. While our favorite garden plants at the North are
satisfied to bloom upon lowly bushes, at the South they are far more
ambitious, and develop into tall trees, though sometimes at the
partial expense of their fragrance. The air was full of sweet perfume
from the white blossoms of the shaddock, contrasting with the deep
glossy green of its thick-set leaves, the spicy pimento and cinnamon
trees being also noticeable. With all this charming floral effect the
bird melody which greets the ear in Florida was wanting, though it
would seem to be so natural an adjunct to the surroundings. Nature's
never-failing rule of compensation is manifested here: all the
attractions are not bestowed upon any one class; brilliancy of
feathers and sweetness of song do not go together. The torrid zo