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23-08-1913 The Tampa Daily Times, Saturday
Here’s a Tampa Booster of the Royal Putple 33d Degree Sort
Gives City Fine Sendoff In Jersey City Newspaper.
TAX ASSESSOR REGENER SHOULD READ CAREFULLY
Perhaps It will Give Him a Better Idea of the City in Which He Lives.
The following from a FIorida booster, Jean R. Blinck, appeared In a recent issue of the Jersey Journal, pubished In Jersey City. Henry E. Snow, who has just returned from the north, saw a copy of the paper and knowing Mr. Blpnek well, brought the paper back with him.
“Here’s one of the best boosters I ever saw,” said Mr. Snow as he brought a copy of the paper into The Times office this morning.
And Mr. Snow is right.
The Times takes pleasure in reproducing Mr. Blinck’s letter in full below and would commend its careful perusal to Tax Assessor Herman Regener.
Maybe it will show him that Tampa is not depreciatting:
“Tampa is Wonderful City.”
Editor Jersey Journal:
Shortly before leaving Jersey City in April for Florida, I made a promise to write as soon as convenient from my new residence, and as I have lived now about four months in Tampa I may be able to lay something of interest before the many readers of your valuable paper.
Tampa, beautifully situated on the Gulf of Mexico, is a wonderful city, if nothing else a city of autos and motor cycles and the horse is here just as rare a sight in the streets as ten years ago the automobile was in Jersey City.
This baby city of the south, more or less cosmopolitan in character, was up to 1884 only a fishers’ rendezvous. and its activities began at that time when John Miller and U. B. Henderson established a Gulf boat line and H. B.
Plant a railroad. In 1886, V. M. Ybor built the first of the now more than 100 cigar factories. and in order to Bustain this new line of industry another boat line between Tampa and Cuba was organized.
In 1888 phosphate was discovered in Hillsborough and adjacent counties, which made deepening of the channel in the bay imperative, when the large coastwise vessels of the Mallory Line and others began to ply this port. The phosphats exportation from, besides over the United States. to Europe is at present enormous.
With these improvements, Tampa started so fast to develop that few realized the cause of it and the recent unpleaesantness with Span gave it, according to a Tampa business man, its greatest impetus.
In 1890 its population was nearly 6,000 and is now, with West Tampa, about 71,000. At that time the First National bank was the only institution of that kind, having a capital stock of $25,000, with no deposits to speak of. Now there are seven banks with a banking capital of $2,600.000 and doposits of $9.400,000, showing the marvelous progress this southern city has made.
Tells of Great Improvements.
At present there are several public and democrate improvements in progress, as the monumental LaFayette bridge over the Hillsborough river, fifty miles of brick street paving, a half a million dollar sewer system, a new city hall, a new Carnegie library, public playgrounds, parka and miles and miles of sidewalks.
The Tampa Electric company is spending $750,000 improving and extending their plant, the Tampa Gas company has purchased two city blocks to enlarge its works, the Tampa waterworks is exending its mains to the suburbs and West Tampa, enlarging those in the city and residential sections, the Peninsular Telephone company, which bought out the Bell Telephone company seven years ago, is making plans for a new home and central office for an up-to-date automatic switching system.
All these public utility corporations are mainly financed by eastern capital, which shows that outsiders as well have faith in the future of Tampa by such enormous expenditures.
The building of a magnificent Elks’ home, a new Pythian castle, a new Moose lodge, a Spanish casino and ot her clubs, demonstrate fully that the people here have faith in the future development of their city.
Franklin street, the Newark avenue of Tampa, is a real white way, while the brilliantly lit up and exquisite windows remind one of the business sections of New York. With a view upon the Panama canal, Tampa Is bound to become the greatest business center of the Gulf ports.
Bought Fan; No Use For It.
Tampa is known as a semi-tropical city and I expected to find there during the summer a nearly killing heat, in anticipation whereof I took along a five-foot celling fan. It is half July now and nothing, however, is less needed than a fan, as the nights are cool and breezy, to such an extent that covering during the night is needed.
Here sunstrokes and heat prostrations are unknown, the almost daily showers of the rainy season make the air balmy and refreshing, so unlike in the northern states, where often the atmosphere after a summer shower becomes sultry and oppressive; hence the heat fatalities of which we read so much just now in the Florida papers.
Of course, there are flies and mosquitoes. Where are they not? But the city government does even better than to recommend to swat the fly. It doesn’t afford a breeding place and the people from the north are surprised at the few to be found here, while the mosquitoes find very little stagnant water for propagation.
It may seem doubtful to you that in a Tampa butcher shop no flies nor flychasers or fans are to be seen, and still this is a fact.
Here again the city government protects its citizens by an ordinance that in all places where meat, bacon and kindred foodstuffs are sold a screened cage in closing entrance of ice box, counters and hookracks with articles thereon for sale must be built in order to protect foodstuffs against flies, etc.
In a store of that kind you see a huge screened cage with salesmen inside and all kinds of meat, etc., exposed on hookracks and marble counters, from which a customer may make, his choice without being able to touch anything.
Sanitary Condition Exrellent.
I was talking about this indeed simple and cheap means of fly-excluding device to the commissioner of public works, who told me that vegetablels, fruit and all eatables shortly would be included in this ordinance.
This and other efficient precautions I really believe are responsible for the fact that there are not as many flies in all Tampa as there are in a single butcher shop in Jersey City.
The sanitary conditions are excellent, as Tampa has, in comparison with other cities, a very low death rate, in spite of the fact that so many sick people from the northern states come to live here in quest of lost health.
Look at the streets.
There is nowhere a hole or accumulated dirt to be found, while the sidewalks are as smooth as a corridor in a public building.
If public cleanliness is made a condition, then Tampa is the place to live in.
Jean R. Blinck.
1016 Horatio street, Tampa, Fla.
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