red in autumn, a species of prickly pear (Opuntia austrina), the strangler fig already mentioned, and the cabbage palmetto are interspersed with lianas such as Dalbergia and Rhabdadenia and that most cosmopolitan fern of immense size, Acrostichum aureum, which one finds throughout the tropical swamps and estuaries of the world. Of the so-called epyphytic vegetation, which includes the orchids and the tillandsias (commonly termed airplants), the committee saw little. At least, the best region for these was not visited. There are numerous species some of the orchids vying with any in beauty and decorative value which are to be seen by visits to the ultra Tropics. The greatest of the orchids is Oncidium luridum, with its tresses of golden-spotted flowers 8 feet long. Cyrtopodium_punctatum rivals it in the size and luxuriance of its foliage, but is inferior in its blooms. The committee saw some of the tillandsias in the cypress swamps, where these decorative epiphytes grow by the millions. In their winter rest period they make a much less attractive show than in February and March, when they show their crimson flowers. (Tillandsia fasciculata and T. utriculata occur in the mangrove swamps.) Of the palms which are native to the area the most spectacular is the great royal palm (Oreodoxa regia), which reaches a height of a hundred feet, and is recognized as one of the stateliest palms in the world. In the early days many of these were scattered over south Florida, but to-day only a few are left, the majority being preserved in the Royal Palm Park. The coconut, while not native to the region, has found such a congenial home there that the plantation of several thousand on the beaches of Cape Sable, where the committee landed, resembles closely a coconut-covered beach in any of the South Sea Islands. This tip of south Florida is the only place in the whole of continental United States where this remarkable palm grows well. It is unknown throughout the whole Mediterranean region; it does not grow as well on the West Coast of Africa as here, and a European who wants to see groves of it will find that one at Cape Sable nearer than any other grove in the world. The cabbage, or Sabal palmetto, is the character palm of Florida and is the one that we saw scattered along the banks of the Shark River and through the hammocks over which we flew. Perhaps the rarest and in some ways the most distinguished-looking palm of this region is the Acoelorraphe wrightii. Although one of the most beautiful of all the palms, forming great clusters of slender trunks, it is so adapted for dooryards that the residents of the Miami region have almost exterminated it in their vain attempts to dig it up and transplant it. The fires have destroyed the hammocks where it used to grow. It is very desirable that an area suited to its growth and increase should be included in the protected region of the park. The silver palm (Cocothrinax argentea), with its beautiful slender stems and silvered leaves, the thatch palm (Thrinax floridana), and the dwarf saw palmetto (Serenoa serulata), which covers many square miles of the pine lands, are characteristic palms of the region. Of the multitude of smaller plants which you passed by in the hammock and which have a fascination for all those who take delight in studying plants, such as the progenitor of the common Boston fern universally cultivated in conservatories in America but which here reaches a length of 20 feet, the filmy fern which has only one layer of cells in its leaves and inhabits the trunks of the trees, the cockspur (Pisonia aculeata), which climbs by means of peculiar spines to the tops of the highest trees forming great winding trunks called lianas, a whole volume has been published by the Smithsonian Institution. Perhaps the most characteristic feature of the tropical rain forest is the presence everywhere of these so-called lianas, great climbing vines that everywhere festoon the trees, and whose slender stems make a tangle difficult to cut one's way through. The only spot within the border of the United States where these great lianas can be seen to perfection is in this southern tip of Florida, and anyone visiting the region would get a fair idea of the jungles of the tropical world by a visit to these hammocks. The hurricane destroyed some of the finest specimens and the fires will destroy others unless protected. Of the remarkable water plants which inhabit the fresh-water rivers and ponds comparatively little is known yet. That there are great insect-devouring species of bladderworts (Utricularia) some of them, a dozen feet long, we observed from the blimp. These grow in the fresh-water pools at the head waters of the Shark River. These bladderworts are among the most remarkable plants known and have been exhaustively studied by Professor Goebel, of Munich. Those left-over plants from the vast forests which composed the coal measuresthe Cycads-are represented in Florida by a widely distributed species, Zamia floridana, the so-called coontie of the Seminole Indians. As Dr. J. K. Small, the authority on the flora of Florida, has so graphically described in his interesting series of papers on the plants of this region the coontie was the most important plant of the Seminoles. From it they made an arrowroot of unusual excellence upon which they practically lived. The coontie is undoubtedly one of the most remarkable food plants of this whole south Florida and it is interesting to mention that it was in this very region that the remarkable method of fertilization of the Cycads was worked out by Dr. H. J. Webber, then connected with the United States Department of Agriculture. His researches affected the whole classification of these wonderful plants and became a classic in botanical literature. Although they do not come within the scope of my province, I might mention some of the animals which your committee had little chance to study during the trip of inspection. The tree snails or Liguus which live on the smooth-barked trees of the hammocks eating the thin film of green algae which cover them are among the most interesting objects to naturalists because they have developed distinct races on the different hammocks and these must have come into existence since the hammocks were formed and they furnish a wonderful field for the investigation of the effects of natural selection. A glimpse into the tropical insect life can be gained in this region better than in any other in the United States. The zebra butterfly, for example (Heliconius charitonius), is a representative of a great family of strictly tropical species which formed years ago an important link in the studies made by the naturalists, Bates and Alfred Russel Wallace, on the subject of mimicry. These strange striped butterflies are avoided by birds because of their strong pungent taste. Certain other species belonging to distinct families resemble these zebra butterflies very closely and so share in their immunity from bird attack. Senator Norbeck was present in the Royal Palm Park when my son, Graham, and his friend, Frederick Burgess, brought in from the hummock a nest of the tropical ant which builds, like the paper wasp, its nests out of wood fibers, and presented it to Dr. William Morton Wheeler of Harvard University, the greatest authority in the world on ants. This species is the only tropical paper-nest building ant in the United States and it gives a good idea of those ants' nests which in the dripping rain forest of the Tropics are one of its characteristic features. Its name is (Crematogaster atkinsoni, Wheeler). Thanks to the cool weather and to certain mysterious conditions of temperature and humidity during the last summer, there were practically no mosquitoes seen by the committee during the trip. These insects are abundant there in the normal summers, but luckily they are not the carriers of disease. One of the commonest is the Aedes niger. Notwithstanding the abundance of mosquitoes, this whole region is practically free from malaria of any kind. The health department of Miami reports from one to six cases a month but almost without exception these are cases brought into the region from elsewhere. Of the reptiles you have heard perhaps exaggerated accounts of the diamondback rattlesnake (Crotalus adamanteus) and the water moccasin (Ancistrodon piscivorus), both of which are poisonous and from time to time cause accidents to hunters in the Everglades. These add a touch of risk to travel on foot through the marshes and hummocks but in comparison with the risks of automobiling are quite negligible. I am sorry that the alligators and crocodiles which once were abundant in the canals and bayous of the region have been so nearly killed out that the committee was not able to see any of these creatures, which never fail to thrill one by their antediluvian forms. Alligator mississippiensis and Crocodilus actus are the species. The chameleon, so called, is a lizard (Anolis caroliensis) which changes its color faintly, depending upon what colored background it happens to be. It is not a true chameleon, though a fascinating little creature that gives a touch of tropical lizard life to the hammocks. Of the bird life I am not in a position to speak. The presence of that master of the birds, Gilbert Pearson, must have given you the best possible opportunity to learn of the habits of the great white heron, Ward's heron, the Louisiana blue heron, the wood ibis, the white ibis, the egret, the adhinga, the turkey buzzards, and the bitterns, which together form the bulk of that marvelous bird life of the Everglades and the Shark River region. I think it is perfectly safe to state that nowhere in the whole world is there any approximation to the large-winged bird life which lives in this proposed area. The low, flat, fresh-water swamps are alive with algae and myriads of tropical water plants and microscopic animals which form the food of countless myriads of small fishes, snails, and mollusks. It is upon these that the wonderful plume birds live. It is this whole marvelous complex of microscopic water life that supports, as a beautiful superstructure soaring in the air, the most remarkable number of soaring birds of large size that are to be seen anywhere on the globe. To shift in the least the proportions of fresh to salt water on this area by injudicious drainage will in a few years lead to the death of the water flora, and with it will go the water insects and other minute animals that live on them and the small fishes and mollusks which feed on these plants and microscopic animals. With the disappearance of the fishes will go the beautiful birds and once they have gone from the evening skies over the Everglades they will never return. The machine-age minded youngsters may imagine that the airplanes can take their places, but the noisy planes can no more be compared to the silent plume birds than can the chromos on our calendars to the actual sunsets that redden the evening skies. It is to save the whole complex of living things which inhabit the southern tip of this State of Florida that the proposal has been made to make of it a national park. In behalf of the little association formed to inaugurate the project with this end in view, I wish to thank you and your committee for the pains which you have taken to visit the area and study its possibilities. I would call your attention to the following publications covering the region under investigation: Roland M. Harper, Natural Resources of Southern Florida, in Eighteenth Annual Report of the Florida State Geological Survey, 1927, Tallahassee, Fla. Safford, W. E., Natural History of Paradise Key and the Near-by Everglades, in Smithsonian Report for 1917, pages 277-434. (Publication 2508.) Small, John K., Land of the Question Mark; The Buccaneer Palm; Whence Came our Orchids?; The Land Where Spring Meets Autumn; The Cacti-an Interesting Plant Group in the Study of Survival; Historic Trails by Land and Water; Old Trails and New Discoveries; The Cabbage Tree; The Royal Palm; The Saw Palmetto; Old Trails and New Discoveries; Green Deserts and Dead Gardens; etc.; all in Journal of New York Botanical Gardens. Simpson, Chas. T., In Lower Florida Wilds, Putnam Sons. Small, John K., From Eden to Sahara, Florida's Tragedy, Science Press, Lancaster. With my personal regards to every one of the committee whose acquaintance it has been my good fortune to make, I remain, Very sincerely yours, DAVID FAIRCHILD. The proposed legislation has the recommendation of the Secretary of the Interior, as set forth in his letter of December 28, 1931, as follows: Hon. GERALD P. NYE, DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, Chairman Committee on Public Lands and Surveys, United States Senate. MY DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: In response to your request of December 17 for a report on S. 475 entitled "A bill to provide for the establishment of the Everglades National Park in the State of Florida, and for other purposes," I transmit herewith a memorandum on the subject that has been submitted by the Director of the National Park Service. The Everglades National Park project is of outstanding merit and is one of the areas which in my opinion should be authorized for national park status at an early date. I am advised by the Director of the Bureau of the Budget that so far as the financial program of the President is concerned, there is no objection to this proposed legislation. I heartily concur in the memorandum report of the Director of the National Park Service and urge that S. 475 receive favorable consideration by Congress. Very truly yours, RAY LYMAN WILBUR, Secretary. Memorandum for the Secretary. Department OF THE INTERIOR, NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, Reference is made to letter dated December 17, 1931, from the Chairman, Committee on Public Lands and Surveys, United States Senate, inclosing copy of S. 475, entitled "A bill to provide for the establishment of the Everglades National Park in the State of Florida, and for other purposes, " with request for report thereon. The purpose of this bill is to provide for the establishment as a national park without cost to the United States of an area in the Everglades region of Florida which Congress directed be investigated and reported on by the Secretary of the Interior by the act of March 1, 1929 (45 Stat. 1443). Pursuant to that act an inspection and detailed examination of the area was made in February, 1930, on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior by officials of the National Park Service, assisted by several eminent park experts acting as collaborators, and the area found to measure up to the standards set for national parks. Full details of this inspection and the recommendations made pursuant thereto were covered in your report to Congress submitted on December 3, 1930, as directed by the act of March 1, 1929, a copy of which is attached hereto. The form of legislation proposed by S. 475 has been carefully examined and is found to be substantially similar to legislation heretofore enacted with respect to other eastern areas proposed as national parks and authorized by Congress for such establishment. To clarify an ambiguity of context in the first section, however, the words "as a national park" in line 7 of page 1 should be stricken out. I have to recommend that S. 475 with amendment as indicated above be given favorable consideration by the department and Congress. HORACE M. ALBRIGHT, Director. Also appended hereto is the report of the Secretary of the Interior, under date of December 3, 1930, concerning the desirability of establishing the proposed Everglades National Park. REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR LETTER DATED DECEMBER 3, 1930, SUBMITTING, PURSUANT TO LAW, A REPORT AS TO THE DESIRABILITY OF ESTABLISHING A NATIONAL PARK, TO BE KNOWN AS THE TROPIC EVERGLADES NATIONAL PARK, IN THE STATE OF FLORIDA The PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, SIR: The act of Congress approved March 1, 1929, prescribes as follows: Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Secretary of the Interior be, and he is hereby, directed to investigate and report to Congress as to the desirability and practicability of establishing a national park, to be known as the Tropic Everglades National Park, in the everglades of Dade, Monroe, and Collier Counties of the State of Florida, for the benefit and enjoyment of the people of the United States and to preserve said area in its natural state, including in his report full information as to the ownership, value, estimated cost to acquire and character of the lands involved and his opinion as to whether such areas measure up to national-park standards. Any appropriations for the National Park Service shall be available for the necessary expenses of such investigation. In accordance therewith I submit the following report: INSPECTION The inspection of the area was made during the period from February 11 to February 17, 1930, inclusive, by the following official representatives of the department: Mr. Horace M. Albright, Director National Park Service. Mr. Ebert K. Burlew, assistant to the Secretary of the Interior. Dr. H. C. Bumpus, member of the educational committee of the National Park Service, official collaborator. Mr. Arno B. Cammerer, associate director, National Park Service. Mr. Harlan P. Kelsey, conservationist and landscape architect, member of the Appalachian National Park Commission, official collaborator. Dr. T. Gilbert Pearson, president of the National Association of Audubon Societies, official collaborator. Mr. Roger W. Toll, superintendent Yellowstone National Park, National Park Service. The inspection was made by automobile, motor boat, house boat, skiffs, balloon blimp, and on foot. LOCATION The area as prescribed in the act is located in Dade, Monroe, and Collier Counties, Fla., and is conceded to be the most truly tropical portion of the mainland of the United States. It includes Cape |