Paul Crape, age 10, of Waltham, Mass., for his question:

What are the Everglades?

Florida is a low lying peninsula where, for long ages, the lend and the sea fought for possession. The land sits only a few fact above the level of the sea and, in vast areas, the two form a strange swamp lend of waterways and grassy islands. This is the region of the Everglades, where bald cypresses stand ankle deep in the waters, whore alligators prowl and where gaudy birds flit through the tall tropical foliage. And the trees are bedecked with a wide assortment of orchids.

Much of the northern Everglade region has bean drained. and turned into useful citrus groves. But, in 1917, it was decided to preserve over one and a quarter million acres of the southern region in its natural beauty. This region in southern Florida was set aside as the Everglades National Park and much of it is still uncharted.