New-York daily tribune., 1843-06-02
r,. ,n,,,nps i'm FLORIDA, &c.

zeccnuy returned:
Now that the Indian war is ended. the ernlgra-
zion has revived, and people throngng INTO the
country to take advantage of the law which as
signs hundred and sixty acres to every actual
settler. In another year, the influx OF population
will probably be still greater. though the confusion
and uncertainty which exists III regard 10 Inc
title Of the lands will somewhat obstruct the
settlement of the country. Before the Spanish
Government ceded it TO the United States, they
znadc nupcrous grants to individuals, intended
TO cover all the best land o the territory. Many
Of the lands granted have never been surveyed,
and their situation and limits very uncertain
The settler, therefore, if he is not very careful.
may find his farm ovcrlaid by an old Spanish
claim
1 have said that the war rs ended. Although
Sam Jones and about seventy Of his people re-
main, the country is in profound peace from one
end to the other, and you may traverse the parts
most distant from the white settlements without
the least danger molcstation from tho Indians
How is it, ! asked one day Of a gentleman who
has long resided in st. Augustine, that, after
what has happened, you can think 1t safe to lei
these people remain ?
at is perfectly safe" lc answered "s;am
Jones processes, and believe truly, to have had
less to do with the murders which have been
committed than the other chiefs, though it's ccr-
tain that DR.. Perrne. whose death we so much
lannent:d, was shot at Indian Key by his mon. Be
sides. he has quarrel with one of the Seminole
chiefs whose relative he has killed, and he were
to follow them TO their new country, he would
certainly be put to death 1t is hIs interest, there
FORE to propitiatc the favor OF the whites by the
most uncxcepionable behavior, for his life depends
upon being allow ed to remain.
''Ihcre is vet another reason. which you will
understand from what am about TO say. Before
the war broke out the Indians of this country
those very men who suddenly became SO blood
thirsty and SO formidable, we,e rquic and inoiien-
sive race, badly ttfsG1at fo the most part by the
whites, and passivcly submitting to Ill treatment
without any appearance OF feeling or SPIRIT
When they at length resolved upon war, they con-
ccalcd their families in the islands of the Ever
glados, whittier they supposed the whites would
II yer be able 70 follow them. Their rule of war
fare was this, never to cndangcr the life OF one oi
their warriors for the sake of gaming the greatest
advantages over their enemies; they struck only
when they felt themselves in pcrfec, safety. lf
they saw an opportunity of destroying twenty
white men by the sacrifice of a single Indian, the
whites were allowed to escape. Acting this
pi incpls, if their retreat had been as inaccessible
as they supposed it, they would have kept up the
warfare until they had driven the whites out OF
the ter Itory.
"When, how ever, General Worth introduced
new method Of prosecuting the war, follow lng up
the Indians with close and perpetual pursuit,
chasing them into their great shallow lake the
Everglades, md TO It's most secret islands, they
saw at once that they were conquered. They
saw that farther hos,illtcs were hopeless, and
returned to their former submissive and quiet de-
meanor.
at is we'll, perhaps" added my friend in kind
of postscript, "that a few Indians should remain
in Florida. They are the best hunters OF Runaway
slaves in tic world, and may save US from Ma
room war;
The Indian name of the Everglades, am told,
signifies Grass-water, a term which well express
cs its appearance 1t is vast lake, broader by
thousands of acres in a wet than in dry season,
and so shallow that the grass every where grows
from the bottom and overtips It's surface. The
bottom is of hard sand, 50 firm that it can be
fordcd almost every where on horseback, and here
and there are deep channels which the traveller
crosses by swimming his horse.
General Worths success quclling the insur-
recton Of the Scnlnolcs, has made hun very po-
puar iii Florida, where the energy and Sagacity
of his proceedings spoken of in the highest
terms. He has lately fixed his head quarters al
st. Augustine.
In the afternoon, our steamer put in between
two sandy points of land, and we arrived at st.
Mary's, formerly Bucanneer settlement, but
now so Jealous for good order that our captain
told lis the inhabitants objected 10 his taking IN
wood for his steamboat on Sunday The place is
full of groves of the orange and limc-young
trees which have grown up since 1898, and which
not having suffered, like those OF ST. Augustine.
h,.fh fh,,, 10 | ,1l,,I
this place, II was my fate TO experience the plague
of sand flies. Clouds of them came into the
steamboat, aiighting on our faces and hands, aud
singing wherever they ahghted. The little crca-
iurcS got INTO our hair and into our ewes. and
crawled up our sleeves and down our necks, riv.
ing us rcStJ until late III the night the vessel
left the wharf and stood out into the RIVER where
the current of air swept most of our tornlentorS
away.
The next morning, we were threading the
narrow channels BY which the inland passage is
made from st. Mary'S To Savannah, we saw, from
time TO time, alhgators basbing on the banks.
Seine OF our fellow passengers took rifles and sho,
at them as we Went by. The smaller ones were
often killed, the larger generally took the rifle halls
UPON their iTpenetrable backs and walked, ap
parently unhurt, INTO the water. One OF these
inonstrous creatures | saw receive his death
wound, having been fred at twice, the balls pro
baby entering at the eyes. In his agony he
dashed swiftly through the water for little dis
tance, and turning rushed with equal yapdity in
the opposite direction, the strokes of his strong
arms throwing half ms length above the surface.
The next moment he had turned over and lay
hfeless. with his great claws upward a sallow
complexioned man from Burke county. in Geor.
gia, who spoke kind OF negro dialect, was one
OF the mos, active in this sport, and often SAID TO
the bye-standers. Z" l hit the gator that time |
did" We passed where two OF these huge rep
tiles Were lying on the bank among the rank
sedges, of them with his head toward us. a
rife ball from the steamer struck the nrnund iust