The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1868-01-02
Miscellany.
st. Augustine

st. Augustine has the advantage over Jack
sonyille that it is in itself a place worth the
seeing, and being well known as a place of
winter resort, generally affords better society.
1t is the oldest town in America and is full OF
interesting historical associations. 1t was
founded in 1911, nearly Iour centuries ago,
by Don Pedro Menendez, in honor OF his ter
rible victory over the French colony at the
mouth OF the st. John, in which he treacher-
ously slew seven hundred defcnceless men,
women and children, and lett their bodies
hanging from trees with the inscription, mot
as Frenchmen but as heretics." And COM
ing back to the town, these bloody Spaniards
chanted TIE Deuna, and thus the first settle
ment was made and the foundation OF the
state laid. More than a century later the
Pilgrim Fathers, kneeling in humble graft
tude on the barren shore OF Massachusetts,
founded their colony based on religious free
dom. The two states have grown up togeth-
er, but the iniquity of its foundation has
cursed Florida. and its whole population to-
day is not equal to that of some of the towns
OF Massachusetts.
There are few good specimens OF the old
Spanish architectu still remaining, although
most of the old buildings have given place to
more modern ones. Fort Marion, built in
1855, is the best OF these. and is well worth
seeing. 1t is built after the system of Vauban
and has ditch, covered way, a 1avelin, and
place of arms and everything else that sci
entifc fort ought to have. But most pictur-
esque of all ale the sentry boxes on the outer
wall OF the font, giving it the appearance of
one OF those old Moorish castles which
abound in pictures OF Spain. The material
OF the fort is shell stone called cCquind,
which is found in abundance south OF the
town, and is supposed to be the exuvia of
birds thus naturally cemented together. 1t
has light color, and though apparently brit
tie, is really strong and durable as the fort
and other old buildings attest. The Spanish
coat OF arms and the inscription over the
grand entrance to the tort are cut in this
stone, and are remarkably distinct. ~
Inside the tort are some very curious and
very old cannon, not like our fifteen inch
guns, and the dungeons of the fort. In these
latter the prisoners who escaped the savage
butchery oil the Spaniards were confined.
On the wall OF one of them poor French
man has scratched-Le PdaUre-but could
write no more. Who can tell the sutferings
OF these poor victims to the most cruel per-
secutIon OF our history! Soon after the cap
ture OF the tort by our forces at the beginning
OF the REBELLION, two new dungeons were
discovered. A soldier happened to strike
the wall with his musket and noticed that it
sounded hollow. Being wide awake for
Spanish gold, concerning which marvellous
stories were floating about, he reported the
TACT, and a stone being taken out of the wall
disclosed dungeon about eight feet long by
four wide, with a staple driven to the wall to
which prisoners were probably chained. The
dungeon was damp and unpleasant, and had
a smell of dead men, so my informant said,
aud to my imagination the oder still fingered.
Excited with their success, some more sound
ings on the wall were made, and another hol-
low noise gave promise OF another dungeon.
The removal of another stone showed an
other cell smaller AMI narrower, darker and
daDper, and at one end ct this was the dust
OF the bones of a human being. An iron
chain, almost rusted away to nothing, Law be-
side it, and on the wall l could make out
scratches but no distinct words In this
dungeon some poor wretch, walled out from
the world, buried alive, had bGeathed away his
life. Who be Was,s or, what his offence, no
one knows, and the records of the place throw
no light upon it. There is tradition that
these dungeons were connected with the ca
thedral by sec ct underground passage, by
which the unhappy heretics were brought be-
lore the council OF priests unknown to the
garrison. ,-..+.. . .,'.
They will also show you in Fort Marion
the cell, or rather casemate, in which Osceola
was confined during the Indian war, and the
hole through which he escaped. And al
though brought away the sole remaining
piece of the Spanish money chest, the same
InaC was plunuereQ by Drake IN 1850, have
nodoubt that for consideration another piece
of the same chest would be found. In the
town may be found a few old houses built in
the Spanish style, with inner courts covered
with vines and creepers. Some f the streets
are very narrow, so narrow that where oppo-
site houses had balconies people could once
lean out and shake hands across the street,
but doubt ii they can now. l
Before the great frost of 1885 St. Angus
tine was bower Of orange groves, and, al
though shorn OF much of its former beauty, it
still possesses in them one of its greatest at
fractions. The natives are generally of
Spanish or Minorcan descent, and OF darker
complications than Floridians, who are pale
and sallow. The records of the fort, which
are still preserved, are in Spanish, and very
few OF the old inhabitants can still speak
1t. The winter amusements Of the town are
but few; little fishing. little shooting, and
IN the evening the band of the Seventh In
fantry. But the days are so warm and pleas
ant, and the air SO soft and bahny, that
winter passes very pleasantly there, and
breathing the air is in itself sufficient enjoy
ment,-Correspondence Of the New York
EpeninU Post -alt ,.-I|