Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1869-04-09
JACKSONVILLE, MHIOH =
In TILE sr rnur RIVER 10 I.

NOtts VI d jun NJ oco.h'
JACKSONVILLE, March 25.
UP THE ST. JOHN RIVER NO l.
Every one who has looked at map Of florida'
must have noticed long, crooked river laid
down as running from the south to the north'
and within moderate distance of the east coast
of the Florida peninsula, and entering the Al
lantic by sharp turn to the east in about ial-
tude thirty degrees and ten minutes north. Yet
onewho never has seen and been on that river can
have formed no adequate conception of its magni-
tude and importance This is the river st. John,
on which is situated the city of Jacksonville,
Just where the river makes its turn from south
ern to an eastern course to enter the Atlantic.
Looking southwark from the wharyes and river
banks at the city, one sees before him great ex-
panse of water, of from three to five miles in
width, without reckoning occasional bays of a
depth equal to or greater than the general width
of the river. The appearance is that OF sea,
reaching southwark far beyond the limit of Wis
ion. At the mouth of the river, the width is not
far from mile. From there to jacksonville, a
distance of twenty-five or thirty miles, the width
varies very much, from the numerous and deep
bays into which it spreads; but though the travel
Ter on his first trip acknowledges to himself that
the ST. John is a much larger river than he had
supposed, he finds his conceptions Of its size and
Importance marvelously heightened when the
great expanse to the south above spoken Of,
meets his eye Sea going steamers ply between
Savannah and Charleston and Pilatka, place
about 60 miles above Jacksonville. Ships and
steamers of any size, can ascend the st. John to
Pilatka, provided their draft Of water is not too
great to allow of their crossing the bar at the
mouth Of the river This bar is changable, from
the effects If the rain and the waves, both to
its position and depth. | believe vessels drawing
nine or ten feet of water find difficulty in cross
ing the bar when the tide is favorable The
tide fiows.a hundred or more miles up the river;
rising at Pilatka from ten to fifteen inches
Above Pilatka the bars which occur at the en-
trance of the lakes above, limit vessels 10 draft
Of three or four feet. Steamers Of that draft ply
regularly from a hundred and fifty to two hun
dred miles above Jacksonville. On one Of these
steamers we took passage, few days ago, for a
round trip to Lake Harvey and back. The num-
Der of persons who desire to take this trip, is 80
great, after the first Of March till the hot months
come on, that it is necessary for one to secure
passage from a week to ten days in advance, if
one wishes to secure any better place to sleep AT
night, than a mattrass on or under a table
The round trip occupies six days. the steamer
lying by one day at Enterprise on Lake Monroe,
and there, and at Pilsika, for most or all Of each
night
Though the little steamer was crowded with
passengers, and its accommodations were rather
] he Ft-.y WIS sal1 nd the ot1
GERS courteous. The party was made up Of agree
able people, to whom the novelty ard strangeuess
Of the navigation, and the peculiarties Of the
scenery. were extremely interesting; the weather
was also fine and all declared their satisfaction
with the excursion in unqualified terms
As the steamer carried the U. ;. mail, we lad
to take rather zig-zag course up the river to
Piatka. This is the only place Of any size above
jacksonville 1t is a pretty village on the west
side Of the river, containing. | was told, perhaps
seven hundred inhabitants II has some nice /.
residences, measured by the Florida standard, I
and is place where a good deal Of freight is
landed for distribution in the interior; and from
which in good season, cotton and other proiu1-
tons Of Florida in considerable quantities have .
been shipped northwaris We left Pilatka before
day break, SO that We had no chance on the up
ward trip to see the river between that place AMI
Lake George This lake is beautiful sheet
OF NAltI AUu4l A4lecA nuts ANlE anu tl-ul 20
nine miles broad, with average depth, it is 4
said, Of twelve feet. As high grounds are no
where to be found in this region, the lake looks,
when still, like great saucer Of water with .
low green rim, ornamental on the border with .
occasional flowers (the higher trees) Of the same +
color, save that the stems are grey.
Steaming directly across the lake, il looked AS
if the boat about to run directly ashore, stem
on, for there was no sign Of passage But
when near the shore, stake or two was seen
standing up out Of the water, and the steamer
was SLOWED and carefully turned to the left,
where a narrow and shallow channel was found
running parallel to the coast. This passage soon
brought Us into the rivera sufficiently deep
stream for almost any vessel, and perhaps from
one hundred TO "a hundred and fifty feet wide,
skirei on both sides with a dense e. with q
trees, the border of the river being mostly SWAIN
py, and its course for about sixty miles between
Lake George and Lake Munroe as crooked as
can well be conceived Of The turns Of the
river we're sometimes So short that setting
poles had TO be made use Of to get the steamer
round a point Occasionally, too, the river
would for a short distance be borderei By quite
an cxpanse Of fat, marsh land, covered with
grass Of some sort whose dry stems were five or
six feet high and which in a rainy season. the
captain said, were all covered with water
Once in a while a bit Of dry hummock land
would occur, elevated few feet above high wa
ter, where wild orange trees were growing or
where little clearing was in progress in order
10 plant an orange grove.
Along this devious piece Of navigation between
Lake George AMI Lake Monroe, (Which occupied
most Of the day. the sportsmen Of the party
had lively time in shooting at the alligator
or " CATERS, as they are popularity called in this
region. Il was warm, sunshiny day, and the
ailigators take such weather to crawl out Of the
water, wholly or partially, 70 bask in the sun
among the high weeds, OF on the eiges Of the low
banks. There were several rifles on board aai I
We had hardly entered the river, before the crack
Of one was heard; and from that time till We e.
tered Lake Monroe, hardly mile was passed.
without the cry there one by that point yon- /.
der''-"see that large one Just in the edge Of the
bushes" followed by the crack Of gun,-some-
times the simultaneous discharge of tive or three
would be followed by a furious founce Of the
animal, a sudden thrashingof the water with his
TAIL his disappearance in the river. The excite 7
ment Of the sport was great among all the pas
sengers But I must reserve the most Of wha; q.
have to say about the alIgators to a future n
letter
Lake Monroe is also beautiful lake, though
not so large as Lake George. On the east side
OF it IS situated Enterprise place much resort
ed to by invalids and visitors Of this place :
shall say more hereafter. The journey from
Lake Monroe to Lake Harvey, and back Of En- =
terprise occupied one day. A large portion of .
the country between the two lakes consists Of !
vast extents Of low grounds, covered with the 9
tall grass Of the country, among which cattle !
herd these were picking their living their I
backs barely discernible, among the tall dry seed y
stalks Of the last year. These large tracts y
thousands upon thousands of acres in extent .
were broken up by inlets and pools Of water. +
through which the pilot picked out his channel :
for the boat, none but an experienced eye could =
do The whole region looked as if it was only y
fit for a vast alligator pasture, and in the rainy
season, in the summer, most Of it is covered ~
with water Between Lake Monroe and Lake /,
Harvey, the alligator shooting was at its height.
But of this and other features of the trip, must y
reserve description to another letter
Yours, G. W.B.
The vote cast for Council of Censors shows the n
of importance attached to that institu- v
ton by the people Fire votes cast in the large "
town of Rutland, twenty-one in St. Adams, "
twenty-nine in Brattleboro, thirty-nine in >
Burlington, tWenty-seyen in St. Johnsbury, h
'orty-one in Montpelier, and so on. AT this "
rate the total vote cast in the State will not foot Il
up 5000. These slim figures cannot be wholly Of
charged to bad .oads; for the election took place
n many Of the towns on the day of the annual al
own meetings, when voters would be out in
numbers whatever the going. Nor to the GER
ainty that the ticket would be elected any way; y,
or in other elections, the results of which arc fl
10 more in doubt than was this, the voters turn L
,ut and roll majorities of twenty or thirty 9
thousand The truth is indsputable that the hi
oers consider the Council of very little account
md the best thing the coming Council can do az
when it meets is to make itself of account by ="
an Amendment, which shall b
make it the last of its kind. al
&C