Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1870-02-06
THE GREEN LINE.
"Thc March to the Sea"

Pracsiec''--JaclIsO CHI
mate Oh FlOrida--Tlis Sc. Johns
IRiver--ViSit 30 RErs. StOxVc--Iaow
the Party were Observation-Disclosures
Pratt and His YOusjg Bride--The
Season. Fa
Correspondence of the Union and American.
JACKSONVILLE, Florida, Jan. S1.-"The
march to the sea" having been accom-
olished, large numbers of the excursion
SITS took up the line of march homeward
asst evening, some going by one route and
some by another, but the largest portion
came on the excursion train to this place.
The stay in Savannah, though brief, will
form memorable epoch in the history of
al who were so fortunate as to participate
N the Green Line excursion. The au-
Lhorities and the citizens generally did all
in their power to make the stay of the
one round of pleasure, aud
they certainly succeeded beyond even their
own most sanguine expectations. Their
was unbounded as the influ-
ence their city is destined to exert upon
the trade and commerce between their
section and the great West. The only
incident of "sharp practice" that came to
our knowledge was by at least one of the
hotel keepers, who charged his guestsfive
dollars instead of four, as his printed
rules showed was his rate. We heard one
gentleman assert that he was crowded into
d small room with eleven others, and that
they were each charged five dollars per
day. Considering that majority proba-
bly, of the excursionists had given this
house the preference, this little piece of
t'sharp practice" shows that the proprie-
tor could not have sympathized with the
efforts of the business men of Savannah
to bring their city into more intimate re-
latiOns with the business men of the val
leys of the Cumberland, Ohio and Missis-
sippi.
The eXcursionists whe came on here
were accompanied to the Atlantic and
Gulf Railroad depot by the Mayor, City
Council, the Committee of Arrangements,
Gen. DeRussey, the commander of the
post, and number of other distinguished
citizens, where were also found large
assemblage of thepeople of Savannah, who
had come to bid us adieu. Speeches were
made by Messrs. Porter and Maurice, OF
Louisville, and Caldwell, Of Cincinnati,
rendering the cordial thanks of the excur-
sionists to the citizens of Savannah fol
their large-hearted hospitality and untiring
efforts to render the stay of their guests
pleasant and agreeable. Major Ferrill re-
sponded ON behalf of the citizens, and al
the conclusion of his remarks the train
moved off amidst the applause of the null
titude who had assembled to witness the
departure of the excursiOnists.
The run from Savannah to Jacksonville
was made mainly in the night, and was
therefore devoid of interest. We arrived
here about ten o'clock this morning, and
found Jacksonville to be rather a pretty
place, situated on the left bank of the st.
Johns river. What sustains the town is
somewhat of a mystery to stranger, as
it appears TO enjoy very limited COM
MERGE. An old citizen of Nashville,
whom we met here, gave it as his opin-
ion from a brief experience, that ''the
principal commerce of the place was the
trade in sick Yankees" There must be
pretty extensive preparation for the bust
ness, for he informed US that almost every
other house was either hotel or board
inghOuse. A distinguished Nashville ply
stefan, whom we met here, thinks this eli
mate admirably suited for invalids. He
thinks it viii compare as to mildness and
evenness with that of Italy.
The st. Johns is one of the most re-
markable rivers in the world. 1t has its
sources in a marshy tract in the central
part of the peninsula, and pursues a
Northwest course to the mouth of the
OcklaWaha, after which it flows North to
Jacksonville, thence into the Atlantic 1t
is Manageable about one hundred and fifty
miles. The country through which it
passes consists of pine baTens and cy-
press sWamps. 1t is broad and sluggish
stream, varying much in width, and re-
sembling a series of lakes. 1t is stated
that no amount of rain that may fall will
affect it. But for the tides of the ocean,
it would remain stationary throughout the
year. The impression prevails pretty
generally that the st. Johns is really sue
cession of lakes, and that it is mainly fed
from cayerns which are supposed to exist
beneath. There are a large number of
springs in the State, which burst up from
a great depth below the surface, some
having sufficient force and body to turn a
mill, and this fact has led to the con-
lecture that a vast cave or series of
caves, undcTlies the whole country
in which they exist, and through
whose roof they burst with VIC
lence, wherever an opening in the rock
has either been made or found In sup
port of this theory, and that the St. Johns
is fed mainly from such caverns, our
Nashville friend informed us that when
heavily loaded train would arrive at the
depot, the earth would culver
as though shaken by an earthquake
About u o'clock party of about thirty
ladies and gentlemen took an excursion on
a small steamboat twelve or fifteen miles
up the st. Johns. After we had been
some time out, the Captain informed US
that Mrs. Harriet Beecher Stoves planta-
ton lay Immediately on the bank of the
river, and that the old lady had arrived
there but few days previous for her usual
"
the eXcursiOnists would call upon her, and
when the boat arrived opposite her resi-
dence, a committee of Cincinnati gentle
men called at the house to learn whether
it would be agreeable for us to pay our
respects to her. She informed the com
mittee that she would be pleased to re-
Ceive the ladies and gentlemen of the ex-
cursion. Accordingly all marched up to
the house and were presented to Mrs.
Stowe. We were very much disappoint-
ed in her appearance. She is scarcely up
to the medium height and has strong
masculine features, but greatly lacking in
the intelligence she has displayed in her
to the literature of the day.
Were she placed in a room with a number
of ladies selected prOmiscuously, there is
scarcely one in hundred who would
select her as a woman of genius. She ap-
peared difiident and i'll at ease in the
of our ladies. Whether she
was embarrassed and forgot, or whether
it is characteristic of her, she certainly
exhibited none of the hospitality with
which a lady in the South receives visit
ors. She left the ladies of our party to
get seats as best they could, did not intro
duce them to her daughters, who were
present, nor did she offer them a cup of
water nor an orange, which hung in pro
fusion on the trees around her door. Her
twin sisters, had nothing to
say; indeed we believe they did not speak
to one Of the visitors. One of them was
engaged on piece of crochet work, and
she piled herself to the work before her,
as though she were a hired seamstress
who had no right to speak. This con-
duct attracted the attention of both ladies
and gentlemen of the party, and it was
suggested in extenuation of their want