Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1871-04-09

the South, seek st. Augustine as SUM
mer resort. and regard il as one OF the
most delightful places In the country.
This fact slows how mach the lmaglna-
ton has n do with The temperature of
climate after all
have wandered very greatly from the
excursion party, which embarked on
board the steamer Florence, Capt. ]. q.
Smith, about ten O'Clock, heading for
Green Cove Springs, famous watering
place twenty ye.niies up the st. Johns
river from Jacksonville. This neat little
steamer was tenderes the railroad officials
for the trip by Mr.. John Clark, tie agent
for the boat. True to its ancient fame,
April was ushered in amid sunshine and
showers and heavy gusts of wind, which
swept the st. Johns until the mimic
white capped pillows rolled high up the
sides of the gallant little steamer as she
ploughed her way up this beautiful river.
The sunshine and the showers, accomps-
panied by more than ordinarily stiff
breeze, slternaled until we reached our
destination, Notwithstanding which the
''essence OF Old Virginia." pure and un-
defled-a dance and song, with banjo
accompaniment by two negroes-which
greatly interested and amused the excur-
sionists, especially those who had only
seen such exhibitions In burnt cork opera.
Then we had some impromptu speaking,
interspersed with popping of champaign
corks and clicking of glasses-Mr. Requa,
Judge Knight, and Mr. Columbus Drew,
OF Jacksonville, welcoming the excur-
sionists 10 Florida. Responses were made
by several gentlemen, but the most tell
ing little speech was that of Mr.. Erastus
Brooks, of the New York Express, who
had joined the excursionists at Savannah.
His allEsion to the constitution and gov
ernment of our fathers, and the duty of
every citizen, North and South, to pre-
serve these inestimable requests in all
their purity and vigor, was most felici-
tous, and called forth hearty, demon
straive response from every one present.
Arrived at Green Cove Springs, the
guests visited the objects of interest, the
most noted among which is the great sui
phur spring which bubbles up within two
hundred yards of the river bank. The
water, which is strongly impregnated
with sulphur, is clear as crystal and
about thirty feet deep at the fountain
head. / did not inquire the quantity of
water the spring discharges in a given
time, but it is amply sufficient to run the
largest Touring mill in Nashville. In
short time dinner was announced at the
Union House, whittier the guests re-
paired. Here we found the dining room
festooned with flowers and evergTeens,
intertwined with which was the long gray
moss peculiar TO this region. The room
presented decidedly tasteful appearance;
SO at least you would have thought if
you could have seen the guests shortly
after they had set down to the most ele-
CANT dinner of the whole excursion. 1t
was served up in the very best style by
the proprietOrs of the Union House,
Messrs. Remington & Reed. This
sumptuous entertainment was rendered
the excursionists by the officers of the
Atlantic and Gulf and Jacksonville, Pen
sacola and Mobile Railroads. 1t was a
happy finale to the excursion, for
In short time the ladies and
gentlemen composing the party
| turned their faces homeward, and
they will carry with them to their far off
homes in the prairies of the great West,
amid the picturesque hills and wales of
the North, and in the broad valleys of
the Middle States, the most kindly recol
lections, not only of their visit to the
bright and sunny Gland of Flowers" but
Of the gentlemanly officers of the two
roads who, contributed so largely to their
pleasure on that occasion, as the follow
ing resolution, adopted at meeting of
the delegates and their friends on the re-
turn to Jacksonville, will show:
''ResolveG, That the unqualified thanks
Of the members of the General Ticket
Agents Association and their invited
guests be rendered to the officers of the
| roads and boat which have, within the
last twenty-four hours, given to us one
of the pleasantest excursions and the
most sumputous entertainments ever pro-
vided in this portion of the country.
Prominent among these officers are Col.
II. s. Haines, Superintendent of the At
lantic and Gulf railroad; G. ID. Owens,
General Agent of the Atlantic and Gulf
railroad; j. B. Bond, General Transpor-
tation Agent of the Atlantic and Gulf rail
road; w. p. Hardee, Auditor of the At
lantic and Gulf railroad; F. B. Papy,
General Transportation Agent of the
Jacksonville, Pensacola and Mobile rail-
road; Capt Jacob Brock, Proprietor and
Manager of the st. Johns Line of Steam
ers, and Mr.. John Clark, Agent of the
same line. Their memory, ike the foliage
of this beautiful Land of FLOWERS, will
always be green il our hearts"
The St. Johns river is five miles wide
at many points between Jacksonville AMI
Green Cove Springs, and averages three
miles in width TO Palatka, seventy-fve
miles from Jacksonville, and it is affected
by the ocean tides to that point 1t is
navigable for the large class of steam
boats TO Enterprise, two hundred and five
miles from Jacksonville, and for smaller
boats, fifty miles further. The st. Johns
is one of the remarkable rivers of the
world. 1t has its sources in marshy
tract in the central part of the peninsula,
aud pursues a northwest course to the
mouth of the Ocklawaha, after which it
flows north to Jacksonville, thence into
the Atlantic. The country through which
it passes consists of pine barrens and cy-
press swamps. 1t is broad and sluggish
stream, varying much in width, and re-
sembling 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
succession of lakes, and that it is mainly
fed from caveTns which are supposed to
exist beneath. There are 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 mill, and this fact has led to the
| conjecture that vast cave or series of
caves, underlies the whole country in
which they exist, and through whose
roof they burst with violence, wherever
an opening in the rock has either been
made or found. In support of this the.
DRY, and that the St. Johns is fed mainly
from such csVerns, it was stated that
| 1rho,, q booviIv loaded train arrjvne of tho