Clarksville weekly chronicle. (Clarksville, Tenn.) 1873-1890, 1875-12-11
LETTER FROM FLORIDA.

lOhN At1 nONAtlsE uOuC
Southern Florida, | propose to state
what / have seen and know about it.
The st. Johns and Indian rivers are
the points to be examined. The St.
Johns commences ten miles or more
wide, diminishing to the size of Little
West Fork, and cannot be navigated
by steamboats, without poles. You
leave this-the upper st. Johns-and
take a stream no larger and so crooked
as to be called Snake river which
takes you to Salt Lake, and strip of
land six miles wide separates it from
Indian river. The Indian name of the
St. Johns river signifies river of
lakes, and there is a chain from a few
miles to fifteen in width. They are
shallow and muddy, and often offensive
in hot weather, and produce chills-
though comparatively healthy coun-
try. | spent few hours with Col.
Pratt, at Palatka, and never saw a
more healthy looking family.
All lands near the river are taken,
and the orange fever has carried every
thing up to fancy prices, consequently
| made no stop. | took sail boat at
Sand Point or Titusville, down the In
dian river nine miles; then through a
creek into Banana river to its entrance
into Indian river, distance of forty
or fifty miles. On the eastern shore
there are half dozen settlements, the
balance bOundless salt marshes.
spent the night at thr grove described
in my last letter, the property of Capt
Bernam, the keeper of the lighthouse
on Cape Carnavaral. He politely took
me across to the coast and showed mt
one of the best towers in the United
States. 1t is forty odd feet at the basC
and twelve at the summit in diameter
1t is built of brick and iron clad, is ;
hundred and fifty feet high. The view
is limited by the convexity of the
ocean on the east and a boundles:
level plain on the west.
CAPTAIN Bernam has as fine hogs
! horses and colts as [ ever saw, which
we're never fed-being raised on the
berries of the palmetto and the acorn;
of the scrub live oak. These grow
on a perfect sand bank which cal
never be settled and furnish pcrpetua
range, and hunting grounds. He offer:
to sell place on the river which j:
inexhaustible in fertility, having upor
it two hundred and fifty bearing orange
trees, which will produce from five
hundred to thousand dollars annual
ly, at twenty-five hundred dollars.
proposed to buy this place, which i:
a perfect oasis in the midst of tho
waste of water and marsh, but he i;
committed TO another party. The
! Captain being a moderate man, free
! from the orange fever and in an mae
cessible part Of the country, has offered
the only bargain | have met with.
Most of the old people in this coun
! try came here many years ago to escape
| the curse of the middle and northern
States-consumption. They look wei
and | can hear of no sickness or deaths
Capt. Bernam says there is no bil
thing in Florida, but with the deliciou.
and healthy climate, the fruits, fist
and game, with fair profits, this coun
try offers inducements that are to be
| found no where else in North America
The Captains grove Of fifteen acres
twice as large as Col. Hart's-yield,
from fifteen hundred to two Thousand
annually. L believe the fruit on In
dian river is the best in Florida. Nc
doubt the reports of profit are greatly
exaggerated.
The only drawback to this elysiam
picture is the mosquito, but it is al.
ways cool enough to sleep pleasantly
under bars, and the lazy can afford to
fight him 10 the day time. | hear of
vacant land lower down the river and
hill ox-o,,o;no fartbar II
Indian River, Fla, Nov. 81, 1875.