The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1876-01-17

friends asking me about Florida, and !
know of no better way 10 reply TO them
all than through the columns of TnE
GLOBE, us most of them are readers of it.
Although have seen but small portion
of the state, yet | can give you little idea
OF what | have seen and learned so far.
THE TROY or FLORIDA.
Palatka, from which place ! now write,
is the largest town on the st. Johns river,
mex to Jacksonville, and is we'll located on
the west bank, about seventy-fve miles
south of the latter city. It is the head OF
navigation for ocean steamers, coming
usually from Charleston and Savannah.
Most of the freight is transferred at this |
place to the smaller steamers for the upper |
st. Johns and Ocklawaha rivers. Paatka |
is the county seat for Putnam county, and |
has population of from twelve to fifteen
hundred. The majority are blacks and
natives, consequently the morals OF the
place are not under very good subsection,
and as they rule there is no law except the
Onlltu Dldtth uutiOlllf. maui thS III
uuiry Of an old citizen how they protected
themselves. son, reck0n IRE do that FIRST
rate =, every man keeps seven shooter ard
| n bull dog" The wharves are numerous,
owing to the large amount of freight that
is shipped and reshipped from this point
There are large and substantial ware
houses also a number of business houses.
| The buildings are two stories in hight, and
of wood. There are good drug stores.
The business in the winter season is very
GOOD, as this is their harvest, when the
western and northern people are here. The
business portion OF the town is better To-
Gated than the residences, many of which
are on rather low and wet ground The
blacks live in mere huts and cane novels.
There are few very coy cottages be-
side the hotels aud banking houses. the
water that is used here for all purposes ia
rain water which is held in large tanks.
The convenient cistern cannot be used ow-
ing to the damp sandy soil, and they tell
me that they can obtain no good we'll water
here.
ITS ANIMALS
The first sight that greets the stranger
here, as well as in other towns on the river,
is not pleasing. On landing at the wharves
about the first thing he ha, TO encounter is
a swarm of colored people, most of them
half clad and barefooted. The streets are
full of rubbish; geese, hogs, dogs, etc
What they call hogs we Yankees would
not know by that name, for it would take
a dozen of them to make shadow. They
are as black as Goals, their noses are thu
longest part OF them. and they can eat corr
, out of a stone Jug.
r PRODUCTIoX-.
4 The soil is Of white sandy loan and i
j adapted to the culture Of tropical fruit
s Owing to its dampness it is favorable to til
! bananas, which can be seen growing il
: every part of the town, loaded with fruit
e The only grass | have seen here is that i
c the Putnam House grounds, except til
J. wild cat grass. The Putnam House an
6 its yards are about the first things notice
II by northern visitors, and they make III
d same remark that "this is the first gras
- Nc nave seen einLO Cnt~.-a 49, a,oto
lie The yards Of the natives are filed with II
g sweet orange, banana, citron, Sicily lemon
ST fig trees, the century plant cactus, oleaI
ID der tree, roses, flowers, and SO on,
Is bloom, and while we are strolling abol
n here in the month of January, sitting III
70 der the shade of the magnolia, we ca
Il but feel a sympathy for our nor .hern friei
he shivering with the cold, the thcrmomet
G. sometimes at zero and below. But the
y is one privilege that you can enjoy whiC
"a we are denied. That is your nice team
!. and roads to drive on. There are but
o few nice turn-ouls in Palatka, and tho!
d, belong to our friond Col. II. l.. Hart,
ne whom l will speak of hereafter.
HOW FLORIDA TRAVELS.
IL Mules and donkeys are mostly used Fl
e. all purposes. will give you a descriptlc
IT, of the carts which are generally uset
1t though travelling any distance is performt
~ by riding on the back OF mules. The no
s. eltv of their teams have been very atnusir
IN to Mrs. Dunn. In the morning we usual
see from one to half r dozen crackers,
~ the farmer is called here, coming in tow
m with his produce, | cannot say driving,
re the driver always rides his mule, and Il
no occupants, however many they may b
are sitting on the bottom of the tv
wheeled vehicle, which is something lii
at our. northern dump cart. 1t is squa
to box on two wheels, with rough poles f.
II. thills. The harness consists OF pair
crooked sticks for harness, no collars, vii
Vi iron trace chains and a rope bride, a ss,
tn die and native riding completes the outti
a. TIMBER, LAND, CROPS.
Of The timber of this country is principal
&c the pitch pine, cypress, red cedar, wat,
or and live oak, magnaia, the pride of Indi
- Cor better known here as the China tree
and the palmetto There is no stock raj
a. ing here The chief products of the far
is cotton raising, sweet and Irish potato
and vegetables of all kinds. lie can reali
two crops year from the soil, althouc
be is frequently to shiftless to raise on
lie The best growers here are mostly northeI
-, men. The scenery of the st. Johns riv,
IS not very pleasing, there is sameness O
Vi along the river bankss as far as your el
70 can see are low marshy grounds | ha,
TO been south from Jacksonville to Dunn
Lake, distance of 100 miles.
IL WILD GAME.
IL During my ride on the steamer my atte
H. ton was called to the different kinds
game, duck, wild geese, wild turkey, all
Il, the sea gull, buzzard, eagles, water snak
Uo turtles, which are enormous in size an
100 last but not least, the alligator, whit
100 abounds in this river. Your correspo
0o dent has had the pleasure of seeing hu
700 dreds OF them | may say here that G
100 countered one lying summing himself alto
NO eight feet long. aroused him and veI
-, soon decided that he could occupy the iel
~ retreated as he looked hungry. III
nc natives say that the steak from them is d
az lcious, but prefer stall fed beef. v
al have some fun here fishing but not equ
TO the trout fishing. We get the sha