The union. [volume] (Greeneville, Tenn.) 1877-18??, 1877-07-26
OUR FLORIDA LETTER.
ST. AND4Ews, Fla,
June rs, 1877.

Editor Union:
"0h, magnet South! Oh, glis-
tening, perfumed South Again
in Florida, | float on transparent
lakes-I cross the hammock lands,
or through peasant openings, or
Through dense forests. | sac the
parrots In the )ds-I see the
paw.paw tree aud the blooming
tile," and this is all the woods Of
Florida. Some of Us, unfortu-
nately, see and feel things here
that are not, perhaps, as attract>
i've as parrots aad paw paw trees.
1t must be wise to be poet, and
soar so easily above the unpleas-
ant things of life. Reading this
p1,tical rhapsody on the "per-
fumcd South" brought to mind an
encounter when | first came to
this "magnet." Arriving in the
morning at Pensacola, was OBJ
liged to wait conveyance to this
place. A party of US strolled up
to the hotel for dinner. On en-
tering the reception room no.
ticed that the only occupant was
an old lady, Of some two hundred
pounds avoirdupOis, tantastically
dressed. After glance ! became
engaged in a lively chat with our
party, aud thought no more of the
Stranger until suddenly accosted
by her:
"Be you agoing to settle in
Florida ?"
"If like it," | answered.
"Well, you won't like it. Fer
l do say it's the meapest hole |
ever got in to. Me and my old
man come down here about year
ago, and now we've managed to
get money enough to get back
with, aai, we're going jlist as fast
arsG,ns;;l lsss..as..4-l.aal;s-sat
b "a eotning but a sha ider
TO whatI was when | cone There,
And I've scratched every bit Of
the orr inal'hile of my Body. |
wasn't sure the Aeas would leave
enough of ME to carry North.
Me and my Old mn want TO die a
nAtral death; we don't want TO be
eat up alive. Aad such a lone
some place "a b,dy might just
well be buried alive. Aud then
they tell me so mucn about the
Howers here; but they amt of no
account ; there amt no mite OF
Fragrance, in any of Gem"
Our party was in an uproar,
This was a damper, "sure and
certain" and shows at 0ace the
Inference between a poetic and q
common .ensa view Of life; With
the poet it was paw>paw with
the fantastic old lady it was
scratch-scratch. The old lady was
in the main correct, as my subse'
ouept experience has proven.
have no doubt that she lost some
solid substance during Der stay
though there was no particular
evidence of her having become
shade wy. l have frequently
thought of her since the advert o
fleasFhis summer, and | am sure
that though she may be hungry
and suffering, she viii! have thu
consolation of dying a natura
death. / would call the attention
of uncle Sammy Snapp and otheI
stout people to the fact that w
gently but sorely evapcratc ii
Florida. There is no doubt thu
Aeas had something to do with thu
old lady's decline, but other causes
are at work here far more power
full. A friend was accosted tn
other day by another whom h.
had not met for year, will
"where is the rest of you I" Tn
crest" consisted of forty pounds
"gone like a bubble that bursts ii
sun" in one short year.
The emotional side Of ones ma
ture gets finely developed in fle'
time. am not sure but this Is
wise provision of nature, to keel
Us active in this climate. stop
ped for a week, not long since
with some friends in ueighbOr
Ing town, and to illustrate ho'
ones manners get polished.
will relate or picture a scene tina
occurred during that time. I'm
as;ue an evening party of fncl.
dressed northern people in ANNA
tod conversation. Suddenly on
Of the party vanished. No excuse
no apology, no sailing graceful.
of Az at another time. There j
see