The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1880-03-16

| tno duCleHG tOWu Oh Ol. Augustine, thirteen
miles beyond. 1t is method of migration
can heartily recommend to persons who are
not peculiarly sensitive to the influences of
salt water. All the packets have been on
board of since started are staunch, commodi-
Gus and very comfortable. The officers from
highest to lowest were assduous in their cour-
tesies, and every possible thing was done that
could be done to minister to the enjoyment Of
the passengers. We experienced great varie-
ties of speed. To Charleston we averaged Of
| miles an hour. There we struck one Of the
swiftest boats Of large size there is afioat, a
steamer called the St. Johns, that goes 18
miles an hour, at her slowest crawl, and can do
p when she is pushed. She is new, large and
admirably fitted up, fine state rooms, capital
fare, and everything first class. She makes
two voyages week from Charleston to Palat-
ka. On the Tuesday trip she touches at Sa-
vannah, and it takes good deal more time for
her to get up and down the Tybee river than 1t
does to make the sixty miles that precede it..
She proceeds thence to Fernandina, described
| the guide books as the Newport Of the
| South, and from there she makes the landings
| on the st. Johns river from Jacksonville to
| Palatka. This boat covers q distance Of 1900
miles every seven days, carrying great quanti-
| titles of freight, which are taken and left at
the various stopping places on her route She
is to run between New York and Long Branch
| on and after the 18th Of June, and her sched-
ule time from pier to pier is 6S minutes. The
distance is 211 miles.
Jacksonville is busy town in winter. 1t
has some of the characteristics of a northern
|
| Northerners here, some seeking health, and
others merely recreation; and the occupations
and amusements of the visitors are very SINH
lar to those in vogue in our Summer resorts
The atmosphere is suggestive of languor and
repose. One sees the same kind of people
lounging about the piazzas and stretching
themselves out in the easiest chairs in the
shadiest hooks they can find, that frequent the
hotels at Saratoga in the height of the season.
There are not SO many of them, neither do
they affect as much style. The inns in which
they are quartered are quite diminutive in
comparison with such vast establishments as
the United States" and "Grand Union," but
they are of similar pattern, only scaled down
to conform to the smaller number Of guests
they have to accommodate. The weather Is
generally warm in Winter, but not oppressive,
except in the middle Of the day. ] should
| judge it did not rain often or severely. Dur
| ing the week was in Florida saw neither
drop OF rain nor threatening cloud. The
mercury ranged from 75o to $50, and even
when the latter figure marked the score there
was good breeze, so that the situation was
not uncomfortable.
All the landings on the St. Johns river are
attractive. The ground is low, and in many
parts decidedly marshy, but at the stations
there is an abundance of luxurious foliage in
view. and the golden fruit Of the orange groves
produces pleasant effect. At Palatka there
are two quite imposing hotels and they were
very well filled up with company. AT st.
Augustine there are three and they were all
doing fourishing business. There are several
handsome villas in this latter town owned and
occupied by citizens Of New York. 1t appears TO
be a favorite resort Being on the sea coast,
heat is tempered with refreshing winds. st.
Augustine is one of the Oldest settlements in
the sUnited States There is a fortress here
that dates back two centuries and a half, with
no end of secret passages and dungeons and
chambers that look as if they had been scenes
of mystery and cruelty in days gone by. 1t
was within this grim structure that Osceola
and other Indian chiefs were imprisoned when
they were waging the memorable Florida war.
There is also military post here under the
command Of Gen. Frederick T. Dent. 1t COM
prises only two companies and no complaints
are heard from any Of the inhabitants native
or imported, in regard to this manifestation of
Federal authority. On the contrary the ofi-
GERS of the garrison are evidently held to be
valuable recruits to the society Of the little
town. Being gentlemen in virtue alike of
their profession and their West Point educa-
ton, they are naturally welcome guests at all
festive gatherings. Every night that was
there some kind of party came off,
and the men with the shoulder-straps
and their wives, were present in
force. Two of the officers, by the way,
originally hailed from Maine, Captain
Joshua Fessenden and Lieutenant Brown.
The latter gentleman was born in Oxford
county. Mrs. Fessenden is a native of Belfast.
The Yacht Club of St. Augustine gave ball
at their house on the evening of the 2Sth of
February, and the acknowledged belle Of the
occasion was young lady from Portland. An
other from Boston and third from Pennsyl-
vania were also objects of much admiration.
1t was very handsome affair in all respects.
The hosts and guests had mutual reason to. .he
proud Of each other. The scene opened with
creditable display of fireworks; music and
dancing followed; when left at midnight they
were still at it and showed no signs of an in
clination to leave off. Commodore Douglas of
New York is the President of the Yacht Club,
and he is just the man to make perfect sue
80 To To- H.. &.
has sufficient executive ability to fill the posi-
tion most acceptably. Such an institution goes
a great way toward making St. Augustine at
tractive AMI. il. deserves all the encouragement
it receives from the inhabitants. 1t is no
small matter to have a seaside room where the
latest papers are on file and where there are all
the opportunities for chat or a rubber at any
time of day or evening, on a spot where the
ocean breeze never fails to come. At times
they get the newspapers with marvellous celer-
ity When the st. Johns reached Tocoi on the
afternoon of the Goth ult. she landed news
boy who had complete files of all the New
York dailies Of February 9th for sale.
Returning to Jacksonville thought while
was about it and since it was so little farther
to go, would extend my trip to Cuba. Ac-
Monday, March 1st, for Cedar Keys. Tho
distance is 12S miles. We made Is of it with
in an hour and half. That carried us to
Baldwin There we waited an hour and a
half at one of the most desolate and woebegone
stations that ever was seen on the line OF a
railway. After that we got started again. We
made the entire distance in ten hours 1
thought it rather slow, but some of my fellow
passengers assured me we had made unusually
fast time, which they attributed to the fact
that one of the officials of the road was ON the
train and in a hurry to get to Cedar Keys.
That proved to be the fact met and talked
with the gentleman, and he informed me that
it was the intention to change the whole
course of procedure, to put on Pullman cars
and do the journey IN six hours-not ra-
markable speed our way, but unparalleled any
where south of Richmond. If they were to do
this they would stimulate travel to the West
Indies beyond doubt. 1t is pleasant route
..-Ixxf