The Florida agriculturist. [volume] (DeLand, Fla.) 1878-1911, 1881-05-04
DeLand VOusla County, Flonda Wednesday, May T. 1881.

the desolate regions about Lake Su-
perlor, on the extreme North Of our
great common house. Imagine, kind
reader, now in the first days of April,
the whole of this wide expanse still
in the clutches of winter. The mer-
curry in the morning, shows a tenn
perature several degrees below zero
on the streets, though the sun is
shining brightly there is no sign OF
thawing, the fields and forests are
covered with mantle of snow fully
tive feet deep, and were it not for
the ever inspiring green of the forests
OF cedar and pine. this would be
desolate country, indeed, at this sea-
son. There is, however, a bright
side to this picture of storms and
snow. Travelling through this
country, has the charm of novelty
and much that may escape the
thoughtless traveller is OF interest.
With the coming Of snow, and cold
weather all is lite, now is the time for
work or explorations IN the pine
forests. On snow shoes the hardy
woodman proceeds to his arduous
work. The bays and coasts, chiiled,to
a CLASSY surface, offers means of
rapid and easy travelling.
After every snow storm, the roads
are packed down by large rollers,
owned tor this purpose by the coun.
ties, and heavily loaded freight
teams, mostly driven by Canadian
and French, descendants of the olden
time voyagers and fur traders, are
hauling provisions and supplies of all
kinds to the mines, and having for
return freight, a load OF copper. For
this is essentially mining region.
Wherever a copper OF iron mine is
worked, "a little town soon springs
up III the wilderness. There is but
little farming done, not enough is
laiSed TO supply the wants of the
ecountry, and potatoes, oats and hay,
OiIouss Il 'LIIo rsJ1I ana 'ci1TnaCe are WeIf
suited to them, are brought in part
from below" as they nov. .call the
rest Of the world. The phrase is as
often heard here as the correspon-
ding expression 'the States" mean
ing the country east of the great
plains is in the Rocky Mountain re-
gion.
We glide noislessly over the
packed snow, and would find it hard
to remember that we are so far above
the surface OF the earth, were we not
reminded OF 1t by the snowed-in
houses, the fences when visible at all
showing only few inches of the post
or top rail, and that the telegraph
wire frequently is within easy reach
OF our hands. PROSTATE trees are
buried or covered their full length
with masses of snow, and OCCASION
ally great pillows of snow are lodged
in the dense tops OF the spruce or
hemlocks. Tracks leading into the
gloom are seen, occasionally those OF
the lynx or bear-both animals are
not rare-again will be seen the
peculiar track made by a man on
snow shoes, and tears come to our
eyes as we think of our first attempts
at walking on snow shoes. You,
southern barbarians, who do not un-
derstand the science, know not how
helpless one is when tripped by a
treacherous step, with your face and
hands in the powdery, bottomless
snow, and one OF your snow shoes
caught in some perfdious branch.
BY the way, the winter amusement
for the youth of both sexes at Mar
quette, and other places, are snow
shoe parties, and enjoyable they
must be for the participants. But
pardon the disgression, we are still
on the road, and it leads US along the
towering cliffs Of the Mineral Range.
The woods are quiet as. if waiting
for the return OF Spring, yet occa-
sionally lite is seen, and If the travel.
ler has the faculty Of enjoying the
animated life about him, he can not
but feel pleasure in the antics of the
first little Hudsonian squirrel, the
happy active droves ot redpolls
llnnels, or the strange plumage and
fearless confidence OF the Canada Jay.
One of the latter alights within four
feet OF our hands, and if we had but
u gun, what prize he would make
for some distant archaeological
friend. For the bird is rare north.