Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1882-12-21
TALLAHASSEE TOPICS.
ON THE QUI WYE FOR CHRIST.
MAS.

The Recent Cold Weather-The Internal
Improvement BoOm-COntinued Fall
ures of the Mails-Preparing for the
Legislative Session-A Large Crowd
Expected at the Capital.
TALbAHAssEE, Dec. l9.-Editor Aoyzaino
3eacs; The near approach of Christmas is
heralded by the usual preparations for that
festive season. For weeks past the storekeep-
ers have been busy receiving their consign-
ments of "Christmas goods and putting them
in position. Extra clerks have been engaged,
and already some of the stores are thrOnged
with sight-seers and purchasers. The win
dows and show cases are filed with
q tempting array of TOYS, ornaments, etc.
while persons from the country are busily
engaged every day buying little mementoes
for the loved ones at home. Nor is the small
boy idle. His hands itch to handle those fire
crackers, Roman candles and "Chrstmas dev-
lis, and, too impatient to wait for the long
expected day, he is already spending his small
change on slight investment in that line;
and the sound of fire crackers during the day
and the illumination of the Roman candle at
night are not unusual. While Thanksgiving
day Is, OF all other days, the most dear to the
New Englanders, Christmas is the great
ron. HallOwed as it is by the many associa-
tl0ns OF the past, and observed for generations
1t with pleasing anticipatlOns, and with old
and young the time -h0nOred customs are still
observed. With us it is not only a season of
festIylty, OF giving and receiving gifts among
the various members of the household, but Of
joyful reunion of those who have been sepa-
rated: In this way we observe it as they do to
this day in ''merrie England and the good
old 'fader land'' of the Germans. With the
South it has changed in other respects, while
it has to some extent adopted the customs of
other sections of the Union, l hope that the
time e-honOred customs of this festive season
may ever prevail among us.
Again we have had another cold spell, and
ice formed slightly on Saturday morning and
still thicker ON Sunday morning, when the
thermometer marked twenty degrees. So far,
however, the young vegetables have not been
injured. A prominent trucker informs me,
Notwithstanding the heavy frOsts and freeze
some two weeks ago, that none of his Yegeta-
bles were injured. Setting out cabbages
is still going on. Irish potatoes will soon be
planted, and our truckers are already busy
preparing for the spring crop Of next year.
The large Negro population of this section
makes labor cheap, and for that reason it is
the best section for trucking operations in the
State. While but a small force is necessary to
cultivate vegetable farm, yet when the crop
is ready for market these additional hands
are needed. For this reason trucking cannot
be carried on to any great extent except in
thickly populated country.
The company to build and operate railroad
from Carabelle, on the Gulf, through Talla-
hassee to Thomasville, having recently
ganized under their Florida and Georgia char
ter, have gone to work IN earnest. A party
consisting of the Vice President, j. 4. Page,
of Albany, Col John Bradford, the Chief En-
gineer, and others, have gone to the Gulf coast
to select suitable terminus for their road,
and every preparation made for COM
mencing active work. The company will
apply TO the Legislature that meets in
January for a grant of lands belonging
to the internal improvement fand and
without doubt will obtain 1T. In some sections
liberal grants have been made to various roads
leading to the same termini. As Middle Flori-
da has but one road at present, her rights in
the premises should not be ignored. For more
than a score of years past it has been the de-
sire Of many of our people to have direct com
municatiOn with the Georgia systems. The
old Pensacola and Georgia Railroad, now
portion of the Florida Central and Western,
was supposed by many, from its name, to be
built to Georgia direct, and quite a
number of our planters subscribed iiberally
for stock under that impression. When
they found that the road was being construct
ed to Lake City, they refused to pay for their
stock and were sued upon it. This feeling
does not proceed from any dislOyalty to our
State, but entirely from self interest. 1t is
believed that if road is constructed from
here to Thomasville it will not only benefit
the Savannah, Florida and Western Railway
but our own Florida Central and Western. 1t
will destroy monopoly, by cheapenlng frelghts
and passage. and. as a consequence, offer in
ducements to the immigrant in shipping facil-
ites. The business of both roads would
ultimately be increased by it. In
anesye Sa1 THE opton nhppef or two roHEfes
to Jacksonville is or Ocala. SO of other points
in the State, and now the one road that for
merly enjoyed a monopoly does heavier
business than ever. 1t may be objected that
Middle Florida has had her share in the bene-
fits of the internal improvement fund, and
that grant to our new road would be doing in
justice to other sections. This objection would
hardly hold, for while East and South Florida
have network of railroads with their re-
spective grants of land this section has but
one, and If another road is built
it is our right that we, too, should
share, gain with others. 1t is
true that millions of acres have already been
granted for various purposes of internal i'm
prOvement, and the aggregate of these grants
exceeds the number of acres now controlled
by the Board of Internal improvement. But
it must be remembered that there are still
several millions more get to be patented to the
State. All of South Florida has not yet been
surveyed, and large tract will be reclaimed
by the drainage now going on in the OkeechO-
bee region. This great system of internal i'm
provement, that has accomplished so much for
the State, was originated here. The original
bill, which became law in 1855, was mainly
the work of citizens of Middle Florida.
Our mails continue to come lrregularly. On
two days last week and to-day there were no
Savannah papers of the previous day. The
Sunday Telegram, which should reach here on
Monday morning, was received on Tuesday
and the Mondays MORNING NEWS, that should
have been received on Tuesday, did not reach
us until Wednesday. There is certainly
hitch somewhere, for we do not get our Savan-
nah mail always even when connection is
made. The press all through Middle Florida
are growing more frequent than ever.
On an inspection of the registers of the st.
James and City Hotels, | find there were quite
a number of arrivals during the past week,
most of them Northern visitors. The Tallahas-
see Hotel will be opened by the lst of January
and it is said that every room has already
been engaged for the season. If that be true,
our city win soon be crowded with visitors.
As the Legislature will meet in little over
two weeks, everything about the capitol is in
a state of preparation for that event. While
the Governor his Cabinet and their subordi-
mates have been, and still are, busy collating
and preparing for their reports, the Adjutant
General is engaged in having the neces-
sary repairs made to the building and
in refurnishing certain parts. A new
coat of paint on the fence around the
capitol has added to the attractiveness
of the grounds, while the plastering and paint
ing going on inside will, by the Ist of January,
give the building a neat and tasty appear
ance. Most of our Solons like to make them
selves comfortable during the session, and al
ready quarters have been selected by quite q
number AS our sessions are now biennial,
and a number of important measures will
come before it, the Legislature will probably
be in session as long as the constitutional lin
its permit, which is sixty days. Quite num-
Der of the members elect are new and untried
in the field of legislation: but
they will come with an earnest purpose, and
what they may lack in experience will be
compensated by their zeal for the welfare of
the State and sober common sense The
presence of the Legislature, the session of the
nual Fair will altogether make our city quite
a lively place for a time, and put our hotel
and boarding house keepers and merchants
in good humOr There will probably be a
larger crowd here in January than we have
had for years. LEON.