The Republican journal., 1884-01-10
Our George Finishes the St. Johns.
LETTER NO. /,

directly opposite. about five miles distant. is
Enterprise. 1t was my intention to stop at
Enterprise and visit an extensive orange grove
there, being provided with letters of introduc-
tion to the agent, but we We're SO late in arriv-
ing at Sanford, and was so faint with hunger.
that the sight of an orange grove did not have
such Il charm for me as did the prospect of a
square meal, which l was led to believe | could
obtain at the Sanford House. At Enterprise is
the Brock House, a winter hotel. 1t is kept by
a gentleman named Stone, who | understand
was formerly clerk in the Thorndike House.
Rockland. On all sides l heard this house well
spoken of, and every traveller seemed to know
Stone and everybody had good word to say
for him, but unfortunately for me. the house
was not yet opened, so | could not swoop
down on him unawares. and deplete his harder
as | certainly should have done.
found the Sanford House was opened the
day before my arrival, and things were not
fairly in running order. but they had commen-
| ced, however, at the right end, the Kitchen
The proprietors ScoyilIe d Beerman, also
propretors of the kimbalI House, Atlanta.
sulphur Springs Hotel, Suwunee, and several
other hotels may not be able to repeat the
Lords prayer backwards, but they 10, keep a
hotel, and it is a pleasure for me to record that
fact and assure my readers that if ever they
get in the vicinity of the Sanford House. and
feel an aching void within. that they can there
get the vacuum filled. Possibly am not com
petent to judge what does constitute Il meal.
but I'll venture to say that when a man sits
down to Il clean table, handsomely laid, and
the waiter brings him II nice New York porter
house steak, hot rolls, white and light "gilt
edge butter sweet and Irish potatoes cut
lengthwise and fried in kettle of fat like
doughnuts, and Drowned Ill over. c?jt., coffee.
not imitation, and rea! jersey milk, almost
cream, to put into it, a nice slice of ham, some
eggs, Il sausage and plate of corn bread, and
then leans over your chair and asks lis dere
anything else you wants. sar:" the hungry
guest does not get up and fell that waiter to the
| floor with a chair. but goes down into his
trowsers pocket and hauls out a coin Of the
realm, and gives it to that waiter. After sup
per, with renewed strength and courage.
sauntercd out to take Il look at Sanford The
hotel is situated little distance from the lake.
and In front of it is park filled with roses and
flowers of al! kinds and bananas. orange trees
palmettoes. and pines. There is also a sulphur
spring. but don't get mashed on that ,lvie of
drink. 1t makes man smell as if he had been
eating matches, and the water tastes TO me as
if it bad died of cid age. The house i, lighted
with gas, has 125 rooms, electric bells. water
and all the modern improvements. sanford is
named for Gen'l. sanford. who was formerly
our minister to Belgium He is very wealthy,
and has spent a great deal of money here, in
helping make the place Il winter resort He
owns fine orange grove and a banana plant
alton. may have neglected to say, and if 50
will say ii now that Sanford is also ths h salth-
lest place in Florida.
No one seemed to know Just how large san
ford was. 1t varied in population from 600 to
800, but it seemed to be quite an cnterpri>ing
town. What 10 me is the greatest wonder is
how the traders live. ! counted the stores in
this town. and there were over 60. and they
Were many of them much larger than any in
Belfast, and they Were clitmmed with goods
There are no towns of any size near here. and
apparently no country trade to support them.
Many of the Inhabitants are coored, and poor,
and how so many stores can be supported can
not understand. unless it is done by the Winter
travel. 1t was said few wears ago. that the
productions OF Florida We're hard pine and sick
Yankees, and perhaps il is the last named COM
modify that absorbs the goods,-but lie that As it
may, to an observer, business in all the towns
have been in. seems more ovcrdone and
crowded than it does North
1t looks queer TO see the way ice is shipped
here. In coming up the river. at nearly every
| landing there would 90 ashore boxes of lee
which would contain about three cakes of ice
and everybody knows how big Il cake of ice is.
II was packed in saw dust. a,;d the boxes did
not seem very wet, which showed that the ice
dld not melt very fast. Another thing | notic-
ed. AT every place where there was any
freight. one could see bales marked. "Maine
Hay and barrels marked Cobb Lime Co..
Rockland. Me" and it made me almost wonder
if there was any lime made anywhere else. OF
by any other company. 1t certainly must be a
great export for Rochland.
The following morning. after Il good nights
sleep and q good breakfast | again took the
boat down the river. Going up this river is
like climbing up Bunker Hill monument. Al
ter you get up, you wish that you were down
again. 1t Is so here. one sees all there is, 90
ing one way. 1t is like a string of Nausatgc
one link is good us Il whole string Among
the passengers was u. ). Senator Wilkinson
Call of Fla. Before knew who he was, had
scraped Il steamboat acquaintance with him,
and found him to be a most intelligent gentle
man, and from his conversation learned much
about the state. don't think that he carried
any razor> in his boot legs, or had any howit-
zers concealed about him. lie was addressed
as Col" by his friends. 50 presume he was
in the Confederate army, but he was as nof-
fen>ive looking As a box of soap. | did not
near INN alIude to politics, and during the time
was in the South, the only time that [ heard
any mention made Of politics. was by a NEGRO
barber in Georgia. He discovered that | was
from Name, and he said, "lou see that have
Gen. llancock's and Alex. II. Stevens pictures
hung up in my shop. | have to keep them
there, and also keep my mouth shut; else |
should have no customers; but I'm Il Republi-
can, and so are all the colored men, and we
think Mr. Blaine is the biggest man in this
country, and we hope to help make him Presi-
dent next time" All this was said in nv ear.
III whisper, as he was dressing my hair. and
1t was the only time that | thought of 'klu
kluX" and ''bloody shirts or politics. but |
surmlse that about the fact of the case is this.
mat man can say Just what he plcaseS down
here, politically, but if he is a re,I-hot Republi-
can, it p/easeS him not to shoot off his mouth TO
any great extent.
| was more fortunate in my alligator cyperi-
ence in coming down the river than WAS in
going up. | was sitting on the hurricane deck
near the pilot house. with party Of gentle
men. when i'll coming round bend of the
river, the captain said, gentlemen, if YOU look
on log at the foot of that cypress there, as we
come round this bend, you will see the biggest
alligator on the river. lie is most ALWAYS there.
We call him Capt. jack" As the boat
came round, sure enough there he was. He
must have been over ten feet long, and he laid
on log, with his mouth open. As they open
their feed box, it makes a series of wrinkles
about their face which gives them the appcar-
ance OF smiling. and more open countenauce
never saw They lie in the sun and lift up
their upper jaw, and let the flies and bugs and
lizards hop in on their tongues, till there is
enough for a swallow when down oo,,,o., a.,