The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1884-01-23

The following letter from Colonel w. j.
Keller. who IL Iourping In Florida Tor his
health, TO friend here IL Interesting
coming as II does from tho land 81 flowers
Sr. NICHOLAS, Fla. jan. l6.-My Dear
Friend You know | never slight you
when leave Dallas upon sny oi my ramps
aud presuming You are slready aniieipaun.
the usual "few short lines snail not
longer delay,
on my way hither | stopped over In
Houston and Nav Orleans. While IN the
latter city | had the exquisite pleasure To
be with my old friend nnd my newspaper
partner IN the years ugono IN mississippi
Major u. J. Hearsey. Al one time no was
editor OF the Times. Democrat, but u now
one OF the liveliest and brightest
dailies published In the South. Major
Hearsey IL not unknown even In
North Texas. He " one OF Gods gifted
sons-a talented MANA csu,tio wfiter-a
true friend-a brave man-one who has
m AIDE his mark In Mississippi and Louis
lana, and who is rs popular M lac Is good
looking.
/ arrived here some days since, and have
fallen In love with the climate that THIS
.Land of Flowers" is blessed with. This
winter, so far, there have been bu, three or
four cold days, that Is, whore tho thermom'
eter ranged be ow 32o. To-day II IL 7Oo,
and IL has been from 5O9io 100 for !he
past weSk,
Ponce de Leon is supposed 10 have bosn
the first one who landed ia Florida. Ha
left Porto Rico In April 1912, in continue.
ton OF his search Tor the Fountain OF
YOUTH and on the second day In that
month, (which day being Palm Sunday and
which the Spaniards called 'rSsqua Flor
Ida" or Flowery Easter, from the palm
branches aud flowers, with which
that dav) landed on the
coast, near the present site of ST. Angus.
tine, and gave the name OF FLORIDA" TO
this country.
During the few days OF my residence
here, the weather has certeinly been az de-
liPhtful asyou could imagine. Wearo now
having the temperature Of October, ms o.
tooar is known in North Texas. | em in-
formed, by various reliable persons, who
have resided here for many years, that the
thermometer never exceeds lOO ., that
during the summer, the nights arc CRATE
fully co d, and that there are few nights
when you can sleep with 1ut blanket An
invalid, who HIS tried various climates, and
has kept up n kind OF running tight with
death, for many years, reircating from
country to country us he IL pnrsued, de-
clares that the winter climate In Florida
ispreferable to that of any part OF Europe
even that of Sicily, aud that IL Ia better
than the climate OF the West Indies.
The climate OF Florida IL, in fact, an
insular climate; the Atlantic on the
east, and the Gulf OF Mexico on the west,
temper the airs that blow over II, making
them cooler in summer and warmer in
winter. H. Is, therefore, no wonder that
Florida is the iRvalid's resort; and II would
be more so, ii the softness Of It's atmosphere
and the beauty and serenity OF ITS seasons
were generally known. Accommodations
for persons in delicate heal h are not want.
ing; they are, In fact, becoming better with
every year, as the demand for them Ia
creases.
Among the acauaintances | have made
here, | find many, who have come hither
for the benefit Of the T health, and are dc.
tanned for lite by the amenity of the eli.
mate. DR.. Forry's work on the climate OF
The United StaiPs, ascriOes uniformity OF
climate to Key West. AS appears by the
observations he HIS coilec ed. tho seasons
mt that place glide into each other by the
soitest gradations; and the heat, even in
midsummer, never reaches that extreme
which is felt in the higher attitudes OF the
American continent.
Numerous kinds OF tropical iruite, such
as figs, Japan plums, bananas, pomegran.
ates, gnaya lines, lemons. grape iruit and
many others, are cultivated in this sac
tion ana grow to perfection. Vegetables
of all kinds grow here the year round. New
POTATOES, English peas and other vegeta'
bles. fresh from the garden, are served up
every day for our dinner. Strawberries ara
now in season. Shrubbery OF every de.
scription Grows In the open air. White
and crimson japonicas in iull. bloom are
found in many iron, yards. Oranges grow
to perfection. The fines, and largest grove
! have vet seen IL DR.. Wards. on the ST.
m
ocean. H. has 1000 trees, one-half Of
which bore the past year. The largest
trees have seen are ten inches in diane
ter, and are 4S YEAR, old, having been
planted in 1885. A short time
after, severe winter Killed
almost every orange tree in this state.
have been shown one tree that bore 800
oranges last year. Oranges are now selling
here for 81 and 100 per hundred.
Fishing grounds are too numerous to
itgmize, You con Cri various KINDS NJ
fishing here-bass, drum, sheepshead
fresh water trout, catfish, etc. Good hunt
ing can be enjoyed, game OF all kinds being
quite abundant.
Fine salt water oysters, clans, stone
crabs and green turtles are plentiful ana
dirt cheap. Shell oysters sell for one doi-
lar per barrel. Our host purchases string
of bass for twenty five cents that furnishes
a good meal for ten persons.
List week Colonel Hunter, of Alabama,
and DR.. Wellesley, OF Louisiana, old friends
of mine, and as clever % hey make them,
accompanied me up the st. Johns river Tor
many miles. We embarked upon u mag
niiicent steamer, called the 10y gnus," that
formerly ran between New York city ana
Coney Island. The st. Johns river
is beautiful capaclous body OF water,
characterized Ter IT'S way wardness by tne
Indians as "We-la ka," meaning that ut
has it's own way" 1t flows through East
Florida almost due northward for 400 miles
until Jacksonville is reached, and then
runs directly east into the Atlantic ocean.
Its width varies from one to Elk miles. ltc
real source Is unknown, but it seems to be
formed by numerous small streams from
the unexplored regions OF the evorg AIDES
1t presents tropical appearance along Its
whole course. We find orange groves dip
ping their gold-dappled boughs into its
tepid waters; on its banks rise the grand
old live oak trees that have existed for cen.
turtles, while, here and there, Is the stately
magnolia, in all its pride, sleeping the At
waters. Of this noble stream are Of .
dark blue, and slightly brack
ish 90 far mp a Lake George, -
the tide runs NJ this river Tor more than
one hundred miles. The banks OF
the St. Johns river are the principal at
traction TO invAlids In search OF P sasant
scsttered among its towns and villages
every winter, while some few bring camp
eouipages and pitch their tents in the
picturesque forests.
Al Mandarin, small town on the east
bank. thirty.five miles from the ocean, .
convent has been recently built and estsb-
hshed by the bishop of Florida, and is now
Inhabited by the Sisters of Mercy. Mrs.
Harriet Beecher Stowe resides near tsis III.
tie village. She has pleasant cottage. sur.
rounded py forty acres OF land, several Of
which are planted with orange trees. l
wondered WHISTLER she had 40 old Uncle
Tom TO look after her grove. The old lady
Is now at her place for the winter, having