New-York tribune., 1884-02-03
JOHN PAUL IN GEORGIA.
A AsANITARIuM AND ALMOST A PARADISE

4 CHAPTER on CLIMATE, FIRES, QUAIL, DOGS. AND
FOOD.
THoMAsvIILE, Ca, JAM 26-lf there be no CON
ISOLATION for ones own miseries like the
of others It has certainly been soothing 70 ~.
Georgians for the moment 10 read the record OF 'no
Thermometer as written in your latitudes' COM" v
our thermometers, especially depraVeo' nave v"-
6eayored 10 persuade us that at early moini"e V
mercury has gotten we'll down in the twenties but
Ihsse never risen early enough to witness any
such enornity Scarcely day as vet has moVed
me 10 think Of taking my ovcrcoat down from It's
reg, OF even TO assume the semblance of shlVer.
And yet net foy Of the congregated invallds nave
pronounced il mighty cold. and guessed NJ the
chances of lis being colder, while scouting conipa-
nies OF the oldest inhabitants, with shawls ronnd
their shoulders allowed that it WAS right smart
cold and reCkoned that il would be a heap colder
before it clard up But at no timo has it dared TO
be fairly. squarely cold in the sun. And until this
late boreal wave swept over the world, for one
had forgotten that 1T was winter. After circum-
navigating the globe IN search OF a climate. perish
ing la Paris, freezing in Florence, npped TO the
very marrow in Naples-eyen shivering in Sicily
IL seemed strange indeed in late December. and al
most within stones throw of Boston. to De
sitting out in ones shirt sleeves eating
oranges and wishing for n morning suhcientIY
cool to 90 shooting with clothes on This too
with the same flag luttering DER ones head that
few degrees north is frozen into sliil folds
THE LuATioN or FIRES 10 CLIMATE.
NV explonation of the warmth of the climate
down here is found In the universal "opon fires
tbe greater part of the beat goes up chimney, ana
I'll out doors Is warmed. 'Tis really very little
eraggeratiou to say that il is cooler in tho houses
than outside. But what pleasant sight 1t is to
SEQ these gnarled and jagged pine knots roaring
a,,d OH tIeo mi Ire
Of "kindling wood" Touch but q match to the
fat, fragrant wood, aud the next instant there's
rush and roar OF fame mp the chimney. as though
Won had upset a can OF kerosene on the hearth.
feeling OF regret born of the scarcity OF wood In
my own city and an ingram of economy which may
be natural TO "Northemers," comes over me as J
view this wasted heat. But after us the food and
glacial epoch The pine forests will last my time,
and Ihave no idea Of suggesting stoves. But mas
much us that same fat pine is the only lumber
Of this country. when house catches fire doesn't it
gof There's q flare and fash. sudden, scorChing
binding heat, and in five minutes he who a
moment before was OCCUPANT of n house looks
yainly round for trace of lares penates. fan
ey that II must be of this same fat Pine that the
pew "wood- -powderp with which some of my ac-
quaintances are experimenting with very inditlcr-
ent successl is made. The other evening we were
looking at house when flames burst ont at the
windows. 1t was au explosion rather than con-
fagraton and of residuum there was not much
more than is left after after shooting FFFG powder
And as though this were not enough thieves the
next night broke into tho store of the man who
was burned out and robbed the safe of several hun
dred dollars 1t never rains but it pouIsl
No RAIN AND A DRY WELL.
As for rain, though. This season, hereaway
has been ono of tho dryest--if not the dryest-On
record. dare not say exactly how long the region
was without rain but il ran into months. The
country round was all parchod up. Usually green
peas como in with the year; it is now near upon
February and there is not one to DO had Nor has
any one seen o strawberry. Now TO have neither
green peas nor Strawberries in January may not
seem TO you Of the North very aggravated case
OF agricultural distress, but IN this world all
things 60 by comparison. and suffer. Perhaps
you would he glad to get the very weather which
We condemn. But as to the drOuth there Is no MIS-
take-most Of the streams dry and all the
alligators are aground. To make certain of an un-
failing supply of water tho town has been sinking
m artesian well but tho lower they went the
dryer IL got, and after reaching depth of some
$500 feet they abandoned the undertaking. 1t
ts said that In the last days Of their working an
odor Of tea became perceptible but the town
was not after tea, and concluded to let well
enough alone.
Dut tnlnk OF q country NutIe ctutu Nlaus, eV Lar
from coming in sleigh and with furs. has to travel
on horseback and doesn't oven carry an umbrellal
OF the golden glory of the sunshine, and the mellow
yellow of the moon until tho present month. can
give you no idea 1t was all that Italy is imagined
TO be-and isn't. The new year brought few
frosts but ia comparison with your weather II
seemed only playing cold. And occasional rains
have since mOistened the soll-Or sand-swollen the
streams somewhat and brought Cheerfulness ia
the oountenances Of both farmers and alligators
GEORGIA QUAIL
But If cold be infrequent here aud water scarce
Quail are not. Bar the wilderness through which
the Children of Israel passed-there are many OF
them here, by the way-and question If ever there
was such o quail country In tho world Nimrods
from the North have beou here season after season
bringing In occasionally one hundred TO a gun of Q
day. and even this seems TO have failed of per
ceptibly thinning them. rejoice to say that
greatly through tho exertions of Judge Hopkins
thorough sportsman, law has been passed lin
iting the number that any man may kill in day tC
twenty-five. ! should still further rejoice had the
Judge made dozen fifteen the limit. as thii
would have excused me from bringing In more
They have plenty of cover and feed here. The old
cotton. plantations. abandoned furnish fields o.
broon-sedge which the birds affect later on. bu
lust now they arc in the pino forests. whero thoy
hold high reyei on a delicious seed found in The
fallen cones. But after all. this Southern quail II
pretty well able to take care of himself First, i
takes one familiar with his habits and the lay o
the land TO find him. And when found that ISM
all. Tho trouble has Just commenced Tho mex
thing is to stop him. Robert Of the South is il
no uncertainty as TO where he is going when b,
gets up. nor does he take roundabout course tC
get theIe--he just goes cross-lOts Nor does he ac
quaint you beforehand with the direction in which
he intends to fly. Your dog ponts-if haply you
his nose with the adjuratiOn Get up. Robert
White" There is the whiIT of thousand buzz
saws the rutte of an express train. the rush Of