The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1884-05-14
For the FARMER and Mechanic.
ST. Augustine.

time Tor breakfast at The Duval House
before taking the boat for TocOl. Jack
sonville is a city oi much pretenslon.
and decidedly Yankee in style-at least
so it impresses one who passes through
its busy streets and close built squares.
Al the Duval we bought tickets via
Tocoi for ST. Augustine, which cost
only $l.75 piece--and went on board
one oil the noted Du Barry steamers. the
Eliza NJ. llaneoX, and steamed Gp
the II. Johns to Tocoi.
The 81 Johns. ihat much-praIsed
river. disappointed us greatly on closer
acquaintance. 1t is a wide, beautiful
tranquil stream, but has no scenery
worth the name so far as we travelled
up il. The shores are low and fiat, "
ing apparently level with the waters
edge; tut then they are very green and
beautifully wooded. Every here and there
are orange groves standing out IN sharp
distinctness against the other foliage.
st. John river is, properly speaking,
not river at all. but, as its Indian
name, Welaka, signitied, chain o.
lakes united by "A stream, and varying
in width from point to point in most
irregular fashion. III some places SIX
miles wide. in others barely two. Co
inc dOica to ST. Augustine, which Is ac-
complished by going up the St. John 5.
you pass many stopping places OF more
or less interest. Our boat touched only
at two, however. IIibernia, and Green
Cove Springs. About l. o'clock we
reached Tocci. where the railroad To st.
Augustine meets the boat Our tenn
porary escort helped us on shore we
babe goodbye to him and his pleasant
wife North Carolinian, by the way,
and went on board the car, it is liter
ally only one. and there waited for two
other boats TO come in before we start
ed
While waiting we were struck with
the extreme good fellowship and famil-
iarity existing between some white men
and negroes. Surely the whole ships
company' must have come from across
the line" for never saw it in that wise
down South before. Finally we steam
ed of, and travelled through the same
flat, sandy. stagnant water, dead pine,
moss draped palmetto and live oak
landscape that made the ride from Sa-
vanah TO Jacksonville so inexcusably
ugly. Arriving speedily at tie st. Au-
gustine depot, = the distance from Tocoi
to It. Augustine is only 1t! miles. we
were almost deafened BY the clamor OF
rival hackmen. We finally selected
one. and our Spanish experience began
with his namc-TomasO Sanchey. We
drove swiftly along down sandy roads
and through live oak avenues. across to
4 IL -.
past the Plaza. and 50 to the Edwards
House on Bay street. After dinner.
and later | shall have something to say
about ;he sort OF fare one gets here.
we set out to console ourselves for
other Deficiencies by seeing what we
could see
Our first turn took us down Treasury
street. the narrowest street in the city,
being only seven feet wide. and oh.
most delightfully."- foreign looking
High coquina walls. icalously guard
locked doors. set in deep embrasures
give ingress if you are privileged to
enter. tall palms ned over the walls,
great trees of white and pink oleander
are in full blossom. and everywhere
grows the sour orange, the common
shade tree of the place, and nature S
medicine for the bilious. so say the resi-
dents, aud they ought to know.
The old Spanish houses are built of a
natural cement very much like stone,
called coquina; (and for the unSpanish
readers | vii. venture 10 say the name
is pronounced as if spelt cokeend; ) form
ed OF shell and sand. by the action OF
the sea water. 1t is gotten from Anas-
tosia Island. about mile and Il hall
Il ON the main iand, where are large
quarries. which, in the days of Spanish
occupation were worked by captive Iu-
dams. 1t seems TO be very durable ,aLd
II is pity the city fathers have not
used il to pave the streets of their de-
ii.htful town; for with sidewalks to lift
tie pedestrian from the deep sand and
dust " hieh is so destructive to the APP
pearanee of dainty boots. st. Angus tine
would be insusceptible of further inn
provemcnt and those who could be
critical. would deserve TO be condemned
To Terra del Fuego for the remainder OF
their natural lives. From Treasury, we
turned into st. George, and loltered
awhile i'll a curiosity shop, where bangle
bracelets adorned with sea beads. shells
and alligators teeth, carved alligator
teeth brooches, etc.--shells, coral, and
live young alllgators dispute for atten-
ton. Thence lust round the corner
and the old Spanish Cathedral rises be-
iore us, large square coquiua building
crowned with a Moorish. minaret-like
be.fry where hangs a chime of oId
Moor sh bells. one bears the date l6S2.
and they were found in the ruins of the
old chaI el where Father Corpa suffered
maltyruom at the hands of the Indians.
The ellis. only four of them. are SCI in
the form of a cross. of which the clock
forms the foot, and at every hour they
ring Il quaint old-fashiOned imperfect
chime. but strangely attractive to ears
I that ear in it the melody of by-gon,
/ years--the sigh of the exile. the ecstacN
j OF the deyotee. the hope and faith OF al
the true-hearted. To enter in III,
doors, which according to the true spirit
1 of Catholicism. are always open toI
! those who wish to enter in and wor-
ship one crosses a vestibule worn into
unevenness by the many feet which fol
a century have borne Gods suppliant
children to His temple. The old cathe
dral-look has been greatly impaired by
the modern innovation OF pews and /;
wooden floor. Formerly the floor wa:
eoquna, and the worshippers carrieo
/ cor their servant did for tlIem) a carpe
and cushion on which they sat or knelt
Over the main altar are niche
holding images of st. Augustine and /,
the right st. Aloysius, and left st. Am
brose. On the left of the altar han !,
an old solid silver lamp, in which tn
sacred flame has burnt with scarcely al
| intermis sion for a centurY--ihrough th