Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1885-06-11
Ornnnes on the Streets.
Waytssya,s Aaor,d to Gro'o in Jacksonville,

Wftg 49,
When threw up the curtain that first
morning in Jacksonville, and looked out IN
the park in front of the hotel, and saw green
trees Of all kinds, orange trees filled with
ripe. yellow fruit, shade trees outside the
walks with oranges on, and ladies with par
asols, began to look around for the South
pole. Il was an enchanting sight to man
right fresh from sleigh-ride, and got into
a couple of pants pretty quick, and wentout
10 lust swallow in all this verdue. wanted
to 20 and roll in the grass. ! went down
stairs without waiting for any elevator rush
ed through the Office, forgetting all about
breakfast, and began to walk about the park
and the town. The oranges didn't look
right to me. / couldn't see how they could
grow there in the street, right within reach
of every little darkey in town, without be-
inc stolen. In the north the sourest crab
apple that ever broke a mans jaw, or puck
cred up pretty mouth, would not be safe
a moment. as exposed as those oranges were,
and / could not believe that boys in the south
were more honest than boys in the north.
Then 7 got to thinking, and made up my
mind that the oranges were tied on the trees
with pieces of wire. and were intended to
deceive northern people. l thuoght it was
| a mean deception, and made up my mind
TO expose it TO the world ] asked colored
man if there was any objection TO man
picking an orange, and he said he reekoned
not. so 1 reached up and got hold Of one
and picked it. | looked for the wire or
string, but it was actually growing orange
and had more faith in Florida than ever.
I shall always believe that the colOred man
smiled when he saw me take ont my knife
and cut piece out of that orange. Any
WAY. he turned his back when | started the
piece of orange toward my mouth Many
of the readers will remember my mouth,
as il was when lived in the north. 1t was
a pretty decent sort of mouth to stub a
round home with. \ plain, every day sort
of a hole, with teeth and tongue and lips,
before took that piece of orange in. We
gods The orange was as much sOurer than
vinegar as vinegar is sourer than honey.
| And bitter, Aloes, and rhubarb, and quiz
nine combined. would be molasseS beside
that orange Ny lips began to curl up and
draw around under my left year, my teeth
became loose and ratified around like dice
in dice box, and my tongue Glove to the
roof of my mouth. One eye opened so wide
that the eye ball looked like the face Of a
six shilling bulls eye watch, and the other
eye closed spasmodically and winked so a
colored nurse girl who thought was wink
inc at her got up off a bench and hauled
the baby wagon away, while the baby cried
as though a pin was sticking in it, on ac-
count of the expression on my face. l
reached around to my pistol pocket for a
handkerchief to cover my face until could
uuscrew my mouth and get it back in front
of me. and the colored man thought was
going to draw a pistol, and he started off on
a run. Well, if 1 had picture of my face
when 1 took mouthful of that orange, they
could sell them by the thousand in dime
museums as the wild man of Borneo. And
that is the reason oranges are safe growing
in the streets. lWlicqukee SIN.