The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1885-04-09
SUCKED IN ON ORANGES.


George W. Peck, the inventor of the
a." Bad Boy" is just now sojourning in
Florida, in search of health and strength.
When L threw up the curtain my first
morning in Jacksonville" he writes, 'sand
looked out in the park in front of the
hotel and saw green trees Of all kinds.
orange trees filled with ripe, yellow
fr.iit, shade trees outside the walks with
oranges on, and ladies with parasols,
began to look around for the South pole.
1t was an enchanting sight to man
right fresh from a sleigh ride in Mil
waukee, and got into couple of pants
pretty quich and went out just to wallow
in all this verdure. wanted to 20 and
roll in the grass. l went down stairs
without waiting for any elevator, rushed
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. l couldn't see how
they could grow right there in the streets,
right within reach of every little nigger
coon in town, without being stolen. In
the North, the sourest crab-apple that
ever broke mans jaw or puckered UP a
pretty mouth would not be safe moment
as exposed as those oranges were, and l
could not believe that boys in the South
were more honest than boys in the North
Then got to thinking, and made up my
mind that the oranges were tied on the
trees with pieces of wire and were inten-
ded to deceive Northern people. Iasked
colored man if there was any objection
to man picking an orange, and he said he
reokoned not, so reached up and got a
hold of one and picked it. I looked for
the wire or string, but it was actually a
growing orange, and had more faith in
Florida than ever. shall always
believe that the colored man smiled
when he saw me take out my knife and
cut piece ou. of that orange. ANY
way, he turned his back when started
the. piece OF orange toward my mouth.
Many of my readers will remember my
mouth, as it was when lived at the
North. 1t was pretty decent sort of
mouth to stub around home with. A
plain everyday sort of hole, with teeth
and tongue and lips, when l took that
piece of orange in. Ye gods! The or
ange was as much sourer than vinegar as
vinegar is sourer than honey. Aloes and
rhenbarb and quinine combined would be
molas-as beside that orange. NV lips
began to curl up and draw around like,
dice in dice box, and my tongue Glove
to the roof of my mouth. One eye
opened so wide that the eyeball looked
like the face Of a shilling bulls-eye
watch, and the other eye closed spasmod-
ically and wicked so colored nurse girl,
who thought | was winking at her, got
up off bench and hauled the baby wag-
on away while the baby cried as though
apin was sticking in it, on account of the
expression on my face. reached around
to my pistol pocket for handkerchief to
cover my face until l could unscrew my
mouth and get it back in front of me, and
the: colored man thought was going to
draw . pistol, and he started off on
run, Well, if had picture of my face
when took q mouthful of that orange.
they could sell them by the thousand as
the wild man of Borneo. And that is
the reason oranges are safe growing in
the streets. Thew are too sour to eat.
and boy will not steal anything he
cannot eat."-PecRs Sun.