The Palatka daily news. (Palatka, Fla.) 1884-1888, 1885-03-22
THE CLABBER CLUB.
What Member Saw and Heard and
Did i'll Camp---How a Happy
Soul May Dwell in

Tortured Body.
Governor Towns of Georgia command
ed the beer to pass round, and then en-
joined silence while the judge gave the
account of his adventures, which had
been promised at the previous meeting
''Mr. President and Gentlemen" said
our honored tramp, ''my woes are due to
Spike; my pleasures to the kindness Of
many friends, and my happiness to the
combined effect of Florida sunshine,
Florida scenery, Florida sport and veni-
son and fish We PASSED up the river
with delightful party on the DeBary,
and after discussing dinner which
would have done honor to the wedding
of an f. F. V. here Maj. Royal smacked
his lips, we landed on Lake George. and
set sail for the place selected for our
camp. IL words fail to give you any
idea Of our feelings as we crested the
bright waves of the grand old lake which
swept us on as with the rush of mighty
hands; ii / cannot describe the rolling
hills and valleys bright as silver and
lucid under the glory Of our Florida sun,
how shall I give you even a faint con,
ception of Spring Greek? The shores are
bright with orange trees; the channel is
paved with shells, which glitter in all the
colors of the rainbow, and surprise you
by the display of combinations beyond
the dream of mortals; a thousand fish
pass to and fro and play hide-and-seek
amid delicate MOSES and waving ferns
which would shame the decorations of
Aladdin's Palace. The water is clear as
crystal, so that the smallest coin may be
seen at the depth of twenty feet, and we
seemed literally floating in mid air as we
passed up the creek. But what was
Spike doing? l blush to say that he and
Pete stood in the boat and speared the
inhabitants of these fairy realms with as
little conjunction as / would shoot a
deer. When their brutality reused me
from my dreams and forced me To utter
a strong remonstrance, they only laugh
ed, and reminded me that l would be
hungry at noon. | saw the glittering
bass and mullet they were dropping in
the boat, and possessed my soul in peace.
d" AT dinner we had turtle soup, veni-
son steak and fried bass and mullet. so
that I was unwilling to sail for Salt
Creek till told that I could lie in the boat
and smoke by the way. I have already
told the history of my woes on the banks
of that classic river, but wish so add a
little to that account by saying 1 saw
moro fish there than | ever saw in one
place before.
ION my return / was borne on the
wings of the wind between crystal walls
of sea-green water which occasionally
hid from view the budding beauties of
the forest and then tossed US on high
that might get tantalizing glimpses of
the rich groves and wide fields of Dray-
ton Island. SO that the glamour of the
scenes through which had passed still
possessed my soul as we steamed down
the river till Truthful Jeems brought me
otiCh AAOAIl ASAlA -AcAltA AN giving Iile the
welcome intelligence that | was expected
to do the work while he put on his best
clothes and vanished for four solid hours,
which seemed days to me. Gentleman,
concluded the orator, go where 1 have
been as soon as possible. but leave Spike
behind"
Royals suggestion that some part Of
the speakers enthusiasm might be due
to the bottles taken with him, was treat
ed with the contempt it deserved, and
the club then listened TO the Presidents
account of the woes which beset our new
executive. He had tried every device to
shield himself from the prosecutions of
the office-seekers: but they had mingled