The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1886-12-17
5MisCellanentts.
AN ORANGE HUMMOCK.
RY HARRIET PRESCOTT sPoFFoRD.

| be said to be the fault of his mother and his
elder sisters, or of old Nanny Dinah, all of
whom kept the legends of those times pretty
constantly before his eyes and ears. The
splendor, the company, the feasts, the slaves,
all seemed TO him the variest idle story be-
side the fact of unvarying corn bread and
bacon now.
The house was tumbling to pieces; he
wondered ifthere was worst ruin in Florida;
| the almost boundess extent Of the lands was
uncultvated the slaves were all gone.
81 don't see why we should he poor" said
Julian, having made up his mind for good
square talk at last, with all the land that
is here"
THAT'S half the reason" said his father.
"But l thought that it was off the land
people made their money"
when they already have money and the
hands with which to cultivate land. 1t takes
hands and it takes means 10 grow cotton and
sugar. l can hardly be expected to go to
work myselfW
"Then," persisted Julian, "why couldn't we
hire people, and pay them from the crop when
it comes ?"
"You don't know what you are talking
about, my son"
81 know we have hundreds ofacres of land,
and if they were mine, think that could
do something with them"
"You may do what you please with them"
said his father. 81 give you carte Blanche"
ard he went back to the reading of the Con-
greSs Record. Or at least he would have gone
back if Julian would have let him. But
Julian had not begun to talk without being
very much in earnest, and now he meant 10
60 through.
"Well," he said, laughing, "carte blanche
is good thing to have, but one needs some
help to do anything with even that. / think
if you will let me have the hnmmock in Oke-
mokokec Everglade, and will lend old Cy to
cambridge and me-
"Old Cyrus What would your mother do
without him, and what would Rachel and
Rebecca do? The only one OF all the hands
that has stayed faithful to us! You can do
nothing without capital"
"Bul northern people come here, and seem
sure of doing well. And we have the land
they come to buy. That's capital. Ifyou
lend old Cy to Dan and me, we won't ask
you for more, for we've been saving our odd
pennies for this, and we've got enough to buy
all the gratis we want, and Col. Burbeck
will give us some besides"
"Grafls?" said his father, pushing up his
silver-bowed spectacles in perplexty.
"Grafts?'
"Yes."
"What are you going to do with gratis ?"
Look at them" said Julian, with a grin.
$50 l see you'll lend me Cy. What if
Rachel went along with usT
your mother might not approve
"Molherll approve fast enough, | reckon,
when we're getting fivc-lhousand year."
Five thousand u year cried his father,
letting the Congressional Record fall Have
you gone daft, Julian?"
"Well, father" said Julian, with great
laugh, throwing back the dark curl that was
always dropping into his eyes, "I'll send for
you to make us II visit on the big hummock
in Okemolkokee Evergade by-and-by and
then we'll see"
Il don't know about it; l don't know"
said his father, picking up the scattered leaves
of his cherished document. But Julian
knew that his father would lend old Cy to
cambridge and himself, and he made his pre-
paralions for the enterprise, saying little or
nothing. Rachel had already agreed to come
to them whenever they should send for her.
1t was week from that day that, with q
pack of simple provisions, with rifles, picks,
hatchets and pruning-knives, and some Irvine
hammocks in addition, Julian ard his party
started on their excursion, as they called il,
Julian carrying on his back-grcatly to old
Cy's disturbance but, then, old Cy couldn't
carry everything himseli-a bundle wrapped
in moss, which he gaily declared they must
save first in case of fire. for it was all their
fortune.
"Bress yer heart, honey" said old Cy,
where's dis yer fire gwine to be, onless Mars
Dan knocks my pipe onto cypr, ss-trec?
An it's so damp in desc yer swnmps, 'spect
itel put de pipe out anyhow"
They made their beds that night in the
hammocks that they slung high in the boughs,
and that Julian had brought along against
the wishes of old Cy, who thought n bed of
broken boughs fit for king, snakes or not.
What a scene 1t was on which their eyes
opened in the early morning! Cedars
superb as the cedars of Lebanon, dropping
great circles of shade, the huge live-oaks,
trembling with webs and festoons of gray
moss, that mace sheets of diamonds as It
swung in the sun, here and there palm-tree,
lifting its green crown in the clear air, and
vstas into the rich verdure of the swamp
beyond, gay with every color, and sweet with
every scent of honey suckle vanilla,
heliotrope, and unknown flowers,
In and out the thickets flashed wings like
jewels scarlet fiamingoes stood in the pools,
the great white heron rose heavily, and little
alligators, that looked as if they were living
bronzes, crept up to sun themselves On the
banks.
After they had finished their frugal break
fast, and rolled their hammocks in The small
est knot they could make, they pushed ON
after old Cyrus, who knew the paths and by,
paths to everywhere, aud they were only
week on their way, adding 10 their larder game
brought down by their rifles before they
came up from the swamp they had skirtcd, and
found themselves on the hummock of Oke.
molkokee Everglade,
What a strange place it was and what
wilderness of wealth it looked to Julian II
was slight elevation, but few feet in all
above the swamp, and its rich lands had be-
come forest Of the bitter wild orange, at
nresenL of no pond 10 anyhodu exnent h, Ito