The morning news., 1889-03-29
ON THE EVERGLADES BORDERS.
The Seminole Hunters and Their Habits
The Slavery Story a Myth.

The Seminole Hunters and Their Habits
The Slavery Story Myth.
Mr.. T. A. Mcmahon, Of Mcmahon &
Winn, has just returned from a three
weeks trip among the native and Indian
hunters and trappers and fur traders of
| South Florida. and talks very entertain
ingly of his experience in the neighborhood
of the Everglades, and the added knowl-
edge he obtained of the extent of the furs
& ID deer d bear s kins taken, which give
| so many of the Indians and natives employ
| ment.
Mr.. McMahon's trip was as far south as
| the Everglades, aud in one instance, he
says, he Travelled forty miles in a rough
wagon, part Of the time the water, through
which they had to ford in the road through
! the lonely wilderness, coming into The
wagon bed This was In the neighborhood
of Lake Okeechobee. The game season be-
| gins about Dec. and ends near the middle
| of March, but the limit is not strictly OBJ
! served by the hunters and trappars, who
are in a great many instances, especially
| among the Indians of the Evergl ,des, law
unto themselves, and they take a bear,
| deer, or otter whenever they fiad an
| opportunity.
| Owing to the character Of the cou 7try of
extreme Southern Florida Mr.. McMahon
| mails will hardly ever become extinct. The
| lakes, rivers, lagoons and impenetrable
| Everglades are Peculiarly adapted for pre-
| serving the fur-bearing species of animals
OF that section. The fur buy1r's trip was
as far south as the Everglades b ta Oh the
Atlantic and Gulf coasts, and while there he
| met numerous Indians at Fort Meyers, Mel
| bourne and other smaller trading points in
| the Lake Okeechobee region. Kissimmee
| has now become he principal trading
| point for the Indian hunters
and trappers, who have largely quit
| going to Barlow, which use1 to be their
! principal market, and other nearer trading
| points inland and on the lake and ocean
| sides of the peninsula. Kissmmee is sixty
miles from Lake Okeechooee, and is reached
| by the white hunters and some of the Indian
! hunters by steamers which ply KissIninee
! river from the lake to Klssimmee city, but
q great many Indians go and return the
| ltire distance il their canoes. Mr.. Nc
| Ma on said that this manner of ravelng is
easily explained in the language of the In
dians, who say "Heap dry. Kissimm5e
heap fire water" KiSsimmee is the only
wet town from that point to the Everglades
on the peninsula. 1t is the sentiment in
Barlow, Mr.. McMahon says, that at the
next election Barlow Will 60 ''wet" in the
hope of recovering its lost fur trade wit
| the hun ers aud trappers. Fort Myers on
the Gulf and Lake Worta on the Atlantic
coast are the principal near by trading
| points for furs, but not to compare with
| kissimmee, because both towns are known
as dry" towns. Fort Drum, Fort Bas-
| inger and Camp Starvation are small in
terror trading points lyi & north of LaKe
Okeechobee. Ia most all Of these points the
pale face can get liquid refreshments by
''Signing the club" as it is called, but the
untutored Seminole does not look with favor
upoh this roundabout way of getting
fire water, as he wants TO go where he can
| drive a trade for quart or a gallon aBd
drink it openly and above board. The In-
| dians, Mr. Nc MahOn says, are settled all
around the great Okeechobee lake ald all
through the Everglades where they are
| habitable, but be says the nearer one ap-
proaches the Everglades the more thor
oughly is the myth diSSipated that the In
dians in the Everglades hold colored slaves,
who are in profound ignorence that the
institution of slavery was destroyed nearly
a quarter of a century ago There are no
negroes in the section for the reason that
there is no affinity between the African and
the Indian, aud the negro is much more
afraid of losing his scalp than his liberty.
This keeps him at a safe distance from the
Seminole, which distance is likely to be
maintained.
The Indian hunters are provided with the
most modern firea ms for bringing down
their game, and they are most succe sful
trappers. Deer ana turkey are the game
principally taken, and of fu'-oearing amt
mails, the bear, wildcat, otter, raccoon,
mink and muskrat
Some idea of the success Of the Indian
hunter, and of the damage inflicted to the
fur trade by the yellow fever in Florida
last year may be gathered from an incident
Mr.. McMahon relates. The Indians took
no less than l 900 deer skins TO Titusville,
for which they could not find market, it
being the only place open to them, and they
had to take their goods back to the Ever
glAdes, and many of the pelts must have
been lost.
The native hunters and trappers are an
adventurous class, who defy the elements,
and are hardy an free hearted people
and hale fellows we'll IN {. There is white
hunte by the name of Simmons, who is a
noted character, and whom Mr.. McMahon
met q found a congenial fellow, to whom
is attributed the story that he made wager
that he would lie bound, in almost nude
condition, for twenty minutes in a place
noted for its mosquitoes, and they would
I bite him. For fifteen minutes not a
mosquito disturbed him. when one Of the
boys in the pol brought sungla,s to bear
on Simmons cheek. He stood it for awhile
but soon began to squirin under the intense
heat, and finally blurted ou- il the boys
would knock THAT - hoss fly" off Of his
cheek he would extend the time twenty
minutes.
Mr.. McMahon says there is considerable
ind gnation against northe n taxidermists
VINO have employed hunters in the neigh
borhood of Melbourne to kill birds Of plum
age tor the northern market. They pay
tue hunters 81 day and 81 for a boat, and
the BIRDS Of plumage such as the egret,
long heron and otter birds for which that
section is noted. Efforts will be made TO
have the legislature pass law inficting
heavy penalties for killing the birds, which
will soon be killed out if some such action
is not taken
Mr.. McMahon corroborates the st te-
ment published in yesterdays MORNING
NEWS tn It the submarine appearance Cf
oil off Jupiter Inlet has been very de-
structive to fish and turtles thousands Of
which have ioated up on the water dead.
The general theory in that c.ion, Mr.. Nc
Mahon says, is that some disturbance Of the
ocean bed b IS given vent TO q vein Of oil
Indictments Against an Ex-Cashier.
PIrTsBURG, March 27.-The grand Jury