The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1889-03-13
Brief Notes of Travel.

JraVerSeU III from OeuJrdl eTInOuu 10
Southern Florida in the last few days,
possibly some brief notes of incidents
and impressions by the way and few
days observation here may not be with
out interest to your readers. Starting
out from Middlesex through snow drifts
from two to four feet deep, the 10th
of February, we spent the first week in
visiting New England friends. AT
Concord, n. H., we attended the
funeral of James M. Lawrence, for
merly of MiddleseX, a good and true
man. Concord has fine federal build
ing of native granite. | only hope that
the one at Montpelier will look as well
when finished. AT Swampscott, Mass,
it was pleasure to meet venerable SUBJ
scriber of the WATCHMAN, p Holden,
Esq, who, nearly sixty years ago, was
hotel clerk under Jonathan Shepard
and William Mann, keepers of the lead
ing hotels at Montpelier in that day.
| Although an invalid for the last five
wears, Mr. Holden retains his mental
powers finely. We also visited many
of the younger members of the Holden
family at Swampscott, Newton and
Wellesley. AT Boston we stopped with
A. V. Abbott, formerly of Worcester
and Montpelier, and saw many friends
and acquaintances.
Starting out from Boston at six p. NJ.
on Monday the 25th, we took a sleeper
on the through train to Washington, ,
and passed one of the most miserable
nights in our brief existence. The car
was crowded with people, all son to
Washington" The weather was cold 3,
the ventilation imperfect, and the air
towards morning perfectly poisonous.
The good Lord deliver one from ever
being cribbed, cabined and con-
fined" in one of those upper berths
again. We arrived in Washington at
noon, too late for the connecting fast
train south, four hours to wait. We
wasted part of the tine in trying to see
President Harrison arrive at half-past
two, but he fooled the crowd by getting
off at some other station. We took
our revenge by going up to the capitol
and looking at congress in session.
General Grout did us the honor of show
ing us the main objects of interest.
AT four O'Clock p. Nj. we took passage
for Jacksonville in common frst-class
car via Richmond, Weldon, Whining
ton, Charleston, Savannah and Way
cross, and arrived at Jacksonville at half
past eight Wednesday evening. After
a nights rest we took train up the st.
Johns river some more than one hum
dred miles to Orange City, where we
stopped four hours for dinner, rest and
observation, then on to New Smyrna
by branch road, Twenty-Five miles.
Here for very large bill we got very
small room for the night, and in the
morning a good team to take us twelve
miles to Oak Hill, our journeys end in
this direction.
From the land of frost to the land of
flowers, fifteen hundred miles in ninety
hours, with thirty-six hours stopping
besides the necessary stops for meals
and stations, is fairly fast travelling.
The mercury at Boston was about at
zero, Monday. Here, Saturday, at
eleven A. NJ. it was seventy-two above
in the shade, and higher later in the
day. Oranges that have been left on the
trees are at their finest. The bulk of
the crop of course has been picked,
but there are quantities of them left,
and it is a rare pleasure just to step out
and pick the rich, ripe fruit from the
beautiful trees, many of which are bios
soming for another crop. Speaking of
blossoms reminds one that the whole
region here seems fragrant with them.
Jessamines, iaponicas, flox-red and
white-begonias and many whose names
can't begin to spell, perfume the air
and for curiosity the banana blossom
is rare one to me. Bees do we'll here,
and honey is plenty, cheap and fine.
Th;o h,,o 10 la,
in Southern Florida. AT Orange City
they have fine groves and lovely town
on the high pine land. There l found an
old acquaintance, M. ID. Herrick, pleas.
antly located, and had my first expe.
rience in picking oranges from his trees
Friday afternoon | walked some -four
miles over the groves of Chaplin &
Swift, Holden & Cutler, and others in
the hammock land at Oak Hill on Indian
river. These hardwood, low lands, are
no doubt the best for this crop. The
heavy growth of live oak, palm, hickory
sweet gum and many other sub.tropica
trees have made the land rich and the
orange trees grow thrifty and bea
abundantly. This kind of land sells
, high while the pine land that has to bt
, MANFRED is very cheap.
| have met few thousand old ac
quaintances that | did not expect t.
see just yet-the mosquitoes. | dom
t know whether they are northern dele
r CATION from Vermont or New Jersey
f down to spend the winter, or natives
Anyway they are deuced sort of fla
miliar, and kiss me behind the ear
D and otherwheres without waiting to b,
e introduced. They seem bound to ge
o some Puritan blood. But the poo
:, muddy or sandy roads are the creates
I evils yet. We may see more soon
: So far, am inclined to like the country
o This morning visited one of the shell
4 mounds on the coast, built by pre-
= historic race of oyster-eaters, a moun'
" nearly sixty feet high covering fou
acres, all made of shells. How the
d must have loved the oystersl Thi
y afternoon attended the weekly meet
. ing of the Oak Hill Farmers and Fruit
= growers club, composed mostly of Ney
England men, with scattering iron
IS various other states, and one Swede