The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1890-11-28
BIG SWAMP ADVENTURES.
life on the Great Marsh with Deer,
Fears, Alligators and Desofation.

The praIr16 al when covers Il con-
siderable portion of the Okefenokee
swamp is q very remarkable formation,
and is, l am told. peculiar to thisswamp.
It is open land, entirely free from tim
Der, and stretching away as far IS the
eve can reach in every direction. 1t has
most of the characteristics Of . huge in
land sea except the waves. Interspersed
here and there in this huge prairie are
small patches Of high, dry ground Of
variable size and heavily timbered, called
COW houses. | am unable to ascertain
the propriety Of this name, unless 1t be
that the cattle, deer and other animals
seek these places for shelter and to get
out of the water,
The surface Of these p~rairies is COW
cred with a deposit Of decayed yege-
tation that has been accommodating for
centuries, and is called muck. This
varies in thickness from four to ten
feet, with water beneath, and below the
water sand. This singular formation
gives to the swamp its lame Of Trem-
bling Earth. 1t will support tne weight
of the average man if he keeps moving
onward, but If he pauses an instant he
commences to sink. and may go through
to his waist or over his head. At every
step the water oozes up around the feet,
while the muck will tremble and culver
for yards around.
There is something grand and even
sublime to the visitor in the silent vast
ness of this prairie formation. Il
stretches away before the eye in every
direction until only limited by the hori-
ION, its perfect stiffness only broken by
the occasional below of some huge ALI
gator or the far distant scream of some
unknown bird. Here and there can be
seen the track left behind By some hunt
er, where possibly years ago he had
laboriously poled his canoe alongin pur-
suit of game, the path as distinct and
fresh now as if only made yesterday.
All around fish Of endless species and
sizes can be seen swimming and dartins
about, while not irfrequently the eye
may fall upon some immense alligator
or snake summing himself upon the sur
face Of the muck and water, or slowly
sinking oa5 Of sight ass soon Is he is dis
covered. This description conveys a
slight, but at best Q very imperfect, idea
Of the prairie land Of this swamp,
Upon the island where We are 1t pres
ent encamped are living two families,
with the aged father. named Cheshire.
The old gentleman IS nearly so years
Of age, and has spent ~thirty-odd years
of his lie here in this spot. He is 4
wonderful fisherman and indeed calls
himself the king Of the ssFamps, TO
which position he s2ys he was duly &p-
pointed and commissioned by DR.. Little,
the state g~eologist. The tTosons of8Tr.
Cheshire have their families here. The
men attempt to cultivate small crops,
but spend most Of their time hunting.
Their revenue is almost wholly derived
from the sale Of hides, alligators, deer
and bear. The quantities Of these that
they destroy and many Of their stories
of hunting adventures are almost in
credible.
Think OF q hunter shooting down four
deer with q rife, n after another, and
without moving from one spot. In sew
eral Of the lakes that are tGckly inter-
spersed throughout this prairie the ALI
gators are so numerous and fierce that
they viii attack o MANN a boat as soon
as he appears among them, and shooting
them by night, which is the way they
are commonly killed. is sometimes at
tended with no little danger,
The entire armament Of the Cheshire
family consists Of one ten-gauge. ten
pound, double barreled Remington shot
gun and two Winchester rifles. one S.
caliber and ore 81. Also a small yellow
pine bow and a few cane arrows. The
latter are used in shooting fish, and
feel safe in affirming that the deXterity
With which these men use their rude
bow and arrows woald put to shame the
average Atlanta marh5man with his rifle
In passing over the prairie one of the
Cheshires viii suddenly stop, poise his
little bow and send his little arrow fly.
ing into the extraordinarily into q
spot where you or I would see nothing,
but the way in which that arrow viii
dance about for the next minute or two
will convince you not only that there is
an object on the other end Of it, but
that there is an object of some size, too
When your hunter pulls mp his arrow,
behold! a four or six pound trout Oh
black bass, centrally transfiXed, q shot
that very few Of our marksmen could
make with q gln.-Cor. Atlanta Journal
There are 800 italian women in Nev
York city who go from house to house
peddling notions, beads, ahell jewelry
prayer books and religious pictures
These patient vendors walk from ont
end Of the island TO the other. subsist OF
a crust, endure the heat Of the sun with
out the protection Of any head covering
bat q kerchief, andin some %unaccount
able way manage to keep a Family Of
J their miserable earnings.