Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1893-10-12

hotter, more sitting and more uncom-
Portable railway trip in the United
States than the 172 miles over the j., f.
u w. that lie between Savannah and
here--and | say this after having made
the trip three times and thinking each
trip the most abominable-I certainly
never wish to undergo the infliction.
On this particular trip, in addition to
the usual discomforts, there was the
ordeal of health permits and two sets of
quarantine inspectors to pass--for the
tloridians are exercising strict sur.
Vigilance just now over incomers by
way of southeastern Georgia.
We diselnbarked at Savannah from
the Decatur H. Miller about 9 o'clock
yesterday morning, by our watches, to
find 1t 5.3S by the town clocks and
O'Clock by the hotel and railway clocks
of that double-time city. For once we
found this double standard an advant.
age, for the reason that the city phy-
sician's office hours began ut s a. M,
local time, while the train we desired to
make left at 8.3S, railroad time, so that
instead of 81 minutes we had So minutes
margin in which TO transact business
with that official and catch that train. |
almost despair OF making this compre.
hensible without diagram, but there
was ~ minutes extra in our favor at
a Juncture when time promised to he
important We had soon found out
that we needed permits from somebody
to pass US through Georgia. There are
several cases of yellow fever at Jesup, a
station So miles below Savannah, and
hence these quarantine regulations.
Wei, we got our permits from the
Savannah health officer, DIR. w. +.
Drummer, and we made that train. In
TACT we had time to spare-to get good
breakfast and take peep at 10000 bales
of cotton in the s., +. 81 w. freight
yard awaiting shipment. 1t made pile
about quarter Of mile long by 100
feet or so wide and about 10 feet high.
Shortly before reaching Jesup the
train officials put down the windows,
closed the ventilators and locked the
doors of the cars and, thus imprisoned,
| we made the transit through the in
fected town without stopping. At Way
cross, 40 miles beyond, quarantine in.
| spector boarded the train, examined our
| passes, ascertained whence we were
from and whittier we were bound
and permitted US to proceed. The
inspection was quite strict, but every
passenger in our car at least was able to
| prove his title clear to continue the
| journey. At Callahan, 20 miles north
of Jacksonville, another inspector
boarded the train and satisfied himself
| that the health of this city would not
be imperilled by our advent.
1t is remarked that the type of yellow
fever prevailing this season at Bruins
wick and Jesup is abnormaiiy mild; the
death rate being under 10 per cent, and
also that the most cases are occurring
among the negroes, which race has been
heretofore considered as much less liable
than the whites TO be attacked by yellow
Jack.
IN JACKSONVILLE.
The census onumerators found about
1900 people in this city. Boomers of
Florida put the present population as
high as 10000. My own estimate, cor
roborated by an intelligent and conserva.
tive cltizen-an ex-comptroller under
the municipalities that 10000 would
about hit the mark.
find very little change here since my
visit of last May. The fine new Federal
building has grown considerably towards
completion in the interval and small
patch-a very small patch-of tho
cypress-block pavement on Bay street
has been torn up and replaced by an
experimental patch of friedrich. The
Sub-Tropical Exposition buildings re-
main closed and that enterprise is re-
ported to have proved financial failure.
The city of Jacksonville has no bonded
debt outside of 100000 water works
bonds, which bear the pretty stiff in
terest of 8 per cent. My friend, the ex.
comptroller, tells mo that there are
three different tax rates--a rate of $1.1O
in the heart of the city on a pretty
high assessment; rs cents in the adioin-
ing portions, and 80 cents in the out
lying suburbs. Part of the cost per-
tanning to the water department is in
cluded in this rate, that department not
being self'sustaining, although the water
rents seem to be slightly in excess of
Wilmington rates. For an ordinary
dwelling, comprising faucet in the
kitchen, o bath room and wash pave,
the water rent is 81 per month.
There is strong public sentiment
which, however, has not yet prevailed
over the opposition, in favor of bond
ing the city for loan of $1,000,O00
including the refunding Of the
water debt at per cent-for the
! purpose of long-needed public inn
| provements, including the paving of
Bay street with friedrich, the erection
of combined municipal building and
market house and the putting in of an
electric light plant. The city officials
are now quartered in rented building,
for which the city pays S., 900 per year;
while the market is a curiosity. To the
visitor its inadequacy-for the whole
market is not as large as the Eighth
street market of Wilmington-is COM
pensated by the quaintness of its setting
and surroundings. 1t is located on the
river, at the foot of Noonan street, in
the rear of Bay street block, and the
ordinary visitor might pass and repass
dozen times without suspecting its
proximity.
The weather here to-day is delightful;
temperature about 75o, with delicious
breeze, Northern visitors are coming
in slowly, but the big hotels of Florida
have not yet opened for the season.
There is some Apprehension that the
presence of yellow fever in southeastern
Georgia and the accompanying quaran-
tine regulations, which, in self-defence,
will be made more strict should the
emergency require, may interfere seri-
ously with the business of these big
hotels when they do open.
| Apropos of the fact noted above, that
the mortality from yellow fever is yery
light, and that the negroes are attacked
by it as freely us the. whites. The official
report from Brunswick, Yesterday,
places the mortality still lower--a trifie
over per cent, while DIR. George Troup