The Caldwell tribune. [volume] (Caldwell, Idaho Territory [Idaho]) 1883-1928, 1893-11-11
A WEIRD FLORIDA FOREST.


Huudreds of Miles Of swamp Land
Astounding with Trees and Animals.
One Of the widest and weirslest regions
thus far discovered in Florida is the lake
known a. the Jane Green swamp, or Saw.
grass lake, which has An area Of At least
400 square miles and contains the finest
body OF cypress trees on this planet.
This is u genuine sportsmen's paradise.
wild animals being numerous and 20 fear |
less through their unacquaintance with |
man that a hunter has actually to kick |
some of them out OF his way before they |
will move
Parokeets scream On almost every bouRh |
and move in dense docks, like our common !
bl~ckbirds; aamingoes, ibises, roseate
spoonbills, pelicans and other aquatic and
wading birds haunt the margins Of the
lake 1t all times. and raccoons and oppes-
sums, bay lynxes. sotters, foxes and mAzsh
harea are abundant enough to arouse the
avarice Of even AN amateur trapper.
Deer, bearx and pumas are numerous on
the uplands, and turkeys haunt the con-
tiguoua forests, where mast II abundant
Snakes are also unusually common. every
water hole and clump Of bushes seeming
to have its own colony. One u likely to
zee over q hundred within an hour or two.
and probably three times that number in
y O0y. Inc mC4SG OunSFVO8 8Q0C1eB 10 60V
water and upland mOccasins, but rattle
snakes are also very abundant, and king.
whip. chicken and black snakes arc fre-
quently encountered. When the ophidians
are thick they exhale . sickening odor.
which produces vomiting in some persous.
this being particularly true Of rattlesnakes
and mocaasinA
The lake has lost much Of its watee ow.
ing to extremely warm weather and
scarcity Of rain. and this forced tho ash to
seek refuge in shallow pools, whore they
furnished feast to owls, buxxards, 'coons
and 'poasums, snakes and sauriana Thou
sands Of fish could be seen duttering about
in the Last stages OF exhaustion, while
thousands moro lay putrefying on the mar
| gins Of the lake or were being devoured BY
foxes, 'coonx or 'poasuma.
The latter creatures had probably never
seen = man until they met Judge Hazri
sons party. and they were 10 indifferent to
the hunters Of this expedition that they
passed by.
All animals in the region displayed the
same fearlessness, the deer merely scruti'
nixing them with fatuous curiosity, the
bears snuhing the air, ~ II trying to decide
to what class Of creatures they belonged,
and the hugest alligator in Florida pay
ing no attention to their presence
The cOnelike neHtA OF the S1urtans are ON
Of the most marked features Of the land
scape, rs they are extraordinarily abundant
and seem to have been in existence foI
many yeara Young reptiles are, ~ . con
sequence. very common, and ~ they an
always ready for q fight, person must b
careful not to approach them too closely.
The wild hogs 10 common on the gull
coast Of Florida have not yet migrated q
far toward the interior ~ 8awgrass lake
but some hunters hope they may soon hnt
their way toward it in order to destroy tn,
numerous snakes that make its borders Z
scene OF horror
Mosquitoes ny in swarms there during
the rainy season, and are 70 persistent h
their attacks that explorers are compelled
to make their bed between two or NOR
Urea IL they would get any sleep. Thea'
winged plaques, like the snakes and sau
rians, are in q state of hibernation during
the winter and do not appear In seriousl!
annoying numbers until May or June.
II Sportsmen can therefore safely visit thi
region between December and April an
revel in such venatic adventures - the
. never thought Of in their widest dreams
. They must take guides with them or the
,, are likely to wander for days among th
broad savannah which seem to b = vas
monotonous level OF grass and water or
jungle Of cypress--Cor. Washington Stal