The morning news., 1894-10-24

trouble ahead before he reached Black
water that night. lie slowed down in
stinctively and ran along that way for
some minutes, then began to think he was
foolish for doing So He threw open the
throttle and let the engine out TO the
usual speed, but kept an unusually sharp
eye ahead. Just as he reached the trcstie
over Blackwater he saw something white
ahead on the track. Reversing the engine
and putting on breaks he stopped the
train a few feet from the object. He and
his fireman got out and found big white
horse tied in the middle Of the track.
They united him, and in crossing the
trestle the animal fell through, but got
up again and was led off the track. Now,
the question that puzzles the engineer
is. whose horse was it and why was he
tied on the track?
Judge r. W. Davis Of Palatka had the
misfortune to accidenuy shoot hituself
Sunday night. About the usual hour for
retiring Judge Davis went to his bed
chamber and after donning his night
robe, he pulled open a drawer of the
bureau and took out a new-fashioned pis-
tol, which he had recently purchased as
matter of precaution in the event of
his premises being invaded at night by
burglars. The pistol has a false or SEQ
ond hammer and the judge took it in
his hand and was acquainting himself
with the action Of the hammer as he lay
on the bed, preparatory to dropping to
sleep. Just as he was in the act of pIac.
ing the pistol under the pillow, the weap-
on was discharged. The bullet entered
just below and to the right of the right
corner of the right eye, and plowed un-
der the skin for about three inches and
came over the right eyebrow. Blood
flowed from the wound profusely. Dr.
George q. Welsh was soon at his bed
side and made a careful examination Of
the wound and assured the family and
friends that the wound was very slight
The judge himself assured all present that
his wound inconyenienced him but very
little.
The question of a railroad, or at least a
good Improvement of some kind from Or
lando to the West Orange region is again
being agitated. The people around Oak
land, Oconee, and that vicinity have for a
long time urged the construction of a good
r. I'd from their section to the county seat.
W hile all other portions of the county
have convenient railroad facilities to Or
lando this West Orange section, which is
one Of the most populous and prosperous,
has nothing but deep sand roads by which
to reach Orlando. Naturally and justly
the South Apopka region, as it is called,
complains, and is constantly urging road
Improvements upon the county commits
sioners. A fund of about 49, 900 is now on
deposit in the First National Bank of Or
lando which was contributed toward con-
structing a road from Orlando to Oakland,
and the question of utilizing this for Civ
ing an improved roadway between the
two places is being talked of.
News reached DeLand Saturday through
what is considered a reliable source that
the contract for the construction of ]. b.
Stetsons electric railroad has been
awarded to Messrs. Griffin & Walker of
Philadelphia. Details as to the route and
time of completion have not yet been OBJ
tained, but the opinion is prevalent that
the road will extend from DeLeon
Springs through West DeLand Beres-
ford, and DeLand to Orange City. The
road, which will be operated by the troll
ley system, viii be an innovation and a
decided novelty, as the chief object of it's
construction is to reduce the expense of
hauling the fruit from groves to the pack
ing-houses and from the packing
houses to the railroad stations. The
railroad will cover perhaps twenty miles
and pass through a territory in which
there are thousands of acres of bearing
groves. In many cases the railroad will
touch the groves, and short spurs win
run from the line to the packing houses.
AS the gauge is standard, 1t will be neces-
sary for he grower only to load his
oranges into cars at his packing-house
door, it will then be switched to the main
line, and transferred, without breaking
bulk, to either the Jacksonville, TAMPA
and Key West railroad at DeLeon Springs
or Beresford, or to the Flagler system at
Orange City. The expense Of constructing
this road, installing the plant, etc. viii be
perhaps $500, 200.
The last issue of the Scientific American
in an article on long passenger trains
says that the Jacksonville, st. Augustine
and Indian River Railroad holds the
worlds rp0ord. Not 1oner en tho Iro neo
city, Fort Scott and Memphis railroad
had the credit of hauling the longest train
of loaded passenger coaches ever drawn
in the world. 1t was composed of twenty
three coaches, which held an average of
100 passengers each, and was run out of
! Kansas City to Merriam Park, carrying
| colored school children who took a days
outing at that resort. Last year the Alton
! railroad took train of twenty-oue
/ coaches into Chicago, and claimed the
| record on big PASSENGER trains. This
| record was beaten on May of this year
| by the Jacksonville, St. Augustine and In
| dian River railroad, which ran an excur-
! sion train consisting of twenty-five
! coaches from Jacksonville to st. Angus
| tine, distance of thirty-siX miles in one
! hour and fifteen minutes, ten minutes of
/ which was consumed in backing out Of the
! yard in Jacksonville and six minutes in
/ takinS on wood and water en- route The
actual running time, therefore, was fifty
/ nine minutes, on Sunday, August 49, 1894,
1 the East Coast Line beat the record of the
| Memphis and all other routes, and Sc
! cured the worlds record for the largest
! passenger train. The regular passenger
train from Jacksonville that morning con-
sisted of twenty-five loaded passenger
coaches and one bagga ge-car hauled by
| one Schenectady engine, which drew the
| train from South Jacksonville to ST. Au-
| gustine without assistance. There were
about 1900 passengers aboard and remark
| ably quick time was made. The occasion
which called out this crowd was an en-
campment Of a portion of the Florida
state troops in St Augustine and but for
some previous agitation here against Sun
day excursions, it is probable that fully
! thirty coaches would have been required
| TO handle the business.