The Laurens advertiser. (Laurens, S.C.) 1885-1973, 1896-02-11
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and other exotics, and showed me or
ders from the north aud west and FROM
across the water. II l was Il young man
L would pursue this bushes for one
reason IL for no other. / have observed
that all florists are enthusiasts about
their calling. They love 1t and are
happy. Look at Mr.. Berckmans, of
Augusta-what q noble, earnest man
he is. just think how much pleasure
his fruits and flowers have given the
people, especially the wives. and daugh-
tiers all over this Southland of ours.
How intensely he studies nature and
how extensively he ditfuses knowledge
over his adopted country He has
neither time nor inclination for poll
tics. He bankers after no office, he has
MO quarrels with mankind, but is hap
by in communing with nature and ma
lures God. L would rather know what
he knows than to- be learned ia any
other profession. Besides all this, hor-
ticulture is q profitable business and
brings Its sure rewards. These Reas-
oners began on a small scale and from
year to year have enlarged their plant
and now are financially Independents.
l looked into the depot at Bradentown
and saw boxes of their trees and plants
waiting for the boat, and some of them
were marked to Nebraska and Michi-
gan. Their palms and ferns and lea
olas go to Boston and New York, where
they are wanted for funerals and fetes
and weddings. They can get $50 for
b leaves OF a single plant.
In company with Judge Cornwell [
visited Manatee, which is only three
miles from BradenJown and Is the old
est town on the river. The country
between the two is thickly settled and
is ornamented with orange groves and
date palms and other tropical trees.
At the beautiful home of Mr.. Adams,
OF Boston, saw more beautiful birds
than L have ever seen in all my life.
The veranda was full Of cages-large
cages, six feet square and six feet high,
and IN them he a pairs of most ,very
fancy kind to be found in the world.
Strange to say they were n happy fam.
lily from the t!niest linnets to the paro-
quets. In other cages he had rabbits
and guinea pigs, and there we're doves
and quails and pigeons and pheasants
from South America and Honolulu and
the isles of the sea. He has been q
great traveller and has brought treas
ures from every country. | never saw
at any fair such beautiful fowls, nor so
many OF them as those that grace his
grounds. There was only one thing
lacking to make his home complete,
and that was children-little girls and
boys to brighten up the picture. Not
far away from Manatee ia the old cas-
tie, the tumbling walls of a once stately
mansion that was built of concrete
away back in the 40s. Spacious halls
and spacious ROOMS up stairs and down.
broad verandas without floors and win
dows without sash, wild orange trees
and palmettos crowding the walls and
a wilderness almost impenetrable
around. Surely this must be the place
where Hood wrote "The Haunted
Houso"-"O'er. all there hung a shad-
ow and a fear" Mr.. Bradcn, for whom
the town and a river is named, lived / N
1t like a prince until the Indians drove
him from it. For a long time he and
his family and his slaves successfully
defended it by firing from every win
doW, but they carried off everything
he had outside, and he was forced to
abandon his beautiful and costly home
stead. How little do we know of the
brave deeds, the sufferings and perils