Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1896-08-05
FLORIDA LETTER.
The Land of Oranges and Big Mosquitoes More
Cotton and Less Fruit.

- " - W INV Il u " ak 10
with its politics yet | am ever glad to
see what the folks at home" are doing.
| hope the paper will see the error of
its way and turn to the true position
when President Bryan is elected. Never
has our country been in such a politi-
cal confusion, and the true spirit of pa.
triotism calls upon the manhood of the
country to no longer be swayed by
party prejudice but, by truth and right.
Who is right? There is not q man in
the United States fully qualified to an.
swer this question. All parties claim
that they are right and that the saliva.
ton of the country depends upon the
principles set forth by their respective
platforms. The confusion is very much
like that of the Tower OF. Babel. Let us
hope that He who guards the we'll be.
ing OF nations and fixes their destinies
will bring good out of it all. 1t may be
that it is time for our tongues to be
confused and for God to take the lead.
Judging from Jul last Congress and
the present political confusion that
time has surely ceme.
Mr.. Brownlow's election. of course,
is sure, of which | am glad. If in
J%onesboro | would have to vote for
him. He will make a good represen
tative and we'll deserves the honor be.
slowed upon him. | can occasionally
vote for a Republican, though | have
to hold my lose to do so. Among Mr..
B~rownlow's faults perhaps one of his
greatest is being a Republican.
The orange groves have largely been
turned into cotton and corr fields or
abandoned. Florida will have a very
good yield of cotton this year. The
people have had to resort to farming
for o living. Before the freeze all de.
pended on the oranges, and money was
plentiful. This was once a great ship
ping point, but last year there was not
a pocket full of oranges on Orange
Lake. This year there will be a few
boxes.
The mosquitoes are quite bad, especi-
ally IN the early part of the summer.
A story is told here of a nan who vas
so tortured by these little fiends that
he crawled under an iron kettle for
refuge. Soon he began to see their
bills coming through the kettle and
having q hammer he at once began to
clinch. Soon there was a mighty hum
about the kettle as he continued to
clinch the bills of the blood thirsty
shelters, when all at once they arose
with his covering and flew triumphant.
ly away. | never saw the man nor can
| vouch for the %tfuthfulness of the
story,
For the last month we have had lit
tie rain and the crops are suffering from
the drouth. The temperature during
the day is usually about ninety six.
This is relieved greatly by the cool
breeze and showers of rain when they
come. The dry weather is unusual this
year. Usually during the rainy sea.
son, from June to September, there are
noon day showers which with the
breezes make life quite pleasant, even
in midsummer. You can literally cook
an egg in the sand. If you do not be-
lieve it just come down and | will fur
nish the eggs and sand too and we will
try it, and l will eat all the eggs that
remain uncooked.
Nature has made many wise provis.
ions for the poorer classes in Florida,
Ii Is not hard to see how a poor man
lives in Tennessee, but it is really q
problem as to how they live here. In
the first place you do not need much to
wear and q wire screen with a covering
would suffice for a house ordinarily.
Then the land abounds in fruits the
year round The melon season is Just
coming to a close. A few days ago l
was in a melon patch which was for.
merly an orange grove, and the melons
were 30 plentiful that a strip had been
left around the field on which to place
the ripening melons to ship and give
room for Others. Just at this season
the country too abounds in peaches,
plums and pears of the largest and
most delicious varieties. They, like the
melons, can be had for a trife. Then
our lakes abound in fish. During the
summer the negro largely lives on fish
and melons. But the fish ia his meat
the year round. The supply seems to
be inexhaustable. The bait is provided
ready at hand. The fisherman needs
only his boat and tackle for close by
his side on the lake is the bonnet
weed" containing the ready bait, all
he has to do is to brake q weed and take
out his worm, put it on his hook, then
into the water and pull out his fish. l
wish Capt. MCPHERSON, Capt. Deader-
lex and other noted anglers of Jones.
boro could be here and take a fish. The
railroads are usually very kind during
the summer months to give excursions
to the beach for select parties. We
will have n over the F. G. & P. Au.
gust the sixth, q distance of more than
a hundred miles, the round trip being
only II dollar.
l am coming home the first of Sep.
TENDER to get q drink out of the Mill
Spring, l car tell the remainder of my
story then. q MuRRAy-