The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1899-04-15


four or five miles from her boarding place
to school, and mavbe at noon finds in her
lunch basket very humble repast-one
boiled sweet potato. Woodmen who chop
all day, or workmen who 90 out notching
trees and collecting sap for terpentine dis
tillers, will mostly make out on a one course
dinner-sweet potatoes. Natives who own
hogs (the little azor-back kind) vary the
diet by using fat and flesh upon the big
dish of cooked hominy or mush, the break
fast and supper dish from which the family
all ladle out. Coffee, made OF roast sweet
potatoes ground up, is often obtainable.
In the days of slavery the poor whites of
the South we've even poorer than they now
are. Then their labor was nowhere in de-
mand and they lived precariously in the
woods. hunted game aud ate sweet potatoes
or boiled tops of the palmettoes. When
these failed they ate the white clay and
some like to eat it yet. The clay eaters,
from unnatural craving, swallow any trash
at hand to disteud their stomachs and stop
a longing for food. OF course these poor
people are very ignorant and their children
even lack clothing when they are within
reach of the schools. The Northern
churches sending abroad foreign mission
money would do more blessed work in
caring for and Outstanding these Florida
crackers of the poorer kind
DIR. Mead, aged 80 years, friend OF
Editor Taylor years ago in New Jersey, is
enjoying good health at his Bakersburg
mansion near Person, Fla He found the
Southern climate just sach as required to
restore his health twenty years ago, and
advises invalids like circnmstanced to try
the remedy; but he always speaks against
health seekers going to Florida merely to
spend few weeks or months each year
that is for pleasure merely-you must live
year or so in any place to get benefit
from the climate. One going to Florida
from the North carries there carbonized
blood in his system such blood will clot,
but after becoming acclimated land mostly
you have all over you boils, ''rsngs" as
the natives call them your blood gets thin,
will not clot and you get very sensitive to
the cold. You get climate in that coun-
try OF oranges, lemons, pineapples and
bananas, but in order to make living you
must "hustle" Those who have the
wealth to enable them to build sheds over
| n nj nla
may hereafter get paying crops; but the
poor orchardist there is compelled to share
profits with capitalists who will prote ct
fruit for a consideration. There is an ar
rangement now being entered into whereby
the owners of citrus trees not able to in
vest in shedding may give the capitalist
one-third OF the crop for ten years for in
vesting in this protection of the orchards.
One shed to cover about 4 600 pineapple
plants at Mr.. Kinneys place, is in size
330x90 feet, with a slat top for admission
OF sunlight, and to be enclosed by movable
roof in case OF threatened frost The sheds
over orange orchards will be similar to this.
We imagine the Southern people as very
indoent. This is not the case where a
question of going hungry is spur to effort.
An old lady living near the lakes, Mr..
Taylor says, related some Of her expert
ences that must convey some notion OF
what exertion is put forth, even in the
sunny South, to get a living. This ady's
husband dur ng the shareholders rebellion
was in arms against the Union. He with
the IS per cent. Oh more of other Confeder-
ate soldiers who owned no slaves were
duped into going to war ''to preserve the
Constitution" for the curse OF slavery, was
making the poor trash" poorer and poorer.
They did not have sense enough to see the
'African in the woodple" at all The
wives OF these poor men were left to care
for the families, and the terrible sacrifices
they endured will never be told The lady
referred to above was above the average in
possession Of comforts, for her husband
owned few cattle and hogs. She lived
near Lake st. George, a three days jour-
ney thence through the woods to St
Augustine, the nearest market town.
Leaving her children with neighbor, and
getting together some poultry and sweet
potatoes, she started Ivy ox-cart for market.
Each night she allowed the oxen to Craze
in the woods and she slept in the cart.
Unfortunately one day the axle Of the OK
cart broke, but this brave cracker woman
was equal to the emergency. Having her
axe along to cut away obstructing trees on
the road, she felled . suitable tree for an
axle, shaped it, put it in place OF the
broken axle, reloaded her cart and con-
tinued the journey to st. Augustine.
The natives OF Florida have little knowl-
edge Of books, but when once they have
confidence to approach stranger, can talk
well and wittily. They enjoy social occa-
sions-the men in hunting game or round.
ing up cattle Tor jubilee at branding time
| "a most cruel operation cattle aud hogs are
!. subjected to in the spring Of the year, and
il in the ne;ghborhooi cane boiling comes
off scores oil mcn and women stay all night
to hear the violin music ald singing, par