The Penn's Grove record., 1909-03-12
A Letter From Florida


| A Letter From Florida
Miami, Fla, March L 1909,
We took a trip to Cocanut Grove last
week in al automobile. 1t was a fine
ride along the bay. The road was all
white rock and both sides were skirted
with oleanders, first a white and then a
pink and double all out in bloom and
other pretty flowers. II was a grand
sight. 1t is a small village of three hun
bred inhabitants, SIX miles from Miami.
Five millionaires have handsome homes
and grounds along the bay. One has
a canal dug so the water can run in from
the bay and it is all cemented on both
sides SO his yacht can come almost to his
door and both sides have %cocanuttrees all
along with nuts on in all stages. The
nuts are so much sweeter than what we
get at home. and at the side of this canal
he has walled up a well and left a hole
for the water to run in and in this well or
tank he has a sea turtle as large as the top
of one of our bushel baskets. 1t was quite
a curiosity as | never saw one before.
Along the bay is the Ramsy school.
They have their school up in the Ad-
riondacks in the summer time. In winter
tiiNN DtiliS ~ VIC Liz biiO
VanderbiIts and Goulds and other rich
mems children. The tuition is $500 per
year for each scholar. TIE teachers and
chef come down on the steamer with us
and we sat at the same table so, of course
We got acquainted and they invited us
down to visit the school. They have
very nice buildings, have a nice swim
ming pool, do all their own baking cakes,
pastry and bread and all their laundry.
They wear white pants and sweaters and
shoes all the time, and they are very
mannerly and polite. We met two as
we entered the grounds and they went
back with us and hunted up our friends.
| was down on twelfth street Satur lay
and saw a lot of Indians, men, women
and children. The mems dress are some
thing like infants waists with yokes aid
belts and skirts come to their knees and
on the skirts they have first a red and
then a yellow blue and pink stripes of
calico stitched OH and fancy braid on the
outside OF that just as gay as they can get
them.
The squaws dress the same only theirs
are extremely long and loaded down
with beads and earrings. The little girls
wear theirs long too and short waists
make them look SO Jimmy and their long
black hair just hangs around their faces.
They dress the little boys like men with
waist and skirts and they all have a red
or some kind of a gay Handkerchief around
their necks. All are b~arefooted.
They bring IN hides. bead work and
live alligators to sell. They always have
plenty OF money. They spent 500 at
one store and 500 at another that day.
They buy calico and mus lin by the piece
and the men generally get drunk, all but
one. He stays sober to take them home.
They come i'll canoe and iii some places
the water is so shallow that they have to
get out and push the canoes A white
MAJ wanted to go to their camp, that
weighed $50 and they would not take
him, said; "pale face too heavy, no push
him thru the mud" 1t takes them two
days to come. They stop and camp ov-
er night. They don't know how many
there is OF them. Some say five hun
bred and some think more. There is
three millions OF acres in the Everglades
where they live.
When the Government appropriated
| a part of the Indian Territory as a reser-
| walton for them and make them 90 there,
| some said they would never go and they
hid in the Everglades and have increased
until thereGs quite a number of them.
They have mo government and think it
no harm to drink althong they say they
| are very honest. One of the young In
dams stole a SOC hide and the old Indian
punished him and would not let him
| come to Miami for a long time and one
ran and put on citizens clothes and
started to school and he stayed about a
month and his father made him come
home and put on his Indian garb. l
have seen him. He is unusually bright.
They say there was only one white man
that ever found their camp and he stayed
with them awhile but he incurred their
4 displeasure somehow and they swore
they would kill him and he had to leave
Miami.
] have read in a book, since I've been
here called "Seven years in the WIlds of
Florida" and it told how they massacred
whole families and burnt their dwellings.
One night they came to a house where
the children were alone and they looked
in and saw a little girl on her knees pray
ing and they said, "me no kill white
papoose praying to the Great Spirit"
They were a pious family and had been
taught to call on the Lord in time OF
trouble and it saved their lives. The In.
dams seemed TO naVo All lHStlncl Inat there
is one they should reverence although
they never have had any II to teach
them.
We are going to visit knights Key and
Key West next week and | will tell you
about them. | forgot to tell you Mr.
Somers and Mr.. Doughten called to see
us. They had been below here to see {
man that had 40 acres in tomatoes and
| ba ha1 mot nonimpnppd tn nicL anI haf
just refused 500 per crate at the station
sent them to some commission man anC
expected to get 1925 per crate of si1
baskets and not very large at that. Mr.
Somers said he would pick some the las
of this week. AIr. and Mrs. Sack called
to-day to bid us goodbye. They leav,
next Wednesday. l think we shall sta,
until the first OF April.
MIS- GEO p Enp1cR