The Daily Missoulian. [volume] (Missoula, Mont.) 1904-1961, 1910-01-30
HAPPY HALL HALLS
HOT HOTEL
THE GENTLE CHARLES At LAST
CROSSES THE FROST LINE
AND FINDS COMFORT.

You fellows started me off 10 find
hot weather and I'm going to keep
going till I find il, if / have To go
10 Hades.''
This was the telegram that Charlie
IIaIl sent back from jacksonville,
Florida, where he had expected to
lind scorching sun, but where. in
stead he encountered frost. All
along his route ne had been firing
back bulletins. There was snow in
eastern Montana. more snow in Da-
kota and most snow in Minnesota.
There was n raging lake wind be-
tween -. Paul and Chicago and in
the latter city there was a well-de-
veioped blizzard. 1t was not possible
to- flag Charli. at Psducan. 50 II must
have been pretty cold
Working southwark the severity of
the cold abated somewhat but there
was n" prostrating heat anywhere and
the frost stuck to the heat-seeking
wanderer all the way 10 Jacksonville.
There he paused for bit of rest and
10 catch his breath. for the pursuit
was becoming strenuous and exhaust
ing.
Last night brought letter Ia The
Missouli1n office with the cheering
news that the Hall family has crossed
tn" frost line and has arrived at a
place where 1t has To be warm for
there isn't stove in The town. More
than that, il viii he impossible for
Charles to go any further without get
ting his feet wet. for he has come to
the jumrlng-off place. The letter
was written from Fort Myers upon
the eve of another hike along the
coast: from its pages some paragraphs
are taken which will be interesting
to the Missoula friends of the pill
grim and his family:
We have seen Tampa. Tampa bay
Is a beautiful sheet of water and
Tampa Is n beautiful city of about
10000. saw the Sanchez & Haya. the
Noccoral cigar factories. to which l
have been paying tribute for years
The bay at st. petersburgh is
filled with pelicans-hundreds of them
and they are the great fishermen.
one of them can skin Chick White.
Otis wordcn and Cap Phillips. all put
together. The pelican never loses
one.
Florida has more tourists-produc-
ers--thiS winter than ever. they say.
| am told that the principal industry
in Florida Is skinning alligators in
the summer and Yankees in the win
ter. ] don't know how they make out
Skinning alligators, but I can swear
they are on to their winter job and
do II up fine.
They're the slowest people here you
ever did see. They get IN early so
as not To have to hurry during the
day. The first bell at school rings ut
7:ao and school begins at s. 1t gets
dark rs soon as the sun goes down:
they have no twilight.
In Fort Myers, they have no way
10 heat the buildings: there is not a
stove in the hotel except the kitchen
range. You have to say it's warm
weather II Is or not.
Here in Fort Myers, the river Is
fun of wild ducks: they are protected
in the city limits and seem to know
it: they swim around as unconcerned
as you please. The tourists go ont on
the piers and throw crumbs to them.
1t would he n shame to shoot the
ducks here. anyway. they are so slow
and tame: they seem to get the Flor
ida fever and are as lazy as the pco-
pie.
Il saw 10 greenheads that Timmy
Thompson and Tommy Hickey missed
mp ut Ovando last fail: the ducks
seemed to know ] was from Missouia
for they SHE'D away as soon as they
saw me. That's what n fellow gets
for assoclating with that Ovando
Duck club.
This whole state Is going nufty
over fruit and truck farms. Five
and ten-acrc tracts are selling by the
land Is from $50 To $50 an
acre: of course. orange and grape
fruit land that has hearing trees on
ii sells like the Mcintosh Red land
in the Bitter Root.
Honest Bill. this country is SLOW.
me for mentioning il again.
but it is on my nerves. 1t is 81 slow
here that man is never charged
with deliberate murder. they take il
for granted that ii was deliberate and
he Judge takes judicial notice Of
that fact as Hizonner used to say.
Give my regards 10 the gang and
tell PA Johnson To send me bottle
nj hoky-poky: il ought 10 work fine
on some of these native dogs: they
are as slow as the people: 4 dog will
make you get off the sidewalk rather
than move. IL I could get some of
that hokS-poky. I'm sure the dogs +
would soon get off the sidewalk for
me and think l could give the ma /
Iivcs here IN exhibition af speed that +
they would tell their grandchildren
about But | don't know the drug
store name for the stuff and | don't
know what IL ask for. Tell Pa John
'nn Ia send me some or else wire me
The name Of il So | can get some