The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1911-10-13
A WONDER OF THE WORLD
Graphic and Poetic Description BY .
German Lady of Silver Springs,
the Run and OkIawaE1a River

copy of the Berlin Germany Tage-
blatt of March %, 1911, in which Her
mione Won Preuschen, one of the lead
ing artists of the day, writes an en-
thusiastic account of her Oklawaha
river trip. The translated account is
as follows:
The wonder of Florida; yes, the
wonder of the whole world! One
glides for a hundred miles on a river
so narrow that the trees and flowers
of both shores touch the high, 1ar
row steamboat, Hiawatha. One gazes
upon dazzling tropical vegetation.
with an alligator now and then slid
ing from his log and hastily retiring
to the background when frightened
by the noise. l might have suspected
such scenery in Siam or Java, but
never in Florida. Indeed the Hart
line we'll repays one for the expense
the trip may entail, for is not the
tourist greeted with the most fasci-
mating, fairylike scenery of the
world?
Here along the Oklawaha was the
last battle-ground of the brave Osceo-
la, the last of the Seminole chiefs.
With the exception of three or four
orange groves there is scarcely any
civilization along the banks of the
river. In fact, it might almost merit
the name of a genuine forest prime
val. Strange, picturesque birds of
beautiful plumage arise from the
branches of the trees as the boat goes
by, lending enchantment to the
scene.
"Silver Springs, however, is the
basin of cold springs which feed the
Oklawaha, and it's water is so clear
and transparent that in a depth of
eighty-five feet one can distinguish
the smallest object at the bottom.
The basin is really huge crevice, or
iginated, it is said, as a result of the
Charleston earth quake. Turtles and
fish move about in the crystal Wa
tiers, and from small glass bottomed
boats one can see the life beneath,
exquisite in it's varied hues and tints.
Everything shimmers in an opal light,
and one is prone to believe that this
is the famous fountain of youth for
which Ponce de Leon searched. He
must have discovered it at this place
of wonder.
I'VE note the beautiful transpar-
ency of the water as We glide along
the shores for a distance of nine
miles from the springs. Then, all of
a sudden, the black waters of the Ok
lawaha again surround the boat, the
meeting place of these two waters
forming a well-defned line. The
name, Oklawaha, signifies to the In
dian dark and winding water" The
river winds its way like a snake
through the fantastic world. How
beautiful the gigantic cypress trees
appear, covered with Spanish moss.
which lends them a silvery sheen in
the glow of the late afternoon sun.
Below grow rhododendron and laurel
in all their beauty, together with the
holly. The naples are clad in the
first fiery red leaves of spring. Both
shores look like one shining mass of
lotus and water plants, with white
lily blossoms in between. We count
the alligators, and altogether see
more than a dozen. In former years
there were many more along these
banks.
"The famous cypress gate con-
sisting of one tree on each bank with
stems joining above, is also thing
of the past. The largest of these
trees have already been felled, but
nevertheless it still looks so wonder
full that one fears things cannot re-
main long in this undisturbed beauty.
No doubt within a decade, quarters
to accommodate tourists from all
over the world will be found neces-
sary. The acme of Florida's beauty
and her soul is the Oklawaha.
LAS the sun sinks lower, we note
enchantingly exquisite effects. Be
hind the trees, garlanded with moss,
the red sky may be seen. Presently
the tints fade away, the stars appear,
becoming brighter every moment,
and myriads of fire-fies tighten up
the scene.
Suddenly the whole shore is aglow
with a ruddy light. Above on the
boat torches are burning to guide the
ship in the dark as it glides from
one shore to the other. brushing
against trees and bushes. One could
easily break off the branches, were
it not necessary to shield the eyes
from danger. We hear signal as a
freight boat, high and narrow like
the Hiawatha, approaches, and by