The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1913-09-05
EXPERIENCES OF A vAcArioNisT
To the Editor Ocala Banner:


AS none of the Ocala people who
nave gone on vacation trips this sum- !
mer have written up their travels for
publication in the Banner, | will I'M
dertake to do SO, realizing. however.
that am not banner correspondent.
Franklin, North Carolina, was my
destination, and | carefully studied
the map, and decided | would go via
Savannah, Augusta and Athens. Ma /
con and Atlanta is the great highway
or travel, and when you try to go
counter to it you have trouble from
the start; in fact, | had trouble be- !.
fore the start, as the ticket agent
would not take my mileage and route |
me from Savannah to Augusta over
the Central of Georgia railroad. He !
insisted that go by way of Denmark, |
but ! did not relish the idea of get I
ting off the train among the Danes,
between three and four o'clock in |
the morning. | was in Denmark Is. |
CD some years ago, and naturally felt
an interest in the capital. and casual
ly inquired of hackman about Copen-
hagen. He said that Capt. Hagen liv-
ed five miles out in the country, and |
that he would take me out there for
81. Not to be thwarted in the route |
had selected, took a ticket to Sa-
orrfu Oh mi Ill
night. Next morning, at GAS, got on
a train on the Central, supposing / /
would go direct to Augusta without !
change, but it seems to me that all |
trains in Georgia go direct to Atlanta
only, for any other point you have to
change, and I was told that | would
have to change at Millen. We had
not run but about fifty miles when we
we're stopped, and learned that a |
south bound train had been wrecked /
at Oliver, six miles above, and that |
we could not get by for some hours.
| learned from the name on the depot
that we were in Egypt, so the passen-
gers got out and sat upon the pyra- !
mids of crossties. I did not see the
Sphynx. was afraid we might be de-
tanned there until night, which of
course would be as dark as Egypt. /
wished then I had gone to Denmark.
They sent a little train to the other
side of the wreck, and transferred,
with only three hours delay. When
finally got to Augusta / found the
train on the Georgia road had waited
on us some ten minutes, so the three
hours I had figured on having in that
city, was forced to spend in Egypt.
That road repudiated my mileage. I
told the conductor that l wanted to
go TO Athens. l was not surprised
when he told me that his train was
going to Atlanta, and that l would
have to change at Union Point. was
dumped off there to wait two hours.
II was raining, and only little shed
for shelter The road, presume, is
too poor to build a depot. even at a
junction point. / finally got to Ath- |
ems agout o'clock, tired and disgust
ed. Naturally, | got supper at a
Greek cafe, the Egyptians not having
furnished me any dinner l lodged at
the American hotel in Athens, and it
Is a fine one. I went to the depot the
next morning and bought ticket for
Cornelia (as my wife may read this
I think I had best explain that the
ticket was for myself to Cornelia),
fondly hoping that no change would
come between me and Cornelia, but
I was doomed to disappointment.
sought a fortune teller (the conduct
orr, who looked at my ticket and told
me that Lulu would come between;
in fact. his little train went only to
Lulu. As Lulu is the prettiest-town
- was somewhat reconciled to the
change. was finally on the Tallulah
Falls road. where the scenery is so
grand. and. tickle like, soon forgot
both Lulu and Cornelia. I arrived at
Franklin, n. c., twenty-four hours lat
er than I would have had not insist
ed on a fancy route.
Having taken up so much space in
getting to my destination, l will sub
nit more about it later.
w. w. CLYATT.