The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1914-07-10
PRETTY PICNIC At PINE


Saturday. July 4, was a gay day at
the pretty little country place of Pine.
The occasion was a picnic given under
the auspices of the Farmers Protect
i've Association.
The place selected for the picnic
was the beautiful grounds adjacent
to the home Of Rev. w. L. Martin
where the grand old water oaks and
the stately live oaks mix their foliage
with the pine and cabbage palmetto
and from a thick shelter from the
sunshine and brightness of the day
leaving the grounds cool and pleas
ant and soft and shady.
Scarcely before. the big red sun had
raised his head above the thick clust-
er of the forest trees to the eastward,
the picnickers had begun to arrive.
Mr.. G. w. Dale, one of Fort McCoy's
best farmers, was on the grounds ear
ly with ice, sugar and lemons, and
a half barrel of delicious lemonade
was soo ready for use-and being
put to a most necessary use also.
The worthy president of the associa-
ton, Mr.. John Melin, of Fort Mccoy,
besides bringing his estimable wife
and beautiful daughter and a full din
ner pail, finished up the load with
some very fine specimens of water
melons-a new variety, by the way,
and of his own production. Mrs. Dale
and her daughter were also with the
Dale party and did a great deal for
the enjoyment of the p~leasure-seek-
ers.
Lony Hall and some of his boys
from neal Spar donated a number OF
nice cantaloupes which were enjoyed
immensely.
1t is impossible for the writer to
name all present OF to mention all the
extra donations of little things that
completed a most enjoyable feast, a
table was arranged under the far
reaching limbs of the gnarled old
oaks and when the many dinner bas-
kets had been emptied and so artist
cally arranged by the trained femi-
nine hands it was a most beautiful
sight to behold.
What a feast!
No evidences of a panic here. No
signs of a recent drought! A mag
niicent expression of plenty! Before
the dinner was finished, however, the
picnicers were interrupted by a sudden
shower of rain. The attempt was
taken more seriously than was neces-
sary and the men folks hurried to
move the tables on old fashioned
hand-stick style to an open porch
near by, but by the time the tables
were under the shed the rain had
ceased. The tables were then remov-
ed to the yard where the bountiful
repast was finished.
Mrs. Jimmie Hall of Pine certainly
took the prize on the best raw toma-
toes. They were beauties, and the
credit should go to Mrs. Hall, because
Mr.. Hall denies the charge of being
a farmer.
Mr.. J. K. Edgely was voted the
prize by the ladies for the best pre-
serves. He made them himself.
Mr.. G. H. Whitford, the youngest
old man. in Florida, among other
things, brought a large, long cable
along, and erected a splendid swing,
which added greatly to the enjoyment
of the young people.
Messrs. Monroe and Sutton, who
have a large watermelon field at Fit.
Mccoy, sent an appreciated treat to
the picnickers in the form of a wagon
load of fine melons. The venerable
Mr.. Henderson, n of Pines splendid
farmers, kindly brought the melons
over from the Fort.
All in all it was an ideal picnic, and
| everybody present expressed them
selves as being highly delighted with
the pleasures of the day.
The writer, who is a dyed-in-the-
wool southerner, wishes to pay a just
tribute to the northern people of this
community and of Fort Mccoy. Those
of our northern friends who have TAX
en- and are taking an active part In
the Farmers Association and other
movements for the upbuilding of the
community and country generally
and this includes most all of them, es'
p~ecially of this communicable a
class of citizenship that should. be ap'
preciated in any community. I have