The Penn's Grove record., 1920-03-05
SPANISH ANTIQUITIES IN
FLORIDA
Amazing Views by Mrs. Hires Raclly
Told
St. Augustine, Fla, Feb. 27, 49,

WOnQtIl III dIlli4ut BNhA'
one feels this atmosphere with their
wide galleries surrounding the houses,
columns reaching to the second story
in many places; windows with their
outside extensions and little balus-
trades. One can picture a spanish
maiden hanging far out over 1t llsten-
ing to her lovers serenade. Inc sea
wall. fort Marion. the Oldest house IN
the U. S, the narrow streets that seem
like lanes. One street is so narrow one
can touch each house with arms eX-
tended. One nan expressed it, this
CITY had to build compactly in the far
gone days for it's own protection When
every man had to fight every inch OF
the way for his life.
You have read and heard of old st.
Augustine, but one must see to feel It's
atmosphere which is surprising. The
beautiful San Sebastian river skirts the
city. [ was met at the station by a
darkey driving two horses to a surrey
with its fringed top such as we use to
see in Jersey about 80 years ago. A
number of such go to the train and are
engaged by one on the train. L won
dered if they had all been sent down
here when the auto came into proml-
hence. Seemed really old-timey and
strange too, to heal that cke
rythm of the horses feet and the slow
travel.
There is a magnificent hotel-Ponce
de Leon-the name of the Spanish pio-
neeH Of 1860. Its grandeur is sublime.
| do not believe it can be matched In
the United States. Its lawns are trop-
ical in nature. Heavy stone posts and
coping. with links of chains of spiked
iron balls and links, both very heavy,
surround it. One can know that this
was once a fortified town by the many
cannon mounted in the centre of the
town. also the pyramids of cannon balls
are there. The oldest house in the
State is a little house, now a "Ye Gifte
Shop" where one or two at a time can
also get a cup of tea and cake. One
very old shop has the "Quirosity" shop
on the side and appears just as it did
in the long ago. Then here is the
fountain of youth where to drink is to
remain young and the wishing well
where one drink gives you the privi-
lege of wishing three desires and of
curse all must come true.
The Dixie road, a well paved road of
many miles in the South, compares with
our Lincoln Highway in the North and
West. Residents feel that tourists eX-
pect to find everything old and dilapi-
dated, ready to fall down, but the re-
verse is, true. Everything shows prof
ligate money spending, all except the
narrow streets. Don't think because it
is narrow that it is a slum alley or
Chinatown street. st. George Street is
a lane as we would call it, but instead
is 10 feet wide. It is a great business
market. Woolworth has a store on it
What the town does need is good eat
ing places.
vessela's Band plays on the plaza
every day and evening. The plaza is a
round plot of ground in the centre of
the city. thick with high palms and
benches on it. The most beautiful
Church that ever saw, a cathedral and
combined, with a whole lot
more added is a Presbyterian memorial.
l shall try to get on the inside.
Churches in these resorts are the hard
est places to visit, having to go an hour
ahead of services or sit up in the loft.
Tourists may pleasure but they go to
church on Sunday and will stand out
on the porch the entire service through
straining every nerve n muscle to
hear what is said.
The beautiful river is the body of
water lying nearby with the Atlantic
Ocean in the distance, but within view.
] have sent to the capitol of Florida for
a very large map put out by the Agri-
culture Department. Then I shall study
Geography over again. 1 cannot get
my bearings on the water bodies.
The wonderful private gardens so
luxuriant with tropical plants, are very
frequent here. The old stone gateway
and about 20 feet of the wall is stand
ing. 1t is kept for the purpose of show
ing and to preserve this old stone, of
which the natives are very proud. A
section of the place called New Aug
Justine. New present day architecture
brought in this old feature of beauty.
that is the towns attraction for there
is nothing else here.
| visited the wonderful Fort Marion,
formerly called the San Marco, with a
party of twenty-five led by a guide.
We went thru all the dungeons and got
almost on our knees to go thru one.
He shut off the electric lights and stop
ped the fan. We could have soon suf-
located. That is the way the prison.
ers suffered and died. He showed us a
little door where their bodies We're
pushed out through this door into
waters or quicksands. This fort was
begun in 1913 and was 81 years in
building. Some say 200 years. The
rock is of natural marine formation of
%eoquina, found only on the Eastern
coast of Florida. One wall is 40 feet
wide. In the court room. in 1897 the
Indian chief Osceola and two others
were imprisoned. The last two escap-
ed out of a 10-inch wide window. IS
feet high, with a drop of 40 feet. Os-
ceola would not go, saying the great
white father at Washington put him
there, he must take him out.
In a room are the life size figures of
Osceola, his squaw and child and a
wigwam, placed there by Chauncey De-
pew, with all the collection of fire arms
and implements of warfare found in
Florida and also two coats of mail.
There was a chapel and a fern room
where the walls are covered with aid
en- hair fern getting no sun, no soil
nor rain, but beautifully luXuriant.
This plant is not a product of Florida
and no one can explain from whence it
came unless blown by the wind. One
room was used as a torture chamber
where prisoners were chained to eros
es and by means of levers their bodies
disjointed and torn limb from limb.
This room was secret and discovered by
Lieutenant Trittle in 1888. This was
the Spanish Inquisition method used on
heretics.
There is a peculiar shaped stone arch
that has no keystone and the only one
in America except the one at Panama.
The fort has stood many sieges and