The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1920-01-30

stream of water.
Orange Springs! Yes, this il one
OF the very fine springs of Florida
that has not really been discovered
yet. People have hobbled there nm
crutches and walked away with elias.
tic step and thankful hearts. But ha.
cause it's free it's yet unpopular
When speculation gets there and the
price is fixed then Orange Springs
will be among the renowned.
Another stretch of cutoyer lands
where perchance, you get TO see the
mounds chasing a wild buck that has
been routed over in the big scrub
east OF the river. Then suddenly tha
scene changes. Here are nice little
elevations and pretty lakes with cot
tages interspersed. Historic Fort Nc.
Coy. 1t has an interesting history.
On we go-the scenes ever chang.
ing-from hills and lakes to stretches
of open fat woods where great herds
OF cattle and iocks of sheep grars
from New Year to New Year-then 70
thick hammocks where large trees
grow tall and straight-guarled Ilmhs
are hanging with streamers of Span
ish moss, and we call the place dank
and dark. Here is where the cattle
and sleep may find shelter from the
tropical sun and winter rains-lf such
were a bar Of consideration to stock
raising in Florida.
Twenty minutes to see Silver
Springs!"
But we can't see Silver Springs IN
twenty minutes.
We may catch a glimpse OF its
grandeur and marvellous beauty. We
may feel the head swim as we see the
great volume Of blue, green. silver.
purple gold waters shoot out OF the
earth. We may feel the heart weaken
as we look right down there" on the
bottom of the spring where, In our
opinion, we could reach with an or.
dinary fishing pole-but are told em.
phatically that 1t is EIGHTY FEET
DEEP! But to see Silver Springsl
Life it too short. Time isn't enumer
ated. Three hundred years and more
ago Indians wove into the mythical
waters a superstition that has never
quite unraveled, although the poets of
civilization have sung ii into rhyme.
authors have written it into fact and
fiction, orators have proclaimed its
marvellous beauty-but no one has
completed the seeing of II. II holds
with fascination that never loses a
link of interest
But what of the vision? Have
lost the future in the realities Of the
present? Sometimes the attraction Of
the present kills progress. Some pro-
fessed Christians have never gotten
away from the banks of the River J0r.
dan. They are still hunting for To-
Gusts and wild honey! Don't get
mad. l am Baptist).
Let us move forward-with vision
of the future.
This fine stream Of water-the al
vide between Marion and Alachua
counties-is harnessed. A big elec.
trio plant is in operation there. Splen.
did electric cars are threading from
city to city-Palatka east to the
coast, touching Salt Springs, the Big
Scrub and Lake Kerr; ocala west to
Dunnellon and Crystal River, thus
connecting the east and west coasts
of Florida with a service unsurpass'
ed. Silver Springs, Ocala and Lake
Weir. This includes in its radius
more and better all-the-year-round TO
sorts than can possibly be toucned
with the same number Of miles else
where.
A Chautauqua building overlooking
the waters of Silver Springs, with
seating capacity of $1,000 peoples
midsummer program Of six or eisns
weeks-clean, entertaining, educf
tional-many of the worlds very
best" included on the platform a
summer special" program ior sne
benefit of the thousands OF summer
visitors to the springs.
The thousands Of acres OF cutosel
lands transformed from wild, 'free
range to modern stock farms where
blooded animals shall take the place
Of the scrub. Interspersed with truck
and fruit-the blackjack nobs" mod
ern home sites with electrically light
ed cottages strung from ocala 20 r%
Iatka-like a tiaria Of priceless dia,
monds upon the breast OF . queen u
immeasurable wealth!