The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1920-01-24

OF their gasoline Pullman with the en-
thusiasm only youth and good health
can give. Mrs. Gallant packed three
on the back seat Of her car with the
newspaper man, with instructions to +
them not to let him fall out, and start
ed off to show the way. After her
came the big truck, and last Miss Da-
Wis, in the schools car. with a half a
dozen of the smaller girls. Miss Da-
Wis came last with the idea of picking |
up any of the girls that fell off the
truck, but they all held on somehow. |
1t is thirty miles to Lake Kerr, and
the first half. to about five miles east
Of the Oklawaha river, is good road. |
The rest of the Way-the balance, |
rather, as there is no rest on its |
sand with deep ruts, along which the
autoes wriggled. Mrs. Gallant, who
has spent much of her time the last
two years at Salt Springs, knows the
read like book, and we had to admire
the way she handled her car in places
where a man would find it hard work
to hold the wheel. We don't suppose
she wasted a tablespoonful of gas on
the trip. The big truck plowed thru
the waves of sand like a passenger
! liner thru the ocean, and made better
weather than the lighter cars. Mrs.
Gallant's car arrived at the lake two
hours after starting and the others
came in fifteen minutes later.
1t took only a brief look around
after alighting in the open space be-
fore the postoffice to show that the
Of 7 oil u i1ofo
their visitors to have an enjoyable
time. A long table had been set up
under the trees, and some clever little
furnaces made to do all the cooking
necessary in the open air. A number
of the residents were there and when
the visitors arrived they were given
a most hearty welcome.
1t was not long before the girls and
their teachers found their way to the
lakeside, and there they found whole
fleet of boats ready for their use.
These boats were one of the two great
treats of the day-the other being the
Idinner-and were Immediately put to
use. Several of the girls. we can
truly say, are "pretty fair" rowers,
and with five or six in each boat there
was soon a crowd of them out on the
lake. Mr.. Van Horn, who is an ex-
cellent oarsman, took out boatfull,
and even the editor man. who has
sailed by a white ash breeze many
miles in his young days, was soon
stretching his ancient muscles as he
! tried to get into the old-time swing
while his laughing cargo of happy
, girls tried to make him believe he was
at least half as good as Harvard
coach.
, The lake was beautiful that day
as smooth as the mirror, and with q
, light breeze that kept the sun from
being oppressive. 1t was warm enough
for bathing had the party taken then
I bathing suits. But the boating was
good-the smooth and placid lake be,
ing better for that crowd than the
swift current of Silver river or the
+ nearly always tossing water of Lake
+ Weir.
' Shortly after IL o'clock the Grove
e was. called from fun to refreshment
e as the Masons always say, and wheT
}, they came trooping up the lake the!
= found the long table spread anC
j weighted down with good things. The
e school had brought along substantial
i lunch, but that was hardly noticed il
e the viands set out by the homefolks
i Beside the piece de resistance of reg
a ular bread and meat. there was veni
|. son and fish-fne, fat fish, fresl
S caught, cooked a golden brown, anC
d with only enough bones to hold then
S together, and quail and other goot
Y things from the forest, and Boston
S baked beans-not the canned kind, blu
the sort only Yankees know how t,
r cook, and cake and pie, and coffee AM
f tea. and-oh, think of it!-suga
n bowls wandering up and down tn
d table as carefree as ever in the day
e before Hoover was heard of. Mr.. E
: H. Hershey, one of the residents ask
|. ed blessing. and then the crowd wen
4, to it.
g Some of the residents sat at tn
n table with the visitors, but most o
n them walked up and down behind tn
1t feasters, seeing to it that all ha
e plenty. Nobody's cup nor plate wa
s allowed to be empty until Mr.. Va
y Horn began to be seriously alarme
r as to whether his truck could haul tn
s crowd home again. 1t was a Dime
and hearty hospitality long to be re
n membered.
a After the dinner and a brief res
1t most of the girls went back to tn
'r boats and rowed and rowed on tn
Id smooth surface of the lake until tim
s. to start for home. Some of them war
he dcred off. however. to the homes c
Sc friends they had made among the pee
~ ple, and had pleasant visits to add t
e, their enjoyment of the day.
ct About five o'clock. the Hometown
y. pennant flew, and the return trip wa
is made almost as quickly as the voyag
Y, outward bound. The caravan wa