Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1921-05-18

miss Florence Minis Visits Ely
Lake, Minnesota.
|Dear Advertiser:
sometimes wonder why so many
lakes should be distributed over the
middle west, and especially in Mime
esota, and why one or two might not
have been sunk into the red clay soil
Iof Edgefeld county.
ss When nature bestows any bless
#ings, she gives them lavishly, lakes
land primeyal forests, wonderful cli-
mate and rich mines.
The huge blocks Of ice preserved
for the summer and taken from the
surface of the lakes could more
lproftably be used in, South Carolina
than in Minnesota. But Minnesota
Ehas to read her history into the fu-
ture wondering what great things
win have been wrought when it has
l,been as long settled state of South
ECarolina is at the present time.
Yesterday in looking through some
books in the school library, l came
across two pictures of John G. Cal
thoun and one of the cotton wharves
lat Charleston. Being so far away
from my native state gives me. a
sense of ownership, sense OF state
pride, that separation seems only to
magnify.
I began these more or less
lpoorly connected paragraphs, l in
tended to write about trip to Ely
Lake, but when my thoughts travel
over a thousand miles to the South,
they travel like lightning on the home
ward journey, but very slowly creep
back to Minnesota, hence my linger-
ing on the more attractive subject
fofSSouth Carolina.
Ely Lake is a blue body of water,
bounded by shores Of rugged wilder
ness that 5ut out into the water with
overhanging boughs of pine. If we
fhadalakes in the South, we couldn't
have white birch trees along their
| shores and that is half the scene.
By some strange chance the ca
siS are for thes of visitors;
like ourselves, were all being painted:
At any other time I would not have
cared, but that day of all days to be
rehabilitating our only means of
transportation over the water, was
maddening.
We had all had visions of ourselves
lying lazily in the boats or striving
to propel the oars while we glided
over the blue waters in our green CO.
noes, perhaps singing song to the
rhythm of our oar strokes and for
aging for wild flowers like vikings
along the shores; but having vivid
imagination only made it the worse,
so we sat on motionless logs and talk
ed.
It is odd, how on such occasions,
some girls will naturally attend to
gathering sticks and building a fire,
preparatory to cooking the noon meal
and to frying the ham, and setting
the coffee pot above the Goals, while
the rest of US, in Just as matter OF
fact manner, sit and look on, unheed-
ing.
don't say, though, that those who
fixed the meal did it with sense OF
enjoyment, which excused us from
the service.
The dinner gong was not one Of
sound, but one of sight, for seeing
the tempting food, we Immediately
gathered around the family board,
which was in this case any grassy
spot that looked tempting.
1t is not always that one has a
neighborly chipmunk to divide with,
so we threw one the crumbs that fell
from our table and he was satisfied.
But the main thing was the good
company, and though Minnesota has
the better scenery, it can not rival
South Carolina for excellency OF
companionship.
FLORENCE MINIS.
Aurora, Minnesota.
May II, 1921.