Smyrna times., 1931-02-18

/ particularly Dy the great DeduIy OF
/ the broad st. Johns River, ripping
under the sunshine, making pic
ture I shall never forget. We went
right through, over the bridge, and
on, as we wanted to make Lauder
dale the next day. The first orange
trees to be seen were south of
here, and the groves are beautiful,
leaves glossy and deeply green,
fruit all shades of yellow. While
1 am speaking of fruit orchards T
want to mention about the many
and vast orchards of Georgia
/ peaches that we passed from At
lanta south. In these orange
groves would be grapefruit and
tangerines, too. Enough delicious
fruit lying on the ground to feed
the whole country, just wasting.
Soon we reached st. Augustine. A
really Spanish city, and quaint and
old in some parts. We drove
around the streets, went through
Fort Marion, where the, moat is
still full of water, and where the
iron-barred dungeons hold treas
ures of interest to visitors instead
of prisoners. Such high, thick
walls! We saw the narrowest
street and the oldest house in the
United States. There are hibiscus
and oleanders along the sidewalks,
and poinsettias 10 feet high, and
everywhere the beautiful, stately
palms, with the tuft of verdure at
the very top. We went by the
shore road now, and soon were at
Ormond, where the famous auto
mobile races are held, and from
there to Daytona we rode right on
the sand, in the very tracks of
those other famous motorists who
have made records and lost lives
in doing it. I wish / could paint
you a picture of that 200-ft. wide
level stretch of white sand so hard
the tire hardly leaves its impress
sion, with palms and gorgeous
gardens and residences on one side,
and on the other the blue Atlantic
we love, tapping in little white
wavelets under the afternoon sun.
1t was very wonderfully beautiful
Daytona Beach and New Smyrna
At Daytona Beach we saw the
pelicans, those queer birds with
the long bill and big pouch. who
spear their fish and drop him into
this personal pantry to be eaten
and digested at their leisure. It
was growing dusk now, and we
had reached our intended stopping
place, New Smyrna. Next morn
ing the thermometer was 38 de-
grees, which is pretty bad for
Florida. We found a drive along
a branch of Indian River bearing
the suggestive name of Mosquito
Lagoon, where there were very
handsome residences and gardens.
Below here we saw some long
legged cranes. This Indian River
country ought to have chapter
all by itself. Such groves of or
anges! and such oranges! Both
sides of the road. Just below a
lawn called Cocoa there was
fruit station by the side of the
road, and oranges at so cents a
bushel. Another new tree, new to
me, appeared about this time,
mango, with long slender leaves
growing out from a center and
bearing a fruit that smells like all
the sweet smells you ever smelled
combined in one. We reached Ft. |
Pierce, where there are some |
Smyrna folks, the brothers Kirby |
about noon, and Lewis looked them |
up. One brother was home, and |
gave us four grapefruit. Below
here we came into the storm re-
gion.
Fort Lauderdale, Feb. a. We
will begin with awful ruin and des-
olation caused by the great storm
that swept over this country sew
eral years ago. For miles the road
runs through uncultivated land
where once there were great beau
tiful trees, but now every tree that
was not small enough to bend to
the ground without breaking is
broken clear off, and only the dead
stumps and twisted branches hang
ing from them show what used to
be there. Underbrush and baby
palms are trying to grow again.
Along the East Coast of Florida
All along this part of the East
Coast there is an inlet running be-
tween a narrow strip of land and
the ocean. Sometimes we could
see the water, and sometimes the
dunes were too high and too thick
with palmettos, but soon we came
to a place where the ocean had
broken through, and for very de-
lightful distance we could see the
Atlantic. But for some reason the ,
water is bluer than in Delaware.
Near the horizon the blue is al ,
most purple, and where the shall ,
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