Year: 1868

which derives It's present importance and notorety from
the circumstance of Mrs Harriet Beecher Stowe, having
lately purchased place there for Winter home, which
our readers may be pleased to have described This
may be allowed to do she has become according to
our American ideas public property having written
book. which the public bought and paid for, and, OF
course, has right TO know everything connected
with her private life, particularly TO know whether she
Is Squandcrng the mouey acquired BY authorship To
satisfy this fashionable curiosity shall give description
Of her place, and IN doing shall give some useful IN
formation those desiring it, about the value OF land on
the st. Johns


Mandarin due south from Jacksonville, about fifteen
miles. IL is the east side Of the rver which Is there
about three or four miles wide 1t upon point or sort
Of promontory of perhaps twenty feet elevation above
mean tide level It's the second landing going up, the
first being Reeds the right hand say fourteen miles;
then six miles upon angle across 10 Mandarn then
back upon another angle, four five miles, to Laurel
Grove then Fleming, say ten miles up the west side;
then Green Cove Spring same side, called thirty miles
from Jacksonville These are all mail stations served
twice week by what Is known as Brooks line" two
boats which run to Enterprise The next landing is
PcOata 40 miles from here where mails and passengers
discmbarked for ST. Augustine, by stage IS miles
That place also reached bv direct from here 40
miles, or by water. "outsde" about 20 miles


But to return to Mandarin. Pray do not imagine that
because you have the and sign OF town upon
every map printed within 200 years you will see town
You approach the wharf Indeed YOU VIII not find the
wharf only the s6clcOnthe last sad remains OF
pine left from natural decay and wars destructive
few rotten panks upon rotten beams, supported
by Totthg piles none Qi whlch nave sengh ehough 70
make iast the steamer 80 she stops ana VIC jump on
mindng the Injunction take care where you step" and
walk over naked beam, crumblmg under foot, TO the
other side of this bulkhead, where We embark III row
boat for the shore, some ten rods distant


The bridge between this outer work and shore was
burned by the gunboats and owing TO the change IN onr
system Of labor II has not been rebuilt From present
appearances il viii not be, by present owners


The view OF the shore from the steamers deck is
rather attractive, although we DO not see the Nlage
spires, hear the schOOhOuse bell The reason Il,
that neither village church. schoohouse exist at the
spot marked upon your map or pointed eut TO you from
you find about half dozen small white washed cot
tages rather collection Of little buildings, which form
among the orange trees Of which 40 feet
high, and 2 Is inches through the bOe. There is in
and tobacco sold; also steammil' Onc-stOry
building OF rough boards, containing engine and one
ment, engine ml and building would make a fair load
for Pennsylvania wagon. There Is narrow strip OF
OOZe, along the shore, in which few scattering
cypress trees and in their season. tangc of weeds and
water snakes including the inevitable moccasn-that Is
until trOdden upon inerered with. This strip is an
almost ineXpqustPle deposit Of valuable manure for the
from this low bank until broken by the bank Of some
other stream. Yet have nowhere seen any evidence OF
this manuTal deposit having been drawn upon suppose
the is that the land without manure produces
than native Southern Incidence manage unless
II suffers the degradation Of manual labor


Scattered along the brow Of this bank for mile around
the point OF Mandarin are little groves OF 1--WE to 100
sweet orange trees loaded with fruit lnterspcrsed
some enormous 1--we oaks aud these though evergreen
at top, are loaded on all the lower limbs with pendant
gray moss hanging in waving festOOns ringes 10 the


limbs of 10 three feet deep which gives that wonder
f weird look all the Old oaks and ragged forest trees
OF this region Forty rods back from the shore Is the ex


Along the feld fence there Is what f. called public
road, and beyond continuous pine forest; through which
you may drive in the travelled paths out of them as
you like, with little hnderance Even yon encounter


pney woods plantation, assure you is not much Of
dCtOnr to 90 around II.


But promised to describe Mrs. Stoves plantation,
which contains four OF the river front have tried
TO show YOU for which understand she paid So 500


able buildings fine house probably" Look You
shall see IT, II Is that one standing ~ e bs 1aSe Sed rS
mosSy canopy above he foGt 80 iaf te picture
until CRATES upon my In this case, grand
magnificent is better Looking at the foot OF the trees
We lind onestOry rOugh-boarded building about l6xs4
! divided into rooms, one having fireplace. Upon
each side OF this building there is shed rooted lean to-
large enough for bedroom, dispensing with unnecessary
furniture. Outside doors open into the two main rooms
which are small plazzas There is also an outside
floor extends 25 feet TO the dingToon, another
roIghboarded building open TO the roof without any
necessary waste OF space extravaganza m glass since
q dozen lights good as gross The Kitchen IS
leano Of the dniDgrOO plenty large enough for the
cook to stand up alongside OF the stove provided she
keeps all surplus utensils out OF doors The dairy Is
separate building II Is exactly three DyOur feet on the
ground and four feet SIX inches high the lower story
being Open convenient place for the COOK To set pan
OF ashes Of the rain. There is beside storerOOm.
perhaps six by eight and there is also loft TO the
building of the house which well for
night from the blaze in the fireplace below, shining up
through the cracks OF the chambeIoOr The outside has
been freshly wbitcwaShed and the inside was formerly
treated in the same way. Within month the wooden
walls have been papered rst caulkng the cracks with


The barn and other convenences (nothng for ex.
trayagancel have been a9aeo since Ihe pgTvna' pdd M ~
board fence pen outside Of which the hay IS kept Out
rains in Winter And why isn't this good barn 1t
certainly a cheap The Winter has not been cold
enough to kill mules, else 1t would have killed the
sweet potato vines st growing in the lot the barn
That they have not been killed, shows what kind OF
Winter climate Mrs. Stowe would enjoy In her Winter
home II she was in It. But she is not though expected
soon. In her stead, found part OF the family Of col
George FoOte Of GufOrd Conn, who, ii Will be remeu
bered by those who have read the biography OF the Rev.
Lyman Beecher, is brother of Mrs. stoves mother.


Mrs FoOe spending her first season IN Florida with
her George S. FOOte who has lately moved into Mrs.
stoves house. and bought tract near by, which he Is
Improving for an orangery Last year he planted
the other side Of the river and got folr ana half
bags from GO That cured hm of the cotton fever
BY this time, suppose the reader is anxious to know
what could have induced Mrs Stowe TO pay 0 Tor four
acres OF the ordinary sandy soil Of this secion Not


ainy for the river view for that, although hne IS no
than at many other localities Not for those grand
oaks and all their mossy beauty for they have their
cOunterpar Certainly not for the house for that, with
barn and other Xings Included is not worth u 900 Yet
the place Is cheap Ii would sell to-day Tor large ad-
vance upon cost.


Here s the secret Of its value I counted ia large
orange trees full OF fruit some of which could pick irou
the doors windows OF the house Every Of these
TO buy real estate this vicinity, estimating It's value
upOn the basis OF 500 for every fuszed tree the
ciny the present season. they affected by something
apparently Analogous 10 lNf MhcH gives
| them brown color instead Of golden when ripe.
TO prove this value you may as safely estimate the
average annual product OF bearing tree at LOCO oranges
you can estimate any OF your ordinary crops when dis
posed 70 put them at the lowest gnre Inc average Is
undoubtedly much higher, and the average price Is not
less than cents. Choice lots usually worth double
that and there Is growing demand az oaVhHnah lnu
Charleston, and towns In Georgia and South Carolina
The kind grown here could be sent TO Newfork in good
condition. they bear transportation remarkably we
They are large, firm and exceedingly dense though the
rnd is not very thick 1t would be hard to spasS their
| excellent quality.


VIII any one dispute my estimation OF the value OF
orange 500 EACH when assured that the annual
crop win certainly average SO per tree with but little
care labOrl Those at Mandarin are planted 2i feet
apart. believe that is about 50 to the acre. be.