LIFE ADVENTURES ^riety, the home of the banana, for frost seldom, if ever, enters the dominion of the Big Cypress. Pine-apples would run riot. But little game is found, except around the borders. One man, in walking over this soil, (so says an old tradition) was so deeply impressed with its fertile appear- ance, that he took a tenpenny nail from his pocket and planted it near a tree, which he marked for future reference. When six months had gone by, he returned to the spot, and dug for the nail. To his surprise, he found that it had grown into a crowbar, four feet long ! A wonderful result, certainly, but as I didn't see the nail planted, nor the crowbar harvested, I can't vouch for the truth of the story. It is diflflcult to imagine the impressive solemnity of this mighty forest, unless one takes a trip through it. Strange, unwholesome legends are rife among the Seminole Indians (who are less inclined to superstition than many other tribes) concerning the death-dealing character of certain things to be foftnd in the Big Cypress, and it is a brave warrior indeed who undertakes to enter the dread "coontee-sassa-hollober" after nightfall. But the resolute band of soldiers were preparing to prove themselves greater objects of dread to the eesta-chatta than any goblin that might have its lair in the coontee-sassa- hollober. At an early hour we brought our boats into Marco river, and steered for the Big Cypress. Our course was to the southeast, and after we entered Palm Hammock creek, we followed that stream for nine or ten miles, and came to its head. A grassy prairie half a mile wide lay ahead, and after crossing that we entered the Little Royal Palm Hammock and struck camp. The land was nice and dry, and the air seemed somewhat purer. . Did you ever see the famous royal LIFE AND ADVENTURES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 57 palm, or Oreodoxia regia ? If you have not, a description might interest you. At this place the trees were nearly a hun- dred and twenty feet high, and stood fifteen or twenty feet apart. The trunks are white, as smooth as polished marble and as straight as an arrow. Near the top the trunk is bright green, and jointed like sugar cane, surmounted by an im- mense crown of leaves, the stems of which are sometimes fif- teen feet long. No animal not provided with wings, can climb these lofty palms. The royal palm is one of the finest trees in all the vegetable kingdom, and surely Florida can boast of nothing more uniquely grand or singularly beautiful. Our course next day lay to the eastward, and the im- mense swamp lay before us and around us. The cypress trees were never more than twenty inches in diameter, and were covered with poisonous vines, whose velvety leaves we avoided as we would shun fire. Especially is a person in danger when freely perspiring ; then the pores of the body are open, and the skin is peculiarly susceptible to poisoning from contact with the vines. The arboreal Rhus toxicodendron, or "devil's shoe-string," and the dreaded Rhus vernix, or "thunderwood," were pointed out to us as being worse than the terrible upas tree. One of the men, a Spaniard, named Johnnie Ortagus, (a native of St. Augustine,) was the most expert climber I ever saw. And he seemed invulnerable to the poisonous vines, for he could handle them without being injured. He could take one of the vines in his hands and scale the tallest tree in a few minutes. His climbing powers were scarcely inferior to those of a squirrel. Col. St. George Rogers directed him to climb the tallest trees and inspect the surroundings. In this way we could gain some idea of the course that lay before us. Ortagus, in reply to questions from Col. Rogei-s, would de- scribe the country ahead, and we would direct our course ac- cordingly. (Mr. Ortagus is now a hale, vigorous old gentle- man, and keeps a restaurant in Jacksonville.) The water through which we traveled was never inore than six inches deep, and was strongly impregnated with 58 LIFE AND ADVENTURES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. lime, but we were forced to drink it. Sometimes we came to high ridges of land, covered with stunted pines and various species of palmetto. These curious plants grew in the ut- most profusion and luxuriance ; the saw-palmetto, the trunk of which is usually in the form of a long, creeping rhizome, reared high in the air, almost like trees. Here we found the needle-palm, with its myriads of long, sharp spines ; the cab- bage palm, and blue-stem. After leaving these ridges (which were, as a rule, not more than half a mile across) we would generally descend into a low, lime prairie, which stretched north and south as far as the eye could reach. In the afternoon we reached the Big Royal Palm Hammock. Following the trail through the low, wet swamp, we suddenly encountered a high slope, which led us into the Big Hammock. O, what a relief, and an in- spiration it was, after the dreary march through the cypress! The lofty palms towered toward heaven, lifting their spreading summits far above the big live oaks and gumbolim- bos. There was a large clearing here, and some of the oaks were covered with pumpkin and bean vines ; inany of these trees were loaded with green and ripe pumpkins, which gave rise to the fancy that they were the fruit of the tree itself. Banana plants, fifteen feet or more in height, and immense corn, were among the products of this fertile region. Without stopping to destroy what the Indians had planted, we pro- ceeded onward in search of the planters themselves. We then came to a deserted village, on an island three miles from Big Hammock. This was Saf-faj-eehojee's Town, and from the appearance of the log huts, with their fallen-in palmetto roofs, we judged that the town had been deserted for a couple of years. We saw no fresh signs, and went on, and before long came to another village, graced with the name of Emathle-ochee's Town. Farther on was Fin-hallo way's metropolis, where a few logs lying in a square, told us that there was once an attempt at building a city, at this place. Here we saw plenty of fresh Indian signs, and followed the trail with greater activity than ever. The march was a dreary and monotonous one. Seven LIFE AND ADVENTURES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 59 long days we marched, and no glimpse of an Indian rewarded our anxious gaze. Captain Dick Turner was our guide. He had never been through there before, but his services as a guide were well rendered. So well did he pilot us through this trackless wilderness that, in a march of seventy-five miles, we missed our destination by only two miles. (When I re- visited Chocaliska Bay in 1880, in company with Prof. A. H. Curtiss, I was pleased to see Captain Turner pleasantly lo- cated on the Bay, surrounded by rich fields of sugar cane, orange groves and banana gardens. Truly the "Captain" is well fixed, but not a whit better than he deserves.) Finally we came to the Ock-kollowah-cootchee. Long and frightful as this name may seem, it was no worse than the thing itself. It was a field of dense saw-grass, about four miles wide. The grass was two feet higher than our heads, and was so dense that we could not see a foot ahead of us. One man was selected to break the road, so that the others could pass. No man could endure this task more than five minutes, and first one and then another ' 'took turns' ' at pushing in front ; the side and shoulders were used in this laborious and painful work. To add to our misery, the sun shone with terrible force upon us, and not a breath of fresh air could reach us. Worse than all, the water was poison, and our feet soon felt the effects of it. The men, who were grumbling before, lifted up their voices and gave vent to some hair-lifting ex- pressions. The volunteers from Middle Florida, who had never experienced the like before, were almost furious. But in time we emerged from the dreadful Ock-kollowah-cootchee, and reached Fort Simon Drum. There we were joined by other soldiers, and made our way to Fort Myers. At that place we boarded the steamer for Fort Brooke. We were there mustered out of the service, and bade each other good by. My readers have indeed been patient in following me thus far. My narrative has been necessarily a prosaic one, for I started out with the determination of telling nothing but the unvarnished truth. Many of the old settlers can bear witness to the truth of my descriptions, and would not be slow to de- 6o LIFE AND AD^'ENTURES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. tect any misstateinent T might make. I am loth to part with the comrades who accompanied me through many hardships and vicissitudes. My journeys through the far South have been varied and full of incident, and in the second part of my little book, I have endeavored to give a new phase of Florida life, which will, I hope, leave an agreeable impression on the reader, who has been so patient to follow me thus far. As to the subsequent life of my companions-in-arms, I can say but little. Captain Jacob Mickler was killed shortly after the war, by being thrown from his buggy near Lake City, Andrew Wiggins disappeared from existence, as it were, without leaving a trace of himself. Ed. Marr died in 1864, on Indian river ; and Jim Cook, the dauntless warrior and true hearted gentleman — rough-hewn though he was — departed from a useful life, near Tampa, a few years ago, honored and admired by all who knew him. [end of PART I.] TO THE PIONEEBS OF SOUTH FLOEIDA. 61 To the Pioneers of South Florida. We have found, with pride and pleasure, Tliat our own fair State is known To the world as the brightest treasure Of the semi-tropic zone. For the East and the AVest awaken To the glorj' of the South, And the wondrous story is taken Through the North, from mouth to mouth Of a land, of which they were dreaming. As though it were not earth, But wliich, to-day, is beaming In the light of its real worth. Where the winds of evening, sighing Through the leaves of the cabbage-palm, E'er whisper of peace undying. And a life of blissful calm; A land where Time ne'er bringeth The snow, nor the dead leaves' fall. And the angel of summer wingeth Her flight through the forest hall. Where the sous of the colder regions Have foimd a home and retreat— And they come in happy legions, Away from the snow and sleet. But the land of endless summer, Where the orange and lemon grow, Had little to offer the comer. In the days of long ago. then, the warriors, in their glory, Through the virgin forest roamed, And 'neath the live oaks, old and hoary. They passed, with locks uncombed, And an eye that mocked at capture, And scorned a prisoner's chain — Will they thrill, with a hunter's rapture, In the olden haunts again ? Ah, no ; for civilization Has banished each swarthy face, And now, the Seminole nation, Is a half -forgotten race. 62 TO THE PIONEEES OF ROUTH FLOKTDA. The guava and lime are growing, Wiieve once they slaughtered the deer, And engine-whistles are blowing, Where the war-whoop smote the ear. The orange its fruit produces. Where the Indian wigwam stood, And offers us golden juices, Instead of an enemy's blood. The Sabbath bells are ringing O'er hammock and tangled brake. And we hear the children singing, By the shore of the woodland lalte. Then we ask : Who fought for the honcr Of our own South Florida — And who are they, that have won her. The glory she wears to-day? We hail them: Hughey and Holden, Yates, Barber and Summerlin — Their harvest is rich and golden, And bountifully gathered in — Hendry, Patrick and Lanier, Hancock, and Speer, and Bass — Each dauntless pioneer Began in the wire -grass; And, wresting the land from the gopher, Thejr planted tlie trees that gleam With the treasures of ancient Ophir, And Pactolus' magic stream. Through the long, dark years of waiting, With their noble wives by their side. And with courage never abating. They watched for the turn of the tide ; And now, in their life's declining, Their evening sun is shed On fruit-filled branches twining Like laurels above their head. Let us wind them a wreath of honor, From the yellow jessamine — Yea, drink to their health and honor, In shaddock and orange wine ! —Sigma. TH KORIDA. PART SECO:^^D. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. fi5 Scenes in South Florida. SKETCHES OF TRAVEL, INCIDENT AND ADVENTURE AMONG THE LAKES AND HAMMOCKS OF SEMI-TROPICAL FLORIDA. CHAPTER I. HOW SPONGES ARE GATHERED AND DISPOSED OF AT KEY WEST. There is no town in the world that is anything like the counterpart of Key West. Lying, as it does, at the very threshold of the tropics, it combines, in a rare degree, the snap and vim of the Northern clime, with the laxative breath from gardens smothered in the flowers and trees of the equatorial regions. On one side is seen the symmetrical crown of the Australian fir, and close by a stately cocoa-palm rears its head. The dark-eyed Cuban jostles the Georgia "nigger" in the busy market places, and the tall, lank, hawk-nosed "land- stalker" is a Yankee, and no mistake, but, like the rest of his peculiar race, has a faculty of making himself at home, under all circumstances, and on all occasions ; which you can easily infer, from the coolness with which he button-holes every ancient (or modern) Cracker who comes to town with a "kyart-load" of garden truck. The sea-breezes are just as pleasant as anybody ever said they were, and I count the town among the nicest places I have seen in the State. I have seen Key West described as a paradise for lazy men. This is a misrepresentation, and if the writer of that article had ever been there, he would have thought and 66 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. written differently — especially if he had ever happened to be without money. Sponge-gathering and cigar-making are the chief indus- tries of the place, and the former occupation is resorted to by those who cannot endure the strong, narcotic fumes of the- cigar factories. I lived in Key West fully six years before the idea oc- curred to me to try my fortune among the spongers. Vessel after vessel came in w^ith their precious freight, ~ attracting- hordes of anxious buyers, and the fishermen generally brought in no less than one thousand pounds, which sold readily for a dollar a pound. Finally I decided that the "briny deep'" should yield up to me some of its treasures, and secured a berth on one of the spongers that plied around the Keys. Be- sides myself, there were about twenty-five men, who were going to tiy their fortunes in the business. The manner of fitting out an expedition is as follows : A vessel is engaged from some owner, who agrees to take half the amount of sponges gathered for the hire of his boat. A stock of provisions is laid in, and each sponge-gatherer is provided with a long pole and hook. The voyages are never more than eight weeks in length, and in that time, if the "catch" has been successful, there ought to be eight hundred "bunches" on board. A bunch weighs about two pounds and is worth at present about four dollars, although at the time I was engaged in the business, the sponger could get only a dol- lar a pound. Our crew set sail, and after a four days' voyage, we came to the Anclote Keys, then a noted sponging ground. When we reached the grounds, the small boats were launched, and other preparations made for the business. We had four of these small boats, and each boat was sent out with a man who was armed with a twenty-five foot pole, with two prongs at the end. I rowed my little vessel some distance from the ship and began looking for sponges. The water was very clear and about twelve feet deep.. The bottom was covered with myriads of curious and beauti- SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. 67 ful growths, such as the Fenestrella, or sea-fan ; the sea- feather, and tall, tree-like plants, which I could not classify- White rocks covered the bottom, and on these I could see thousands of young sponges growing. They were a glossy black, and most of them too small to be gathered. But as I went on I could see larger specimens, and finally I reached downward and drew up a fine one. There are many varieties of sponges, the sheeps-wool variety being the most valuable of all. Next in order come the yellow sponge, the "glove," the "grass," "boat" and "loggerhead." The last named variety is absolutely worthless, and is never gathered. The sheeps- wool is distinguished from other kinds, by a multitude of small protuberances, and by its shining black color. Thrusting the pole downward through the water, I in- serted the prongs under the largest of the sponges, and it took but little exertion to detach them from the rock to which they were growing. When brought to the surface, the sponge ap- pears to be a soft, limp mass of jelly. A tough, black mem- brane envelopes it all over, and this is not removed until the next day. The sponge, after lying out of the water, dies within a few hours, and the animal tissue dissolves, forming a dark, ill-smelling fluid, which the natives call "gurry." We had selected a spot where the wat^r was only five feet deep, and had driven a circular row of mangrove stakes, forming a pen, which we termed a "kraal." Several of these kraals had been made, and to one of them I carried my load of sponges on the day after they had been gathered. Some of the othei's had also brought loads in, and after letting them soak awhile, we began beating them with sticks and punching them about in the water, inside the kraals. In an hour or so, the black, outside scurf, or membrane was gone, also all traces of the animal tissue were washed away, leaving nothing but the skeleton sponge. Then we took needles and thread and made them into bunches, so they could be handled easily. Afterward they were taken to the ship. Deep-water sponging is a much more laborious operation. Two men set out in a boat, and seek a suitable spot where the water is not more than thirty feet deep. One of these men 08 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. sculls the boat gently along, while the other takes a glass, constructed for the purpose, and leaning over the side of the boat, examines the bottom closely. As soon as a large sponge is discovered, they stop, and the long, slender pole is let down into the water^ with a sweep of the arm, which is ac- quired only through a long and tiresome experience. Some of the largest of all sponges are found in deep water, and there has bee n so much gathering done in the shallow places, that one is forced to seek deeper water or give up the business. When the "catch" was completed, we returned to Key "West and sold our sponges. They were separated into lots, and a large number of buyers inspected each lot and made bids. Whenever a buyer has made his bid, the auctioneer proceeds to call out the amount bid for each lot, and thus each cargo or parcel of sponges is consigned to the highest bidder. I have seen as much as fourteen thousand dollars' worth of sponges sold in a few hours, at Key West. The price at that time was about one dollar a pound, but owing to the increased demand, and perhaps decreasing supply, the price is doubled. I have been reliably informed that sub- stantial steps have been taken toward preserving them from extinction, by planting them, and "cultivating" them, as it were, I cannot tell the reader just how that is done, but no doubt it is practiced successfully. If they have done that much, I shall not be at &11 surprised to learn that they have since built large factories in Key West, where sponges are manufactured, by the wholesale, from saw-palmetto and wool. Nearly all the sponges around the coast of Florida were destroyed some eight or ten years ago by some myterious, un- accountable calamity. The first sign of the hidden scourge was the appearance of dead lish on the surface of the water, and soon the shores were lined with their dead bodies, and the air became almost pestilential. The oldest and most ex- perienced fishermen were at a loss to account for it. Finally somebody noticed that there were green streaks in the water, two or three hundred feet wide, and many miles long, occur- ring at intervals around the coast, from the mouth of the SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 69 Withlacoochee river to Biscayne Bay. The poisonous strips of water were found as far as thirty miles out at sea, and nearly everything was killed in their wake. Even the sponges were destroyed, and fish became very scarce in the markets along the coast. Many houses in Key West are provided with cupolas, which are used for looking out for wrecks on the reef. From these cupolas we could see immense quantities of dead flsh of all sizes, from the largest sharks down, floating on the water. On the shore were myriads of the strangest looking fish I ever saw, and there were some species, of which no one had ever before heard or seen, and which must have come from very deep water. Even the dreaded moray^ (a long, slender, serpent-like flsh, which lives in holes in the rocks, where the water is a few fathoms deep, and whose bite is very painful and dangerous) and thousands of sponges, of all varieties, besides, many curious species of crus- taceans lined the shores in heaps, and the task of burying them was no light matter. Porpoises seemed to be the only kind of creature that could withstand the mysterious poison. Fishing-smacks, on their way to Cuba with a cargo of live fish on board, sometimes encountered these streaks of dark green water. As soon as the smacks entered the pois- oned water, the fish, which were kept in "wells" in the bottom of the boats, commenced floundering and dashing around, and in a few moments turned on their backs and died. In this way many of the poor fishermen lost the fruits of their hard labor and were forced to put about and return to their flshing gi'ounds. The strange plague lasted a month or two, when the green streaks disappeared, but it was a good while before fish became plentiful again. Many theories were advanced concerning this curious oc- currence, but I have never regarded any of them as entirely satisfactory. Some people thought it was a poisonous liquid that flowed from the Withlacoochee, and, mingling with the Gulf Stream, encircled the peninsula. I don't believe a word of that, for there is nothing in any Florida river to produce such a result. Others, with more cogenc}^, insisted that there had been some eruption on the bottom of the ocean, whereby an 70 SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. immense quantity of acid or gas was liberated, causing death and desti'uction to almost everything with which it caine in contact. I don't suppose the real cause of the mysterious plague will ever be found out, but the fact of its having de- stroyed millions of dollars worth of fish, is well known among those who were living around the coast at that time. SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. 71 CHAPTER II. CATCHING THE MANATEE, OR SEA-COW, ON THE ST. LUCIE DE- SCRIPTION OF THE CURIOUS CREATURE. The St. Lucie river is one of the shortest in the State, if mot in America, being only ten miles in length. It is, how- ever, scarcely a separate, clearly-defined river, and some con- tend that it is merely a part of Indian river. A small stream is formed from the water that oozes from the Halpattee-oka Flats, and broadens and deepens until it is navigable for small boats, and when it reaches St. Lucie bay it is of quite a respectable size. There is something peculiar about this stream. Along its banks, plants are found which are sought for in vain else- where ; and the Indians regard it with mysterious awe, so that it might be with propriety called the Ganges of the Semi- noles. But the characteristic which gives it such importance in the eye of the hunter is that here the rare manatee is to be found. These animals were once quite abundant, in many parts of the extreme South, but I think I can, with propriety, assert that the St. Lucie river is the only place where the manatee can be looked for with any degree of certainty. The high prices paid for these rare animals, induce many people in this region to hunt them, and it was my good fortune once to be present at the capture of a lai-ge one. Perhaps it would be better to give a description of the 72 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. manatee before we proceed to tell how they ai"e caught. It is- a difficult task, for we have here to deal with a creature whose like is not to be found anywhere. A more awkward, help- less, and curious creature than the manatee, when landed, I never saw. The head is broad, and the eyes are completely hidden by heavy folds of skin, and the mouth is shaped very much like that of a cow, in every way but the teeth. These are so long and shaip that one might at first be led to believe that they belonged to a carnivorous animal. The sea-cow, nevertheless, is a strict vegetarian, and eats nothing but aquatic plants. It has been asserted that its only food is the manatee-grass, which grows in immense quantities, in the St. Lucie river. This grass has large, broad blades, and is found in eight or ten feet of water, growing on the bottom and ex- tending to the surface. A full grown manatee should weigh about twelve hun- dred pounds, although one monster was captured, many years ago, which weighed fifteen hundred. Such a one would be twelve feet in length, and have a girth of four feet. They are provided with flippers about ten inches in length, and the body diminishes into a large fan-like tail, similar to a porpoise. The skin is black, and sparsely covered with short, black hair. They move with considerable rapidity through the water, and although a most clumsy-looking animal when on land, they understand very well how to conduct themselves in their na- tive element. They possess, perhaps, the most acute hearing of all animals. So delicate and perfect is this sense, in the manatee, that the sound of an oar, no matter how carefully handled, will alarm them at a distance of half a mile. It is a common habit, in Key West, in speaking of a man whose hearing is acute, to say that he hears like a manatee. This is a wise dispensation of Providence, for the manatee is lacking in almost every ordinary means of self-defense. When caught, they never attempt to bite, and cannot in any way resent the indignities offered by their captors. I tasted manatee flesh once, and shall never forget it. The fattest, juciest Tennessee beef is by no means equal to it, and I very much doubt if there is any anything in the animal SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 73 kingdom, that is so entirely delicious. One of them was stranded on the beach near St. Lucie Bay, and some hunters found and killed it, and that was the time I found an oppor- tunity to test the flavor of the flesh. In the year 1858, I met a man named Kelly, who, with two or three others, had started out on a manatee hunt. They had a large marlin net, and a wooden tank, for the purpose of keeping the animal, should one be caught. The spot selected was a cove, formed' by a bend of the river, where the water was twelve feet deep. The net, which was three hundred feet long, was extended between stakes, set firmly in the bottom, and the hunters retired to their huts in the adjacent hammock, and patiently awaited results. Two or three times a day we went down and inspected the net, but nothing was to be seen, except an occasional alligator, who beat a hasty retreat through the large meshes, as soon as he perceived the danger he was in. A small row-boat was used, in going to and from the net, which was about a quarter of a mile from the shore. After two weeks of waiting, we were at last rewarded by seeing the floats bobbing about in a lively fashion, one morn- ing when we visited the nets. Excitedly, but with sure inove- ments, the men took a bundle of inch rope, and set out for the captured prize, who was creating quite a commotion in the water, and tangling himself up beautifully, in the relentless ineshes of the marlin. I did not go out in the boat and con- sequently did not get the first sight of the monster, but they soon tugged him into shallow water. A combination of ropes and pulleys was arranged, and he was dragged ashore, and with his twelve hundred pounds, he was by no means easily managed. He was then placed in the tank, which was six by ten feet, and kept until a sloop arrived, which carried the precious freight to Key West. This was a male, and about a week afterward we caught a female. This was the only pair ' I know of ever having been captured, and they should have brought quite a handsome price. But as it was, they were fairly given awa}'^. As well as I can remember, they brought only seventy-five dollars. P. T. Barnum paid one thousand 74 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. dollars in gold, some years ago, for a manatee not as large as some I have seen, and their extreme scarcity would now cause them to be valued at perhaps three times as much. The manatee was kept a week before the sloop arrived, and I formed quite an intimate acquaintance with the strange creature. For the first day or two he was shy, but I com- menced scratching him on the head, and when he saw that my mtentions were good, our acquaintance ripened into something like friendship. I stroked and scratched his big, ugly head, and he opened his mouth and devoured bananas, cabbage leaves and delicate bits of vegetables which I offered him. Every time I came to the tank, the huge beast would open his mouth for some little tidbit, and present his head for a scratching. During the week the water in the tank was changed twice — once with fresh, and once with salt water ; one is as good as the other for the manatee. I had become quite interested in my pet before the week had passed by, and rather regretted the advent of the sloop, which carried him away. Tn days long gone by, the Seminoles living in Whitewa- ter Bay, near Cape Sable, killed the manatee, jerked the flesh and sold it to the Spaniards at a good price, and ten years ago the meat could be bought at fifty cents a pound. Of course, the animals are becoming fai- too scarce to admit of its being sold at all. There is no doubT; that the manatee is fast becoming an extinct animal. Like the dodo bird, which flourished in the East in the middle ages, but is now extinct, the sea-cow will pass out of existence, and will be looked upon, a few centuries hence, as a monstrosity, and the only remaining trace of its former existence will be a few old bones, and an antiquated volume, containing a description of it. SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. 75 CHAPTER III. HUNTING BEE-TBEES ON THE UPPER ST. JOHNS RIVER — A STORY AND A TRAGEDY. Life in Florida has its sweets, and, like the grandmother, its bitters also. Among the sweets of an existence in the State, may be reckoned the finding o± bee-trees and conse- quent discovery of a fine lot of pure, rich, wild honey. That is, provided the little insects do not take a notion to avenge the desecration of their castle and destruction of their treas- ure. And I have often known them to "get in their work" on their human robbers in such a forcible manner as to render the job anything but sweet. Of course the incident I am about to relate was not the first of the kind I had experienced, for I had been familiar with bee-hunting since early boyhood. But I do not remem- ber to have ever had such success as we had that time. The way it happened was thus : I was living on Indian river, near the mouth of the St. Seba'stian, and one fine, sunny day in early spring, two of my neighbors came to me and proposed that we go on a hunt for bee-trees. The idea was favorable to me, for I had long been wishing for a taste of honey, and we made preparations for starting next day. Each took a gun and plenty of ammu- nition, together with provisions for a week. Bees and honey were not the only objects we were going to look for. Obeying an instinct which is very strong in many people to expect something better ahead, we thought 76 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. we could find land in that region we were going to visit, which would eclipse anything we had yet seen. Our destina- tion was a certain region on the west side of the St. Johns river, near Lake Winder, about fifty miles away. We reached the place on the second day, and were disappointed to find that the land was low and flat, and in every respect in- ferior to that which we had left behind. But we applied our- selves next day to the hunt for bee-trees, and were not disap- pointed. In the morning we pressed our way through the briars and bushes of two or three bay-heads, and entered a low palmetto flat. It was not long before we heard a hum in the air, and one of my comrades, named Patrick, directed a sharp glance upward, and saw a few bees issuing from a hole in a large pine about thirty feet from the ground. Im- mediately afterward we found another tree v/hich bore un- mistakable evidence of being the home of a large quantity of bees. , We marked the trees with our axes, scalping off the bark and leaving a broad, white mark which could be seen a long distance through the forest. Continuing through the woods, we kept our eyes and ears strained to detect the little workers. In going three-fourths of a mile we found no less than eight trees, and they all gave promise of a large yield of honey. But we postponed cutting the trees until we had made a more thorough inspection of the surrounding country. That afternoon we shouldered our guns and went on a hunt for deer and bear. The St. Johns at this place was about one hundred feet across ^ and was navigable for ^mall steamers, although none had ever penetrated that region at that time. We reached Lake Winder late in the afternoon. Near this lake we found a clump of fine cabbage-palms, and heard a strange, ripping sound, as we drew near. Looking up in one of the trees we were astonished to see a large bear sitting on top, trying to pull out the tender bud of the palm. He had flattened out the crown of leaves so as to form quite a good lodgment for himself, and was untiring in his efforts to extract the sweet, tender bud. He had not yet observed lis, SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. 77 and was too much absorbed, perhaps, in the anticipation ot the delicious feast he was going to enjoy, to notice his sur- roundings. Finally the bud broke loose and the bear swung backward with all his weight, but the bud came out too easy. He had not calculated the sudden relaxation, and the result was that he lost his balance and came crashing to the ground. He hastily gathered himself up, and at the same moment his eyes fell on us. With a startled grunt he scrambled away into the bushes, and I must confess, that by the time our fire- arms were in readiness, he was thrashing his way through the thicket, safely out of our reach. Pursuit was worse than use- less, and it was growing late, so we returned to our camp. In spite of the low, fiat character of the land, it had its charms. The saw-palmetto and loblolly bay were in bloom and their heavy sweetness burdened the night air, while the ground was carpeted with the spicy, aromatic pennyroyal, which gave forth its aroma as we walked through it. As Patrick remarked, the conditions were in every way favorable for bees, and he confidently predicted that the yield of honey from our trees would be a large one. As early next morning as we could make preparations we commenced on the bees. Two of us took a good, keen ax apiece and pi'oceeded. Our first tree was two feet in diame- ter, and "sound as a dollar." But our axes were sharp, and the thought of a solid yard of well-filled honey-comb braced our muscles, and the bees had hardly begun to get uneasy before their dwelling-place trembled in its foundations, and soon smote the earth. They were somewhat stunned by the fall, and I took advantage of the opportunity by running for- ward and stopping the hole with a bunch of moss. About a foot from the hole we cut out a large chip, and proceeded cautiously to open up the hidden treasure. Mean- while, one of the men took a short stick, wrapped a bunch of rags ai-ound it and set it on fire. This produced a large vol- ume of strong, suffocating smoke, and was intended to dis- courage the angry Insects from pouring out of the holes and attacking us. SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. Soon the honey was reached, and with very little trouble, Patrick reached into the hollow and drew out a huge piece of comb, covered with dead and crippled bees, and although thousands were crawling over his hands, none showed any dis- position to sting. Whenever they tried to swarm out of their prison, an application of the burning rag would repress them instantly. From this tree we secured at least twenty-five pounds of the best honey that ever was gathered from flowers. We then retired to a shady spot, each with a large piece of comb, and after selecting a few large saw-palmetto leaves, we wove a net of them, and deposited our treasure thereon. The bees soon filled the air around the fallen tree, and would have perhaps made it lively for any one who had the temerity to ap- proach them. Seated on a log underneath a large cabbage-palm, we had before us a feast that would have tempted a dyspeptic anchorite. Be it known that three mortals on that day, ate so much honey that they avowed the bees could have all the i-est, for all they cared. But after the fierce thirst, occasioned by such a diet, was quenched, the work of destruction was re- newed. With his hat on the ground under his feet, and his head thrown back against the palm-tree, Patrick was nibbling a choice bit of new unsealed comb, when he suddenly remem- bered that he had an adventure to tell. He was in that happy stage when the mind is as tranquil as a spring morning, and the stomach has earned the warm gratitude of its owner, for having such a liberal capacity. Patrick was full — not quite too full for utterance, else we would have been compelled to forego the pleasure of learning just how and where he passed through such pleasant experiences. Clearing his throat with a consequential air, he began : "When I joined Cap. H's. reegiment a couple of years ago, nobody ever thought about me a-gettin' any higher than a private, or a corporal at the best. But I was a-gwine to prove jist what stuff was in me, and I saved my reegiment, and don't you believe nothin' else." SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. 79 Of course we wanted to know how Pat had saved his regi- ment, and after waiting discreetly a few minutes, in order to give us an opportunity of asking him to continue his narrative, he proceeded : "Well, I tell you how it was. You see we kinder got out o' grub. Now, I've knowed of reegiments that fowt like killin' snakes, and didn't have no shootin' irons, nother; but when it comes to a lot of men fightin' when they haint got enough in their craws to keep a week-old chicken alive two minutes, they haint a-gwine to do much fightin', I can tell you. Well, it was jist that bad with us. We tramped through swamps and over hills, and we couldn't shoot nothin', not even a kyarn crow, nor a buzzard. The Cap. had begun to look mighty black, and says he, 'Well, bullys hit's about gittin' the best of us, this time, and we mowt as well say our prayers and hold a council of starvation,' says he. Says I, 'Cap., I'm nothin' but a common soldier, but if you'll gimme a chance I'll dust around and have everybody full to the chin before two hours,' says I. The Cap. allowed I was jist a-talkin' to hear myself, but all the same, he 'lowed I might try, seein' as how things was lookin' so black. To-be-sure, some of the men was a-lyin' down, and fixin' to drop off. One of 'em 'lowed as how he had been born with a pipe in his mouth, and was a-gwine to take his last smoke, feelin' happy and contented. I told 'em as how I was a-gwine to knock all that nonsense in the head, and that they must not give up till they hearn from me agin. But they jist wunk their eyes and rolled over." The listeners cleared their throats incredulously at this tragic turn of affairs, but Pat continued, as he artistically sev- ered a piece of comb, and cautiously proceeded to consume it: "Well, I left 'em lyin' there, and knowed I'd have to skedaddle, or I'd find a fust-class funeral all in full blast when I got back. I took a ax and went atter a bee tree. And, lo and behold! I hadn't gone more'n a quarter 'fore I seen a stream of bees a-comin' out'n a big forked cypress. I fell to choppin' on it, and hadn't much more'n got through the sap^ 80 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. when out popped a stream of honey as big as my arm." A most energetic yawning interrupted the narrator at this mo- ment, but he dauntlessly continued : "Maybe you wouldn't have believed it, but that honey was as clear as spring-water, and I cotch my hat full the fust thing. 'But gosh !' says I, 'that won't begin to be a taste for them starvin' ci'itters.' So I took and peeled off a big hunk of bark and let it run full. Well, I looked through the swamp and seen a 'tater patch on a hill on t'other side. I knowed them fellers 'ould want sump'in' 'sides pyore honey, so I run over there, and it wan't no time 'fore I was a- grabblin' them 'taters. Yes, a big flop-eared hound did make for me, but about the time he come 'yoogle, yoogle,' atter me, I gin him a dost from my rifle, and you know them there pills alius gits in their work " At this supreme moment a solitary bee wandered past, and perhaps becoming angry at the coolness with which we had appropriated his hard earnings, surely and quickly selected Pat's upper lip for his resting place. The struggle was short and sharp. Pat danced the can-can, making havoc with some of our honey, and it was with a sad eye and pulsating lip that he resumed his seat. His remarks were brief, but to the point, as had been the encounter with the angry insect, and when we ventured to ask whether that was the kind of "pills" he had referred to, he looked dangerous. We wondered what became of the starving "reegiment" that had lain down to die, but we were not enlightened any further as to their fate. Pat went about with an overhanging lip, and a dogged deter- mination to say as little as possible. We then cut several other trees, and secured as much of the money as we could carry home in our improvised knap- sacks of saw-palmetto. We brought home enough honey to last for several weeks. Even at this day, the region around Lake Winder is rich in bee-trees and honey, and people some- times go as far as thirty miles to get a stand of bees from that vicinity. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 81 CHAPTER IV. IN WHICH A COMPANY OF SOLDIERS GET SHORT OF RATIONS AND THE READER IS INTRODUCED TO A REMARK- ABLE FAMILY. I beg my readers to excuse me for recurring to an inci- dent which might have come under the head ot "War Reminis- cences;" but, at this day and time, we can, through tlic agency of memory, enter the battle-field and view the strife without fear of stray bullets, and the terrors of those days have given place to the quiescent recollections, which still form the darling theme of many a vetei-an in the evening of life. As this will probably be the last of my ''war series," I hope the reader will patiently hear me through the recital of an adventure of mine, which, while perhaps devoid of dra- matic or sensational detail, is none the less strongly impressed on my memory. First, I will introduce you to our camp, situated on the east side of Pease Creek, half a mile from Fort Meade, on a little stream called Sink Branch. You observe that the sur- rounding country is high, rolling pine land, but as we cross a low ridge covered with willow-oaks, we come suddenly upon one of the wonders of this remarkable region. Making our way through the tangle of myrtle and palmetto, we suddenly behold, lying at our feet, a crj'stal-clear spring, bubbling up with great energy. The spring is twenty feet across and is fathomless. In all probability, this spring is fed through som.e deep subterranean passage, by the waters of Pease 82 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. Creek. The water is delieiously cool and as pure as moun- tain dew. Under the shade of some overhanging willow-oaks we pitched our tents, and I doubt if we could have found a better camping-spot in South Florida. We rose from an invigorating breakfast of fresh venison, on the morning of the tenth of May, 1857, and assembled re- spectfully together, to receive commands for the day's sei-vice from our captain, William B. Moselv, of the Florida Mounted Volunteers. (Captain Mosely was a son of Ex-Governor Mosely, of Florida, and was one of the best men I ever knew — the soldiers were all much attached to him. He once owned a large tract of land on the Heights, near Palatka, and I believe is still living. ) For many days previous we had not been called upon to perform any serious or exciting duty, and had deported ourselves as hunters, rather than soldiers. But now, something more serious was before us. Captain Mosely told us, briefly, that we were to go on a scout and gather in the few Seminoles who were yet out of the fold. In other words, we were to penetrate a region, which, at that time, was almost entirely unknown and untraveled. That, too, in the face of rumors of the ugliest sort, concerning the dire fate of certain venturesome parties wdio had penetrated into this unpeopled wilderness in search of game, but no ani- mal came near them, except the black vultures which found their poor, starved and shriveled corpses near some bay or hidden stream, where the lost hunters had lain down to die, in despair of ever getting home again. The distance to be traversed was something near a hundred miles, and the "Jornada del Muei'to"* that lay between, held out but little inducement to us, although not one of the stout Florida vol- unteers hesitated for a moment to obey the call of duty. Our destination was Camp Whipple, where a company of regulars *The "Jornada del Muerto" (Spanish "Journey of Death") is a long arid strip of land lying west of the Eio Grande, where travelers often perish for want of food and water, while trying to cross the great soda plains. In the Florida "Jornada," however, the traveler suffered only for want of food. "Water was plentiful, and only the lack of game and the sparse population rendered it un- safe for those who attempted the journey unprepared. But since then the region has become the home of a happy and prosperous people. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. were stationed. At that place we were to turn over our pris- oners, if we were so fortunate as to make a capture, make our reports, and return to Fort Meade, It was perhaps six o'clock in the morning, when we shouldered arms and marched forth over the long slopes, carpeted with wire grass, which quivered and swayed in the morning breeze like a ground-swell on the ocean. The cav- ernous excavations of the gophers, and the little hillocks of yellow sand, upheaved by the "salamanders," were the only traces of animal life to be seen in that lonely spot. Then we descended into long stretches of flatwoods, cov- ered with a rank growth of blueberry, myrtle, saw palmetto and siren-flower. Our eyes were well practised in detecting Indian trails, but we utterly failed to discover anything what- ever. Evidently the wary redskins were ensconced in some thick, shady hammock or bay-head, not trusting themselves out on open ground. And whenever of one these jungles was approached, we began to look out for a shower of bullets from the hidden foe. Very often had a whole company been routed by a fusilade from a few dastardly rascals hidden in the palmetto and bramble, through which thej^^ glided with the ease of rattle- snakes, when pursued. In the hammocks the white man was hardly a match for the Seminole. We marched along until the end of the second day, when our provisions gave out. The farther we went the less en- couraging became the prospect, and in the morning we began to feel serious, for as the sun ascended, our appetites rose ac- cordingly, and the wherewith to satisfy our cravings was no where to be found. From hunting human beings, *we turned our attention toward hunting for something to eat. When the day was far advanced, and we were faint and weary, one of the men found a bunch of comptie, the famous bread-root of the Indians. We tried to prepare some of the roots for food, by peeling them and frying them in the little mickle of lard we had saved, and we forced down a few spoonsful of the 84 SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. wretched mess. It is not necessary to say that vve vowed to discard comptie from our bill of fare in the future. When prepared properly, it tastes very much like arrow-root or cas- sava, although it does not contain as much nourishment as either. The morning of the third day dawned upon a landscape radiant with dewy flowers, but it brought but little comfort to the handful of starving soldiers, who were looking as though they were well-nigh exhausted. "Tat" Kendrick and I vol- unteered to set forth in search of Camp Whipple, which we knew must lie within ten miles of us. Mounting our ponies we struck out toward Pease Creek, and reached the mouth of that stream after a two hours' ride. At this place we fired off our guns, and were rejoiced to hear the answering report of a g,un away off to the south. We repeated the signal, fearing that there might have been some mistake, and again the friendly booming of the guns told us that deliverance was near. My companion, "Tat" Kendrick, usually so vivacious, witty and full of life, had grown haggard and wan, and the few words he uttered were freighted with woe unutterable. His hopes revived, however, when he heard the guns. Right here, before I go any further, I wish to say a few words about "he Kendrick family. They were a jovial, fun-loving set of mortals, who often whiled away the hours when in congenial company, by telling monstrous tales, which by far eclipsed Munchhausen or Jules Verne in the richness and grotesque- ness of their imagination. Finally, "Old Bill Kendrick" became known as the "tarnationest story-teller in all Flurridy," and so rapidly did his fame spread, that people began to "make allowances" for everything Mr. Kendrick said, whether joking or in earnest. This sad state of affairs did not alarm the old gentleman in the least, although it did him great injustice, for he was, after all, a sober, industrious citizen, his greatest drawback beinsf a light regard for the wel- fare of his own good name. As usual, when a person attained distinction in that re- gion, everybody was ready to swell his reputation and add to his fame. Anybody who could make up a yarn on old Billy, SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 85 repeated it whenever practicable, and many of liis traducers were his inferiors, when it came to that. Somebody, who had very little else to do, told a huge story about Billy Ken- drick and his brother Tat, which represented the latter as hav- ing once out-lied his brother Bill so completely that the old gentleman was sorely grieved ; and bowed his head and wept, and the sound of his weeping was heard afar off — boohooing like a colicky baby. I can not at this moment distinctly recall the yarn supposed to have been told by Tat, but I think it was something about a fish he had caught, which was so large that it made a hole in the water so big that it was three days in filling up. They said that the yarn reformed Bill, and that he quit the romancing business then, and for all time. Tat Kendrick rode off toward the spot from whence the sounds of the gun came, while I returned to the camp and re- ported the good news to our captain. It put new life into every man and strengthened them for the journey. Now, I am strongly tempted to unveil a tragedy which was being enacted as I came into camps, wherein a poor, helpless gopher was the victim, perishing at the hands of a dozen soldiers, but I will not betray my companions-in-arms, for any consideration. Besides, if I were to tell you that the men, with all due reverence and respect, presented the two fore- legs of the miserable little turtle to their captain, before con- suming the rest with the relish of starved vultures, you would not believe it ; so, I will remain silent on the subject. When we reached Camp Whipple, we were in a sad con- dition ; completely exhausted and half-delirious. We were of course not allowed to eat as fast as our appetites prompted, and it was a long time before we were satisfied. We were taken care of in the best possible manner, and in a week were able to return to Fort Meade. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 87 CHAPTER V. some remarks about the seminoles description of the "greek-corn dance," and other customs. The annals of this decaying race, if written in strict obedience to the laws of truth, and without prejudice, would place them in a better light than the one in which most peo- ple are disposed to regard them. The Comanche and Arapa- hoe are as inferior to the Seminole, morally and mentally, as is possible, in two tribes of Indians. The fiendish instinct which leads the wild tribes of the West to prolong the death of a captive over a slow fire, is totally lacking in the red man of Florida. Through all the long and bloody strife which preceded the settlement of Florida, no well- well-grounded tale was ever told, of a Seminole putting a captive to death in an unnatural manner. He was none the less heroic or warlike, for his lack of brutality; in war, his first thought was to subdue his enemy at once and forever, with a bullet ; the thought of a lingering death was not pleas- ant to him. The customs and habits of the aborigines of Florida are not such as as would grace a parlor or ball-room, but they are by no means repulsive. The wild, free life which suits them best has engendered in them a love of freedom, which they know how to fight for with energy and wear with dignity. However, the few Seminoles who remain as relics of past glory and power, are becoming demoralized, in an alarming degree, by the encroachments of modern civilization SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. and "wyomi" (whiskey). These potent agents have. in. a great measure, subjugated the eesta-ehatta's wild, unbridled tendency to live and die as free and as innocent of work, as the alligators and herons of his native marshes. The average Seminole of to-day scorns any impediment in the way of breeches, and seems to think that the use of these garments betokens little else but vanity and extravagance on the part of those who wear them. The change of the season does not affect his attire, for the only garment between him and the world — a stout, well-greased shirt — serves him as well in winter as in spring. Sometiines they come striding into Kissimmee, as stately and en deshabille as a bronze sta- tue of Mercurjy . Lately, however, the braves are presented with a pair of pants immediately upon their arrival in Kis- simmee. Tom Tiger has formed the habit of dressing in a becoming manner, and when rigged out in a pair of new pants, a pair of moccasins, a blight, clean calico shirt, and a half-dozen red handkerchiefs around his neck, crowned with an immense red turban, no one can help admiring him. His splendid figure, and the careless, unconscious grace with which he carries himself, will always impress the person who meets Tom Tiger for the first time. Billy Buster, who is a little older than Tom, does not reflect much glory on his his ancestry. Billy still remains as unregenerated as can be, and disdainfully refuses to accept the pair of pants usually tendered him upon his arrival in Kissimmee. Nobody ever saw Billy Buster dressed like a white man, and it's very likely that nobody ever will. The Seminole language is a curious anomaly of verbs adjectives and nouns : I am almost tempted to say that these complete the parts of speech in Seminole grammar. The words are almost invariably accented on the penultimate syllable, and are rich in aspirates and linguidentals. Like the Russian language, the Seminole has no article, the words "the" and "a" being unknown. I will give the following Seminole words, with their eqivalent in English, in lieu of a longer dissertation on the grammar of the language, and in SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. 89 pronouncing them, the reader should bear in mind that all the words are accented on the syllable next to the last : Ab-bass-wah Bread. Soff-kee Grits, or comptie. Po-leg-dah Stool or chair. Ee-fah Dog- Hal-pa-tah Alligator. Ee-cho .Deer. Che-lok-kah Horse. Wah-ku-hoo-tee .Bull. Wah-ku Steer. Wah-ku-pos-see. Cow. Wah-ku-pos-see-ne-hah .....Butter. Toad-kah Fire. 0-skay .Rain. To-kabiss-loo .Boat. The following words form an exception to the general rule, having the rising inflection on the last syllable: Chan-kee Hand. Thath-o Fish. Chit-tokkanee-wah Money. Chit-tokkanee-wah-katee Purse. Lo-kasee Bear. The above will suflSce to give the reader an idea of this barbarous tongue, and will probably satisfy all who survive the first trial. I do not think there are more than three hundred In- dians living in Florida at the present day, although no accu- rate figures can be obtained, owing to their shyness and diead of anything pertaining to "red tape." Rumor once had it that Jacob Summerlin, one of the foremost of the frontiers- men of Florida, and a cattle-king of no mean dominion, once laid a striking and original plan for taking a census of all the Seminoles in Florida, which apparently should have sue- 90 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. ceeded. It was alleged that he sent an agent among them, to announce that a grand festival was to be given at Fort Myers, and the whole tribe w^as invited to partake of it. But the plan was a failure; "Holiwaugus — no good!" was the sententious reply, and no amount of argument or explanation could convince them that the invitation did not arise from sinister motives. Like most other tribes, the Seminoles consider the la- bors of the field far beneath their dignity. The squaw is the farmer, while the brave warrior scours the hammocks and flatwoods in search of game, or dozes away the long sum- mer hours beneath the oak and palm. The fine corn and pumpkins, of which I have spoken in the first part of my book, were planted and tended by these patient, horny- handed daughters of toil. Many years ago, I became acquainted with a young man named Moore, who had earned quite a reputation by his at- tempts to affiliate with the Seminoles, and become as one of them. He stayed with them three months, and in that pe- riod of time, saw many of their peculiar manners and cus- toms displayed. He often spoke of the famous "green-corn dance," which he had once seen. Now, I never was an eye- witness of this peculiar ceremony, and will have to quote Mr. Moore as my authority for the following description : He had been with them perhaps a month, and had been initiated into many of their mysteries. In his intercourse with them, he had picked up enough of their language to make himself intelligible to them; his fine sportsmanship, vm- erring aim and unfailing good humor had won the admiration of the young braves, and even the old, long-headed warriors had begun to regard him with less suspicion. Many a frisky squirrel, seemingly secure, on the topmost boughs of the towering live oaks and hickories, came whirling to the ground at the call of his rifle, and if he "jumped" a deer, there was sure to be venison in camp that day. Littleton Hancock, in his palmiest days, couM not have been a greater terror to deer than was this man Mooie. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 91 As I said before, he had been with the luuums about a month, when he saw the dance, and it was in early May. One day, soon after the orange blooms had faded in the hammocks, and the tassels were just browning over the fields of corn, there were great preparations made, for some sort of feast, which Moore could not account for, and the Indians were not communicative on the subject. Great piles of comptie had been dug and washed ; many cabbage palm trees were slau|^htered, and the snow-white buds prepared for the pot. A spot of ground was selected in the shadiest part of the hammock, where three giant-bodied live oaks leaned their great arms together, and a large space of ground under the trees was divested of its growth of palmettoes and bushes, and swept clean. A fire of rich pine-knots and oak limbs was built in the center, and after awhile, there was a deep bed of live coals. The women came in from the fields, laden with green corn, which they husked and placed in the embers to roast, while the old men held secret council together, and skinned the deer and wild hogs brought in by the young war- riors. From the dark recesses of the Coontee-sassa-hollober, the ancient warriors came, bearing venison and bear-meat on their shoulders ; from the islands of Okeechobee, and the heron-tenanted prairies and hammocks of the great Coontee- seema-pollawah and Saffaj-eehojee's Town, the idusky red legions came trooping to the scene of festivity. When the guests had assembled, the chief, glittering in war paint and silver ornaments, rose to his feet and in a few words, directed the opening of the performance. A circle was formed, and a march begun, during which a strange, dirge-like song was chanted ; faster and faster moved the pro- cession around the fire. On and on they swept, not pausing a moment for breath, until finally, the yelling, dancing, jumping redskins sank down to rest, and to feast on the ven- ison, comptie and palm-cabbage, which were temptingly dis- played on platters of palmetto. The fragrant brown ears of roasted corn were brought forward and distributed among the throng, as an emblem of future peace and prosperity. Moore said that one peculiar feature of this custom was. 92 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. that all fugitives who had been banished from the tribes, were allowed to return, for a brief period, even when they had been exiled for some grave offense. As the procession formed around the fire, there could be seen brothers, sisters, parents and sometimes sweethearts, standing and waiting for the dear one who had been long absent. At a Seminole wedding, the new couple enter a ring composed of two or three dozen dancers. The procession moves rapidly around them ; the bridegroom carries in his hand a piece of venison, and the bride has an ear of corn, which she hands to her husband, saying: "I will provide bread if you will furnish the meat." Whereupon, the warrior pre- sents the venison to his squaw, and repeats his part of the formula. Moore also witnessed a war-dance, in which over fifty braves participated. While they were forming a ring, pre- paratory to commencing the dance, the chief hid himself in the densest portion of the hammock, and no one dared ap- proach him ; some mysterious rite was being celebrated, which must not be witnessed by profane eyes — ^perhaps a consecration of body and soul, to the god of war. In the meantime, the solemn, measured minuet began ; in deep chest-tones, the warriors sang the song of battle, their voices rising from a low wail in a minor key, to a roar like that of an alligator. Sud- denly, without the least warning, the chief came bounding into the midst of the ring. The circle widened, leaving him plenty of room for his wild leaps and gyrations, and the yells of the excited savages rose to the highest notch. The chief took a stick of sour-orange wood, on one end of which was a carving of a man's head ; thrusting this in the ground, in the center of the circle, he drew his long, bright hunting-knife, brought it down upon the carved head, and went through all the motions of scalping. Then rose the death-song : Ecah-esah-ah-lee — Ecah-bosah-ah-lee ! Wah - luck - luck - luck — Wah-luck-luck-lufk!- Wah-lucklo-bah-ah-lee! Olucklo-wah-ah-lee ! SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 93 The orgies were now at the highest pitch, and it would not have been safe to jump into their midst, at that moment. Moore said that he "lay low and sung easy," while that war-dance was going on. After the ceremony of scalping was ended, the panting braves subsided, and they proceeded to stow away an incredible amount of comptie and venison. An Indian needs but one cooking utensil. A brass kettle takes the place of pot, stew-pan, oven, basin and bucket, and great care is taken to keep it polished brightly. On rainy days, the squaws whittle out spoons, and that completes the list of table-ware, for the eesta-chatta has no use for cups or dishes. Seminoles have very strict ideas of sociaFvirtue, and any of their number — male or female — who oversteps the bounds of of chastity, is severely punished. Perpetual banishment has often been inflicted on those who broke the laws in this re- spect ; Billy Bowlegs, a former chief of the Seminoles, wa? condemned to wander apart from his tribe, for along time, as a punishment for some misdeed of a similar nature. Tom Tiger once brought his squaw to town on a visit, and while there, of course she attracted a good deal of attention. One of the "big men" of the town invited Tom and his squavv^ to take a boat ride with him, on a neighboring lake. Tom accepted the invitation in silence, but eyed the eesta-hotka distrustfully, all the while ; with an Indian's keen perec»ption, he concluded that the white man was not actuated solely by a desire to please him and his squaw, and he prepared himself for some unfair trick. But the pale-face had no smch inten- tions ; the Indians interested him, and he wished to learn some of their peculiar ways. He learned a good deal. Act- uated by a sudden burst of gallantry, he seized Mrs. Tiger's hand. Tom raised his gun, and with a "Holiwaugus !" that would have startled anybody, ordered the boat put about for land. Tom and his squaw hustled off down the river, to Ro- sahe. He never brought his squaw to that place any more, and it is very likely that that white man generally managed to be absent, whenever the Indians "painted the town red." SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 95 CHAPTEE VI. NED MARK AND MYSELF TRY OUR FORTUNES ON INDIAN RIVER A NARROW ESCAPE FROM DEATH. Many and varied have been the descriptions of the In- dian River region, and it is not an easy task to traverse un- trodden ground in speaking of it at this day and time. Sid- ney Lanier dreamed his sweetest dreams under its feathery cocoa palms, and tells us, in glowing words, how his heart was enthralled by the weird beauties of the enchanted river. Audubon, the great naturalist, entrapped the purple gallinule and roseate spoonbill in its silent marshes, and left for succeeding generations, a record of the wonders of that region, and now when the blase tourist has become surfeited with the scenes of the West, he often comes to the shores of Indian river, to forget fatigue and ennui in the charms of bee-hunt- ing, mullet- catching, and chasing that noble animal, the bear. And if he wishes to descend, at one flop, from the sublime to the ridiculous, he takes a "grain" in his hand, and impales the festive stingaree. This animal (which is also called "the bob-tail end of creation") will receive proper attention farther on. I was more fortunate than many other mortals, in the se- lection of a birthplace, and have always betn proud of my good judgment in choosing Florida as my native State ; in- deed, that is the only act of my life of which I can make much boast. Having been born in the semi-tropic zone, I did not have to go through the initiating process, like the people who come here late in life. And as the years increase, I lose not a ray of the sunshine that surrounded my infancy, and I might SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. well say that the Florida of half a century ago was not more pleasant than it is to-day. The people, with their steamboats, railroads and other big projects have turned things around completely, making a new country of it. And in the midst of all this, the old stagers are all having their say, about how it "used to was." Now my turn has come. The chilling winds of November, A. D. 1858, were caus- ing the orange trees to huddle their limbs together for warmth and protection, when my companion Ned Marr and myself concluded to forsake our bachelor quarters on Tampa Bay, and seek more congenial surroundings on the east coast. Our objective point was Honey Branch, which had attracted my attention when I passed through that region several years be- fore. The greater part of the remainder of the year was con- sumed in reaching our destination, and when we got there, the first act of our administration was to build a hut of poles and palm leaves. We were well supplied with knives, forks, tin-plates and other kitchen utensils, having attended to all business of that description before we left Tampa Bay. The spot selected for our future home was a shady nook, in a cab- bage palm grove, within a few feet of the river. Taking a sharp hatchet, I sought out some slender poles from a ham- mock near by. Each pole was 2ibout eight feet long, and had a crotch on one end, formed by the short stump of a limb spared for that purpose. The other end was hewn to a sharp point. One pair of poles was cut three feet longer than the rest. I stack the four short poles in the ground, forming a square of about foui"teen feet ; the long poles were placed in the middle at the ends so as to give the roof the proper giant. Other poles wei^ used to finish up the frame-work. Mean- while, my friend Marr was by no means idle. Taking a sharp hatchet, he climed the trunks of the palm trees by means of dead leafstems, and cut off the great green fronds or leaves ; depriving these of their stems, he piled them up near the frame of the hut. Then we both went to work, and at the end of two days, had a roof over our heads, and a cosy place to sleep. In all this piece of architecture there was not a particle of iron, everything being lashed together with strips of palm leaves. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 97 Full of peace and contentment, we moved into our new quarters. I can not describe the exquisite sense of comfort I experienced when, after a day of brisk fishing and hunting, I lay down to rest, beneath a roof of fragrant palm leaves ; and what music the rain did make, as it pattered overhead ! Nev- er more will I see such days of unmixed pleasure ; never again can I pass such nights, fanned by the cool breeze, and lulled to sleep by the murmur of the rain. But this isn't business — this straying off the track — and I will finish the description o^ our palmetto hut, by saying that it was perfectly water-tight, and built to last ten years. Marr and I, in seeking this region as a home, were filled with the idea that we could make our fortune in an orange grove. As well as I can remember, the "orange fever" did not fully break out until the fall of 1858, but the few who were stricken had it bad, and my comrade and I were among the earlier victims. Reports of enormous returns from small investments in orange groves reached us from time to time, and fired our ambition to "go and do likewise." In one respect, we succeeded admirably. The spot we selected for the scene of our operations, was one which left nothing to be desired, as far as nature went. A cool spring of water lifted its crystal waves into the sunlight within easy reach of our door ; Indian, river, with its untold wealth of fish and fowl, spread out to the east of us, and we had only to shoulder a gun and enter the hammock, to supply our table with bear or turkey. Deer were so common that we let them go, sometimes, out of sheer contempt. We cleared about an acre in the hammock, where the soil was blackest and deepest, and grubbed leisurely along, until we had prepared ground for about two dozen trees. We found a wild grove not far away, and transplanted a few of them where we thought they would d o the most good. But when the leaves began to have that rich, golden hue which the ripe fruit possesses, and speed, ily turned into so many dry, withered sticks, we gave up, in despair of ever making an orange grove. We planted them among a tangle of roots, and in taking them up, chopped off nearly all their side-roots, while the tap-roots were lopped off 98 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. without mercy. The only wonder is, that they lived as long as they did. If I had practised a little less sportsmanship then, and went about the orange business in the right way, and entered that fine tract of land, I would be worth, to-day, fifty thousand dollars more than I am. Thus, the wmter was whiled away, and spnng came. Our nearest neighbor, Captain John Houston, lived fifteen miles away to the north, on Elbow Creek, at a place now called Eau Gallie. But when we got our supplies, we had to take a boat and row about thirty miles southward, to Fort Capi-on, where Major William Russell kept a little grocery store. The Major supplied the people for leagues around, with the necessaries of life, and his store was the Mecca of many a long pilgrimage. In the month of May, it fell to my lot, to take such a jour- ney. I entered a boat, and, taking enough dried venison, onions and roasted potatoes along, to keep me a live for three days,' set out for Fort Capron. The first night, I camped in a hammock, near the river side. The moon was just rising, and showed up everything plainly. I was intently engaged in picking up dry sticks to make a fire, when I looked up and was startled at the sight of a bear sitting on his haunches, within five feet of me. He was a monster. How in the world it was that I came so near the bear without alarming him, I never could imagine. I groped wildly for the hatchet, and if it had been found, I could very easily have brained him on the spot. Finding that the hatchet was determined to elude my grasp, I yelled at the top of my voice. Such a jump as that bear gave! Talk about your deer, but that bear made better time (and more noise) than a runaway team of mules, as he tore through the hammock. That was the last of the bear episode, and I will now proceed to conclude this chapter by the recital of something none the less true, but a little more serious. One day in early June, I took a stroll out toward the head of the St. Sebastian, which was not more than two miles away. I was looking for bee-trees, and entered a scope of country SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 99 that contained but little water. It was Friday — unlucky day ! — and I encountered something that afternoon, which came near cutting short my thread of existence. The weather was warm, and I became very thirsty. No water appeared to exist in that region at all, but as I was hur- rying back home, my eye fell on a green, grassy spot, off to the right, and upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a small dried-up pond, covered with a rank growth of maiden- cane, and a clump of willow trees in the centre. Very natur- ally, the first thing I thought of was water, and in I walked. I wore nothing on my feet but a pair of moccasins, and should have known better. I had nearly reached the clump of wil- lows, when a blow was struck on my foot, which nearly knocked me down. I hastily parted the grass, in order to get a view of the alligator — for I felt sure nothing else co uld have given such a blow — and was horrified to catch a glimpse of a stump-tailed cotton-mouth snake of immense size. After de- livering the blow, he wriggled off through the maiden-cane so quickly that I could not kill him, but I saw enough to con- vince me that he was not less than live inches in diameter, and a little over four feet long. These hideous serpents are fully as much dreaded as the rattlesnake, although their poison does not act so quickly. Without a moment's hesitation, I rushed out of the grass, and ran toward home with all my strength. There was a sensation like . a piece of red-hot iron clinging to my toes, where the fangs had struck. At every step, the pain increased, and it seemed as if a thousand hot needles were piercing my body. Worse than all, my leg be- came so stiff and badly swollen that I could not run any more, and began to think that death would come to me in the woods, with no help nigh. Three times I staggered and fell, and each time it was more difficult to regain my feet. With all my power, I continued to cry for help, but my companion did not hear me until I had reached the border of the clearing. He ran out and half carried me to the house. The poor fellow was almost frantic, and knew not what to do. But like a flash of light into the darkness of the sit- uation, came the recollection of something I had heard Dr. 100 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. Reid, of Savannah, say about his method of curing snake- bites. He made a poultice of raw onions, beaten up fine, and applied to the wound. I barely succeeded in telling this to Ed. Marr, when I went into delirium, and did not re- gain consciousness until next day, when I was surprised to see the injured limb almost as large as my body. Marr was bend- ing over me, and applying a fresh poultice. Faithful fellow! he never closed his eyes once during the night, and had re- newed the poultice every half hour. Fortunately, we had raised a good crop of onions, and I know that they saved my life. The swelling subsided very gradually, and it was two weeks before I regained the use of my limbs. Whisky is con- sidered the sovereign remedy for snake-bites, but there was not a drop of it within a hundred miles of us, and there is no doubt that raw onions, alone, applied in the manner men- tioned, will cure any snake-bite, if used in time. We stayed there until the war broke out between the States, when I left for St. Augustine, to join the army. Ed. Marr remained at th^ hut, and the next time I heard from him, he had gone on that long, swift journey we all must take, sooner or later. Among all the dear, departed friends, there is none who holds a dearer place in my memory, than this, my companion of the olden time. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 101 CHAPTER VII. INTRODUCING A GENTLEMAN BY THE NAME OF "ALLIGATOR FERGUSON." SOME OLD-TIME HEROES. It is strange how men will get names fastened on them. By some untoward circumstance, the unfortunate wight gets a ridiculous soubriquet attached to his name, which, like a deep scar, lasts as long as the man lives. I once knew a man who, by some accident, got his eye injured ; the first thing he knew, everybody was calling hira "Old Frog-eyed Bill," and another acquaintance of mine was christened "Horse-leg Jim," on account of some slight obliquity in his make-up. Both men were known only by these names. "Alligator Fer~ guson" and "Alligator Piatt" wore their nicknames into the grave. It starts, sometimes, from something a pe'rson has said or done, and often from some personal peculiarity. Here in Florida, a man wins a name by his exploits. (I am not dealing, now, with military nomenclature ; for of course, majors, generals, lieutenants and commodores are as plentiful as mosquitoes, and a corporal is seen occasionally.) I am speaking of such heroes as Alligator Ferguson and Alligator Piatt, whose fame shall never fade from the minds of those who were witnesses of the great havoc made by these men among the alligators, in good old days gone by. Not from any fancied resemblance to the saurian tribe, nor from any amphibious indination, were these gentlemen graced with the names above mentioned. The titles were fairly and honorably won, and as substantial and unfading as any you ever heard of. 102 SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. Alligator Ferguson didn't confine his operations any par- ticular portion of South Florida; from Tampa to Biscayne Bay, and from the saw-grass fields of Lake Apopka to the shores of Okeechobee, he created consternation among the scaly denizens of the marshes, and I think he could lay claim to having killed more alligators than any other man living. He made his bed among them, ate among them, spent many months among them, as his only companions, and it is prob- able that he hardly ever thought or talked of anything but al- ligators. The gigantic snarl s and growls with which they communed together in early spring, was the only music which charmed his ears. At that time of the year, he knew they could be found in pairs, and were more easily captured. He stayed among them so long that he became, as some peo- ple said, almost amphibious. One man thought Ferguson's teeth were growing longer, and another, with an exception- ally keen pair of eyes, was certain that the great hunter's skin was growing rough and hard, in patches, preparatory to changing into scales. Fergjison didn't care a cent what they said or thought about him, so long as he could kill big alliga- tors, and sell their teeth. When I first saw him, in 1880, he had given up the alli- gator business, and comoxenced carrying fruit from the Ten Thousand Islands to Tampa.. He made quite a snug sum from the teeth of the 'gators he had killed, and became an ex- pert at the business. Teeth were worth from four to five dollars per pound, and sometimes he gathered four and five pounds a week. He never cared anything for the hides, al- though they were worth more than the teeth. He said the alligators were more plentiful on Fish-eating Creek, but that their teeth were very much inferior to those from other places. On the Gulf Coast, he said, was the best place for real good teeth, and professed a preference for salt-water alligators. Those that live in salt water, are of stouter build, and the head is larger in proportionto the body, than that of the fresh wa- ter species. Some people claim that they are more ferocious than the others, but Ferguson didn't seem to think so. Ferguson was quite an expert at decoying alligators SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 103 within range of his gun. He had a way of barking, like a small dog, and when he commenced that, it was not long be- fore you could see their huge snouts sticking out of the water. Another way, was to take a little dog, or pig, in his arms, and twist its tail, so that it would yell, and attract the alligators. A screaming pig will excite the interest and atten- tion of any alligator, no matter how indolent or phlegmatic. Old Jimmie Yates said that he was hunting one spring morn- ing near Tohopekaliga, and had brought a young, fine-blooded dog with him. Coming to a deep, round pool, which formed a small bay in the lake, he commenced looking out for alliga- tors, which he knew were to be found in that place in laige quantities. The dog was a little too eager for the sport, and jumped into the water. Jimmie said he tried to call him back, but the dog was deaf to all remonstrance. When he had reached the middle of the pool, he began howling and strug- gling, and looked back appealingly to his master for help. In a few moments the dog disappeared and was seen no more. ■'Hit riled me awfully to see my purp gobbled down that-a- way," said old Jimmie, "and I laid for that 'gator. I wouldn't a-took the purtiest fifty dollar bill you ever saw, for that dog, and I jest says to myself, I am goin' to make them 'gators hop. And I did make 'em hop. I takes my leetlest purp, and I wrings and twists his tail untwel he hollers like as if he was a-bein' killed, and first thing I knowed, out popped the head of a whoppin' big 'gator. Then another one of the big black devils poked his sassy snoot out'n the water, and hit warn't no time 'fore the pond was teetotally covered with 'em. I never seen so many 'gators in the known world ! I shot and shot and shot, untwel I was bodaciously out of breath, but I made them devils sweat. They eat up my purp (and I wouldn't a-took a brand-new fifty dollar bill for him,) but I everlast- in'ly peppered 'em for it." It would hardly do to dwell very long on this subject, without saying something about "Alligator Piatt," another hero of the olden time, whose deeds were embalmed in the lore of South Florida. Piatt was not such a great hunter as Ferguson, but what he did, was done quickly and well, and lOi SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. there was some originality about his exploits. Joshua Creek is a branch of Pease, and flows near the town of Pine Level, in Manatee county. This creek was fairly alive with alliga- tors, and here it was that Alligator Piatt exerted his curious talents to the fullest extent. Creeping along under the pal- mettoes, to the bank of the creek, he peered into the amber- colored depths, and waited for a victim. When a rippling, swirling spot on the water betokened the presence of an alli- gator, he leaned over, and poised himself. The gator cau- tiously poked his snout, and then his entire head above the water, and looked around to see if an enemy was in sight. Perceiving no danger, he leisurely floated along on the sur- face, until he caught a glimpse of Piatt's red, excited face, and hurriedly proceeded to sink out of sight. Too late. Piatt was not going to let his glory as a hunter become overcast by any such a slip as that. He plunged into the water, and dived after the huge reptile. Those who stood by, anxiously awaited the reappearance of the man, and the immense whirls and swirls in the water where he went down, showed that he was quite busy below. In a very few moments, Piatt reappeared, in triumph, astride of the alligator, which he rode to the shore, like a horse. When once he got his thumbs into the alligators eyes, it was easily managed, and although it was nearly twelve feet long, no lamb could have been more gentle. Piatt said he .could manage the very biggest of them this way, and he advised everybody to pursue that plan, when attacked by an alligator. Ned Beasley was another fellow who earned considerable reputation by his affection for alligators. It was told, for an ^ actual fact, that Beasley was more alligator than human, and that he was so near cannibal in his tastes, that he frequently put up a barrel or two of 'gator meat, to be used in his house during the winter. He grew real fat and healthy, from in- dulging in this questionable diet, and often declared that no earthly delicacy could tempt him from a dish of 'gator stew. His chickens were fed on it, and grew to unheard-of propor- tions. The hogs and dogs, however, let it studiously alone. The chickens would congregate around the kettle where the oil was being ''rendered out," and wait for bits of the meat, SCENES IN SOUTH ELORIDA. 105 which Beasley threw to them, after the oil had been extracted. And it was laughable to see those chickens (so it was said) as they staggered off into some shade to rest and sleep. Somebody asked Beasley, how he came to be so fond of alligator meat. "Well," he replied, "I'll tell you how it come about, and mebbe you won't believe it, and mebbe I don't keer, whutheryou believe it or not." With this ornate introduction, he proceeded to tell bow and where he fell in love with 'gator meat. "Me and my ole dad was a workm' on a boat one time, and there was a whole lot of us fellers workin' together. There used to be a ole 'ummern as would come 'round every mornin' and sell fried fish to us, for breakfast. Gosh, but didn't them there fish go good ! 'Peared like they jist slipped down by theirselves. Finerly, the ole 'ummern brung a fish anmnd one mornin', that beat anything I ever hearn tell of. I never seed sich a fish in the known world ! She had it fried in meal and pepper, and it was so big that she had it strapped on a piece of fence-rail, so she could lug it on her shoulder. V7hen we was a-eatin of it, we axed the ole ci'itter whur she cotch it, and she tole us hit was cotch down on the Ellifiars," (the Alafia river) "and when we axed her what breed offish it was, she said it was somethin' like a trout, only hit eat a heap better. And hit shore did go mighty good. Dad 'lowed he never had, in all his born days, seen a fish with sich a big back-bone. (You see, that 'ere fish's back-bone was every bit as big as my arm.) And he said hit was mighty cur'ous that there wan't no ribs, nor no little bones in it, and he'd be blowed if he seed any sense in the thing, nohow, and he said he wan't a-gwine to s waller nary another bite, untwel he knowed what he was a-eatin. (After all the meat he'd gob- bled down!) Finerly, the ole witch tole us we'd been a-eatin' 'gator-tail for breakfast ! You jist orter a-seed them there fellers makin' for the edge of the boat, with their fingers in their throats, a-strainin' and a-groanin' like as if they was distracted. But all their cuttin' up didn't do no good ; the 'gator was down, and hit was a-gwine to stay down. They couldn't throw it up to save their lives. Dad was for givin' 106 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. the ole 'ummern a good duckin', but I wouldn't have no sich doin's; 'sides, you see I kinder liked the truck, anyway, and dad had already said he'd seen a heap wuss meat in his time. Dad said he might a-^«owefl? hit wan' t fitten to eat, by hit's not havin' no ribs, nor no bones, but a whalin' big back-bone. The ole 'ummern never come foolin' around our boat no more, and even now, dad hain't got no use for no kind of fish." Beasley delighted in palming off alligator meat on his guests, telling them it was corned beef, "jist in from Fulton Market." After the feast was over, it was very funny to him, to see the expression on the men's faces, vthen he told them what they had been eating. I have no idea what Ferguson is doing now, and I can not say whether Piatt and Beasley are alive yet, or not. But Alligator Ferguson, Alligator Piatt and "ditto," Beasley will always remain as monuments of example to those to whom dog and gun are sacred. "Uncle" Jimmie Yates is enjoying a hearty old age, surrounded by children and grand- children. If you were to pay Jimmie a visit, he would take you out in his grove and insist on your feasting on some of his oranges. Then he would probably give you a greater treat than all — one of his Indian stories. A written account or these things interests some people, but it is iucomparably better to hear it from the lips of the old heroes who went through it all. And nobody can be more entertaining than Uncle Jimmie. Should you ever visit Kissimmee, you would do well to call on him. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 107 CHAPTER VIII. SOME OF THE CURIOUS AND INTERESTING INHABITANTS OF THE INDIAN RIVER REGION. If, in any of these statements, you think I have painted "things that are not, as though they were," and given to "airy nothings a local habitation and a name," why, of course, you have a right to investigate. But I will again say that I have started out to tell the truth, (regardless of the dif- ficulties and temptations involved,) for, if my conscience should wear out, there would be plenty of old stagers around the State, who would be ready to let me (and others) know, if I strayed from the path of veracity. Now, with this ex- planation, here goes. Didn't I promise a description of the celebrated stingaree? Nobody that has ever been to Indian river, is considered up with the times, unless he has seen this king of aquatic nuisances. We will, in imagination (and with your consent), translate you from your cosy home, to the coquina banks of Indian river. The time of the year is July — a time when you can get a good idea of mid-summer life in this region. Now you make a discovery ; there are mosquitoes ! You ask me why I didn't mention that fact before ; and I comfort you by the explanation that I thought it would be a source of more satisfaction to both of us, if I left you to make the discovery yourself. But, after all, there are not so many of the little vampires, as you think ; the shrill cry and bold advances of the few that encircle your head, give you the impression that the country is alive with them. But even if that were the 108 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOEIDA. case, there are so many other things of beauty, that you will forget the little minne singers. If we go out yonder on the bosom of the river, I can show you something new, that for pure, unadultered cussedness and curiosity, is unexcelled. If I were a poet I would try to make you forget the mos- quitoes, by raving about the sunset; how the reflections of the palms in the painted waters are broken up and twisted into a million augers |and corkscrews, by the night breeze that is springing up ; and would point to the whippoorwill, or bull-bat, sweep downward almost to the water, with a croak that is echoed down the river. But we are on the lookout for stingai"ees, and must give them our undivided attention. The water beneath us is clear, and we can see the curious creatures crawling and walking on the bottom ; we see horse-shoe crabs, sea-porcupines, tarpons, saw-fish, sharks, and many other things very distinctly, and they don't seem to be very much afraid of us. Hold ! don't get excited, that isn't a stingaree, that's only a poor, harmless "bishop;" he looks ugly enough, with his tawney hide, with white spots on him, and his eyes are both on the top of his head, about as close as they can be, and he looks like he wanted to raise a row with somebody, but he won't, hurt you. Now if you want to see a stingaree; look right ahead. You can't see him very well, he darts about so, actively ; so when he is speared and brought into the boat, he serves our purposes better. This is a small specimen — only three feet long. The body, in such a specimen, is about one foot across, and nearly round. It is slate-colored, and three inches through in the deepest part. On each side, it slopes to a thin edge, a flapping motion of which impels them forward. The tail is round, an inch in diameter, tapering to the size of a lead pen- cil, and has a rough, gristly surface. The eyes are situated about three inches from the nose, and are close together, small and wicked-looking. Its mouth is underneath the front part of the body, and it don't have any teeth worth speaking of. But the peculiarity which gives the stingaree such importance, is the sting. It ornaments that part of the back, where the tail joins the body, is hard and bony, tapering to a very fine SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 109 point, and is covered with sliarp fibres, which point down- ward, so that it is very difficult to extract from a wound. A sting on such a specimen is four inches long, and it is able to inflict a very painful wound, which is a long time in healing. An irritating substance, secreted by this barb, which, while never fatal, (as far as I know) is often productive of evil re- sults, such as marasmus and chronic ulcers. You can wade about among them, where they are swarm- ing as thick as leaves in autumn, but they will never try to" harm you, if you don't step on them, for they are not aggres sive. The whipparee is very much like the stingaree. The only difference is that the tail is somewhat longer, and the sting is lacking. The tail is very tough and pliable, and is often used as a buggy whip, and as such, will stand many years of hard service. I imagine that you shiver, when I remark that these hideous creatures are very often eaten. No, the people don't eat the whole animal ; the thin edges of the body — commonly called "wings" — are the only parts that are considered fit to eat. I sampled this luxury once, and although I managed to survive it, I wasn't troubled with any ambition to try it again. It tasted a little weak and fishy, and after indulging in a dish of stingaree, my digestive apparatus was afflicted with a pe- culiar "ever-present goneness," neither to be imagined or de- scribed. Where there is such a boundless wealth of fish and fowl that are really delicious eating, I would advise no one to bother with stingarees. They should be the dernier ressort — the last dodge of a starving hound. With this, I drop the stingaree subject, as one not pleasant to handle. The sharks of Indian river are not very dangerous, and if a man falls overboard, I don't think he need fear that he will make a Jonah of himself. The shark of Indian river, according to the account of persons who ought to know, does not possess the dignity of the white shark which follows in the wake of ships, and has to turn on its back before it can bite. They say that the Indian river shark has a mean way of slip- ping up behind a man that is wading, and nipping as big a 110 SCENES IN SOUTH PLOEIDA. . piece as he can out of the calf of the man's leg, generally disappearing with his prize before the surprised and startled individual can make any remonstrance. I hardly credit this, but I have heard some pretty well founded stories of men having been killed and eaten by the sharks in Indian River In- let. But don't be scared, for if you will only be half-way careful, you will never die by a shark. Titled peers and noblemen, from all parts of Europe, were once as plentiful on Indian river as you please, but either on account of the disappearance of game, or a compli- cation of interesting affairs at home, they are not so common nowadays in that region. The pink curlew, or roseate spoon- bill, is not esteemed at all as an article of food, but its splen- did plumage causes it to be an object of great value to the hunter. A roseate spoonbill, captured alive, sometimes sells for a hundred dollars. Snowy egrets, blue herons, and ducks of several kinds, were once to be found here "world without end." Anything richer and more succulent, in the line of game, than the young teals, widgeons and grease-ball ducks, one cannot well imaghie. If they bad not .been so wantonly destroj^ed, regardless of breeding seasons and everything else, it would still be a sportsman's paradise ; as it now is, a man can find a good deal of sport, but in a great measure, the glory of former days has departed. There are still plenty of water turkeys, purple gallinules and blue herons. But the "Johnnie gogglin" is worthy of a little special mention. This great bird, which is also called the "whooper," stands, when full grown, nearly five feet high, and when it takes its flight through the pine woods, greeting the rising sun with a clear, trilling cry that resounds through the still morning air, it will always command the attention of the hunter. The flesh of the gogglin is very much like venison. The black-winged curlew, or "flint-head," whose bills are so ponderous that they cannot hold their heads erect, and many other interest- ing things might be described, but it would take too long. The mullet that are caught hei'e, in the middle of September, are the fattest fish I ever saw. I have seen rolls of fat fully an inch thick in many of these fish. I was once SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. Ill present when a haul was made, on a seine in Indian river, where ten men found it impossible to raise it. After rais- ing the foot-line and letting out about fifty barrels of the mullet, the rest were secured. Words cannot describe the delicious tenderness of these fish when first caught. But the highest luxury, in the way of an eatable, that I know of, is a pompano. This fish is by no means common, and, al- though the largest specimens hardly ever measure more than twelve inches in length, they sell for no less than twenty-five cents apiece, and command a ready sale at that price. They are more plentiful on the west coast than the east. Then we have the drum, that grunts like a hog ; the grouper, the red-snapper, and the saw-fish, which often attains a length of eighteen feet. These great fish sometimes get entangled in the turtle-nets, and at such times, are dangerous to ap- pi-oach. I have seen the fishermen cautiously come up alongside of the saw-fish, in a boat, and, with a blow of a heavy, sharp ax, sever the long, serrate snout, cutting it off near the ej^es. Of course, the fish could not live long, af- ter svich treatment. I will conclude this chapter by telling a story I once heard, on James Russell, who is still holding forth on In- dian river, I believe at Fort Capron. Now, it was alleged that Jim and three others went out into a dry willow marsh, whei'e a great many alligator-holes were to be found. (In dry seasons, these holes have no water in them," and are generally tenanted by alligators of medium size. There are more 'of these "dry-holes" around Southport than any other place I ever saw.) Jim carried a rope with him, but the most persistent questioning failed to reveal his pur- pose in carrying it, until the field of future conflict was reached. The hole was two feet across, and when Jim slapped the side of the cavity, a loud hissing, coming out of the dai'k depths, told that there was a 'gator down there. Jim Russell fastened one end of the rope around his waist, and in tones that could not be misunderstood, commanded the men to hold the other end, while he descended and laid hold on the reptile. "And," he added, "when I say 'haul away,' you haul." So saying, he crawled into the hole. 112 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOKIDA. Louder and fiercer became the hissing, and a churning sound betokened the alligator's efforts to hide himself from the enemy. Jim's boots disappeared into the darkness, and soon a faint, smothered "Haul away!" told that Mr. Russell had secured his prize, and desired a whiff of fresh air. The al- ligator was evidently in close quarters, and the musk of his anger, rising from the hole, mingled with a murmur of cuss- words, told that the struggle was nearing a crisis. The men pulled until they "saw stars," and at last they brought the weary, panting pair to the surface. Jim was muddy, and the rope had pinched him in the waist considerably, but he had his alligator. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 113 CHAPTER IX, A FEW WORDS ABOUT PHELPS, THE KING OF BEAR-HUNTERS, AND HIS INTERESTING COMPANIONS. If ever a man deserved the surname of Nimrod, it was that man Phelps. His very soul seemed to leap within him, at the thought or suggestion of a chase after big game ; bear was his favorite game. He had roamed with Fremont over the Rocky mountains, and caused countless grizzlies to tum- ble down the canyons in a death struggle ; even the mountain €agle, wheeling around his eyrie among the beetling crags, and looking down "a thousand fathoms' depth of neter air," was not safe from his rifle, for his climbing powers were equal to his marksmanship. But evidently, the transition from the ragged cliffs of the Rocky Mountains to the quiescent lakes and level stretches of Florida hammock and pine woods did not betoken a wane in his ambition as a sportsman. He found the alligator a rather cowardly citizen, and the bear of the Indian river hammocks was tame indeed when compared with the grizzly, but its flesh was better, and in eating it, he grew so robust and jolly that he never looked back on the old scenes with regret. I met him in 1854, about the time his fame began to spread in the Indian River region. In those days, you could hardly leave your house for ten minutes, without encountering a deer or bear. The old cow-hunters of the surrounding country considered themselves "tip-top" at bear-slaying, but they all acknowledged the superiority of Phelps. They told some great stores of his extraordinary skill in that line ; said that he could take aim and kill a bear a hundred yards distant. 114 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. simiDly by sound, the darkest night that ever came, and some were ready to swear that he was in the habit of following trails by scent, as well as any of his dogs. Everybody knew or felt that he was something great, and I, among others, was anxious to make his acquaintance. We came upon him in a hammock one day, surrounded by his dogs, and eating bear meat. The dogs looked hun- grily at us, and beat their tails on the ground, but a word from their master appeased them. (They were fearful beasts.) Phelps came forward and invited us to the feast; an offer which was accepted with gratitude, if not with eti- quette. Taking our seats on the mossy trunk of a fallen live oak, and seizing each a bone, draped in fat, tender flesh, we made a most hearty meal, a la cracaire. Our host was glad to have met us ; his eyes lighted up, and he looked gleeful at the prospect of having an audience for his latest bear tales.. For, next to hunting and eating that lordly game, he liked to tell of his exploits. I wish I could recall one of these yarns ; I am sure it would astonish and amuse you. Phelps was clothed in raiment of cotton, dyed with the bark of the red mangrove. (This gives cloth a beautiful pur- plish brown color, and when treated with a mordant like alum or copperas, will hardly ever fade. Some long-headed Yan- kee may yet find his fortune in red mangrove bark. If he wants to try it, he can find any amount of the raw material around the sonth coast. ) His hunting shirt had been rendered perfectly water-proof by the oil from the fat bear meat which he was in the habit of carrying on his shoulders, and his long, black hair shone with a fine lustre, from the same cause. Sickness, to hiin, was a myth, and medicine an insult; while he could imbibe liberal draughts of sweet, limpid bear oil, what cared he for wind or weather? His dogs were not less remarkable than their owner. There were five of them, and the features of the bloodhound seemed to predominate. Phelps had procured them from Cap- tain Douglass Dummitt, of orange grove fame, and trained them him.self. Like most dogs of this breed, they were si- SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 115 lently ferocious, and seemed ever to yearn for a victim ; they were all formidable, but Rowdy, the leader, v^as simply a ter- ror. I looked on him very much as a rabbit looks on a big cat. Those watchful eyes of his seemed never to close, and his javi^s dropped just enough to show [an armory of teeth as cruel as Cerberus, and as relentless as death itself. He was white, with black spots. Our hero was well provided with de- fenders, but not the least of his possessions was his rifle, which he called "Ruin." He purchased Ruin from Captain Miles Burnham, who had it made to order in New York, at a considerable outlay, and it was the most perfect weapon of the kind then m use. In the evening, after he had finished the most important task of the day — the supper of bear's flesh and palm-buds — he laid himself to rest, as if no company was present. Under- neath a palmetto shed, he unfolded and hung up his forty yards of mosquito netting, and extended himself on the soft Mackinaw blankets he had brought from the Rocky Moun- tains. Then, raising the netting a little, he called each dog — Rowdy first, and then the others, and they came, just as their names were called, and took their places around their master. Then, with the invincible Ruin nestling by his side, he drifted off into a dim, shadowy land, where bears were as plentiful as mosquitoes, and much easier killed. With those sleepless sentinels aroxmd him, I cannot imagine what he had to fear. Such a cordon of watchers might make a night's sleep in an East India jungle, one of sectn-itj'- and peace. And you may rightly judge that those dogs received good treatment. Every morning they received a liberal allowance of hominy and bear oil, together with what bits of meat they wanted. Phelps as- sured me that he would sooner go hungry any time, than see his dogs suffer for something to eat. "The man that strikes a dog of mine, strikes me," was a frequent remark with him. What an expression! As if that man could be found, who would dare such a thing! It would have been strictly a per- sonal matter between the man and the dog, to be settled in a very short time, to the decided detriment of the former. Usually, a bear is not of a very agressive turn of mind, but 116 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. I heard something once, which gave me a different opinion. Phelps, Jim Russell and Capt. Davis were rusticating on Lake Worth, and they had found a fine camping spot. Bear signs were abundant, and the outlook for a huge run of sport was very encouraging. The day was spent in making all pos- sible preparations for the hunt next morning. (It was their in- tention to turn out before day-break in the morning, and sur- prise the bears while they were napping.) Late in the after- noon, the party went on a reconnoitring tour, so as to be well posted when the chase was begun in the morning. It was some time after dark when they returned to supper. While they were eating, they heard heavy steps approaching, and before they could titter a word, a huge bear strode into the camp. "Not a moment stopped or stayed he," to ask per- mission of the proprietors, but walked right into their midst, almost brushing against one of the men and rushed at a dog ^ ho was sitting near by. That startled animal, finding himself decidedly at a disadvantage, took to his heels, with the bear in hot pursuit. Round the camp they went, and the men stood stock-still, gazing at the strange spectacle in pow- erless and speechless amazement. Finally, Jim RusseU rushed down to the boats, which were on the margin of Lake Worth, about two hundred yards away, where the guns had been left. Before he returned, the big beast had vanished, and nothing could be done, but quietly sit down and finish their supper. Jim Russell — who is still living on Indian river — said he never could account for this strange freak, and thinks it is the only case of that kind ever known. Our hero's tales of triumph and adventure were numer- ous and varied, but his favorite theme was his encounter with "Old Slewfoot," a bear of prodigious dimensions, that had tantalized the old hunters in that region for years, appearing at intervals, and giving them a glimpse of a huge back and shoulders, only to fade away into the recesses of Pepper Ham- mock, where the utmost efforts of his pursuers failed to reveal his hiding-place. This hammock took its name from the wild pepper, which grew there in great abundance. Old Slewfoot once had afigfht with a panther, and bore a memento of the conflict on his left fore-foot, which had turned "wopper- SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 117 jawed," and made a track easily recognized by all who had heard of him, and gained him the name above mentioned. To kill Old Slewfoot became the dearest ambition of Phelps' life. Creeping under the palmetto, in the sombre shades of the hammock, morning and evening, enduring the bites of mosquitoes, red-bugs and seed-ticks, with his trusty hounds along with him, he hunted the old veteran for two months. One morning, the bell-like tones of his big dog Rowdy waked him to the sense of something important. Hastily slipping on his moccasins, (it was about daybreak) he slung Ruin across his shoulder, and ran toward his dogs, who were creating a fearful racket in the hammock, two or three hundred yards away. "If they've treed him — if they liave treed him!" was his only thought, as he rushed along. Yes, Old Slewfoot was in close quarters. The dogs were all around him, and Rowdy was about to reach his throat, when old Ruin delivered a message in lead and flame that made the cool morning air quiver for miles, and the great an- imal reared and fell at a conqueror's feet, never again to roam through the shady hammock. The voice in which each old hunter congratulated Phelps on this exploit was tinged just a little with envy, for they all imagined that the bear was their lawful prey, and had a kind of idea that no interloper should take such advantages. But when the time of feasting came, each old worthy enjoyed a good quantity of the meat. Thus did Old Slewfoot find, at last, a warm place in the hearts (and stomachs) of those iVho had been his bitterest enemies. And Phelps understood just how to cook bear meat, if any body did. Let me tell you of a favorite dish of his, and then I will close. You know, a great many people throw away the feet of a bear. Well, Phelps didn't. After cleaning them thor- oughly, he boiled them in plain water for two or three hours ; then he would stew them up some way with onions and palm buds, and you couldn't, for the life of you, tell what kind of meat it resembled ; but you knew one thing — but few delica cies were equal to it. If I had that dish for dinner every day now, I would undoubtedly bti a healthier (and probably a bet, ter and wiser) man. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 119 CHAPTER X. GIVIXG MY READERS MY IMPRESSION OF THE FLORIDA KEYS A SOJOURN WITH PROF. CURTISS. When you take up a map of Florida, one of the objects which strikes your attention, is a long row of little dots, for islands extending in a long, oblique group, around the south- ern extremity of Florida, graced with innumerable names, each with a "Key" attached to it. These are known as the Florida Keys, and many who have never visited them, are of- ten heard to ask what the keys consist of, and want to know ''what they are good for." My object in writing this chapter is to answer these queries. In the year 1880, Professor A. H. Curtiss was detailed, by the Department of the Interior, to obtain a complete col- lection of Southern woods, and it was my good fortune to be able to act as guide for him, on this important trip. On the morning of the 6th of May, we started out from Key West, in a sail boat, and headed for Boca Chica. After a sail of two or three hours, we landed on the Key, and prepared a camp. The Professor had invited Mr. Ashmead, of Jack- sonville, to accompany him, and as we had made every con- ceivable preparation for the journey, before leaving Key West> there was nothing to put a damper on our spirits. The after- noon was spent in exploring the island and gathering plants. The soil was very rich, covered with sea-grape, wild sappa- dillo and dog-wood trees, and vines. There did not seem a very promising field for collecting specimens, so we made our 120 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. visit as short as possible. The Professor was desirous of reaching a locality where specimens were more abundant , and the scenes which lay ahead were looked forward to with, pleasant anticipations. Our time, which had not been limited or fixed by any arbiter, must nevertheless be put to the very best possible use, and we hastened onward, actuated by a de- sire to seek out the habitat of all the forest trees, common and uncommon, that were to be looked for in this sunny latitude. Next mornmg we "weighed anchor" and proceeded on our journey. The morning was calm and bright, and the breezes still slumbered on the waters, which lay unruffled be- fore us, shaded by the reflections of the trees on hundreds of little islands or keys, behind, before and around us. Of course we made rather slow progress, and until a slight breeze sprang" up, I was afraid we would do nothing at all that day. We drifted idly among the keys, and did not pass them rapidly -enough to prevent an examination of some of their peculiar- ities. Occasionally a column of smoke, arising from a solid phalanx of banana and lime trees, showed that the key was inhabited. On the shore, a deer ^occasionally jumped into sight and then disappeared in the bushes, about the time a discussion was begun as to the propriety of stopping and hav- ing some sport as well as venison. The usual size of these smaller Iceys, was about a mile, and sometimes we encoun- tered some containing no moi'e than forty acres, while others w^ere many hundred acres in extent. The width of these cu- rious bodies of land was never equal to the length ; in many cases, a key two miles long was scarcely a half mile wide, and covered almost entirely with lime-rocks. Around the borders was a dense growth of mangrove and button-wood,, which often hid the interior of the island from view. Buttonwood makes better fuel than any wood I ever saw. A log of buttonwood, set on fire at one end, will burn to ashes before the fire goes out, and generates an intense heat The wood is collected on the keys and shipped to Key West, where it brings from five to seven dollars a cord ; it is about the only fuel used there. SCENES IN SOUTH ELOEIDA. 121 That evening we landed at Little Pine Key, something near fifteen miles from Boca Chica. We stopped here, sim- ply as a matter of necessity, for the island was little else but a long, irregular pile of lime-rocks, covered sparsely with pine trees of small stature. To the west, about three miles away, we could see Big Pine Key, with its tall pines and mangrove thickets. These are the only keys on which pines are found. On that morning we were favored with a fine breeze, and it did not take us long to reach Knight's Key, and all day, we wound in and out, among the archipelago of keys which stretched in every direction, as far as we could see. At lo o'clock next morning, we came to Matacomba Key, and were given a cordial welcome by Messrs. Pinder and Sanders, and it may be easily imagined that we were glad to find ourselves among human being once more. Matacomba was two miles long, and not much more than one-fourth of a mile wide, bordered with a beautiful white sandy beach. As usual, the soil was rocky, and it was a source of continual surprise to me, that such luxuriant forests could grow on land like this. Not only forest trees, but many varieties of semi- tropical fruits and flowers, made themselves perfectly at home in this halcyon spot ; well might they lift their heads fearlessly into the warm, brine-laden air, for no modicum of frost ever reached their home, and the tenderest exotic might never find its ambitions checked by an unkindly blast. Our newly-found friends spared no effort to make our visit a pleasant one, and it was with much interest and pleas- ure that we inspected their gardens of tropical fruits. Here, indeed, was the very home of the pine- apple. At that time, they had made but a modest beginning, but since then, I have heard that they have made some immense shipments in the last year or two. The manner of cultivation was peculiar. No hoe could be used, on account of the extreme shallowness of the soil. The truth of the matter is, that the ground could not be stirred, for fear of its being blown away, and leaving nothing but the bare rock. But you could not throw a plant down without its taking root, so favorable were the conditions 122 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. for growth. The plants were set out about eighteen inches apart, and then left mainly to themselves. One weeding was considered sufficient, and the soil was not stirred at all. The severe droughts that prevail on the Florida Keys, at times, do not affect the pineapples very seriously. Indeed, I have been led to believe that they are more than half air-plants ; lately, the, botanists have established a very palpable relationship be- tween the air-plant, long-moss, and pineapple, and that is one point in favor of my theory. At any rate, I have always noticed that they grow much better on dry soil than in a damp situation. I doubt if the Professor or Mr. Ashmead had ever bef or e enjoyed such an abundant and protracted feast of pineapples, and I, (Floridian that I am,) can truthfully say that I had never eaten so much of the luscious fruit. Sappadillo, pa- paw, and sugar apple trees were loaded with young fruit, and it was quite tantalizing, to reflect that we were there too early in the season to enjoy any of the ripe fruit. We consoled our- selves, however, w^ith looking for specimens. Before I leave the subject of fruit-growing on this key, I wish to say a little about the cultivation of bananas, etc. On different portions of the island were little patches of deep soil, called by the inhabitants, "red-holes." These cu- rious spots are from fifteen to thirty feet in diameter, and take their name from the peculiar reddish color of the soil con- tained in them. Scarcely any rocks are found in these spots, and the fruit-growers select them on that account, as a place to plant bananas and tropical fruit-trees. Dwarf bananas are the only kind grown to any extent on this key, and, although the plants are of low stature, the heads are very large, and sometimes are so long that they touch the ground. These red-holes are not found on every key, and are valued highly by the planters. For nine days we remained on Matacomba, and the ax was kept busy, and our negro, Dave, displayed great energy in felling the trees, under the professor's directions. Here we found fine specimens of prince-wood, crab-wood, lignum SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. ' 123 vitae, torch-wood, and Madeira-wood. Torch-wood is al- most as fine-scented as sandal-wood, and is very inflam- mable. Crab-wood, which finds its way to Northern mar- kets in the shape of walking-canes, was found here in abund- ance. The wood is valuable, and is worth at least fifty dollars a cord, notwithstanding the fact that it was being used for fuel on this key. It would weary the reader to give the name and description of each tree we saw at this place, and I will content myself with the remark that on no other key, did we find a greater variety of woods. The nine days of our sojourn at Matacomba were calcu- lated to remain as bright spots on the memory of the three principal actors in the affair, and we were really sorry to turn our backs on this lovely, sequestered spot. It seemed to us, that we had seen the garden-spot, and that the coming scenes would prepare us for disappointment. A certain sub- tle, inexplicable air of comfort and content about the place, had not failed of its effect upon us, and in i-eviewing the favorable features of the surroundings, I almost forgot the charms of Indian river. But the voice of duty reminded us that we must seek new fields, and extend our investigation among the semi-tropical forests. Plantation Key next received our attention. But a brief glance in the interior showed us that the prospects for,a new collection were not flattering. The main objects of interests were Mr. Low's pineapple field and cocoanut grove. Here we saw thirty acres planted in pineapples, covering the ground completely, and gay with ripening fruit. Ah, wasn't that a spicy breeze, that saluted us, when we landed? Sated, as we were with the fruit we had eaten at Matacomba, we still could not help enjoying the rich fragrance of tlie breeze that swept that precious expanse of green, purple and gold. The crop that year was coming on finely, and Mr. Low was count- ing on cutting at least eight thousand dozen pineapples. Pleasant as the prospect was, we could not stop, and soon, the green island with its long colonnades of palms was left behind, and our sail filled with a noble breeze, which bore 124 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. US in the direction of Key Largo. At the key, we formed the acquaintance of Mr. Baker, one of the first men who ever thought of raising pineapples on the keys. This is more than twice as large as any other key, being twenty-five miles long, and averaging nearly half a mile in width. "Largo," in Spanish, signifies "long," and the name fits this key very well. Key Largo was well timbered, but as there was no pros- pect of finding any new specimens, our stay was short. Two days afterwai^d, we reached the Indian hunting-grounds, on Biscayne Bay. This was my second vioit to this wonderful re- gion, and we all entered it with pleasant anticipations. I was no*" going into an entirely strange land, for I was sure of meeting Mr. John Addison, an old-time friend of mine whom T had known for thirty years. The first thing we did was to penetrate the dense green wall of hammock which rose up be- fore us. Here, indeed, was a lavish wealth of pure, undefiled nature ; huge trees of gumbolimbo, red-stopper and mastic towered away above us, and the graceful trunks of innumer- able palms met our eyes on either side. A strange, but not unpleasant odor was exhaled from the ground, where centu- ried logs and leaves from spicy tropical trees were moulder- ing into dust. We found a tree, which, I believe, could not have been found anywhere else in Florida. This was the so- called-paradise tree — a lovely specimen of the vegetable king- dom. '" It was forty feet high, covered with a wide spreading crown of leaves, of a delicate, sea-green tint, which gave the tree an extremely handsome appearance. When we found this tree, the berries were just ripening, and we were deprived of the opportunity of seeing the flowers. Judging from the descriptions of those who were well acquainted with the par- adise-tree, the flowers must be marvelously beautiful. We found John Addison snugly hidden away in this ham- mock, with his dwelling almost hidden from sight by a grove of fine banana plants. Frost was unknown, at this place. On Addison's farm, we saw the finest of sugar-cane and Ja- maica arrowroot growing. No orange trees were to be seen, but limes and lemons were doing well. (It is a curious, but SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 125 undisputed fact, that orange trees can not be grown on the Florida Keys, nor on such land as the Indian Hunting Ground. Unsuccessful attempts have been made, to raise them in these places, but the rock which underlies the soil prevents the tap-root from penetrating deep enough. And you very seldom see a cow^ about the Hunting Grounds. The old settlers say that there is some poisonous grass growing in the woods, which kills the cattle. A cow is very seldom seen on the Florida Keys. But there are so many good points about this part of the country, that you would be well satisfied to forego cattle and oranges.) I don't remember how many new varieties of woods we found here ; there was the red and black-stopper, the blolly- tree, and the cocoa-plum, the "pull-and-haul-back," — a thorny tree or vine, whatever you may call it, for it partakes of the nature of both — and the rubber trees, Dave served us faithfully and he and his ax were potent agents in getting to- gether one of the most complete collections of forest trees ever made in this or any other country. Dave made the chips fly with a zeal that reflected great credit on his race, but there was one time when he refused to obey commands. And that time, he had a pretty good reason for it. It was when we were on Boca Chica, and it was a manchineel tree, that ex- cited Dave's fears. After listening to a description of ^the ter- rible properties of this tree, Dave swore that we might^sk any other duty of him, but that he would not touch that manchi- neel for anything. He described, with a shiver, the dire con- sequences attendant upon cutting the tree ; one stroke of the ax, he said, would be sufficient; the milk, which is found in this tree, in great abundance, would be scattered over him, and everywere a drop fell, there would be a frightful sore. The manchineel is terribly poison, but not so bad as Dave be- lieved. We divided our time between the Hunting Grounds and Miami, and stayed in that region about ten days. Before we left, we secured the greater part of the collection. While at the Hunting Grounds (which didn't very well deserve its name, for game was b}' no means over-abundant,) we were aston- 126 SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. ished at the springs, which burst up in the salt water, near the beach. Truly, they were wonderful. Wading out twen- ty-five or thirty yards from the shore, we could see the fresh- water springs rippling up through the brine, and we tried some of the water, to see how it tasted. Knocking out both heads of a barrel, we placed it around a spring, and carefully bailed the salt water out. Soon the barrel was half full of cool, sweet drinking water. There were a great many of these springs, and some of them were of quite a good size. I do not remember having seen anything like it, before or since, and am inclined to believe that it is a first-class curiosity. We made arrangements with a man to carry the speci- mens to Key West, and then journeyed to the Gulf coast, where the collection was completed. We had gathered to- gather forty-four distinct varieties of South Florida woods. We were three months on the trip, and came back with the consciousness of having seen a great deal of Florida, and it was just the impression made on me by this trip, that led me to write an account of it. My compagnons du voyage have each given their iinpressions to the world, and I have tried to do the same. Five years have elapsed since the journey was made, and the visitor, now, would have to remember that, about the time he thought of taking me to task for some apparent discrepancy between my description and the coun- try as if appears to him. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 127 CHAPTER XI. A SHORT DESCRIPTION OF SOME OF THE TROPICAL FRUITS WHICH FIND A HOME IN FLORIDA. "The tropical fruits of Florida!" "What a nameless charm invests this subject, for the denizen of a colder region, in whose imagination these children of the southland exist only as a dream ! But the thrill of enthusiasm awakened by the contemplation of these unseen glories must, in a consid- erable measure, fade in presence of reality. That is, you must prepare yourself for disappointment, if you expect the fruits and flowers of paradise on an earthly soil. The fruits I am about to describe, are objects of interest mainly on ac- count of their rarity in this country, and partly as an unde- veloped source of revenue to the State. Accounts of tropical fruits are as often exaggerated as fish or alligator stories. I read a dime novel once (reader, it was a good while ago; that's my only excuse) — I think Wild-cat Ned, the Bloodhungry Prince of the Prairies, was the hero — where the brave lad rescued a maiden, single-handed, from a band of savages. The scene was laid in a wilder- ness, where all manner of fruit was opportunely abundant. There was nothing remarkable in all this — I had read of count- less exploits of a similar nature, before — but I was astonished to hear that the young hero, in looking around for something for his girl to eat, found some delicious ripe bananas, grow- ing on a vine I That disgusted me with that sort of literature. There are some big stories told of other fruits. An American 128 SCENES IN SOUTH FLOKIDA. traveler, in speaking of an East India fruit called the durion or durian, says that it is at once the most delightful and most disgusting of all fruits. He says the odor of a ripe durian is a hundred times worse than a whiff from a glue-factory or bone-yard, and yet so intensely luscious and rich that the ap- petite for it amounts almost to a frenzy. He gives it as a well established fact that the native women often sell their children, in order to procure the fruit. There is undoubtedly such a fruit as the durian, but I hardly think its properties are so "agonizing" as one would gather from the above de- scription. In our own Florida, the guava plays a milder role, but is sometimes roughly handled by those who are so unap- preciative of the good things of Nature, as not to like them. The following incident is said to have occurred at Orlando, in Orange county: A down-east Yankee mounted a "kyart" belonging to a venerable Cracker who had brought some of his plantation products to town. Sniffing the air vigorously, the Yank looked around in the cart, and saw a box, covered with moss. "What have you in heer?" enquired the descendant of John Alden, bending his eyebrows in the direction of the Cracker, who answered, smilingly: "Gwavers." "Great horn-spoons!" gasped the Yank; "now, p'raps you'll tell me how long they've been dead ! " It is said that that Cracker has not" yet quit laughing over the Yankee's ignorance. Very few people like guavas at the first trial. The odor is powerful and penetrating, and is calculated to antagonize the senses, until a closer acquaintance is gained. The best variety I know of is the large, white pear-shaped kind, and I challenge any one to show me any kind of Northei-n fruit that will eclipse this prince of luxuries. The pink, catley, straw- berry, and vinegar guavas grow finely throughout South Flor- ida. The finest specimens of this fruit I ever saw were grown at Point Pinellas, on Tampa Bay, in the grove of Vincent Leonardy. Guavas will grow, with a little protection, as far north as Palatka and Jacksonville, although it is seldom met with north of Putnam county. The fruit ripens from July to November. SCENES IN SOUTH FLORIDA. 129 The Agua Gate, or alligator pear, is not a pear at all ; it has one large seed in the centre, weighing two ounces, in a good specimen. I have seen agua cates (pronounced ah-guah cahta) weighing two pounds each. The flavor transcends that of the finest muskmelon, and the fruit is eaten with salt and pepper. It contains no acid, but its rich, marrowy, veg- etable-like pulp renders it a fine article of food. One full grown specimen is as much as any man can eat, and it more nearly takes the place of meat than any other fruit I know of. One fine feature of this tree is its power of resisting cold. Confident that it would succeed as far north as Palatka, (not- with standing the evil predictions of a few croakers who styled themselves judges of such matters) I introduced some of the trees in 1882. Mr. Dorwin, Mr. Jackson and others procured young plants of me, and the present fine condition of the trees attests the favorable action of Palatka soil and climate. They can undoubtedly be grown, successfully, in Putnam cotmty, i-lthough hardly in such perfection as farther South. The best specimens of this valuable tree I have seen, are growing on the property of John Roble, near Tampa. In August, 1880, I accompanied Pi-cfessor A. H. Curtiss to this place. The trees, at that time, were thirty-five feet high, and about 15 inches in diameter. Professor Curtiss pronounced it one of the most beautiful that he had ever seen. Such a tree would no doubt bear annual crops of fifteen hundred pounds of fruit, that wovild sell readily at eight cents a pound. In Tampa, I never saw them sell for a lower price than seventy-five cents -a dozen. The agua cate begins to bear at the age of five years. A temperature of 20 degrees above zero is cold enough, but I think they will stand it for a short time. The fruit ripens from August till October. The mango is a fruit that has many friends, on account ■of its handsome appearance, and its novel flavor. It is pear- shaped, flattened and covered with russet-br