60 I^ FLORIDA. 



ern men coming for their health had brought North- 

 ern ways and extravagances ; there were modern 

 yillas and trim gardens, but the old mansions were 

 still to be seen, and a few of the ancient houses built 

 of coquina, a combination of lime and shell. No 

 innovations could do away with the Southern foliage, 

 which here was in rank growth and profusion. We 

 saw orange trees in full bearing ; palmetto trees in 

 abundance, from tlie scrub saw-palmetto to the 

 lordly cabbage palm, and cactuses six feet high, to- 

 gether with all the other trees and plants of the 

 warm latitudes. 



There is a fine shell road to the sea beach that is 

 so hard that the wheels of a wagon scarcely make a 

 mark upon it. This beach is the favorite promenade 

 drive of natives and visitors in the season which had 

 not come quite yet, although near at hand. Boys 

 in the streets were selling sugar-canes at five cents 

 a stick, and banana bushes, which are herbacious 

 plants, Avere growing in many of the gardens. 

 Mr. Green proceeded first to indulge in the entire 

 luxuries of a barber's establishment that he found, 

 and then to interview the whole population. He 

 came to the yacht in time for supper, laden with 

 informution and two fine Southern weakfish, which 

 are much better to eat than our Northern variety, 

 and which are locally known as trout. 



The fishing around Fernandina is exceedingly 

 good, and wc found the colored population, which 

 takes to fishing as naturally as the bee is nautically 

 supposed to take to a tar bucket, everywhere, pur- 



