CHAPTER XX. 



THE GULF OF MEXICO. 



OFF FOR SARASOTA BAY A ROYAL KINGFISH LANDED ON DECK A 

 WHITE CLOTH BAIT A HERON ROOKERY MR. MOORE A REAL 

 DEER-SLAYER VARIETIES OF FISH TAMPA DR. J. P. WALL FIVE 

 HUNDRED AND FIFTY ACRES OF ORANGE TREES A GRAND CHANCE 

 FOR SETTLERS 8,OOO,OOO ORANGES A YEAR A GRAND RESORT FOR 

 INVALIDS. 



" HAUL in that bow line ! " " Let go that stern line! " 

 "All ready, Pilot, stand out head 'sou' -west* by west! " 



Such were the commands given by Captain Jackson, of 

 the good steamship "Valley City," to his subordinates, on 

 Sunday afternoon, November 23d, as we let go the wharf at 

 Cedar Key and which fell like sweet music upon our anxious 

 ears, for we were now embarked for a voyage upon the grand 

 old Gulf of Mexico. 



From my boyhood I have read and heard, with increas- 

 ing interest, of this great body of water which sits majes- 

 tically enthroned at the southern end of our continent, 

 between the states of Florida and Texa^, and backed on the 

 north by Louisiana; but never until to-day have I been per- 

 mitted to view it in its supreme beauty, face to face. 



Our destination is Sarasota Bay, one hundred and fifty 

 miles south of Cedar Key, and we have heard so much of the 

 vast resources of that locality in the way of tropical fruits, 

 rich tropical scenery, balmy atmosphere, and, above all, in 

 fish and game, that our hearts bound with gratitude at the 

 thought that we are now on the homeward stretch toward it. 

 However, time does not drag by any means, for a voyage on 



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