54 Remarks upon East Florida. 



given the lake, shows that it must be generally so shallow as to 

 allow grass to predominate ; rendering it probable, that it has a 

 less decided lake character than the lakes above. 



It was until lately taken for granted, that the interior of Flor- 

 ida was without any eminent parts, but the army movements 

 have opened to observation, some sandy ridges or hills of consid- 

 erable elevation. These are not far from that central region 

 where the waters diverge to different sides of the peninsula. The 

 course of the various streams which take their rise within these 

 central parts, marks out the character of the slope, running north- 

 west, south-west, south-easterly and northwardly. The Onith- 

 lacoochee, Pease Creek, Kissimmer, St. John's, and the waters 

 emptying into the Indian River lagoons, all illustrate this central 

 elevation, and general inclination towards the coast.. 



One of the striking features of the coast of Florida, is the la- 

 goons, as they are termed, or long and narrow bodies of water, 

 separated from the sea by a strip of sand, generally not more than 

 a mile or two wide. They are connected with the sea here and 

 there by inlets, which are made and kept open by the out-rush- 

 ing or in-rushing tides, as they happen to prevail. The outward 

 current is thatwhich chiefly prevails, from the most natural causes. 

 Accumulations from rains, must give a great preponderance to 

 the inner waters, ' which, however, may, in the course of a dry 

 -season, drain out to a level with the outer waters, when the drift 

 of a storm blocks up, at least for a time, the usual passage, and so 

 it remains until the balance of force is turned by new rains. 



This alternate operation of counter causes, explains the fact 

 well known by those v/ho frequent this coast, that these inlets 

 are at one time very accessible, and at others, nearly or quite 

 closed up. These lagoons extend from above St. Augustine to 

 Jupiter inlet, a stretch of three or more hundred miles, with but 

 a "few miles interruption by land. Their common depth is several 

 feet, though they all are traversed by shoals or bars, which reduce 

 their navigable facility to about three feet. These shoals, how- 

 ever, could easily be made passable for useful purposes. It has 

 been proposed to connect the river St. John's by a canal with the 

 Matanzas river, separated by about ten or fifteen miles ] the Ma- 

 tanzas with the Halifax, twice that distance, perhaps, apart. 

 Between the waters of which the Musquito inlet is the embouch- 

 ure, and those of the Indian River, there is only a narrow neck 



