THE OOLOQI8T 



143 



Michael's Church, etc., and here I saw 

 a large palm for the first time. Most 

 of the city looked very old and dirty 

 and darkies were very plentiful. 



My first view of Florida the next 

 day was palm trees fringed along the 

 sand, and the jetties and yellow water 

 at the mouth of the St. John's River. 

 On the way up to Jacksonville I saw 

 my first eagle (bald) perched on a 

 spot near the river, also Florida Cor- 

 morants, and several little Blue 

 Herons, immature and mature. We 

 left the steamer "Apache," that night 

 and put up in a hotel. 



The next morning we had a good 

 breakfast and begun to get enthusi- 

 astic. We got abroad the small pas- 

 senger boat and went down to New 

 Berlin. We stayed here from Nov. 19 

 to Dec. 15 waiting for our boat to 

 come down from tlie North. 



During all our stay at New Berlin, 

 we were with Mr. Alfred Lucas, a 

 Florida "Cracker," but one of the most 

 generous open hearted fellows I ever 

 saw. His life was a continual torture 

 with ; four brawling yelling children. 

 Worthington would buy cane syrup 

 that they would all clean up at once, 

 and then all start yelling in agony 

 with the teethache. "It was truly the 

 pigs in the parlor and the hens in tlie 

 pantry" here. I couldn't quite relisli 

 those monstrous Southern cockroaches 

 that were so plentiful here. 



The water wa's sulphurous and tasted 

 exactly like rotten eggs smell, which 

 was sure some disappointment -to me 

 as I thought 1 was going to send some 

 nice highly scented Florida water 

 (like you buy in bottles at a good 

 price) home to my mother. Anyway 

 we drank rainwater as long as it last- 

 ed. They say this sulphur water is 

 good for people's kidneys but I would 

 rather take pills. 



I found that some of these 

 "Crackers" were a little superstitious 



In the grub-line while at New Berlin, 



I ha'd my first corn "pone," "grits," 

 mullet and shrimp. The little white 

 beans we eat up North they called 

 "Yankee beans" down here. They also 

 drank black coffee strong enough to 

 "float a flatiron," and then I began to 

 see why the Lord gave these people 

 a good kidney remedy — aged egg 

 water. We also ha'd some frankfurts, 

 once in a while, that were sure pep- 

 pery. 



I was surprised at seeing the large 

 bushes they call myrtle, while ours 

 are smaller and are called bayberries. 

 Our berries are twice as large though. 

 Here I saw my first orange tree. It 

 was a small undeveloped one, however, 

 loaded with green fruit. 



Every day or two a flotilla of sub- 

 marine would go up river to Jackson- 

 ville, also Ford eagles, with an oc- 

 casional hydroplane. The steamships 

 and there were some huge ones too, 

 were very plentiful and one could al- 

 most reach out and touch them, the 

 river was so narrow. 



We found birds quite plentiful here. 

 All night the Wayne Clapper Rail 

 would keep up his noisy racket with 

 an occasional Night Heron flying 

 over. 



I saw but one Virginia rail. Great 

 Blue Herons were quite plentiful along 

 the creek shores at dusk, also their 

 small brothers. The natives called 

 them "Poor Johns" and wanted some 

 to eat! 



Worthington's Marsh Wren (Telma- 

 todytes palustris griseus) were quite 

 plentiful here along with the long and 

 short bills. Laughing gulls were com- 

 mon with an occasional different 

 specie. While the tide was out the 

 mud flats were covered with Killdeer 

 Plover, a few sandpipers and other 

 birds. 



All kinds of fish, shrimp and crabs 

 were quite plentiful at New Berlin, but 

 1 suppose they are the same in all 

 Southern waters. 



