02 



FOREST AND STREAM. 



Heavy southerly winds have tended lo blow the Band on 

 its sou ih fide into the wulcr, and the north bunk would 

 wash away. I know that eight years ago the ialet was 

 over two hundred yards south of its present location, as at 

 that time there were no rocks on its north bank, they were 

 that distance up the beach. In uo place is it over fifty 

 yards across from the canal to the outer beach. Plenty of 

 water in the canal everywhere until the bay itself opens, 

 when as the water wideus, some shoals are met. with 

 and the channel shifts from one side to the other a few 

 times. 



Just in front of the inland end of the canal a high shell 

 ridge makes out from the mainland, and near its end, onUie 

 highest part, a Mr. Webb and family, from near Utica^T. 

 Y., had put up their house at the same time I had settled 

 on Big Sarasota over eight years ago. It was a perfect 

 wilderness here at that time, nor another settler on the hay, 

 and none in any direction nearer than myself, five miles 

 away. I was greatly interested to kuow how he had got 

 along during the time, and as he was a thorough go ahead, 

 "working man, bis place may be taken us a fair sample of 

 what energy and perseverance can accomplish in South 

 Florida. We landed, meeting a most cordial reception, as 

 every one is sure to do at their hands. This is a favorite 

 slopping place for several scientific gentlemen, and not a 

 wiuter passes that they do not have two or three of them 

 making observations on the fauna, etc., of the region. 

 The younger members of the family, especially the young 

 ladies are accomplished conchologists and ornithologists. 

 One of them being, indeed, quite a sportsman, having 

 killed a doer a few weeks before. They are by no means 

 behind in the common female accomplishments, for we 

 had some fine music on the parlor organ in the evening, as 

 well as singing. Northern people teem to have an idea 

 that those who emigrate South give up everything in the 

 way of civilization or cultivation, but I must say, in this 

 family they did not seem to run behind the world at all. 

 They kept fully up with it, and home life was made as 

 pleasant as in any Northern home. 



Much to my regret Mr. W. and his eldest son were absent 

 with their schooner ou a trip to Key West, and I was 

 obliged to take my walk through their dealing alone. 1 

 may have missed many objects of interest, but I saw more 

 than enough of improvements to make me regret that Mrs. 

 X got homesick at Big Sarasota, lor in the same length of 

 time I might have progressed proportionately as far as 

 they had done. They had cleared Horn the virgin ham- 

 mock, it is true only some fifteen acres, but that was of the 

 very best quality of laud, and was cultivated with such 

 good judgment, that no mote was needed. His principal 

 crop has been sugar-caue, but, corn nas been raised ou Die 

 same ground, at the same time, with the same cultivation, 

 for the corn crop is made before the cane gets over three 

 feet high, and is gathered and out of the way by July. 

 Sweet potatoes aud other crops have not been neglected by 

 any means. He has not gone very extensively into oranges, 

 hut ha3 some two acres or more in bananas, and as these 

 mature an J bear fruit in less than two years from the time 

 of planting one gets the most prompt return from them. 

 He has an abundance of limes, guavas, alligator pears, 

 sugar apples, grapes, and everything that can be raised to 

 advantage. Indeed, he had a model place, if 1 am a judge, 

 and I could not help feeling that 1 made a great mistake in 

 not hanging on, homesick or uot homesick. 



In my walk I saw the evidences of the recent struggle 

 Mr. Webb had been having with a fire which had been set 

 by some "cow hunters," just back iu the pine woods. His 

 fencing had been burned, many of his fruit trees scorched, 

 and the bananas also had suffered severely. This practice 

 of burning off the woods every season is positively ruinous, 

 for in the light soil of the piny woods it burns out all the 

 decomposed vegetable matter which is there and leaves 

 nothing but pure silex aud ashes. It is true that if the 

 loots of the grass are not killed the new shoots may spring 

 up a little quicker, but the grass does uot havo that bony 

 later in the season which it would have if unburned. 



While we were at lea a jaunty-lookiug yacht, of the 

 Newport model, came into ihe bay and anchored just 

 astern of the Idle Hour. When the small boat came ashore 

 for some fresh water I fouud there was ail acquaintance 

 aboard, aud as they had come down for green turtle eggs 

 here was my chance for companions. Just after dark 1 

 rowed off to them in the. skiff, but as the music and sing- 

 ing floated out to us from the parlor I had just left I fear 

 ■we were in no hurry to gel under way for "The Horse and 

 Chaise." 



When we had finally arranged everything, however, not 

 forgetting a large supply of coffee and "hard tack," we 

 found we had a gentle wind from (he N. E. to waft us on our 

 way. I won't undertake to describe ihe channel, it is so 

 very intricate that unless you have a pilot you must puzzle 

 it out for yourself. Oyster bars aud .--and fiats are plenty, 

 and only about two feet can be taken through to the head 

 of the hay. Here are two passes, one Usually called Caisey's 

 Pass, and the other Bocha Chiea. Very often both are 

 closed, and when open, aud in smooth weather, only three 

 feet can be taken iu or out. As we drew only some six 

 inches we had no difficulty in ruuuiug i hrough the six or 

 seven miles to Caisey's Pass, and disembarked a few 

 hundred yards from the south point. 



Just back from here several settlements were started a 

 few years ago, and are doing nicely. There are many nice 

 bunches of both hammock and pine laud lying between 

 Mr. Webb's aud here that are still unentered, aud oifcr nice 

 sites for homes to those who will get. frozen out at the North 

 this winter, 



We reached the head of the bay about nine o'ciock, aud 

 as it was rather eaTly for turtle to crawl, aud the' tide but 

 just turned iu, we built a fire, made a pot of coffee to keep 

 us awake, and took a little lunch. 



About half-past ten or eleven (we tell time in this country 

 at night by the "pointers" of the Great Bear), we divided 

 our parly. Mr. F. deciding that we had better set him 

 across the pass, and he would walk the beach to the north, 

 while Mr. W. and myself, being the light weights of the 

 party, should walk to the southward. They both filled 

 their pipes and look a good quiet smoke after the lunch, 

 while 1 eould only look on and regret that tobacco and my- 

 self could never agree. This is the only occasion when I 

 have auy regrets on that subject, but when I see a party 

 sitting around a camp fire, all taking pulls at Vanity Fair, 

 seemingly taking so much comfort and pleasure, I ac- 

 knowledge I envy them and wish we were good friends. 



Mr. F. set himself across the channel, and Mr. W. and 

 myself started on our tramp. The moon was just peeping 

 above the pines, the tide had been running in for two or 

 three hours, and everything promised to be favorable for a 

 good night's work. No wind and but alight ground swell, 

 nothing to hinder the turtle from crawling in abundance, 

 and so we found them, for before we were fairly out of 

 range of the light of our camp fire we came upon the trail 

 of one who had crawled out oh the beach, and perhaps 

 being alarmed by our light, had simply made what we call 

 a "half moon" and gone back into the water. There is no 

 difficulty in making out a turtle crawl, even on a dark 

 night, as it is some three feet wide, and the sand is torn up 

 much as it would be if a person had pulled a skiff along 

 on land with a pair of sculls, indeed, that is just what 

 the turtle does, only it is a pair-oared craft, for his belly 

 shell comes upon the sand nearly all the time, being only 

 partially lifted at each stroke of his flippers. 



We traveled on a few hundred yards, passing many old 

 crawls, some perhaps of the night before, for in gathering 

 eggs, where they are plenty, we are particular and take 

 only the very freshest. 



We walked just at the water's edge, and as will be evi- 

 dent, those crawls which show between the water and the 

 last high water mark must have been made the present 

 night, and these are the only ones we intend to examine 

 for eggs. We soon came upon one, fresh and plain, lead- 

 ing up fron the water's edge, and a few feet further on was 

 his return path. He had gone back, so we should get no 

 turtle here, but perhaps there were eggs. I had provided 

 a stout pine splinter from an old skiff which had been 

 wrecked near the pass, and we began ptobing in the sand 

 just al the foot of a low, sandy bluff, some thirty or forty 

 feet above high water mark. The sand, old drift, and 

 grass was torn up all over a space some fifteen feet or 

 more iu diameter, aud somewhere in this space was prob- 

 ably a nest of eggs, and that nest only about ten inches 

 in diameter. It was not quite so bad as looking for a 

 needle in a haystack, but yet it evidently required some 

 patience and perseverence to probe it out unless we were 

 favored by fortune and stumbled upon it among our first 

 random probes. W. was a native of the Bahamas, and 

 like all other "conchs," as they are called on the south- 

 west coast, was an adept at turtle egging. He thought he 

 could tell by the looks of the sand just where the turtle's 

 head had rested when the eggs were deposited, aud of 

 course, that being known, and the head pointed some 

 three feet away iu the opposite direction should be the 

 nest. I let him have the first trial with the probing rod. 

 He made an observation upon his theory, and pitched upon a 

 spot for the nest, but the probe wouldn't go down over six 

 inches. He tried three or four limes in the uear vicinity, but 

 no go. The bottom wouldn't drop out. I had seen others 

 before this with a similar theory, and sometimes it does 

 work, but the rule has so many exceptions that it is quite 

 as well to trust to luck, or else, when that fails, adopt the 

 slow and sure method of punching lines of probes clear 

 across the space only three or four inches apart. Even 

 this will sometimes fail, for an extra heavy turtle will 

 press the sand down on the nest so compactthata common 

 stick cannot lie forced through il. An iron lamrod is 

 much the best instrument, as it is very laborious work to 

 probe with a wooden slick. W. took auother observation, 

 and decided upon another spot for ihe head to have lain.' 

 This also failed, and he probed around at random for a 

 few minutes. Then 1 took a turn at it, and beginning near 

 the centre, worked around in a circle with holes some 

 three inches apirt. I kept ii up until a blister began form- 

 ing in the peltn of my hand, and then beginning to think 

 the turtle had gone back 10 the water without laying, 

 turned the probe over lo W., who still insisted she suiely 

 laid. I looked on impatiently for a few minutes, all the 

 time tryiug to get W. to give il up and seek an easier nest. 

 Bui he slill persisted aud 1 started on slowly by myself 

 thinking that would be the quickest way of getting him to 

 leave. I was only well out of sight when I came upon a 

 fresh trail leading from the water's edge. A moment : s 

 hasty glance showed there was no return trail. The turtle 

 must yet be on shore up in the edge of the grass. I 

 hastened in that direction, and sure enough there he was. 

 We met face to face, for he bad completed his task and was 

 on the way back. 1 gave a shout to attract W.'s attention, 

 but, it must be the ground swell breaking on the beach 

 drowned my voice, for he did not put iu an appearance to 

 assist me. Then commenced a lively struggle, for in spite 

 of their clumsy appearance and ordinarily slow movements, 

 in eases like this they develop surprising agility. With a 

 noise between a snort and a puffy whistle, it made a rush 

 to pass me. I did not care to stand directly in its way, nor 



to put myself within reach of its jaws, for these are so 

 powerful that they can bite a piece out of a board. So as 

 it passed me I jumped in, and, seizing hold under the edge 

 of the upper shell, attempted with a sudden jerk to throw 

 him over on his back. But I missed my reckoning. He 

 weighed a good three hundred pounds, and both flippers 

 on Ihe opposite side were braced firmly against me, lo say 

 nothing of those on the same side with me flying about my 

 arms and throwing sand in my eyes. He kept working 

 towards the water, too, at a lively pace in spite of my ef- 

 forts, and I began to fear I should lose him after all, when 

 all at once it occurred to me there was a little knack about 

 doing it like doing many other things. We had already 

 got just to high water mark, the water itself only twelve 

 feet away. Here the beach had a sharper pitch downward. 

 Quickly shifting my hold further aft to a point immedi- 

 ately over the hind flipper I gave a suddeu lift towards Ihe 

 front flipper on the opposite side, just at the moment when 

 it had completed its slroke aud was furthereat aft. By 

 doing this it will be seen that at the moment I began to 

 raise; he could bring neither flipper to bear against me. 

 His head was the only obstacle in my way, and even that 

 could not be brought directly against me. The slope of 

 the ground assisted also, and although Ihe sand flew about 

 my face lively, over he went. But he wasn't safe yet, for 

 although he could not turn himself over still he was below 

 high water mark and the rising tide would soon reach him, 

 when with its help he might float off and right himself. 

 I hastened back to W., whom I met on the way. "What 

 luck with the nest?" "None, but I'll bet my hat that tur- 

 tle has laid them." "Too bad, "condoled I, "but 1 have strut k 

 oil; I've got a SOO-pounder out here who will be back in 

 the wa'.er in ten minutes if we donT get him up the beach 

 higher." We hurried back to my victim, who was slill 

 striking the sand wildly but ineffectually with his flippers, 

 and after a hard pull, each of us taking a hind flipper, and 

 working up one side at a time, we succeeded iu moving 

 him a safe distance above the water. 



Going on further only a huudred yards we came upon 

 two fresh crawls quite close together, both turtle had gone 

 back to the water, however. We took a look at the nesis, 

 and as both seemed the genuine article we went on, for we 

 had begun to surmise that we were a little late for catching 

 the turtle themselves, aud, beside, we thought it best to go 

 to our furtherest point and dig eggs on our way home. 

 They wore safer in the ground than out of it, and there 

 was no use in carrying them over the ground twice. At 

 the sixth fresh crawl we came to; we surprised a pair of 

 coons making their meal on our eggs. That little arrange- 

 ment was broken in a hurry. The ground around was 

 strewn with empty shells. We didn't have to probe here 

 to find the nest, the coons had saved us that trouble; but 

 they bad paid themselves rather too liberally, for we 

 counted tbirlyeight shells from which they had sucked 

 the contents. We began throwing out the remainder upon 

 the sand; there were a hundred and thirteen. A pretty 

 fair nest even after the toll had been taken, but probably an 

 hour later there wouldn't have been one left. After they 

 were dug the next question was what shall we do with 

 them? It would never do to leave them here until our re- 

 turn; that would seem like digging them for the'eoona 

 benefit; but how to carry them? Through some oversight 

 the bags which had been brought for carrying the eggs had 

 been left in the boat, and F. had gone across the channel 

 to the north beach with them. After cogitating a few 

 moments another old trick came to mind. I used to carry 

 them in my trousers' legs in the good old time, why not 

 nowf Certainly, so off they came. Turning them wrong 

 side outwards, so that when they were put on again 

 the sand, etc., would be upon the outside. I tied 

 the bottom of each leg up, aud then filled about half 

 the eggs into each leg. Now, by throwing my trousers 

 over my shoulder, one leg in front and the other be- 

 hind, I had a very l.andy kind of wallet, and could carry 

 all the eggs from three or four nests with ease. It may 

 seem rather rough treatment to the reader to give to eggs 

 this carrying them in bags aud trousers' legs, but the shell 

 is as tough and looks almost like a white kid glove. The 

 reader cannot be half as surprised at reckless handling as 

 was a Georgia "cracker," to whom I once sold some at 

 Cedar Keys. lie was tut recently from the "piny woods," 

 and had never seen any before, but eggs were eggs to him, 

 and healing there were eggs at the wharf, at the low price of 

 ten cenls a dozen. He had nothing to carry them in bo I 

 loaned him a bag. He Btood upon the wharf some five 

 feet above me looking on as I counted them into the bag, 

 When counted I gave the bag a throw into the air so that 

 it would drop on the wharf at his feet. Such reckless 

 handling of eggs he had never seen before, aud he screamed 

 right out with surprise at the danger he supposed his eggs 

 were in. But not one was injured of course. He allowed 

 they were queer eggs, and I allowed to mytielf he would 

 think ihem still queerer if he eat any of them boiled, lor 1 

 never saw any one like them the first time of eating. A 

 liking for them must be acquired, as the yolk has a dry, 

 sawdusty lasle, while the white will never boil hard. 

 They are great favorites with the "conche" aud many 

 others who dwell on the coast, but I dou't fancy them 

 cooked plain, but for making corn bread, custards aud 

 fritters they are capital. 



On we wenl down the coast, having decided to go to the 

 twelfth fresh crawl, then turn and dig the eggs ou the way 

 home. I don't think we went a mile from our can.p the 

 before the twelfth or perhaps the thirteenth was reached, 

 and at this last a coon was already at work, but he had 

 only just discovered the eggs as only flye shells were lying 



