




RAMBLES IN FLORIDA. 469 

.as if placed by human hands. It required no flight of the 
imagination to transform these charming forest vistas into 
the long, dim, aisles of cathedrals; the trunks of the trees 
forming the pillars, and the graceful leaves of the palmetto, 
overarched, forming a roof. 
“The groves were God's first temples.” 
We sat up late, enjoying the glories of the night, the last 
of our out-door camping in Florida. Early the following 
morning we “broke camp” and prepared for the return trip 
to Cedar Keys. Hoisting the anchor with a cheerful “heave 
yo,” the sails of the Santa Maria soon filled, and we were 
homeward bound. We gave a farewell look by way of a 
parting salute to Piney Key, as it stood out bright and beau- 
tiful in the purple light of the morning: 
The slanting sun shone white along the sand, 
Strewn with green sea-weeds and with crimson shells, 
ut of the ocean’s dim mysterious cells, 
Jewelling all the broadskirts of the land. 
Arriving at Cedar Keys after a pleasant voyage, we pro- 
ceeded homeward over the same route by which we came. 
The winter climate of Florida is not only healthful but 
` delightful; in the summer there is danger of contracting 
fever and ague, and the yellow fever is an occasional visitor. 
The climatic advantages to the invalid are at the present 
_time counterbalanced by the miserable food and discomforts 
of the hotels and boarding houses; there are undoubtedly 
exceptions to the last objection, but they are rare: The ex- 
penses of a three months trip are quite heavy and we could 
make a journey to Europe or California, of the same dura- 
_ tion for the same cost, and live infinitely better in bed and 
In an agricultural point of view Florida offers no induce- 
ments to the emigrant or settler that are not surpassed by 
many other sections of the country, whether quality of soil, 
facilities of transportation, accessibility to markets, or va- 
Nety or capabilities of production are considered. An emi- 
