Many incidents of travel are related by different _savants_, and those
of humbler pretensions, who circulate through the country for various
purposes; but the following stands without a parallel as a genuine fact,
so far as last heard from, in the wilds of Florida.
As we entered the famous Silver Springs this morning, about 4 o'clock,
on the steamer Okahumkee, another boat that had arrived slightly in
advance of us was anchored very near our stopping-place. Upon the bows
of each were burning large light-wood fires, the reflection on the water
being only comparable to the magic movements of enchantment, while the
shore, encircled with tall forest-trees, embowered the whole in a sylvan
retreat, where Diana herself might repose, and be refreshed for the more
exciting amusements of the chase. One of our gentlemen-passengers, upon
being suddenly aroused from his sound slumbers, opened his blind for the
purpose of taking observations of the outside world. At the same instant
a very fresh morning breeze fanned his brow, causing him to make a most
convulsive sneeze--which effort being too much for his artificial
superstructure, all his upper teeth were ejected from his mouth into
the water. Upon the return of his wandering thoughts from the vision of
beauty before him, he was again apprised of the stern realities which
would have to be met and faced without the valuable accessories for
administering to his comfort--particularly in the mastication of Florida
beef--teeth. Soon as day dawned, sympathetic friends gathered around him
with words of condolence, while the services of all experts in the art
of descending into the watery fluid, without being drowned, were called
into requisition. They all went down repeatedly, and returned without
the lost treasures. Poles were spliced, armed with instruments of
various designs, with which they raked and dredged for hours, with
toothless success. Large rewards were offered, while hope in the heart
of the owner sunk below zero, and expectation stimulated the movements
of only one artisan, who finally succeeded in securing the truant
grinders by fastening a tin scoop on the end of a forty-foot pole, and
bringing them out, amid the congratulations of friends and the great joy
of the owner, who gave the persevering negro his proffered reward--ten
dollars. The first investment made by the colored individual was two
bits for tobacco, which he could chew without the aid of foreign
intervention.
The most noticeable point on the Ocklawaha is the Mirror of Diana, or
Silver Springs, which is the source of this river, where, from the
depths of some invisible cavern, boils up a large body of water,
gathered from far away, forming a succession of springs nine miles in
length, with an average depth of thirty-five feet. These waters rise
from the subterranean depths of the earth, with their crystal streams
pure as an angel, clear as the noonday sun, bright and beautiful as the
radiance of heavenly light. This spring is to the campers and movers who
travel through the country what Jacob's Well was to the land of Samaria.
It is entirely surrounded by trees, forming columns unknown to drafts or
plans of architectural skill, except the great Architect of the
universe. More than thirty years since, the land around this spring was
entered as a homestead by a relative of that memorable martyr, John
Rogers. Mr. Rogers, with whom we had the pleasure of conversing, said
its present appearance was the same as when he first saw it--the water
being so clear that looking down in it appeared like the sky above it:
he could see no difference in depths, look which way he would, up or
down. The basin is lined with a grayish limestone, which lies in ledges
on the bottom, from under the crevices of which dart out patriarchal
fish of immense size; but no hook, however delicately baited and
concealed, can lure them to bite. They are occasionally captured with
lines by striking, which custom was practiced by the Indians, "while
graceful poised they threw the spear." At midday the sunbeams kiss the
placid surface of this crystal fluid, while they are reflected by the
transparent waters, which tremble and shimmer with resplendent glories.
A sunset viewed from this Mirror of Diana fills the imagination with
emotions of grandeur, to be remembered as past joys, where descriptive
powers are inadequate to the task. The parting rays of old Sol shine
upon the vast forest of tall trees, draped with Spanish moss suspended
in mid-air, resembling the fragile texture of some fairy realm more than
a tangible substance; or when twilight deepens, then the stars raise
their eyelids, and peep into the depths of this land-locked mystery,
which reveals nothing of its past history, age, or origin.
The following legend, which appeared in the _National Repository_, seems
so much in keeping with what might have been a reality, we have copied
it for the benefit of those who are fond of legendary tales:
"A long time ago, when Okahumkee was king over the tribes of Indians who
roamed and hunted around the South-western lakes, an event occurred
which filled many hearts with sorrow. The king had a daughter named
Weenonah, whose rare beauty was the pride of the old man's life.
Weenonah was exceedingly graceful and symmetrical in figure. Her face
was of an olive complexion, tinged with light brown, her skin finely
transparent, exquisitely clear. It was easy to see the red blood beneath
the surface, and often it blushed in response to the impulses of a warm
and generous nature. Her eye was the crystal of the soul--clear and
liquid, or flashing and defiant, according to her mood. But the hair was
the glory of the woman. Dark as the raven's plume, but shot with gleams
of sacred arrows, the large masses, when free, rolled in tresses of rich
abundance. The silken drapery of that splendid hair fell about her
'like some royal cloak dropped from the cloud-land's rare and radiant
loom.' Weenonah was, in truth, a forest-belle--an idol of the
braves--and many were the eloquent things said of her by the red men,
when they rested at noon, or smoked around the evening fires. She was a
coveted prize, while chiefs and warriors vied with each other as to who
should present the most valuable gift, when her hand was sought from the
king, her father. But the daughter had already seen and loved Chuleotah,
the renowned chief of a tribe which dwelt among the wild groves near
Silver Springs.
"The personal appearance of Chuleotah, as described by the hieroglyphics
of that day, could be no other than prepossessing. He was arrayed in a
style suitable to the dignity of a chief. Bold, handsome,
well-developed, he was to an Indian maiden the very ideal of manly
vigor. But it was a sad truth that between the old chief and the young,
and their tribes, there had long been a deadly feud. They were enemies.
When Okahumkee learned that Chuleotah had gained the affections of his
beloved child, he at once declared his purpose of revenge. A war of
passion was soon opened, and carried on without much regard to
international amenities; nor had many weeks passed away before the noble
Chuleotah was slain--slain, too, by the father of Weenonah.
"Dead! Her lover dead! Poor Weenonah! Will she return to the paternal
lodge, and dwell among her people, while her father's hand is stained
with the drippings of her lover's scalp? No; she hurries away to the
well-known fountain. Her heart is there; for it is a favorite spot, and
was a trysting-place, where herself and Chuleotah met. Its associations
are all made sacred by the memories of the past, while on the glassy
bosom of the spring the pale ghost of Chuleotah stands beckoning her to
come. 'Yes, my own, my beloved one, I come. I will follow where thou
leadest, to the green and flowery land.' Thus spake the will, if not the
lips, of the maiden. It is not a mere common suicide which she now
contemplates; it is not despair, nor a broken heart, nor the loss of
reason; it is not because she is sick of the world, or tired of life.
Her faith is, that by an act of self-immolation she will join her lover
on that spirit-plain, whose far-off, strange glory has now for her such
an irresistible attraction.
"The red clouds of sunset had passed away from the western skies. Gray
mists came stealing on, but they soon melted and disappeared, as the
stars shone through the airy blue. The moon came out with more than
common brilliancy, and her light silvered the fountain. All was still,
save the night-winds, that sighed and moaned through the lofty pines.
Then came Weenonah to the side of the spring, where, gazing down, she
could see on the bottom the clear, green shelves of limestone, sloping
into sharp hollows, opening here and there into still profounder depths.
Forty feet below, on the mass of rock, was her bed of death--easy enough
for her, as before she could reach it the spirit must have fled. The
jagged rocks on the floor could therefore produce no pain in that
beautiful form. For a moment she paused on the edge of the spring, then
met her palms above her head, and with a wild leap she fell into the
whelming waves.
"Down there in the spring are shells, finely polished by the attrition
of the waters. They shine with purple and crimson, mingled with white
irradiations, as if beams of the Aurora, or clouds of a tropical sunset,
had been broken and scattered among them. Now, mark those long, green
filaments of moss, or fresh-water algæ, swaying to and fro to the motion
of the waves; these are the loosened braids of Weenonah's hair, whose
coronet gives us such beautiful coruscations, sparkling and luminous,
like diamonds of the deep, when in the phosphorescence of night the
ocean waves are tipped with fire. These relics of the devoted Indian
girl are the charm of Silver Springs. But as to Weenonah herself--the
real woman who could think and feel, with her affections and memory--she
has gone to one of those enchanted isles far out in the western sea,
where the maiden and her lover are united, and where both have found
another Silver Spring, amid the rosy bowers of love eternal."
Thus runs the Indian legend of Silver Springs, in Florida.
The following description of Silver Spring, written by Prof. John Le
Conte, although entirely divested of myth and mystery, contains truthful
facts that continue to invest it with a charm which stirs the current of
our thoughts as no other natural scenery in the State:
"This remarkable spring is situated near the center of Marion county, in
the State of Florida, in latitude 29° 15´ north, and longitude 82° 20´
west. It is about five miles north-east of Ocala, the county-seat, and
nearly in the axis of the peninsula, being equally distant from the
Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Its waters are discharged by a short stream
bearing the same name, which, after running about six miles, unites with
the Ocklawaha, a tributary of the St. John's River. The stream takes its
origin in a deep pool, or head-basin, which is called the Silver Spring.
This basin is nearly circular in shape, about two hundred feet in
diameter, and surrounded by hills covered with live-oaks, magnolias,
sweet-bays, and other gigantic evergreens. The amount of water
discharged is so large that small steamers and barges readily navigate
the Silver Spring, up to the pool, or head-spring, where there is a
landing for the shipment of cotton, sugar, and other produce. These
steamers and barges make regular trips between the Spring and Pilatka,
on the St. John's. The boatmen informed me that at its junction with the
Ocklawaha more than one-half the water is contributed by the Silver
Spring stream. This stream, for about two miles from its source, varies
in breadth from forty-five to one hundred feet, and its depth in the
shallowest parts from ten to fifteen feet, its average velocity being
about two miles per hour. The fluctuations of water-level in this spring
seem to be connected with the season of rains, but never varying more
than two feet. The commencement of the rainy season changes from the
15th of June to the 15th of July. The waters of the spring begin to
rise about the middle of the season of summer rains, and attain their
maximum height about its termination. The maximum depth of water in the
basin constituting the head of the spring was found to be not more than
thirty-six feet in the deepest crevice from which the water boils up;
the general depth in the central and deep parts of the basin was found
to be about thirty feet. Inasmuch as accurate quantitative
determinations, however easily applied, are seldom resorted to by the
unscientific, we need not be surprised that its real depth falls very
far short of its reputed depth. In South Carolina, the reported depth
was variously stated at from one hundred and twenty to one hundred and
fifty feet, while the smallest estimate in the vicinity of the spring
was forty-five feet! This affords an illustration of the general law,
that the accuracy of popular statements bears an inverse proportion to
the distance from the point of observation--probably, like all
emanations from centers, following the law of inverse squares.
"Doubtless, the greater portion of the water which flows in the Silver
Spring River is furnished by this principal or head-spring; but there
are several tributary springs of similar character along the course of
the stream, which contribute more or less to the volume of water. These
usually occur in deep basins, or coves, along the margin of the stream.
The depth of one of these coves, situated about two hundred yards below
the head-spring, was found to be thirty-two feet in the crevice in the
limestone bottom from which the water boiled; in other deep parts of
the basin the depth was about twenty-four feet. The 'Bone-yard,' from
which several specimens of mastodon bones have been taken, is situated
two miles below the head-spring, it being a cove, or basin, measuring
twenty-six feet.
"The most remarkable and really interesting phenomenon presented by this
spring is the truly extraordinary transparency of the water--in this
respect surpassing any thing which can be imagined. All of the intrinsic
beauties which invest it, as well as the wonderful optical properties
which popular reports have ascribed to its waters, are directly or
indirectly referable to their almost perfect diaphaneity. On a clear and
calm day, after the sun has attained sufficient altitude, the view from
the side of a small boat floating on the surface of the water, near the
center of the head-spring, is beautiful beyond description, and well
calculated to produce a powerful impression upon the imagination. Every
feature and configuration of the bottom of this gigantic basin is as
distinctly visible as if the water was removed, and the atmosphere
substituted in its place.
"A large portion of the bottom of this pool is covered with a luxuriant
growth of water-grass and gigantic moss-like plants, or fresh-water
algæ, which attain a height of three or four feet. The latter are found
in the deepest parts of the basin. Without doubt, the development of so
vigorous a vegetation at such depths is attributable to the large amount
of solar light which penetrates these waters. Some parts are devoid of
vegetation; these are composed of limestone rock and sand, presenting a
white appearance. The water boils up from fissures in the limestone;
these crevices being filled with sand and comminuted limestone, indicate
the ascending currents of water by the local milk-like appearance
produced by the agitation of their contents.
"These observations were made about noon, during the month of
December--the sunlight illumining the sides and bottom of this
remarkable pool, brilliantly, as if nothing obstructed the light. The
shadows of our little boat, of our hanging heads and hats, of projecting
crags and logs, of the surrounding forest, and of the vegetation at the
bottom, were distinctly and sharply defined; while the constant waving
of the slender and delicate moss-like _alga_, by means of the currents
created by the boiling up of the water, and the swimming of numerous
fish above this miniature subaqueous forest, imparted a living reality
to the scene which can never be forgotten. If we add to this picture,
already sufficiently striking, that objects beneath the surface of the
water, when viewed obliquely, were fringed with the prismatic hues, we
shall cease to be surprised at the mysterious phenomena with which vivid
imaginations have invested this enchanting spring, besides the
inaccuracies which have been perpetuated in relation to the wonderful
properties of its waters. On a bright day the beholder seems to be
looking down from some lofty air-point on a truly fairy scene in the
immense basin beneath him--a scene whose beauty and magical effect is
vastly enhanced by the chromatic tints with which it is inclosed.
"Popular opinion has ascribed to these waters remarkable magnifying
power. In confirmation of this, it is commonly reported that the _New
York Herald_ can be read at the deepest parts of the pool. It is almost
needless to state that the waters do not possess this magnifying power;
that it is only the large capitals constituting the heading of this
paper which can be read at the bottom, and that the extraordinary
transparency of the water is abundantly sufficient to account for all
analogous facts. A variety of careful experiments were made, with a view
of testing this point, by securing printed cards to a brick attached to
a fathoming-line, and observing at what depth the words could be read
when seen vertically. Of course, when looked at obliquely, the letters
were distorted and colored by refraction. Numerous comparative
experiments were likewise executed in relation to the distances at which
the same cards could be read in the air. The results of these
experiments may be announced in a few words--namely, that when the
letters are of considerable size--say a quarter of an inch or more in
length--on a clear, bright day, they could be read at about as great a
vertical distance beneath the surface of the water as they could in the
atmosphere. In some instances cards were read by those ignorant of the
contents at depths varying from six to thirty feet. The comparative
experiments in reading the cards in air and water serve to convey a more
distinct idea of the wonderful diaphanous properties of the latter than
any verbal description.
"Some have thought there was something mysterious in the fact that
objects beneath the surface of the water, when viewed obliquely, are
fringed with prismatic hues. It is unnecessary to remind the physicist
that such a phenomenon is a direct physical consequence of the laws of
dispersion of light by refraction. Observation has proved that white
objects on a dark ground were fringed with blue at the top, with orange
and red at the bottom, while the color of the fringing was reversed for
dark objects on a white ground--this being exactly in accordance with
recognized optical principles. In the present case, the phenomenon is
remarkably striking and conspicuous, probably from two causes: first,
because the extraordinary transparency of the water rendered subaqueous
objects highly luminous; and secondly, because the gigantic evergreens
which fringed the pool cut off most of the surface reflection, which
would otherwise have impaired the visual impression produced by the more
feeble refracted and dispersed rays proceeding from the objects--the
shadow of the surrounding forest forming a dark background, analogous to
the black cloud on which a rainbow is projected."
The land improvements near the springs are not particularly fascinating.
There are two landings about one-half mile distant from each other,
called Upper and Lower. At the Lower Landing is a large turpentine
distillery, the property of Messrs. Agnew & Co., where thirty barrels of
turpentine and one hundred of rosin are manufactured monthly. The Upper
Landing has a large ware-house, usually well filled with goods from
steamers, to furnish the back country, together with produce for
shipment to New York and many other points.
Mrs. F. A. House has a dry-goods store in the vicinity, and a small
orange grove of very promising appearance. A boarding-house is kept open
in the winter, but we are unable to state what benefit could be derived
in drinking the strong limestone water from the spring, unless the
scenery would compensate for the lack of life-giving properties in the
transparent fluid. A bar-room is kept here by a man with much-inflamed
eyes, which are, no doubt, caused by imbibing his villainous compounds
too freely, in the absence of better-paying customers.
Tourists wishing to visit Ocala can be accommodated with a conveyance on
reasonable terms. Ocala is a nice little town, six miles distant,
nestled among the hummocks, embowered in a growth of grand water-oaks,
orange-trees, and ornamental shrubbery. It is the capital of Marion
county. A good hotel is kept here by Mr. E. J. Harris, where about forty
boarders can be accommodated. In the center of the park stands a very
creditable court-house, while churches of various creeds are located in
the suburbs. It is a central business resort for the country people many
miles around.
This locality is described by De Soto as being "a fertile region of
country where maize is abundant, also acorns, grapes, and plums." Near
here the Spaniards entered upon the territory of a chief called
Vitachuco, who received them with demonstrations of hostility; "where a
bloody battle was fought between two lakes on a level plain, when two
hundred warriors plunged into the water, and there remained without
touching land for twenty-four hours." Ocala has a population of several
hundred inhabitants, which have more the appearance of enjoyment than
those of any other town in the State. The climate being so mild, no
arrangements are made in the stores and offices for warming;
consequently when a cool morning comes, little camp-fires are built
around the public square, before which are gathered many happy,
contented-looking faces, of all professions, accepting things as they
find them, taking a cool breeze with the firmness of a Stoic, knowing it
is only of short duration--a kind of Northern aggression, which the warm
sunshine will soon waft away. As the fragments of lost fortunes float by
them, they do not settle into apathy and despair over the wreck, but all
seem resigned to their fate, trying to be as happy as the force of
circumstances will permit. They are mostly persons of fine mental
culture, besides being the best, most hospitable people in existence;
indeed, their society seems like an oasis in the desert of this cold,
selfish world.
The lands around are gently undulating, with an abundance of rolling
hummock and first-class pine. It was formerly considered the most
productive county in the State, containing the best orange groves, and
before the war raising the largest amount of sea-island cotton, besides
oranges, sugar, and sirup in abundance. Many planters became discouraged
during the late war on account of inability to work their large
plantations, and abandoned them. These fertile tracts are for sale now
in lots to suit colonists, or accommodate single settlers. An average of
two thousand pounds of sugar to the acre can be produced here. The soil
is dark, alluvial, and porous, containing phosphate of lime and other
fertilizers, which possess the power of recuperation when not being
cultivated. Lime-rock abounds, covering the earth in the form of
bowlders and drifts, indicating a clay soil. Good lands can be purchased
at from five to ten dollars per acre.
Marion county is called the back-bone of the State--it being the center
from which the waters recede on each side, until what was the ocean's
bed is now cultivated land. This theory is confirmed from the fact of
numerous fossil remains to be seen on the surface, consisting of fish,
birds, alligators'-shells, oysters, together with the bones of an animal
unknown to the present generation; but if his voice was proportionate to
his body, he must have made the earth tremble with sound. The following
amusing story is related in reference to this mammoth animal during the
pioneer movements of boats which first navigated the Ocklawaha River:
One morning early, as the gray dawn was stealing through the shades of
night, the inhabitants were aroused from their slumbers by an unusual
noise. An old hunter named Matt. Driggers, whose ear was ever on the
alert for the scream of the wild cat, the howl of the wolf, the yell of
the panther, or the growl of the bear, rushed out, exclaiming, "What on
airth is that?" The sound was repeated, when Matt. convulsively grasped
his hunting-horn, and blew a blast from his stentorian lungs which
echoed through a vast extent of country. His faithful hounds came
whining about him, anxious for the hunt. Taking down his rifle "Dead
Shot" from the hooks, he mounted his lank steed, and rode with haste to
the nearest neighbor, Pat Kennedy. "Hellow, Pat! you in thar asleep, and
the devil unchained in the swamp! Hark! now don't you hear him?" "O
Matt., that's nothin' but one of those old masterdons! You know we dun
seed his bones where he was drowned in the Wakulla Spring." "I dunno,
may be so; one thing sartain, he's a mighty big varmint, an' his voice
is curoser than any thing I ever hearn afore in my time." "But," says
Pat, "one thing sure: there is nothing ranges these parts but what my
dogs and 'Kill Quick' can bring down." Summoning all his dogs, he was
soon on his way with Matt. Driggers to the house of the next
frontiersman. Attracted by the baying of hounds and the blowing of
horns, the excitement ran like wild-fire throughout the entire
neighborhood, until all the settlers were collected.
After reviewing his comrades and counting his dogs, Matt. Driggers,
confident that the full force of the country was mustered, then rode
bravely through bushes and swamps, fording creeks and swimming lagoons,
in pursuit of the great "varmint." When he imagined they were
sufficiently near, he ordered the dogs to be put on the trail.
Simultaneous with this movement came another shrill echo from the
supposed huge monster, which sent the dogs cowering to their masters,
at the same time unnerving the courage of the bravest hunter. A look of
superstitious awe was depicted upon every countenance, and none dared
advance a step farther except Matt. Driggers, who, bolder than the rest,
led the way, saying, "Come, boys; if the dogs are scared, we will follow
by the sound!"
Winding their course cautiously through the valley, they followed in the
direction of the strange sound, until they reached the basin of Silver
Springs, where they found a curious-looking craft discharging cargo. The
hunters commenced making inquiries if they had heard that great monster
while passing through the valley, at the same time describing, and
trying to imitate, its voice to the best of their ability. The Captain,
to their great satisfaction, then told and illustrated to them that the
great noise about which they were so much excited was only a _steam-boat
whistle_!
Sometimes, the water being too low for steamers above Silver Springs,
visitors are deprived of a great pleasure in not seeing this portion of
the country, barges and slow coaches being the only medium of
communication. However, this inconvenience will soon be overcome by a
contemplated railroad. Large portions of the country in this locality
are yet open to homestead settlers, where all good people will receive a
hearty welcome.
As we leave the river and springs, the scenery changes from trees and
foliage to fertile prairies and long marsh-grass, which sways in the
breeze like troubled waves. Here the huge alligators luxuriate and
crawl about in peaceful security, swallowing their light-wood knots
before commencing to hibernate in winter, which precaution is said to be
necessary, that their diaphragms may not contract during this torpid
state.
In these wilds the palmetto rears its crowned head in solitude, and the
wild orange matures its golden fruit, kissed by an eternal spring-time.
This is the home of the curlew, plume-crane, blue heron, fish-hawk,
royal king-fisher, mocking-bird, paroquet, red-bird, blue-peter,
water-turkey, limkin, and duck--all of them God's free birds.
Our steamer has now commenced making its pathway through wide, deep
lakes, and we are one hundred and fifty miles above Pilatka. In these
waters are found a great variety of fish--pike, trout, bream, perch;
while in the surrounding country live the black bear, wild cat, deer,
gray fox, squirrels of all kinds, and wild hogs.
The first body of water is Lake Griffin, twelve miles long; Lake
Eustace, of less dimensions; then Lake Harris, fifteen miles in length,
seven miles wide, with an average of water thirty feet in depth. The
tide of immigration is concentrating on this lake very rapidly.
The following incident is related as having occurred among the primitive
inhabitants in this portion of the country, when priests were not always
waiting in the church to administer the rites of matrimony to willing
lovers:
A devoted suitor, having made the preliminary arrangements for the
celebration of his nuptials, set out in search of an official to
perform the ceremony. He, never having been initiated into the mysteries
of matrimony before, ignorantly inquired of the first person he met
where he could find a sheriff. The man replied there was no sheriff
nearer than Pilatka. "Why do you wish for him?" "I'm going to be
married, sir." "O you want the squire, or preacher." "Do you know where
a preacher lives, then? I thought the sheriff would do as well." "The
preacher has gone on the circuit." Knowing a good deacon lived near, he
repaired thither as a last resort. Finding the deacon at home, he
related to him, in tremulous tones, his disagreeable condition. The
deacon informed him that marrying did not come within the pale of his
jurisdiction. "But I must be married," replied the intended bridegroom.
The deacon replied, "Impossible, sir!" "Well, deacon, can't you marry us
just a little till the preacher comes home?"
Leesburg, fronting partly on Lake Harris, is a thriving town; has a
post-office, court-house, Masonic hall, hotel, private boarding-houses,
church, steam cotton-gin, grist-mill, lumber dressing machine, etc. A
sugar-cane mill is in operation, connected with which is a centrifugal
sugar-dryer, the only one in the State. This mill can turn out fifteen
barrels per day. Every thing produced here finds a ready market, as
boats pass almost daily, which enables the settlers to change all their
surplus into money, from a bale of cotton or moss to a dozen eggs.
When Colonel Hart's little open boat and engine first came up to dredge
out the barnets and swamp-grass, the natives gathered around him,
thinking it was a cook-stove.
The Indians traveled through these swamps by wading in the water, and
using a cow-hide fastened at the ends to transport their provisions,
women, and children, which they drew after them, thus making a trail
that lasted several days, which enabled their friends or foes to follow
them.
In this vicinity we find historical relics, and approach tragic grounds.
A portion of the cypress log mentioned by De Soto in his travels through
Florida is still to be seen; also an artificial causeway, several
hundred yards in length, made of shells from which the Indians extracted
food and pearls, near which yet remains a portion of one of those
immense mounds, supposed to be the residence of the Cazique.
Lake Dunham is the last in the chain of these inland waters, upon which
is situated Okahumkee, two hundred and twenty-five miles above Pilatka.
It is the terminus of navigation.
The Ocklawaha River was the memorable place where the Payne's Treaty
Landing was drawn up, and between the terminus of this chain of lakes
and the Withlacoochee River are located the tragic grounds of General
Thompson's murder and the Dade Massacre.