LLM11715610
Orange Grove, Seville, Florida. Hardly anything can exceed the charm of a winter sojourn in the sub-tropical climate of Florida, with all that the visit implies of novelty and delight to him who can afford the not necessarily extravagant indulgence. To the Northerner, accustomed only to the sober tints of the temperate zone, this land of orange groves will open a new heaven and a new earth to him. Here, life is passed in basking in the sun, or in taking languorous walks, or more exhilarating drives, through palmetto and orange groves that recall to the student of the classics the famed gardens of the Hesperides. More active exercise is found in the abundant sport in the lagoons and waterways of the region, diversified by the milder exercises of sailing and bathing. The system of the Plant railways affords facilities for reaching the various popular resorts, interior as well as on the coast. What may be called the trunk lines are the Jacksonville, St. Augustine and Indian River, and the Jacksonville, Tampa and Key West railways. The one opens up the greater part of the Atlantic sea coast, the other gives access to the beautiful and diversified scenery of the Interior, with facilities for reaching the western and southern paradises of the Gulf. Steamers, on the St. John and the Indian and other rivers, vary the mode of getting about in this land of the cypress and the orange, and Impress the visitor with the Arcadlan character of the Palm State. The scene of our picture is a typical one, near Seville, in the heart of the orange belt. It is situated a little way south of Palatka, the former head of navigation on the St. John's River. Seville itself is on the line of the J. T. & K. W. railway, due south of Palatka, and lying between Crescent Lake and Lake George, an enlargement of the upper St. John's. In the neighborhood the orange is cultivated to perfection, with a prodigal abundance of other fruit common to the region the lemon, fig. olive, banana, cocoanut and pineapple. Nature's profusion is also seen in the flora and plant life of the vicinity in the magnolia, cypress, banyan or rubber tree, oak, palmetto and pine. Illustration for Our Kin Across the Sea (Greig, 1898).By American Photographer (19th Century)
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