that is a wrong idea; this is the low-lying valley region; the ground slopes upwards from the water’s edge, and within a mile or two--nay, sometimes much nearer, only a few hundred yards away from the waterside--are wide clearings where some adventurous pioneer has squatted and made his home, and cultivates the land, his own not by right of purchase, but possession. Only a few hundred yards from the malarial region you may breathe pure, healthful air. We soon emerge from these luxuriant picturesque regions, and are on the wide river again. Rarely has one river so many phases as this world-famous St. John’s; the scenery is always changing--a series of panoramic views, land and water, combining to make one whole of picturesque loveliness. We stop at two or three more unimportant landing-places, pass some neat, solitary homes and thriving orange groves, and then reach Georgetown, the entrance to Lake St. George. Here a party of gentlemen with dogs and guns come on board. They are going on a sporting expedition up the Indian river into wilder regions than we dare to penetrate; for although the Indian river region is well known and thoroughly appreciated, it is visited by very few tourists or strangers, it being difficult of access, necessitating several days’ water travelling, and the accommodation for travellers being of the roughest description, and even then only to be obtained at rare intervals. To make amends, however, for the scarcity of places of public entertainment, the inhabitants are most hospitable, and a guest chamber is generally reserved in even the humblest farmhouse, where the stranger is always made welcome to the best the house affords. This kind of primitive casual entertainment is often far preferable to the gilded glories of the stereotyped hotel. These Indian river regions are more sparsely populated than those of St. John’s; this too is owing to its general inaccessibility, for nowhere in all the state is there a richer or more fertile soil calculated for the growth of cereals of all kinds, fruits, vegetables, and sugar-cane attaining sometimes to sixteen feet high--a single stalk yielding more than a gallon of juice; and cacao, date, cocoanut, ginger, cassava, and yams may be cultivated with equal profit. The river affords rare sport for the fishermen, for it abounds with a great variety of fish, and is remarkable for its superb mullet, weighing from three to nine pounds, and measuring from fifteen to twenty inches in length. Turtling is also largely carried on, and is a most lucrative business. The splendid hammock lands all along the Indian river have a magnificent growth of hickory, mulberry, red elm, iron wood, and crab wood; both the latter are finely grained, and capable of receiving a fine polish. The surrounding woods abound with small game and deer, and occasionally a small black bear shows himself, while wild cats and such-like creatures may be found without much difficulty by