Page:The Homes of the New World- Vol. III.djvu/289

Rh Several of the passengers left the vessel at various colonies and plantations by the way, so that it became less crowded and more agreeable; and I enjoyed, inexpressibly, the glorious morning, and the journey up the river.

St. John's River—in the Indian language, Welaka or the Lake-River—is like a chain of larger and smaller lakes, linked together by narrow but deep straits, which wind in innumerable sinuosities between shores, the wonderful scenery of which is scarcely to be imagined, if none similar to it have been seen before. Here is again primeval forest such I saw on the Savannah river, but still richer in its productions, because Welaka flows, for the greater part, under a tropical sky, and below the boundary which frost approaches. We see here thick groves and belts of palmettos; here are wild orange-groves laden with brilliant fruit which there are no hands to gather; masses of climbing plants, vanilla, wild vines, convolvuli, and many others, cover the shores in indescribable luxuriance, forming themselves into clumps and bushes as they grow over the trees, and cypresses, which present dark green pyramids, altars, perfect temples with columns, arches, porticoes, shadowy aisles, and on all hands the most beautiful, the most ornamental festoons flung along, and over the clear river. From amid the masses of foliage towers upwards the fan-palm, with its beautiful crown, free and fantastic; the magnolia stands full of snow-white flowers, and, pre-eminent amid that republic of plants, flowers, and multitudes of trees, stand the lofty cypresses like protecting, shadowy, patriarchs, stretching out horizontally their light-green heads, with long waving mosses hanging down from their strong branches.

Here is the life of Nature in its luxuriance; but it is the realm and reign of the old Pagan god of Nature, old Pan, which embraces both the good and the evil, life and death, with the same love, and which recognises no law