#41 Little Journey to Altonia book 1925
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N afinnal ~~ngrap~it ~ndet!!
WASHINGTON, D. C,
JOHN OLIVER LAGORCE
VICE-PRESIDENT
May 17, 1938.
Mr. J. J. Farrey, Building Inspec~or,
Miami Beach Building Department,
Miami Beach, Florida.
Dear Mr. Farrey:
I have your letter of May 12 regarding the little book
that I wrote many years ago as a labor of love for Carl G. Fisher
entitled "A Little Journey to Altonia", when our glorious Miami
Beach was yet an infant.
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As I recall it, I took most of the pictures ~self but am
sorry to say that so many years have elapsed that the originals ha.e
disappeared.
A good many years after that time I wrote a general
story on Florida in which I featured Miami Beach and am glad to send
you a copy under separate cover, but unhappily there isn't anything
I can do about the pictures in the little booklet you mention al-
though it would be a pleasure to do so.
With all good wishes,
/
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..J?ddress (fl,mmvn,ctil,ons 10
G>arl.6:%kr
IndioMPolis,!ndiond
or
Alton iBeachMiami.Florido
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A LITTLE JOURNEY TO A1LTONITA
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Cfhe Lure of a C?\ockless Land Where
SOmmer <Basks in the Lap of 'Winter.
q]./ JOhn GIt,"verLa 6brce
B'R'R'R'R' it was cold! The wind was howling along the Financial
Canyons like lost souls in No Man's Land; there was a foot of inky
slush on the ground and, to make matters more unbearable, the wind
from the lake cut like the edge of a ra:4or !
Somehow the mental gears weren't meshing, and I suddenly realiz.ed that
this thing of working three shifts of eight hours each day was burning the
candle at all three ends much too fast, It was then that I made up my mind
to find some place on the North American Continent, within reasonable rail
distance from the center of things, where the sun was shining, the birds were
singing, and life was worth while; for, under existing conditions, it was not
worth a Prussian promise, and a sort of sixth sense told me that the crinkly
dispositions of the other members of my family indicated that they felt the
same way about it.
Looking over a map of our Southern States, I remembered that a chap at
the club had told me a lot about Miami, located down on the tip end of
Florida, and as I combed out my memory for his description, it came to me
that he summed it up as "a sort of earthly paradise beside the sea-the only
place he ever visited which entirely lived up to the brag."
Having long since made up my mind that the ancient bromide about a
coward dying a thousand deaths and a brave man but one was top,hole logic,
I telephoned up to the house to get things ready; that we were leaving that
afternoon for the southernmost city on the Florida mainland, and eliminated
all Bolsheviki argument by remarking that while I couldn't give any first,hand
information, I would be taking as much of a chance as they, and, with a
warning that speeding up was the watchword, hung up the receiver,
Once in a while you can bluff the family into action and this time I
rang the bell, for they achieved the impossible and got ready in time.
With the feeling that no matter what was in store for us, it could not
be any worse than the frigid discomforts of November's ice and snow, we
piled aboard our train, bags, boxes and babies, without a second to spare, and
sallied south.
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THE ROMANCE AND SHEER BEAUTY OF ALTONIA NIGHTS OVERWHELM YOU
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MOONLIGHT ON THE BEACH OF NEVER_TO_BE-FORGOTTEN MEMORIES
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WHERE LA VES THE SMILING SANDS
Ocean Walk under the gently swaying coconut palms or motor slowly along the Ocean Drive and watch the multi-hued waters caress the beach u a
to try and picture the beauty of the sa~(:. scene at night under the blaze of the low-hung stars which fairly electrify the heavens simply gives one pause.
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THE GULF STREAM
To wander along the
wondrous thing-but
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AWAKENING IN ANOTHER WORLD
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The following morning I awakened, realizing that I'd had an unusually
comfortable night for a train journey, and pushed up the window curtain with
a subconscious feeling that something was wrong, and sure enough-for
there wasn't much snow on the ground-the sun was struggling through the
clouds, and although it was still cold I rubbed my eyes in amazement at the
transformation! .
After routing out my" excess baggage" and getting them seated for break-
fast, I learned from the Pullman highwayman, in white apron and grin, that
we were well on our way, and before night would be over the line into
the sovereign Commonwealth of Georgia, famous as the home of peaches and
Ty Cobb!
All day we sped to the southward, passing great cities and towns rich in
the romantic history of Dixie, and the second morning, or 40-odd hours after
leaving the glacial ice and winds of the Central West, we arrived in Miami
the Mystic, nestling beside the turquoise waters of Biscayne Bay.
ROMANCE BESIDE A SUMMER SEA
While the austere Pilgrim fathers were struggling for existence on the
bleak New 'England coast, one of the fairest harbors in all the Western Hem-
isphere- Biscayne Bay-was serving as a place of retreat and hiding for the
pirates of the Spanish Main. For nearly two centuries these ruthless bucca-
neers infested the lanes of commerce in the Caribbean and preyed upon the
golden galleons which sailed that dangerous course from the Florida Keys
across the Atlantic to the Old World.
Many thrilling tales are told of those olden days, tales of the sea wolves
and the half-savage outlaws known as wreckers, who planted signals on the
near-by keys and then fattened on the shoal-broken bodies of the luckless
barks whose navigators trusted in the red glare of a promised haven only to
fall victim to the ruthless pillagers with false beacons which beckoned to
destruction!
But their day was of generations agone, and such sinister associations of
the past only furnish a picturesque and legendary background for the most
alluring winter haven of the New World-a land of never ending sunshine,
cooling trade winds, and perennial flowers.
REALITY BESIDE THE SAME SEA
Our telegraphic arrangements for accommodations having been carried
through successfully, we tumbled into the automobiles outside the station at
Miami and started for Alton Beach, which stretches its matchless loveliness
along a palm-fronded peninsula, separated from the city of Miami by Biscayne
way
THE BEACH TOWARD THE CAS/NO
the beach, from which the observer can see full thirty miles out across the grana old Gulf Stream, which century in and out pushes
through the frigid waters of the A tlantic and makes the British Isles possible for humanity.
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on
top of the tower
the
View from
Bay, bridged for all of its two and a half miles of sparkling water by a splendid
structure which is as easily traversed and is as comfortable as a boulevard.
There are but two ways of communicating thought~the spoken and the
written word~and neither can do full justice to this semi-tropical paradise~
a land caressed by ever -blowing trade winds, on the shore of a summer sea so
invitingly balmy from November to April that one would think it the North
Atlantic in August!
LIVING UP TO THE. BRAG
'.
Nature has given Alton Beach a situation on the South Atlantic seaboard
without a rival as a winter resort, for the warmth-giving Gulf Stream laves
its wondrous strand, making mid-winter bathing, day in and day out, from
October to April, not a mere possibility, but an assure:d delight; and, more-
over, the same Dame Nature has caused sunny skies to shine practically every
day in the year.
Of course, there is a rainy season, but this occurs during the summer
months, and therefore does not. interfere with the outdoor sports of winter
visitors. Then, too, one finds a wealth of foliage, flowers, and feathers which
equals that of the real tropics, and a kindly Heaven has caused the White
Cavalry of King Neptune to break their first charge several miles out, upon
the great coral reef which parallels the Florida coast for many leagues. Thus
the surf bathing is remarkable for its safety for young and old alike:, since the
treacherous undertow is eliminated and the buoyant waters of the Gulf Stream,
so heavily impregnated with salt, are at once invigorating and full of infinite
delights, "come day, go day."
BLAZING A TRAIL
I felt like another Columbus when discovering Alton Beach, but soon
learned that captains of industry and cosmopolites~in short, men and women
having means to seek pleasure and comforts in every clime in the world~had
quite out-Columbused me, and had settled upon this Eldorado of Outdoor
Joys some time before my advent. That is why it had so rapidly developed
into the most delightfully restful resort which Nature, supplemented by great
expenditures of money and forethought, has yet been able to provide for the
man who, having earned his surcease from executive grind and business toil,
seeks a winter haven for his family and himself. .
Deciding that there was much to study in this Midwinter Night's Dream,
I delved beneath the lid and will tell you what I found.
THE WORK OF A FEW EMPIRE-BUILDERS
Appreciating to the full Nature's largess, more bountifully displayed
here than in any other spot the world over, a few Illen, themselves seekers
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THE AL TON BEACH GOLF CLUB
eighteen hole course has splendid greens and well kept turf to tempt the golfer, while natural and artificial hazards thlOughout
best efforts- 'tis a "sporty" course, in the vernacular of the devotee.
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A GLIMPSE OF THE GOLF COURSE
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G. Fisher.
Carl
The Beach Drive Residence of Mr.
after outdoor joys tempered with creature comforts, having come, seen, and
been conquered by the pristine charm of this place, set about to make its nat-
ural beauties and advantages available to others likewise in search of health
and relaxation,
Millions of dollars they expended on Alton Beach-in fact, a larger sum
than has been lavished upon any other resort throughout the globe in the same
length of time, not excepting the far-famed Biarrit2;, that favorite retreat of
Spanish aristocracy, or even the romantic pleasure grounds along the Riviera.
You have awaiting you here a magnificent bathing pavilion and casino on
the ocean front, with spacious Roman pools alongside, in which those who
love swimming without the buffeting that the surf affords find in their gradu-
ated depths safe and healthful enjoyment, There is a matchless polo field;
wonderful tennis courts; superb golf links; the finest motor-boat race-course
on the Atlantic seaboard: miles of dustless, joy-giving macadam roadway; C02;y
homes and sumptuous villas, parks and landscape gardens-every structure in
entire harmony with the soft lines and atmosphere of the tropics-all having
sprung into being as if from the wand of some invisible genii.
The wonderments of Alton Beach, its beauty and charming atmosphere,
cannot be told in generalities; and my mind runs faster than my pen as I
picture the scenes the sheer loveliness of which even the camera can but
faintly convey,
Less than a decade ago Altonia was covered with a tropical vegetation
dense as an Indian jungle, In those days, the only means of access to the
peninsula, which forms the eastern shores of Biscayne Bay, was by means of
a sailboat or launch from Miami, and the story of man's defeat by the mild-
mannered bunny sounds almost like a fable of iEsop.
COUNTING WITHOUT "BRER RABBIT"
About 50 years ago a company of planters secured for a song nearly 40
miles of beach from Alton Beach northward for the purpose of raising coco-
nuts, Sailing ships, manned by giant negroes from the Lower Bahama Islands,
just across the Gulf Stream, were sent to South America to bring back choice
coconuts for planting. Upon arrival off Altonia a favorable tide was awaited,
and thousands upon thousands of coconuts were tossed overboard to be
washed ashore, where they were followed by the negroes, who were tied
together with long ropes at equal distances apart. Each negro, upon reaching
the end of his particular length of rope, would dig a hole in the sand with his
foot, plant a coconut, and pass along. Labor was plentiful and cheap in those
days and it did not take long to complete the planting of a great coconut nursery.
The shrewd planters thought that they had covered every possible point
which would militate against their success, and prepared to sit back and await
dividends, for the coconut palm in that wonderful climate grows ten feet a
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THE LINCOLN
cozy hotel on Alton Beach facing the Golf Course.
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WINTER RESIDENCE OF MR. JOHN H. HANAN
rapid and substantial has been the development of Alto'n Beach since wealthy visitors from the Central Wes(and N~rth began to know of
been the Winter Play Ground of the discerning for generations, instead of but four short years.
So
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THE BRIDGE ACROSS BISCA YNE BA Y
This splendid structure spanning the two and a half miles of water between Alton Beach and Miami is a charming
drive at all times, because of the eVer blowing breeze and the ever changing cloud effects. With the early completion
of the Giant Causeway which is being constructed of concrete and steel, an even more enjoyable link. between A ltonia
and the fourth largest city of Florida will be available.
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A LITTLE DUCK TAKES TO THE WATER
It is charming to see little tots enjoying the waters of the Roman pools during the ea~ly morning "children"s hours,~
Competent instructors quickly establish a confidence which banishes fear and naturally water mastery results. Tht<
value and availability of these unrivaled pools beside the sea must be actuallJ} enjoyed to be fully appreciated.
THE POLO FIELD AT ALTONIA
For real lovers of polo this field is a joy, because'in practical excellence it takes rank with those famous battlegrounds
of Aiken and Meadowbrook. '
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THE RESIDENCE OF MR. JAMES H. SNOWDEN
of such residences throughout the a,ea of Altonia give more than a passing &uggestion of the fine class of structures which have been erected by people of discerning
sound resources for their winter residence.
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BUCKING THE GULF STREAM
Key Wes to Nassau and to Havana bring out some of the
fifty-footer built at Alton Beach.
to
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cruising
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Near by is a magnificent casino, which also fronts the ocean, the last
word in artistic semi-tropical architecture, having as one of its chief attractions
a superb ballroom and banquet hall.
For the golf enthusiast, one finds at Alton Beach a spacious and at'
tractive club,house overlooking an IS,hole course, carefully laid out by one
of the nation's leading golf experts, A really sporty course it is, having
among its most interesting ha~ards a picturesque "water jump" spanned at
proper distances by Japanese bridges.
In the realms of tennis the facilities at Alton Beach are particularly
unique; for, in addition to numerous outdoor courts, with professionals in
attendance for teaching and coaching, there is a mammoth glass,roof tennis
building which has no rival anywhere. This court is brilliantly illuminated
for evening matches, and the outdoor courts, both clay and cement, thanks
to the dry winter season, are in perfect condition from October to the end
of April,
POLO GIVES PLACE TEMPORARILY TO AVIATION
Before our country entered the world war, Alton Beach especially prided
itself on its perfectly equipped polo field, one of the hobbies of the man who
is responsible for the development of this winter playground. The govern'
ment, however, recognizing the advantages of the salubrious climate of Miami,
land, needed the polo ground for an aviation field. The request was instantly
granted and the field, which cost forty thousand dollars to complete, was
turned over to Uncle Sam. When the war is over the swift ponies will
again scamper over a turf which equals that of Aiken and Meadowbrook.
In addition to this aviation field on Alton Beach, the navy has completed
a million,dollar air,training school at Miami. Here is also located a private
flying school, conducted by Curtiss, and the Army Engineer Corps maintains
a field for experimental purposes; which surely attest to atmospheric condi,
tions admirably adapted to safe flying.
AL TONiA A FISHING ELDORADO
When it comes to a question of fishing, I always think of the eternal
question which the Sphinx is supposed to ask: "Are all fishermen liars, or do
only liars fish?" One must needs stand high in the Veracity League to be
believed at home when fishing experiences in the Gulf Stream are recounted,
because the catches for size, variety, and number challenge description. Along
with its sea,bathing, golf, horseback riding, tennis, motor,boat racing, and polo,
the supremacy of Alton Beach as a winter play'ground is generally measured
by what it offers to the amateur and master fisherman, Nowhere in all the
Seven Seas is found a more prolific source of supply than in the deeps of the
old Atlantic just off Alton Beach, easily accessible by motor boat. Here one
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to April
THE CALL OF THE WATER
There is no safer nor more delightful beach than that of Altonia. The water and air temperature in mid-winter IS liIee that of the northern beaches in August.
,esidents never tire of the opportunit:y to enjoJJ the healthful sport and likewise the social events which the ocean and the Casino offer dailJJ from mid-October
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THE FLIGHT OF THE SHADOWS
and" Shadow I V, " the speed 'cruisers par excellence. "Shadow III, " after breaking the world's record over a measured
immediately tendered to and accepted by the Government for active work in protecting our coast.
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may experience the thrill of outgaming the flashing sailfish or dolphin, of
matching one's wits against the tiger-like barracuda, or the tarpon, while a
few miles farther out the giant whip-ray, grouper, junefish, and many other
varieties are to be located and captured by the expert with hook, line, and
harpoon,
I could write a book on the fishing glories of this region, should I tell, for
instance, of the thousands of gamy Spanish-mackerel that are taken out of these
Alton Beach waters week after week for shipment to northern markets, or of
the fun of taking the red and gray snapper, the gloriously colored angel fish,
and a hundred other gamsters of the finny tribe; for there are 700 known
varieties in these Florida waters, making up about one-fifth of the entire fauna
of America north of Panama, So you see that trolling for kingfish, jack, bluefish,
spotted sea trout, and myriads of others makes Alton Beach a fisherman's
happy hunting ground indeed,
A NEW WORLD AWAITS YOU
This Gulf Stream which laves the shores of Alton Beach is day and
night, century in and out, ever and always pushing back the icy waters of the
North Atlantic with relentless strength, and eventually forcing its way
through the great ocean; it saves the British Isles from a climate and tempera-
ture corresponding to that of Labrador. No human yardstick can measure the
value of this God-given warm river to mankind.
Just across the Gulf Stream, which is 50 miles wide, lie the Lower Bahama
Islands, Think of the joys of sailing over a summer sea for a few hours and
of approaching a low-lying coral island, covered with luxuriant tropical vege-
tation, plumed with towering coconut palms protecting the primitive houses
of the few score Old World inhabitants, as quaint and interesting as though
they had stepped out of a book.
Can you imagine the waters for miles off shore being so perfectly clear
that one can easily see the white-sand bottom and bewildering submarine gar-
dens 50 feet below. As the sunlight strikes these multi-hued waters, you
behold the garden of the sea-nymphs, the home of Aphrodite! Far beneath
you see through the translucent waters of this vast aquarium, lovely gardens,
of undreamed-of sea flora of delicate tint. Some are pale pink, others light
yellow, and some brown as leaves in autumn, surrounding the vivid purple
and scarlet sea anemones, which cling to the summits of beds of pearly
coral. Here violet sea-fans wave gently to and fro. There are groves of
wonderful sponges, and yonder beds of marine flowers of all kinds and shapes.
Fish as brilliant as humming birds-red, blue, metallic green and orange-
glide in and out of the branches of this strange submarine vegetation, which
is crossed and re-crossed in all directions by pathways of the soft, silvered
sand. Your eyes are filled with gradations of colors challenging every hue
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AN AVENUE OiF ROYAL PALMS
The towering dignity of the Royal Palms which border the roadway fill the eye and gladden the heart
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of the spectrum and it brings to the visitor from Alton Beach the joy of the
mysterious, the thrill of seeking out the unusual; indeed, every romantic beauty
of the South Sea Islands is to be found among the Bahamas, and the inhabi-
tants are as unusual as the tiny islands that they are born, live and die upon,
MOTOR-BOAT RACING AND YACHTING
No recreation dear to the heart of lovers of outdoors is held in higher
favor about Miami than is cruising and motor-boating,
The new government tidal canal from the ocean into Biscayne Bay pro-
vides a channel 18 feet in depth to the harbor at mean low tide, and here the
lordly cruiser, the palatial house-boat, and the speedy runabout alike find hos-
pitable anchorage.
The annual mid-winter motor-boat regatta, held on a 2y,'-mile course just
off Alton Beach, in the more quiet waters of Biscayne Bay, can be witnessed
from the grandstand accommodating several thousand spectators, and here
take place each winter sporting events of international note. So has Altonia
come to be a rendez.vous for the social and financial aristocracy of America.
Scores of men whose names are known from coast to coast have built beauti-
ful homes and spend the winters with their families at Alton Beach because
of its sheer beauty, glorious climate, and wealth of outdoor sports.
Motor-boat owners and those who travel in their yachts find it entirely
practicable to cruise down to Alton Beach by the inland waterway, which
extends along our Eastern seaboard northward a thousand miles beyond Jack-
sonville, and here at the height of the winter season scores of visiting yachts
and all manner of pleasure craft ride gracefully at anchor, stretching for two
miles along Miami's sea-wall. Alton Beach has in operation the largest and
best equipped boat-building plant for speed types and cruisers south of New
York, and the expert designers and builders have turned out a number of
speedsters that establish new world records on the Alton course year after year.
MANY DELIGHTS FOR THE MOTORIST
In addition to the Dixie Highway, which does so much to link the North
and the South and has its southern terminus in Miami, there are more than
600 miles of perfect roads radiating in every direction from Miami, Good
roads are plentiful in Florida, because just a few feet below the surface of the
ground is a soft marl rock that hardens to the consistency of asphalt when
exposed to the air for a short time. Therefore, when this wonderful surface
is oiled, it can give cards and spades to any other roadway which man's
ingenuity has yet provided.
One of the most interesting of the highways out of Miami is the unique
Tamiami Trail, which is being built "as a crow flies" across the Florida Ever-
glades, so famous in the L:gcnds and history of the Seminole Indians, Thirty
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reminds one of a miniature Suez.
A WATERWAY THROUGH ALTONIA
This picturesque passage for power boats extends from Biscayne Bay to the Ocean. It
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APPROACHING' THE TINY ISLAND OF BIMINI
extreme western rim of the Lower Bahama group isjust on the'edge of T~ngue of the Ocean, that wonderland of the South Atlantic.
Banks, known the world over for its deep sea fishing and delightful cruising, is on I)) a few hours ,un from Alton Beach.
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This lovely
. . VON'T YOU HEAR THEM CALLING YOUI
wonderful photograph Was taken not in a tank'as one would think, but about eight feel under water in the Gulf Stream.
goatfish, yel/ow grunts, parrot fish and a schoolmaster. Their seeming confusion is due to the presence of a barracuda,
This
Posing for their portrait are gray snappers, yellow
their natural enemy, in their neighborhood.
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and the eVer blooming flowers
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A MIAMI HOMESTEAD
the slw-sweeping Australian pines simply fill the eye 0/ the beholder
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WHERE THE WORLD'S CLOUDS SEEM TO FOREGATHER
and wondrous Cloud effects of this Happy Hunting Ground of Nature hold one enthralled. Look.ing toward the City of Miami from Alton Beach at sunse
The glory of the sunsets
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WHERE THE FAMILY POLICEMAN IS BANISHED
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In my eagerness to tell something of the sheer joys of Altonia, I have for,
gotten all about my family, but I know that the youngsters are disporting
themselves in the Roman pools, under the careful eye of the competent swim'
ming instructor, while the older ones are sunning themselves on the beach
with their friends or listening to the music of the waves from points of vantage
at the casino, so everybody is happy-and, say, I might as well confess, I'm
going to be a winter resident of AI.ton Beach from now on, because the house.-
hold burdens are lightened by the splendid stores of every kind in nearby Miami,
and because Altonia has every convenience, such as a splendid water supply,
electric lights, auto,bus line to town, to say nothing of an electric car line now
being constructed, telephone system-indeed, all one has to do is to reach out
and touch the button to make the welkin ring!
Last, but most important, the folks one meets here are charming, for only
those of discerning taste and sound resources are encouraged to build their
winter homes on Alton Beach, and somebody gifted with a sixth sense seems
to have carefully selected them-if one can judge by the scores of delight,
ful people one meets.
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L'ENVOI
Although my quill were dipped in liquid rhetoric, I could not do justice
to this wonder'spot; so come and see for yourself; and having seen it, there
is no doubt in my mind a,s to your captivation-that is, if you are a regular
American of the approved type, who loves Out-of-door sports in a land of blue
sky and golden sunset, overrunning with all the creature comforts to fall back
on when hospitality is to be offered or accepted.
Yes, in good truth, "It lives up to its brag."