At Lake Maxinkuckee - 1897

Pioneer Cottagers and Many New Ones Present This Year

Indiana People Who Are Spending the Summer at the Resorts In This State and Michigan

Special to the Indianapolis Journal

Lake Maxinkuckee, Ind. - Aug 1 - The Month of August is the banner month along the "coast" of Maxinkuckee and nowadays the fleet of steam launches that wait for the trains at Culver (formerly Marmont) carry heavy loads of visitors and scatter them along the shores of the beautiful Indiana lake

The cottage population is the feature of Maxinkuckee, notwithstanding the excellant accomodations afforded by the four principal hotels - the Lake View, the Bay View, the Palmer House and the Arlington.

v The cottage life has grown from a beginning of many years ago when a few enthusiastice fishermen from Indianapolis and other places journyed by stage line over miles of dusty roads to reach the old town of Maxinkuckee, which was then the nearest point to a railroad.

Summer after summer new cottages went up along the high bluffs that line the east shore. Here most of the Indianapolis people are found.

Then the Terre Haute & Logansport Railroad skirted the north shore and built a station at Marmont, hotels and cottages spranf up on theat side of the lake and now, at night time a unbroken bright crescent of lights, extending more than half arounf the entire water edge greets the eye of the visitor alighting from the train.

The Vajens, the McQuats. the Peirces, the Boggs, and the Judah's were among the Indianapolis pioneer cottage builders. To this colony many others have been added.

A falling off in the yachting spirit, compared to that of other northern lakes, is perceptible, and while the cause of this is not readily apparent, the facilities for courses being fine. It may be due in part to the perfect steam lauch service. The hoisting of a signal will bring one of thses fleet craft to a pier in a few m inutes, and what few yachts are on the lake are seldom used for mere transportation purposes.

Every cottage, however, has one or more rowboats, some having a half-dozen.

In the cool evening the water is dotted with these small craft manned by oarsmen lazily dipping their blades into the glassy surface. On many part of the lake the sunset effects are particularly gorgeous.

For their lake the Maxinkuckiana claim all things cool, air as well as water. Breezes even at midday, when the cities are broiling in the sun, bring to the lake a blessedness such as Indianapolis could only dream of in the last week.

Countless springs at the bottom of the lake and mumerous artestain wells on the shore keep the lake cool and pure, and in the winter time form the famous Maxinkuckee ice.

The temperature of the water makes the bathing invigorating. Eash cottage has a beach of its own, while near the railroad station and the Lake View Hotel is a public bathing place.

As a diversion in boating, a trip may be made to the lily ponds on the west side of the lake.

Hotel Accomodations

The hotel accomodations at the lake are much better this year than they have been in the past.

The Lake View House which is owned by the Vandalia Railroad Company, is in charge of Manager Scofield, an old time Indianapolitan, who gives carefule attention to the place. The company has spent a considerble sum on the house, and among the improvements is a large airy reception hall aslo used for dancing. A well-shaded graveled walk, widining around a ravine, leads to the hotel from the railroad station. To the east of the hotel are a number of small cottages owned by the company and leased for the season.

Among the present occupants are Mr. and Mrs. John B. Elam of Indianapolis, Attorney Williams of the Vandalia; Mr. and Mrs. Early of Terre Haute; S. P. Sheerin of Logansport. This season bought a two hundred-foot strip of ground a short distant beyond these cottages.

The Bay View, which is on the east shore was formerly a clubhouse. It is now in charge of Horace Haynes, a well know restaurant man of Indianapolis who is spending his first season at the lake. The capacity of the house is well taxed. Mr. and Mrs Fred Boggs, Mr. and Mrs. E. B. Porter and family. Mr. and Mrs. Horatio C. Newcomb, Miss Kipp, Miss Ernestinoff and other Indianapolitans are there now.

Weekly dances are a feature of the social life. On Saturday night the dances given at the Lake View. Last Monday night one was given at the Bay View.

Just beyond the Bay View is the Peirce cottage, which is occupied the year by Mr. and Mrs Chalres Sayles and Mr. and Mrs. Herman Sayles and familie of the Hoosier capital. The Vajen and McQuat cottages are further down the lake.
,br> The people living around the lake were much amuzed when they read in the Journal of the sea serpent's antics at Wawasee. This same serpent was at Maxinkuckee a year ago and the small slough it cut through the shore in escaping is still visible just back of the Arlington Hotel. The serpent remarked before leaving that he has getting a little dry under the fangs and thought of making a trip to Beeri Point Wawasee, where he might stocok up on a fresh brand of poison. Maxinkuckee was very glad to speed the parting guest. However in passing it might be well to mention another unsual occurance which has caused some little excitement at Maxinkuckee, and which, were it at Wawasee would enthuse ever the versatile Munchasusens that summer there.

Maxinkuckee Turles

Every one who has taken a boat ride from the Lake View to the Bay View Hotel this summer has had occasion to not the great number of turles in the water. A raft anchored about 400 feet off the Palmer House Beach is a favotite sunning plas for these armored inhabitants of the deep and at any hour when the raft is not in use by the bathers, for forty to one hundered turtles may be seen on the raft, with necks craned up to catch any venturesome fly that may abandon feeding gorunds ashore. The splash of oars in close proximity scarcely disturbs the turtles, and at times it is almost necessary for the bathers to scrape off the raft.

The conditions at this spot are only similar to those elsewhere over the body of water. Just at twilight the lake is almost flocked with the sinous heads that rise a hald inch above the surface.

Having become somewhat domesticated, these turtles have abandonded many of their snappy ways reaching such a state that the small boy no longer trembles for the safetly of his great toe. Being treated with consideration by the cottagers and visitors the turtles have shown a most commendable spirit in return. The effect of which is almost manifested in their conduct towards their neihgbors the perch, the bass, the catfish and the carp, all living together in an amicable and truly happy relation. That this ideal state migh have continued without any interruption, there is no doubt, had it not been for the antics of a wall-eyed pike, who for a brief season imagined he was the only thing in the pond. To the little turtles he was a frightful tormentor, while the larger turtles found him the source of much annoyance. It was sport for hime, coming behind on one of the paddling youngsters, to suddenly poke the infant under the soft side of the shell, upsetting the little one and frightening it. This sport grew tame after awhile. The pike began to poke his sharp nose under the shells. On one occasion he tackled alusty turtle and withdrew with his own nose broken off near the tip. This affray was witnessed by some of the people over at the Arlington.

A week ago a strange sight was seen just off Manager Scofield's hostelry. The water was black with the shells of turtles. Perhaps there were ten thousand of them, and perhaps not so many. Opinions vary as to this. The hard-back fellows were apparently drawn up in battle line, with the right and left wings gradually closing in to a crescent. The line advanced steadily and slowly, the necks of the turtles flopping about angrily and the myrid of tine bla eyes flashing in the sunlight. Directly to the beach the horde was making. Presently the spectators on the shore could see a long fish, at least three foot flopping about in the shallow beach water. It was a pike frantically seeking to escape the army of turtles which was urresiatibly sweeping down on it. The unfortunate's straight, bony probocls was splintered evidently from an affray that had taken place furter out in the lake. As the turles came on the pike drew nearer the shore, intill by sone superplasctural effort, he buried himself on the dry land. This brought the hour of victory to the turles which swarmed ashore and gatherd about the fallen foe. One of the turtles weighing thirty-eight pounds, was delegated to squat on the pike. In a few minutes the big fish was no more and the conguerors went back to the water to resume their serence existence. The thrity-eight pound turtle made a mistake, however, in flaunting his avoirdupole, for it invited the cupifity of several small boys. These lads captured the big 'um and sold him to the Lake View chef. The pike remained on the beach for a day and was removed under instructions from Secretary Hurty, of the State Board of Health, who was making an inspection of the lake at the time. In corroboration of this story your correspondent has the evidence of several who saw the pike on the beach the next day, as well as that of Manager Scofield, who was present whent he Lake View chef bought the thirty-eight pound turtle. - -Indianapolis Journal Aug. 9 1897