Gaters, Skeeters And Malary

Recollections of a Pioneer Florida Judge

A young man on the eve of his departure for Florida in the 1880’s would be met with something like the following from his elders:

“Well, ye prob’ly won’t git back. Them there bad men’ll kill ye, er the ‘gators’ll eat ye, er the skeeters’ll give ye malary an’ that’ll kill ye.”

Undaunted, and lured by the vast realm of unexplored territory to the south of him, Ellis Connel May struck out with the same resolve that had prompted his forefathers to pioneer the West a century before. He was twenty-four years old when he first arrived in Citrus County, there to begin a career which took him in successive stages from work as a common laborer to the legal profession, culminating finally in his election to the Florida House of Representatives.

All the courage, the humor and the romance of pioneer days come to life in these tales. They are told with a vividness of detail and a warm gusto that carries the reader along. For every American who would know the glory of our country’s heritage, here is a flavorful slice of authentic American folklore.

“Most interesting. One who has spent so many years in public life…will have many interesting incidents to relate and colorful situations to describe. Such books have always invited the interest and attention of a wide circle of readers.”—R. A. GRAY, Secretary of State, Tallahassee, Florida

“Judge May is a respected patriarch of his profession and a dean of Florida judiciary. I can think of no one better qualified to draw on the richness of his personal experience in relating recollections of a pioneer judge…An interesting contribution to this field of literature.”—JACK F. WHITE, County Judge, Pinellas County, Clearwater, Florida

“It is most gratifying to me and to thousands of others that Judge Ellis C. May has written this book….This volume may be read from the standpoint of history, sociology and genealogy.”—GEORGE A. DAME, M.D., Director, Florida State Board of Health