Paddling under Palmettos — page 144: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

Paddling Under Palmettos. 137 night-blooming cereus at that, all about the room in this wintry time. One could hardly believe it was January. Captain Richards pressed them to remain and go on a deer hunt. The deer were scarce up above, for the Indians had cleared them out, but some might be found within five miles of Eden. “How is that, captain?” asked Ned. “Thereby hangs a true tale. Some years ago, during a terrible storm, some wretched Seminole braves came’here and asked shelter. They,were in a pitiable condition. We let them sleep in one of the boats, and fed them until the weather settled. When they were going off one of them came to me, and sweeping his hand back toward the pine woods said: | “‘Captain hunt deer?’ “T said I expected to later on, when I found time. ““Tndian no hunt captain’s deer,’ said the fellow as he walked off. “Very little in itself, but it meant much, for there has not been an Indian hunting within miles of Eden for three years. The fellow kept his word.” Gomicbooks