Paddling under Palmettos — page 187: what you’re looking at

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

180 Paddling Under Palmettos. There was an unpleasant feature to the case—the chance of losing themselves in that great wilderness. They looked at such a possibility with calm delibera- tion, and were not alarmed. When there seemed to be a prospect of the wind shifting to the west or northwest, according to the signs read by the old captain, they bade their good friends farewell, and accompanied by their best wishes, set sail. Arriving near the inlet, they found that the time was not propitious for crossing, and hence came to anchor. About ten o’clock the tide was full. Wuth it came a calm. Then the wind began to pull out of the northwest. This suited them beautifully, and they made the run over the bar in gallant style. They were not alone. A sharpie owned by Char- lie Moore accompanied them, being bound also for Biscayne Bay, with two men aboard. There was now a run of some hours before them, the dangers of which were not to be treated lightly. Going to sea in a canoe only thirty-one inches beam by fifteen feet in length, is not the safest thing in the (E@NMIELOOOL KS (E()