Paddling under Palmettos — page 231: what you’re looking at

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

224 Paddling Under Palmettos. To go on meant a possible encounter with the savage beast. Perhaps the animal was lying in wait ahead for him. He would not turn back, and to camp here meant continued danger. Ah! an idea—he would get a torch. The animal had been afraid of fire on the preced- ing night, and would no doubt feel timid in the pres- ence of a torch now. The idea was a good one; why not try it? It was easy to find some inflammable stuff, as the leaves of the palmetto when dry burn like tinder. When he had made a little fire out of several leaves, he found some pieces of pine that would serve him in lieu of better torches. These he made a bundle of and thrust into the flames. In a few minutes they were burning at a lively rate. Then Archie proceeded on his journey. In one hand he held the rifle ready for instant use; the other grasped the torch and raised it above his head. Gomicbooks.co