Looking into Liikc OkcccholM'c I'loiii Wrst I'alm l'>c;icli C-iiial (sec map, page 686), wliicli 

 has been dredged through a heavy sand ridge thrown >ip along this shore by westerly winds. 

 Pond apple trees may be seen at the sides of the canal, and the tops of the cypress trees facing 

 the lake are visible, rising above the pond apples 



as far as tlie bottom of the canal was 

 concerned. This lock is not a real one, 

 but an improvised and homemade af- 

 fair, and really a wonder ! Each gate 

 consisted of a score of separate pieces 

 of planking which had to be handled 

 piece by piece when the gates were 

 opened and closed. But, fortunately, 

 it dammed up enougli water to float a 



boat of three or four feet draft and 

 thus keep it from striking on the bot- 

 tom of the canal. The lock at the edge 

 of the lake is in the same condition as 

 in 1913— that is, the place where it is 

 to be is marked out on the canal banks. 

 Upon entering the lake we were lost. 

 The water level was from five to seven 

 feet lower than it fnrmcrlv had l^een, 





Defying alligators and giant catfish in the dark waters, we gradually maneuvered the boat 

 into a deeper channel a quarter of a mile to the northward. The expedition's party on the 

 "Barbee" was democratic, sometimes all were officers — and sometimes all were crew, as when 

 the boat struck this bank of putty like mud near Kreamer Island. The "Barbee" was generously 

 outfitted for the expedition by Mr. Charles Deering, of Miami. Besides the captain and a man 

 who acted as crew and cook, there were three scientists aboard, namely, a conchologist, a horti- 

 culturist, and a botanist 



687 



