g to be sure about," said Mollie grimly,
"but we may as well face the worst. Grace, let's you and I look to our
stock of provisions."

"What for?" asked Grace, who had found a few stray pieces of candy in a
box, and was contentedly eating them.

"Well, if we're lost that doesn't mean we're not going to eat, and if we
have enough for supper and breakfast----"

"Breakfast!" cried Grace. "Are we going to be here for breakfast?"

"And stay out all night?" added Amy.

"There may be no help for it," said Betty as calmly as she could. "We
have slept aboard before this, and we can do it again."

"But you're not going to give up without trying to get back to the
grove; are you?" asked Mollie, who, after the first shock, was her own
brave self again, as was Betty.

"Of course I'm going to try," replied Betty. "But that doesn't mean
we'll get there. Often, after you're lost, trying to find your way back
again only makes you lost the more--especially with night coming on."

"But what are we going to do?" queried Grace blankly. She had ceased
eating candy now.

"Well, it's very evident that we're not going the right way," went on
Betty. "The farther we go the more sure I am that we were never on this
part of the stream before. So I think we had better turn back, and, if
necessary, start over again from where we had lunch.

"We may be able to see the right turn by starting over once more. Then
we will be all right. Once I am started on the right track I think I can
follow it. We have a compass, and I noticed, in a general way, which
direction we came, though I was not as careful as I should have been."

"But it will be very dark," objected Amy. "It is getting darker all the
while."

"That will be the worst of it," admitted Betty frankly, "and if we find
we can't go on, we shall have to tie up for the night. We might do
worse."

"But anchor far enough from shore so that nothing can--get us," pleaded
Grace. "No alligators, I mean."

"Don't worry--they won't come aboard," declared Betty.

"These rivers are split up into a lot of side brooks, bayous and such
things," said Mollie. "Tom mentioned that, and he said that often one
could wander about in them being close to the right route all the while,
and yet not know a thing about it."

"Cheerful prospect," remarked Grace.

"Oh, I'm sure we'll get on the right stream--sometime," spoke Mollie
cheerfully. "What do you say--had we not better turn back?"

They all agreed