It was by no means a difficult thing to go down the river, now that
so many canoes were in motion on it, at all hours. The bee-hunter
knew what points were to be avoided, and took care not to approach a
sentinel. The river, or strait, is less than a mile wide, and by
keeping in the centre of the passage, the canoes, favored by both
wind and current, drove by the town, then an inconsiderable village,
without detection. As soon as far enough below, the canoes were
again cast loose from each other, and sail was made on each. The
water was smooth, and some time before the return of light the
fugitives were abreast of Malden, but in the American channel. Had
it been otherwise, the danger could not have been great. So
completely were the Americans subdued by Hull's capitulation, and so
numerous were the Indian allies of the British, that the passage of
a bark canoe, more or less, would hardly have attracted attention.
At that time, Michigan was a province of but little more than a
name. The territory was wide, to be sure, but the entire population
was not larger than that of a moderately sized English market town,
and Detroit was then regarded as a distant and isolated point.
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