Florida Keys' Watercolor Kapers by Bob Kranich

The Brown Pelican, (Part 4, Excerpt 26)

In this new story, a Brown Pelican talks about the history of the Florida Keys and how the Brown Pelican was there when it all happened.

The Brown Pelican

What’s next, you say? It’s now the 1800’s. The pirates have been bothersome and dangerous. The Spanish gold bullion treasure ships have been long gone so now the pirates are attacking United States ships of commerce. The United States of America is a growing country and people demand protection from, and an end to, the pirates. Enter the U. S. Navy.

We are now off our same beach. Some of our first pirates’ ancestors have been visiting the mentioned cove just around the corner from our beach. A pirate lookout has just seen a tall ship’s sails on the horizon. All bedlam breaks out. The pirates run for their longboats and hurriedly row out to their schooner. Already some on board the schooner have begun to unfurl the sails.

There is a mad scramble to get aboard, load their longboats, and assist their compatriots in the goal to get away from the tall ship which is fast bearing down on them. The sails catch a good breeze and as they are picking up speed the first warning shot flies across their bow.

The tall ship is flying from its masthead the red, white, and blue of the United States of America. Right below it, waving in the breeze is a blue U. S. Navy pennant.

The pirate ship rushes to evade its pursuers, as the two bow chaser canons of the Navy ship continue to fire. We pelicans aren’t hanging around to watch the fireworks. We make a beeline for the protection of the trees on the sound side of the Key.

Since the first quarter of this century, after the U. S. Navy took over Key West, Florida, the pirates began to look for other parts of the Caribbean to take their activities. They were quickly becoming unwelcome anywhere near the United States shores.

From the Author:

My second full-length book , Florida Keys’ Watercolor Kapers is composed of 336 pages. There are 12 stories running from 6 pages to as many as 72 pages. It is fully illustrated with 88 watercolors and sketches. The watercolors I made roaming around Key West after I finished my 750 mile hike from Georgia to Key West. (See book or Don Browne’s SouthWest Florida Online News records, A Walk Across Florida.) As you read these stories you will experience Key West, the Keys, and the Caribbean. These stories span the time of the early 1800’s to 1969. bkranich.wixsite.com/bobkranich