26 MALAYAN FISHES. 
This, then, is the manner of their capture. There will come a 
moment when a great wave, like a wall, hurls itself on the beach. 
In fact these waves do it all the time! However, there is mea. ure 
of two or three moments and no more when that wave stands like 
a wall between you and the fish, and the fish forget your existence. 
In that brief time your caster of the mullet net sprints down to the 
very verge of the breaking wave and up to or over his knees in the 
water; the mae truly held and truly swung, with a long pendalum 
swing, clears the crest of the approaching wave and falls fairly on 
the group of mullet concealed in the hollow ‘beyond, and in this way 
perhaps he may be fortunate enough to take one or two hundred 
fish in one cast. But you will serve a long apprembiceship, and will, 
when learning, throw half a hundred times and have no mullet 
When the sport is in full swing perhaps 10 or 20 men dart 
simultaneously down the beach and as many nets shoot out and 
over the waves. Suddenly there comes a wild yell of excitement. 
Pélong which have been disturbed or enclosed in the Anding nets 
leap several feet in the air and break their way through the 
nets. Silvery six-pounders and even larger fish instinctively jump 
when their brothers jump. There is a rush up the beach and a 
race back to the breakers with the Pélong nets. The nets are 
thrown at random (tebar rambang) in every direction. There 
may be a shoal of Pélong and, if so, some excitement I promise 
you. 
Once a Pélong sees the net over him, he makes one upward 
dash to the apex of the net. The fisherman hurls himself at the 
fish and must grasp him then or not at all, for the next powerful 
dash for liberty takes the fish down to the bottom and he is under 
the chains and out of the net before you can wink. Out of your 
depth in a strong surf with a couple of lusty Pélong in your arms 
and a smother of net, chain and cord about you, you come to the 
conclusion that life was never more worth living and that if you 
are off to kingdom come you will take the Pélong with you. 
As I write, at Tanjong Katong, Singapore, I can see some 
Boyanese, syces probably, with baby casting nets catching shrimps, 
sprats and baby fish in a sea like glass; a miserable messy busi- 
ness. The real gladiators of the casting net are to be found only 
on the East coast. 
Our Mullet (Belanak) include the Jempul (Mugil planiceps) 
which attains at least a foot and a half in length. 
The Tamok (M. waigiensis), according to Day, attains at 
least 3 feet in length. The Anding and Kédéra, which grow to 
about a foot and a half, are excellent eating. 
The Bélanak tamok (M. waigiensis) is known in Australia 
as the Diamond Scaled Mullet. It attains a weight of several 
pounds and is of a pretty silvery colour, each scale being prettily 
margined with black. 
