.96 



The Atiicrkan Anzler. 



were all landing fish as fast as we 

 could, until about twenty-five or thirty 

 had been caught. Then they stopped 

 biting-. The pargito is a fish weighing 

 from one to five pounds, of a dark lead 

 color above and white below. In shape 

 they are very similar to a black bass, 

 and make a good fight when hooked. 



Now we'll go up the river a bit to 

 where that overhanging tree-covered 

 cliff throws its shade into the water, 

 and tie up to a snag and try our luck 

 again. There the bottom is rock, and 

 we may hook something large. Bait 

 with shrimp and let the hand lines 

 hang behind the boat in the current, 

 while, with the poles, try your hand at 

 casting. "Throw as far as you can, 

 Judge, but be careful not to snap that 

 shrimp off your hook. They are very 

 tender. You've got him. Judge. 

 How the reel spins. Don't try to stop 

 him yet, or he'll smash line, rod and 

 everything. See him break water. 

 There are one hundred and fifty yards 

 on the reel, so let him go a bit. Now 

 draw him in a little." Twenty minutes 

 of fight and he lays flapping in the 

 boat — a fifteen pound striped pargo. 

 After an hour of fishing, in which 

 twenty or thirty fish of various sizes 

 were caught, they stopped biting, and 

 we concluded to go through the estero 

 to Pueblo Viejo. The tide was with 

 us and we drifted and paddled up the 

 river and turned into the estero, about 

 a hundred yards wide at its mouth. 

 This must have been a great place for 

 oysters once. You see that the banks 

 are a mass of oyster shells. Those 

 poles driven V-shaped are fish traps 

 and supply Tatnpico market with 

 shrimp and river fish as they come 

 from the lake with the tide. This is 

 one of the minor highways of com- 

 merce. Do you notice the canoes laden 



with corn, fruit, beans and fish that 

 are constantly passing us? The old 

 town and the smaller villages of this 

 region get their supplies by water, 

 going down with the tide and coming 

 back with it. That canoe seems to 

 have a family party aboard. The lady 

 in the stern, with the sun iimbrella over 

 her head and sandal-shod feet on the 

 gunwale, evidently considers her com- 

 plexion of the first importance, even if 

 it is chocolate-colored. I am a little 

 hungry and thirsty. Shall we go up to 

 that palm-leaf house and ask for their 

 hospitality? It has an inviting look. 

 At least, the doors are wide open, and, 

 after this sun on the water, the shade 

 of its roof will be comfortable. 



We left our canoe on the bank and 

 went up to the house to ask for a drink 

 and a light lunch. The ladies of the 

 family came to the fence to welcome us, 

 while two of the j^oung gentlemen 

 stood by the gate to usher us in. The 

 patriarch and founder of the settlement 

 stood by himself in placid dignity, 

 watching the arrival of the strangers. 

 Our hosts were pleasant people, with 

 black eyes, shining teeth, cheery smile 

 and ample person, whose round arms 

 and well-developed busts suggested the 

 good things of this life taken "Otium 

 cum dignitate. " We passed a pleas- 

 ant hour in their company listening to 

 the tales of sharks, smugglers, floods 

 and forests, sandwiched in between the 

 courses of shrimp salad, fried bananas, 

 and quesadillas. The old gentleman 

 told us what he had done, and the 

 young men what they hoped to do. 



Not to lose the flood tide, we told 

 them "adios," re-embarked and pur- 

 sued the voyage up the inlet another 

 mile, past islands and fish traps, until, 

 rounding a point, the town and lake 

 came into view. 



