﻿[13] 
  THE 
  GULF 
  FISHING 
  GROUNDS 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  229 
  

  

  a 
  light 
  southeast 
  breeze, 
  and 
  the 
  weather 
  continued 
  favorable 
  through- 
  

   out 
  the 
  day, 
  the 
  wind 
  increasing 
  slightly, 
  and 
  veering 
  a 
  little, 
  perhaps, 
  

   but 
  not 
  enough 
  to 
  be 
  considered 
  a 
  material 
  change. 
  

  

  At 
  5.45 
  a. 
  m. 
  a 
  sounding 
  was 
  taken 
  in 
  10 
  fathoms; 
  tine 
  white 
  sand, 
  

   hit. 
  29° 
  31/ 
  K, 
  long. 
  85° 
  30' 
  20" 
  W. 
  Our 
  object 
  was 
  to 
  get 
  on 
  the 
  

   "Old 
  Cape 
  Ground," 
  a 
  well-known 
  and 
  favorite 
  fishing 
  bank 
  for 
  red 
  

   snappers 
  off 
  Cape 
  San 
  Idas, 
  and 
  which 
  lay 
  a 
  little 
  farther 
  offshore, 
  where 
  

   the 
  water 
  was 
  deeper, 
  the 
  depths 
  most 
  generally 
  resorted 
  to 
  in 
  tins 
  

   region 
  at 
  this 
  season 
  being 
  from 
  20 
  to 
  31 
  fathoms, 
  though 
  during 
  the 
  

   spring 
  and 
  summer 
  snappers 
  are 
  frequently 
  taken 
  inshore 
  in 
  much 
  shal- 
  

   lower 
  water. 
  

  

  After 
  making 
  the 
  sounding 
  alluded 
  to 
  above 
  the 
  ship 
  headed 
  to 
  the 
  

   southward, 
  and 
  two 
  successive 
  soundings 
  were 
  made, 
  one 
  at 
  0.25 
  and 
  the 
  

   other 
  at 
  0.55 
  a. 
  m., 
  without 
  deepening 
  the 
  water, 
  that 
  last 
  mentioned 
  

   giving 
  only 
  15 
  fathoms. 
  Finally, 
  at 
  8.11 
  a. 
  m., 
  we 
  sounded 
  in 
  27 
  fathoms 
  

   (hit. 
  29° 
  10' 
  20" 
  K, 
  long. 
  S5° 
  34' 
  W.), 
  on 
  a 
  bottom 
  of 
  gray 
  and 
  black 
  sand 
  

   and 
  shells. 
  The 
  bottom 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  depth 
  was 
  favorable, 
  and 
  lines 
  

   were 
  immediately 
  put 
  out, 
  baited 
  with 
  salt 
  mackerel. 
  No 
  sooner 
  had 
  

   they 
  reached 
  bottom 
  than 
  first 
  one 
  and 
  then 
  another 
  of 
  those 
  fishing 
  

   had 
  a 
  vigorous 
  bite, 
  and 
  a 
  few 
  minutes 
  later 
  several 
  red 
  snappers 
  were 
  

   landed 
  on 
  deck, 
  and 
  also 
  some 
  porgies 
  and 
  a 
  red 
  grouper. 
  A 
  dozen 
  lines 
  

   were 
  now 
  out, 
  and 
  fishing 
  began 
  in 
  good 
  earnest, 
  but 
  success 
  was 
  at 
  

   first 
  often 
  interfered 
  with 
  by 
  the 
  hooks 
  being 
  stripped 
  of 
  bait 
  before 
  

   a 
  fish 
  could 
  be 
  caught. 
  If 
  a 
  fish 
  failed 
  to 
  swallow 
  the 
  hook 
  sufficiently 
  

   for 
  its 
  point 
  to 
  fasten 
  in 
  his 
  mouth 
  he 
  invariably 
  took 
  the 
  bait, 
  as 
  long 
  

   as 
  mackerel 
  were 
  used, 
  the 
  result 
  being 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  "water 
  hauls" 
  that 
  

   were 
  certainly 
  not 
  satisfactory 
  to 
  those 
  engaged 
  in 
  fishing. 
  But 
  this 
  

   difficulty 
  was 
  soon 
  averted 
  by 
  using 
  bait 
  cut 
  from 
  the 
  sides 
  of 
  the 
  

   porgies, 
  and 
  very 
  excellent 
  and 
  tough 
  bait 
  this 
  was 
  ; 
  but 
  this 
  is 
  about 
  

   .all 
  that 
  the 
  species 
  is 
  good 
  for, 
  as 
  it 
  has 
  a 
  strong, 
  disagreeable 
  odor 
  that 
  

   makes 
  it 
  repulsive 
  for 
  food.* 
  

  

  The 
  snappers 
  caught 
  on 
  this 
  occasion 
  were 
  small, 
  the 
  largest 
  not 
  ex- 
  

   ceeding 
  10 
  pounds 
  in 
  weight, 
  while 
  the 
  average 
  would 
  probably 
  not 
  

   be 
  above 
  5 
  pounds. 
  Porgies 
  were 
  almost 
  as 
  numerous 
  as 
  the 
  snap- 
  

   pers, 
  and 
  even 
  more 
  so 
  after 
  a 
  little 
  while. 
  They 
  served 
  a 
  good 
  purpose 
  

   in 
  supplying 
  us 
  with 
  bait, 
  but 
  their 
  skill 
  in 
  " 
  skinning" 
  the 
  hooks 
  proved 
  

   a 
  source 
  of 
  annoyance. 
  After 
  the 
  fishing 
  had 
  continued 
  for 
  twenty 
  

   minutes 
  or 
  a 
  half 
  hour, 
  the 
  ship 
  drifted 
  away 
  from 
  the 
  snappers, 
  and 
  

   nothing 
  could 
  be 
  caught 
  except 
  porgies. 
  The 
  ship 
  then 
  got 
  under 
  way 
  

   the 
  fish 
  were 
  counted, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  found 
  that 
  30 
  red 
  snappers, 
  3 
  red 
  group- 
  

   ers, 
  and 
  25 
  porgies 
  had 
  been 
  caught. 
  It 
  may 
  be 
  remarked 
  incidentally 
  

   that 
  Mr. 
  Benedict, 
  the 
  resident 
  naturalist, 
  made 
  an 
  examination 
  of 
  all 
  

   the 
  fish 
  taken 
  on 
  this 
  and 
  subsequent 
  occasions 
  during 
  the 
  day, 
  for 
  the 
  

   purpose 
  of 
  securing 
  parasites 
  and 
  making 
  other 
  observations. 
  

  

  * 
  Porgies 
  are 
  used 
  for 
  food 
  at 
  Key 
  West, 
  where, 
  curiously 
  enough, 
  it 
  is 
  said 
  that 
  

   they 
  do 
  not 
  have 
  the 
  strong 
  ordor 
  that 
  is 
  their 
  chief 
  characteristic 
  ahout 
  Pensacola. 
  

  

  