FISHING AT ST. AUGUSTINE. 119 



prevalence of the catfish, which is of all sizes, from the 

 tiny youngster of three inches to the full-grown pater 

 familias of two feet or more. These are of a gray color, 

 and shaped like their Northern brethren, but covered 

 with a thick, tough slime, just as the eels of the North 

 are, and the result is, your hook, line, and fingers and 

 often clothes get covered with this sticky substance. 

 Your hook and line must be thoroughly cleansed, or no 

 other fish will touch it ; your hands and clothes are at 

 your option. Another favorite fishing place is from the 

 bridge over the San Sebastian, just at the back of the 

 town. At any or all of these places you can catch bass, 

 trout, sheepshead, mullet, flounders, sharks, and many 

 other varieties. 



One of the pleasantest amusements is fishing in the 

 surf for bass. The modus operandi of this sport is some 

 what as follows : 



Remember that I am giving the custom of the coun 

 try, and shall not be surprised if the scientific bass-fishers, 

 who rejoice in forty-dollar reels and sixty-dollar rods with 

 agate-mounted tips and rings, are somewhat disgusted. 

 The line ordinarily used is nearly as thick as a cod-line, 

 and about 50 yards long. A sinker, weighing about a 

 half or three-quarters of a pound with a hole through 

 it is strung on the line, and is kept there by a large 

 knot on its end. Below this knot, and attached to the 

 line proper by a . somewhat smaller cord, is the hook a 

 cod-hook being generally used, or one a little smaller. 



The fisherman is usually clad in an old flannel shirt, 

 woollen trousers, and old, loose boots with a broad-leaved 

 straw or felt hat. The bait used is a string of mullet, 

 procured at the early market (price five cents), which 

 is cut into chunks about an inch square. Thus equipped, 



