CHAPTER XXII. 



ON BOARD THE " SKY LARK." 



" SHALL AULD ACQUAINTANCE BE FORGOT ?" CAPTAIN O. C. SQUYER 

 SEA TROUT THIRSTING FOR THE BLOOD OF A " 'GATOR " OUR * 

 DESIRE THOROUGHLY SATISFIED WE BEGIN TO HANKER AFTER 

 SHARK SHARKS AND SAND-FLIES A JEW-FISH CAUGHT WEIGH- 

 ING ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-THREE POUNDS PREPARING FOR A 

 FIRE-HUNT MY FIRST FIRE-HUNT. 



WHEN I returned from the Pass, Saturday evening, I was 

 delighted to meet, on entering the house, Captain O. C. 

 Squyer, of Minneapolis, Minn., an intimate friend of long 

 years ago, who had come all the way from Jacksonville to 

 meet us and join in the pleasures of a few days' fishing and 

 shooting. Accordingly, we all took passage on board the 

 " Sky Lark," early Sunday morning, and set sail for the Pass 

 again. As soon as we entered it we threw out another artifi- 

 cial minnow, and for three hours, as we sailed leisurely along 

 the Pass, the scenes of yesterday were " acted o'er again." 



First, we hooked a beautiful sea-trout, and after half an 

 hour's royal sport playing him, landed him safely in the boat. 

 What a magnificent picture ! He is unquestionably the hand- 

 somest fish in the Gulf. In profile he is very like the trout of 

 the northern and eastern streams, but the coloring is entirely 

 different. The color of his back is of a rich, dark marine- 

 blue, the sides slightly lighter, and the belly almost white, 

 while the spots are jet-black. This fish grows to a very large 

 size here, frequently measuring twenty inches in length and 

 weighing eight pounds. The meat is clear white and of a 



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