COST OF A TARPON FISHING OUTFIT. 447 



sides to the enraptured eyes of his would-be captor, 

 ere this formidable variety of the herring falls down 

 again with a mighty splash into the water. It has 

 been observed that those fish that jump well are gen- 

 erally in the end easier to manage than a sulky spe- 

 cimen, wiiich refuses to expend its strength in this 

 way, and sullenly keeps up a sub-aqueous warfare. 

 Indeed, in the latter case the odds seem to be that 

 the angler is fast to some other kind of big fish, such 

 as the Jew fish, or a shark, in which case it not 

 infrequently happens that the fisherman, after being 

 towed about in his boat for some time, finds discretion 

 the better part of valour, and is glad to cut, or break 

 himself loose from the formidable monster, as best he 

 can. The use of a stout leathern " tarpon belt " to 

 prevent the butt of the rod from injuring him, is 

 almost a matter of necessity for anglers in these 

 waters. This belt seems to be an admirable contrivance, 

 and strikes us as being just the thing wanted by all 

 anglers who troll much. It consists of a stout leathern 

 bucket, large enough for the end of the rod to be 

 fixed into it, which is firmly attached to the belt, and 

 thus effectually prevents any risk from the rod being 

 brought into contact with the fisherman's body. The 

 price of this belt in New York is stated as $ i , and a 

 complete outfit for tarpon fishing can be got for 10 

 English ($50), most of which goes for the reel, 

 for which the charge is 6 ($30 in America). * It 

 is advisable to take three or four rods, as it is the 

 custom of many anglers to use several rods at a time, 

 while awaiting a bite from the tarpon, which like 



* See Handbook on Sea Fishing, Badminton Library, by J. Bicker- 

 dyke, 1895, P- 45- 



