FLY FISHING IN FLORIDA. 317 



from Savannah or Fernandina, or visit Jacksonville en 

 route. At Cedar Keys, Tampa, or Manatee they can 

 charter a sloop or schooner of from four to six tons for 

 five or six dollars per day. This amount will cover 

 captain, boy, small boat, bedding, stove and cooking 

 utensils. Fish, beach birds, oysters and clams are 

 plentiful, and the expense of the culinary department 

 will be from fifty cents to five dollars per capita per 

 diem, according to the dietetic proclivities of the per- 

 sons comprising the party. 



The coast is shallow, the ten-fathom line ranging 

 from thirty to forty miles from shore, and as a conse- 

 quence there is no undertow, rollers or heavy seas. The 

 passage from Cedar Keys to Bay Biscayne can be made 

 in a small boat at almost any time. On one occasion 

 the writer made the trip from Key West to Cedar Keys 

 in a boat sixteen feet in length. 



Fly-fishing in Florida is a recent development, and it 

 offers a large field for experiment and investigation ; 

 and I trust that the period is not far distant when the 

 sport will be indulged in by the many. By the first of 

 January, 1884, Tampa will be reached from this city 

 in twenty-four hours via Sanford and Kissimmee. 

 From what we know of railroads in this State we feel 

 assured that one will be completed to Punta Eassa within 

 two years ; when Charlotte Harbor and Estero Bay, the 

 greatest of fishing points, will be rendered accessible 

 to all. 



In preparing this article we have used the common 



