SEA FISHING 

 day, or £1 17s. 6d. the whole day. At first sight, no doubt, this looks a 

 heavier charge than that made at Useppa and other resorts in Florida. 

 On the other hand, the fisherman is spared the heavy item of £20 for his 

 tackle, and Avalon is vi^ithin an hour, or less, of the fishing grounds, 

 so that far less time is wasted in running backwards and forwards. The 

 remaining expenses of the trip would bring the total, including first-class 

 travel out and back and a fortnight's fishing, up to about a hundred 

 guineas, the daily charge at the Metropole Hotel, Avalon, with excellent 

 rooms and such fare as they never dreamt of at Useppa, being 16s. 8d. 

 a day. 



The bait used at Santa Gatalina for tuna is, when it can be had, a 

 fiying-fish; for the other fishes, either a " sardine," so-called, or a Wilson 

 spoon. 



In any case, all fishing is done by trolling, the bait being trailed a hundred 

 or more feet astern of the launch. When after tuna, the shoal must first 

 be located, and the launch is then headed towards it, skirting the out- 

 side of the shoal in a curve, so as to bring the bait across the fish. In fishing 

 for white sea -bass or yellowtail, it is less essential to see the fish first, 

 though a sharp-eyed guide will generally do so from an incredible dis- 

 tance away. As soon as the launch is opposite Goat Harbour, or any other 

 ground usually frequented by these fish, it is slowed down and brought 

 round in a curve, the line being allowed to run out rapidly. As in tarpon- 

 fishing, the angler sits in a comfortable chair in the stern, with his back 

 to the guide. If necessary, two can fish in comfort side by side. 



For tuna, it is usual to jerk the point of the rod, so as to make the flying - 

 fish skip over the surface in a natural manner, but this laborious action 

 has been superseded by the successful use of a box kite, which has been 

 found very effective. 



The hooking of a tuna is strenuous work, as it may take out six or eight 

 hundred feet of line at the first rush and then tow the boat for hours to- 

 gether. As, moreover, the struggling fish, unlike the tarpon, seems usually 

 to be accompanied by others of the shoal, the line is not seldom cut through 

 by their sharp back fins. 



Among other important game fishes taken at Santa Gatalina are the 

 swordfish, yellowtail, white sea -bass, black sea -bass, yellowfin tuna, 

 albacore, bonita, dolphin, opah, halibut, barracouta, Spanish mackerel 

 and some others. 



The swordfish is a magnificent adversary in the water, leaping even 



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