millepores, fans, corals, plants, and weird formations which 

 make the tropical bottom look like a jungle on some other 

 planet. There are some six hundred species of fish in this 

 territory. 



Even the amateur spearman, when he becomes accustomed 

 to the angle of refraction, can "strike" a fair number of fishes. 

 I have known men to become so enthralled by this sport that 

 they have preferred to do their "fishing" at night only. They 

 bring in big jewfish, big sharks, and huge rays as well as smaller 

 specimens and the highly edible spiny lobsters. There is a 

 primordial satisfaction in slamming home a harpoon and a 

 prodigious excitement in following a buoy as some monstrous 

 fish harpooned and "marked" by the shining can rages 

 through the mysterious dark. This sport is called "progging," 

 and I have always wondered why so few engaged in it. The initial 

 cost is small, but the thrill tremendous, and a night's sport may 

 be had for a few gallons of gasoline, once a boat is equipped. 



Bottom-fishing is the simplest and, presumably, the tamest 

 kind of fishing. Everywhere in Florida that water is to be found, 

 bottom-fishermen may be seen in rowboats, with expensive 

 tackle on banks and bridges, with handlines or cane poles. It 

 is true that in Florida the bridge-and-bank angler has an op- 

 portunity to "hang" any of the great game fishes except those 

 that confine themselves to the Gulf Stream. Usually, however, 

 his intentions and his catch are confined to pan fish. But I can 

 tell you a way to turn this pedestrian style of angling into one 

 of the most fascinating adventures on old Ike Walton's list: 

 take along a glass-bottomed bucket. Better still, have a glass- 

 bottomed "well" set in your skiff. 



Through the glass bottom, you can watch your bait descend 

 and keep an eye on it thereafter. You can see the approach 

 of every fish the nibble, the gulp. You can see the fish that 

 approach and do not bite. You will decide as you watch your 

 bait that there are many other fish you'd like to catch than 

 those you are taking. And you can figure out why you're not 

 getting them. The glamorous angel-fishes and the parrots which 

 not only have "beaks" but more and brighter colors than macaws 



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