DEVIL FISHING. 91 



gambollings on the surface, and their somersets 

 beneath, have the self-same purpose, and be ex- 

 plained by this hypothesis ? 



The squall struck us before we gained the shore, 

 and the rain fell upon us with a stunning and 

 bewildering effect ; but all was unheeded in the 

 satisfaction of finding ourselves once more on firm 

 land, safe from the tempest and the startling and 

 unwelcome pursuit to which we have just referred ! 



The storms of these two successive evenings which 

 had twice prevented me from landing my fish, were 

 extensive and exceedingly violent, destroying fences, 

 uprooting trees, and falling on some devoted spots 

 with the force of a tornado. Fortunately for me, 

 though within their range, I was not in their vortex. 

 Had it been otherwise, these narratives had not 

 been written ! 



Besides the risks from storms, there is undoubtedly 

 some risk in the encounter with these devil-fish. 

 Whoever contends with superior force must do so at 

 some peril ; but by prudence and forecast these 

 dangers can be greatly abated, and T remember but 

 one occasion on which I found myself decidedly 

 imperilled by the fish itself. A fish had been struck 

 and drawn repeatedly to the boat's side, but we 

 could not hold him there ; he floundered and plunged 

 BO violently that we were forced to give him line, 



