SHEEPSHEAD FISHING. 



succeed in your wishes. The greatest enemies of 

 this fish are the sharks and porpoises which pursue 

 them incessantly, and destroy them, unless they can 

 find secure hiding-places to which to retreat. Two 

 of these pens, near each other, will furnish this pro- 

 tection ; and when that course is not adopted, piles 

 driven near each other, quite surrounding the pen, 

 will have the same effect. Your work complete, 

 build a light staging, by driving down four upright 

 posts, at a distance of fifteen feet from the pen ; and 

 then take your station on it, provided with a light, 

 flexible and strong cane reed, of twenty feet length, 

 with fourteen feet of line attached a strong hook, 

 and a light lead. Instead of dropping your line 

 directly down, and poising it occasionally from bot- 

 tom, I prefer to throw the line out beyond the per- 

 pendicular, and let the lead lie on the bottom. The 

 sheepshead is a shy fish, and takes the bait more 

 confidently if it lies on the bottom. "When he bites, 

 you perceive your rod dipping for the water give 

 a short, quick jerk, and then play him at your 

 leisure. If the fish is large, and your jerk too vio- 

 lent, the rod will snap at the fulcrum the grasp of 

 your left hand. It has happened that, at one of 

 these artificial grounds, I have taken sixteen sheeps- 

 head at one fishing. What was unusual, was, that 

 they were taken in February, when no one thinks 



