102 Big Game Fishes 



pickerel of seven or eight pounds. The fish 

 referred to at the beginning of the chapter was 

 taken on an eight-ounce split bamboo trout rod, 

 with a number nine cuttyhunk line, and gave 

 excellent sport ; making fine rushes, swerving 

 from side to side, and finally at the surface, lash- 

 ing the water into foam, acting in so gamy a 

 manner that the boatman expressed the opinion 

 that it was insane. A trout rod is too light for 

 the barracuda, which runs up to fifteen pounds 

 and is often four feet in length. I would suggest 

 a light greenheart, or a split bamboo, such as 

 would be used for pickerel in Eastern waters. 

 The barracudas are taken almost entirely by troll- 

 ing, although the professional fishermen " chum " 

 them up at times, and when they "get them on 

 the run," haul them in as fast as the lines touch 

 the water, using a white rag as bait, the barra- 

 cudas, like mackerel, losing their heads and snap- 

 ping at anything. The most satisfactory sport 

 I have had with these fishes was to cast into a 

 school where they were biting, and by reeling 

 quickly take them ; in this way they will often 

 follow the bait up to the boat, displaying no fear. 

 The California barracuda is Sphyrcena argen- 

 tea (Girard) and like its Gulf of Mexico relative 



