CHAPTER XVI 



THE TARPON 



" But lo, each wave to silver turns." 



WILLIAM SHARP. 



FEW anglers forget their first view of the tar- 

 pon. One saw the fish make a thirty-foot hori- 

 zontal leap. Another sprang aside as a large 

 fish fell headlong into the boat, passing through 

 the bottom. Another viewed the silver monster 

 coming like an arrow over the edge of a seine and 

 dodged in time to prevent a repetition of the 

 tragedy which had happened before. An angler 

 in a boat being towed behind a river steamer saw 

 a tarpon leap over him ; and still another, sitting 

 on the deck of a steamer, was made a target by 

 one of these fishes, which fell headlong into his 

 lap. Others have had a shark rise with their first 

 tarpon in its mouth, literally shaking the silver 

 king in their face ; and many incidents might be 

 given in the yearly history of this grand sport, 

 showing how deep an impression the initial 



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