HUNTING WITH A HARPOON 



drops him in the open with his rifle at two hun- 

 dred yards, seldom sits by a runway, while 

 hounds run the quarry to him. The sportsman 

 who can cut down the flushed partridge with his 

 first barrel scorns to snare the creature. The 

 difference of skill required between stalking and 

 hounding a deer is great ; between snap-shooting 

 and snaring a partridge it is greater; but be- 

 tween successfully hunting a tarpon with a har- 

 poon and catching it with rod and reel it is 

 greatest. 



The harpoon which I prefer is only five inches 

 long, including the socket in which the pole is 

 thrust. It is a plain, pointed shaft, of quarter- 

 inch steel, with a single barb, an inch from the 

 point. The harpoon pole is twelve feet long and 

 one inch in diameter. A soft cotton line a hun- 

 dred yards long and an eighth of an inch in 

 diameter completes the outfit. One end of the 

 line is fastened to a small, shallow tub in which 

 it is loosely dropped, not coiled, while the other 

 end is made fast to the harpoon. In tarpon 

 hunting the tub is placed in the bow of the skiff, 

 or canoe, in which the sportsman stands. Every 

 inch gained in height is a distinct advantage, and 



