THE CAPTAIN WINS A WAGER 



it seemed about to stop, but without swerving a 

 hair toward either the cut-off or the bend in the 

 river. The point was reached where the tarpon 

 must choose his channel or climb the bank. Then 

 the captain's excitement must have sent its mes- 

 sage through the line to the tarpon which leaped 

 six feet in the air and, twisting to the right as it 

 fell, dashed at full speed into the crooked chan- 

 nel of the cut-off. 



"Didn't I tell you so?" shouted the captain 

 triumphantly. 



"Keep cool and play fair. You haven't won 

 yet, for we haven't lost the fish. Don't let the 

 line get snagged and I'll sneak the canoe around 

 every turn between here and Broad River." 



But the contract was too big for me and 

 though I paddled without mishap for two hun- 

 dred yards I had many narrow escapes. Then 

 came a series of sharp turns which I couldn't 

 make quickly, but were play to the tarpon, and 

 soon the line was dragging over snags on one 

 bank and through branches on the opposite one. 

 We disentangled the snarl, but there was no tar- 

 pon at the end of it and the captain had won his 

 bet! 



161 



