THE BOOK OF THE TARPON 



unlike any denizen of earth. The brilliant rays 

 of the semi-tropical sun made a prism of every 

 drop in the shower that surrounded the creature. 

 At first I thought the wonderful being was a 

 mermaid, and as I noted her fierce display of ac- 

 tivity and strength, I pitied the merman who 

 came home late, without a better excuse than a 

 meeting of the lodge. Then I suspected it was 

 a wicked genie, freed from the seal of King 

 Solomon which had imprisoned it for thousands 

 of years. 



I was brought back to earth by Tat's reply: 

 "Mus' be a tarpum!" 



"What's that?" I asked. 



"That's what's got your hook!" 



Talking in a circle is profitless and I turned 

 to my buzzing reel, shouting as I saw the di- 

 minishing line: "Pull like smoke, Tat! Line's 

 'most gone." 



Then I put on the drag, but it had no effect. 

 I held my rod vertically, and pressed my thumb 

 hard on the reel. 



Once more the creature shot high in air, while 

 my thumb got red hot. 



This was in February, 1882, three years be- 



14 



