CHAPTER II. 



WAS fortunate in never having any of my fish 

 attacked by sharks. Molestation from a porjjoise 

 is extremely rare, in fact I thought such a thing 

 never occurred ; but it was reported in the papers 

 that a sportsman had a large tarpon taken by one 

 whilst on his line two or three days after mv 

 departure. Tarpon have been caught at a distance of 15 miles 

 from the mouth of the river, and they have been seen at El Hi^o, 

 which is over 100 miles by river from the sea, so, as far as the 

 fishing grounds are concerned, it is not likely that there will be 

 anv inconvenience from overcrowdincf- 



Besides tarpon, jack fish, jew fish, an occasional turtle, sharks 

 and porpoises, there is always an excellent chance of harpooning 

 a devil fish, or a giant ray, in the sea just off the mouth of the 

 river ; but I should advise no one to join battle with this species 

 of big game fish without taking all due precautions, as these 

 monsters run up t(j and over a ton in weight. The best months 

 for the tarpon fishing are those from December to A{)ril inclusive, 

 but the fish can be caught till the rains, usually about the middle 

 of May, muddy the river. 



The tarpon seem to follow the sun. They appear in the 

 more southern waters of the Gulf of Mexico, such as \*era Cruz 



