Tarpon FishinL;' in Florida. 6i 



disappear, as their causes, the various memhers of the attacking 

 shoal, seize their prey. Of course, as the area of this conllict or 

 rather massacre, increases, the pursuers become less crowded, and 

 the water for equal areas less agitated, till finally, after a minute 

 or so, there is only an isolated splash here and there, as the few 

 remaining survivors are snapped up. Not a fish has shown above 

 the water the whole time, and now the smaller shoal has been 

 annihilated, or a remnant has sought safety in the depths, and 

 the water is calm as before. 



The number of fish has been reduced to increase the size 

 of others. Each victim has doubtless devoured manv smaller 

 ones, and may now be re^rarded as a food collector for his 

 captor ; this captor in turn merely collecting his victims to 

 render possible the existence of some larger fish, which could not 

 collect the enormous number of smaller fish which would be 

 necessary to satisfy his needs. We often witnessed these 

 encounters where all ideas save that of ruthless ferocity are 

 unknown. In fact the pursuit was sometimes going on all round 

 the boat. The size of the attackers was, I should sav. from 

 3 to 4 lbs., and the victims weighed [ to X lb. On our way back 

 1 pick up a nice channel bass of lo lbs. Me is, or rather, would 

 be very lively on any other than tarpon tackl(! ; anyhow a most 

 welcome addition to our commissariat department. 



After dinner we sit down to a cheap game of poker, while 

 our guides sit outside watchin<>- the fiats and listenino- for the 

 splash of a tarpon. It is not long before Washington comes in 

 and reports the presence of the fish. They seem to pass f.iirly 

 rapidly over these grounds towards the Boca Grande in one large 



