Tarpon I^^ishino- m Fli^rida. 



/ .^ 



neatly shoved the butt end of ihc! oiir into its mouth. The result 

 was that about a foot of the handle end was bioken off. and was 

 not seen attain ; but even this, as one would think. " too, too solid " 

 meal did not satisfy the shark ; for without a moment's hesitation 

 he turned ai^ain and swallowed the tarpon whole, cutting ih<' piano 

 wire trace as easily as mine had been cut before. 



On another occasion the own(T of the yacht was occupietl 

 with a weighty jew fish which was slowly lowing him inland, when 

 the boat belonging to one of his guests started rushing backwards 

 through the water, and raising a foamy wave in front of its stern. 

 The reel was locked, and this, as may be imagined, was a fme 

 demonstration of the strength of the line. Ii was not long before 

 the sportsman felt that he was being made a fool of by this foul 

 hooked devil fish, and decided that he had had enough of it, and 

 resigned all claim to the disputed hook. 



Another of the large fish met with off this coast is the saw 

 fish, which is sometimes 20 feet long with a 6-foot saw, 12 inches 

 in width across the base. It would b(; a fine sight to see him 

 slashing about among a shoal of his victims and rapidly snai)i)ing 

 up the pieces. 



And now a truce to these fishy tales. Suffice it that in the 

 opinion of the writer, anyone who spends a fortnight on these 

 waters will not regret his glimpse of the woncUtrs of the sea. 



