562 BIG OAM1-; (>v xoiriii a.mkkioa. 



lit the torch, and with Doctor A at the oars, and myself 



standing in the bow, striking -i)ole in hand, with two hun- 

 dred feet of line coiled carefully at my feet, we glided out 

 into darkness; yet we were always surrounded by a circle 

 of light, that, when the water was not too deep, lit it up lo 

 the bottom. 



To our right, darted away an old red- fish, with a speed 

 that seemed to be born of the knowledge that he was good 

 to eat; while to the left, ran, in hurried confusion, a school 

 of mullet. Sidewise, backward — any way to get away — 

 •scampered the crabs, every motion showing lively abeyance 

 to fear, yet ever presenting their defensive claws in a defi- 

 ant way, as if to say, " You had better not; I'll bite.*' 



As we neared the oj^posite shore, the shadows of the 

 tall trees added their strange charm to the dark water, and 

 the harsh cry of the startled heron, as he rose from his bed, 

 gave filing voice to the weird scene around us. 



" Ouch ! Great Caesar ! " These exclamations gave ex- 

 p)ression to the fact that a sudden gust of wind had swung 

 the jack of burning pine against my head and shoulders; 

 but there was no harm done beyond singed hair and a 

 spattering of hot pitch, that refused to be removed without 

 taking the epidermis with it. Then turning my back to 

 the light, I saw, off to the left, a pair of 'Gator's eyes 

 lighted up by the glare of our beacon. The Doctor now 

 put the boat within twenty feet of the owner of the eyes. 

 who blinked wonderingly at the strange apparition. I had 

 a fair strike, but the lily-iron happened to strike a bony 

 plate, glanced off, and the head of the reptile disaj)peared 

 beneath the dark water. 



Soon the white chin of another appeared within our 

 circle of light, and as the pole left my hand, I grasped the 

 line, now running out as fast as a nine-foot * Gator could 

 travel. The boat w^as now under headway, the 'Gator 

 doing his level best to get away, and swimming head and 

 shoulders above water; our light swinging to and fro, and 

 the water splashing against the boat — all served to give us 

 a novel midnight ride. But our tow-horse soon became 



