Batt and Grounds AII 
in a purse or bag, in which the entire catch was 
easily lifted and hauled ashore. 
The mullet, Mugzl cephalus, is the most im- 
portant bait fish in the Gulf region and is found 
with another species, the silver-mullet, Mugzl 
cuvema, in vast numbers from the lower Florida 
keys northward, — Biscayne Bay and Key, Indian 
River, and the Gulf states all having their 
quota, caught in seines and cast-nets at the 
various points alongshore. The average mullet 
weighs about half a pound to a pound, adults 
reaching seven, eight, or even twelve pounds, 
according to fishermen. 
Fishes of various kinds constitute the common 
bait of the Florida region, but on the outer reef 
crayfish and conch were equally important. Be- 
fore the singular destruction of the coral at Tor- 
tugas, some years ago, nearly every branch and 
head was the home of one or more crayfish, — 
pronounced “craw,” on the reef, really the spiny 
lobster, Palixurus. They dug out the sand so 
that their tails could be inserted, and backed in, 
leaving their whips or antenne to wave to and 
fro. It was an easy matter to grain them. The 
grains was a two-pronged barbed spear not un- 
like a fish’s tail in shape, with a long, yellow 
