390 



ORDERS OF FISHES— SPINY-FINNED FISHES 



Tuna championship record, has kindly furnished 

 the following statement: 



"The most of the Tuna fishermen use a green- 

 heart rod, as per the rules of the Club, viz., 6 feet 

 9 inches long, and a 16-ounce tip. As for my- 

 self, I prefer a split bamboo of the very best 

 quality made. I caught the large Tuna (251 

 pounds) with the longest and lightest rod ever 

 used for Tuna, viz., split bamboo, 7 feet 4 inches 

 long, tip 12 ounces, with a 21-strand Cuttyhunk 

 line on a reel made to order, to carry 300 yards. 

 The time was 3 hours and 20 minutes. I do not 

 think a lighter rod than the above would stand 

 the strain necessary to capture a Tuna of 251 

 pounds, or even 150 pounds. 



"The Tuna are hooked by trolling from light 



THE SILVER MULLET. 



naphtha launches, and flying-fish are used for 

 bait." 



At this date (1903), the five heaviest catches 

 of Tuna by members of the Tuna Club stand as 

 follows: 



Pounds. 



Col. C. P. Morehouse, Pasadena, 1900. . 251 



John E. Stearns, Los Angeles, 1902 197 



C. F. Holder, Pasadena, 1899 183 



F. S. Schenck, Brooklyn, 1901 158 



F. V. Rider, Avalon, 1901 158 



The rules of the annual tournaments in which 

 such records are made are very severe and strict. 

 The angler must make his catch unaided, the 

 fish must be reeled in, and a broken rod consti- 

 tutes a disqualification. The rod must measure 

 not less than six feet nine inches, the tip must 

 not exceed sixteen ounces, the line must not 

 contain more than twenty-four threads, and 



sustain a dead weight not exceeding forty-eight 

 pounds. 



On our Atlantic coast, the Horse Mackerel 

 is not sought by anglers as a game fish. Its 

 average length is put down as "about 8 feet." 

 It feeds chiefly upon menhaden, and inasmuch 

 as its appetite is in proportion to its size, it is 

 considered very voracious. In its turn, this 

 great fish is to the killer (Orea gladiator) an 

 ideal food fish, and from the latter it receives 

 special attentions which the Tunny would gladly 

 forego. 



One of the largest specimens on record, as 

 vouched for by Dr. Storer, was taken in 1838, 

 off Cape Ann, and measured 15 feet in length. 

 Its weight of "one thousand pounds" was un- 

 doubtedly an estimate, only. 



The Pompanos. — Following close- 

 ly after the members of the Mackerel 

 Family comes a large Family of deep- 

 bodied fishes, with very small and 

 narrow scales, deeply forked tails, 

 and with the dorsal and anal fins pro- 

 longed to nearly, if not quite, one- 

 third the entire length of the fish. 

 They are really warm-water fishes, 

 but often stray out of their regular 

 haunts into colder waters. This 

 Family includes the amber-jack, the 

 cavallas, the moon-fishes, and sev- 

 eral others. Of this Family, the 

 following species is the best type: 



The Common Pompano 1 is a delicious 

 fish for the table, but unfortunately its mouth 

 is so small it is next to impossible to take it with 

 a hook. Once when penned up by bad weather 

 in the mouth of New River, Florida, where this 

 fish was abundant, we fished for Pompano until 

 we almost starved. The "Silver King" tanta- 

 lized us daily by showing himself at the surface, 

 but his vagrant pounds of flesh were almost as 

 far beyond our reach as the stars. 



The Pompano is essentially a fish of the two 

 coasts of Florida, and the northern half of the 

 Gulf of Mexico. It is the most highly prized fish 

 in the markets of its home waters, and as a rule 

 the supply seldom is equal to the demand. 

 The Jacks are more common. Several of the 

 species found in this Family are characterized 

 by the enormous thickness of their ribs, — a 



1 Trach-i-no'tus car-o-li'nus. 



