RECREA TION. 



141 



be a fish in sight, then the tunas would 

 rush in again, converting the surface in- 

 to a mass of foam, and numbers of the 

 fliers would dart into the air and rush 

 away in every direction. When caught 

 by the stiff breeze, they were lifted to as- 

 tonishing heights above the surface. It 

 was evident that the flight of the flying 

 fish was not sufficient to save it. In one 

 instance a flying fish started from the 

 water a long distance away. It came 

 directly toward the boat, and soon 

 dropped to the water ; but as it did so a 

 tuna made a ferocious rush for it, when 

 the flying fish dashed from the water in 

 a new flight. Again it fell, and again the 

 tuna darted at it, and it was now seen 

 that the flier was being followed by the 

 keen sighted fish. Four times it drop- 

 ped its tail into the water, each time 

 evading the attack of the tuna ; but 

 finally as it passed not five feet from the 

 boat, having gone probably nearly an 

 eighth of a mile in the air, it fell and 

 was seized by the gigantic fish that had 

 kept directly beneath it during the entire 

 flight. 



"I have done better than this," my 

 companion said when I expressed my 

 surprise. 



"I have been out with my rifle and 

 shot at albicoves and tunas as they were 

 jumping out of the water ; but I never 



got but one tuna. I took a snap shot 

 at that, and severed its back bone, when 

 it fell back, beating the water with 

 powerful blows and swimming on the 

 surface until we gaffed it and hauled it 

 astern to tow ashore; but for all-round ex- 

 citement give me the flying fish as game." 



In returning from this novel and 

 peculiar hunt, the oarsman said that 

 tunas were feeding off shore on small 

 fish, and proposed that we try a shot, 

 and my friend assenting, we pulled 

 directly off shore, where to my unprac- 

 tised eye the sea was apparently lashed 

 into foam by a strong breeze. Reach- 

 ing the spot we found hardly a breath 

 of wind, but the ocean surface, as far as 

 the eye could reach, covered with 

 huge fish which were rushing this way 

 and that, mowing down the small fry 

 at the surface, covering it with white 

 caps, so that the impression was created 

 that half a gale was blowing. 



The fish had corralled a small school 

 of fishes, possible their own fry, that 

 gave to the water a peculiar yellowish 

 hue. The school had been broken up. 

 Into the different parts the big fish were 

 dashing, and in every direction the 

 waves of foam, and the flashes of light, 

 caused by the small fry leaping from 

 the water, made weird by beautiful 

 pictures. 



