Dec. 9, 1905.1 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
470 
and comes along the surface in a magnificent burst of 
speed, throwing the white foam high in the air. 
All the movements of this fish in feeding are remark- 
able. The flying-fish, to escape, will fly or soar an eighth 
of a mile, in some instances, in three or four distinct at- 
tempts, never sinking into the water, merely lowering its 
tail to obtain the necessary impetus. Sometimes the tuna 
leaps and seizes its prey in the air, sending it whirling 
upward like a pinwheel ; but more often it follows within 
two feet of the flyer directly beneath it, like a hawk or 
an eagle following every motion. At such times 1 have 
seen the flying-fish pass over my boat, and so for a few 
seconds disappear from the tuna’s sight; but the latter 
was not to be thrown off the track ; it kept on like a 
bloodhound; the fly-fish eventually fell into its mouth. 
In striking the flying-fish the tuna undoubtedly aims tor 
the black staring eyes, on the principle that a huntei in 
shooting on the wing fires in front. I ani confident tot 
this for the reason that in numbers of flying-fishes struck 
by the tuna, and missed, all were damaged* in the eye, 
the tail, which, of course, presented a promising object, 
being entirely uninjured. The philosophy of this is ap- 
parent. The tuna is chasing a rapidly-moving fish and 
dashes at it from a distance of perhaps ten or twenty 
feet; if the tail was the objective from the side the fish 
would be missed, whereas, by aiming at the eye it reaches 
the entire body. r ■ 
The appearance of a school of tunas feeding i^ au 
exhilarating sight. The ocean, otherwise cairn, is lashed 
into foam as bv a storm sweeping over it. Fying-hshes 
are darting into the air, moving in every direction and 
the tunas are bounding like an avenging nemesis, high 
out of the water or perhaps along the surface, a shower 
of silvery scales sinking into the blue ocean, marking 
the tragedy. , 1 • 
/ An ally of the tuna, the albacore, feeds by making a 
low jump, barely clearing the water, though the larger 
individuals, from sixty to 100 pounds, often inake tre- 
mendous leaps in the pursuit of their prey. The bonito 
moves along the surface in schools carrying a pronounced 
ripple before it in diverging lines ; darting here and there 
with almost inconceivable velocity, snapping up small 
fry of all kinds. The small mackerel found on the Cali- 
fornian coast feed in an exultant fashion on roe, and the 
newly-hatched smelt and sardines or any young pelagic 
fish are to their taste. The school seems directed by a 
leader as they rise to the surface, creating a sound as 
of falling rain as they snap at their victims, and every 
few seconds, as though the leader had given a signal, 
they sound, making a crashing sound, as though a large 
amount of water had been poured upon the surface. 
The great black sea bass of southern Californian waters 
ranging up to yoo or 800 pounds, feed in shoie during the 
summer months, its principal food being the red or white- 
fish. In feeding on the bottom I have seen this huge 
creature standing in a perpendicular position with its tail 
upward, apparently standing on its head, in its attempts to 
take its food. Swallowing food alive sometimes has its 
^ drawbacks. Darwin relates tli9t a small shark having 
' swallowed a diodon. the latter made its escape by eating 
through the wall of the stomach. An old resident of 
the Sound country near Port Royal told me that the 
piers of the planters along the Sound were often de- 
stroyed in a mysterious manner by the giant ray-manta. 
The food of this fish, at least the major part of it, is 
clams shells, oyster and other molltisks and crustaceans 
when it can obtain them. That they certainly damage the 
piers and throw down piles is a fact beyond Question, 
singular as it may seem, and it is done, I should judge, in 
the efforts to detach mussels or oysters from them. Some 
of these rays weighed several tons and were sixteen or 
eighteen feet across. It was the theory of the planters 
that the animals threw their claspers the two singular 
organs on either side of the mouth — about the piles and 
so overturned them. 
The yellow-tail — Seriola dorsalis — a common fish in 
southern California, ranging up to 8o pounds, is at times 
a voracious feeder. It then swims at full speed in schools 
of from thirty to five hundred or more, sweeps into bays 
along shore driving everything else* before it, feeding on 
ilying-fish, smelt, sardines or squids. But these rushes are 
the exception, the yellow-tail preferring to_ take its posi- 
tion beneath a school of small fry and pick off certatii 
ones at leisure. Such fishes_ appear to be too indolent to 
fish for themselves, and will take dead sardines when 
thrown at them, or seize a wounded fish with the great- 
est avidity, yet refusing to charge the almost solid mass 
The southern California barracuda differs from its ally 
in the Gulf of Mexico bv schooling, the waters in June 
and July often being tinted with their forms, which seem 
to fill it. When feeding they apparently seek rough water 
and dart about like a bonito— the antipodes of the Gulf 
of Mexico form. The latter fish, often six feet in length, 
is a solitary creature, lying in the deep channels bke a 
tiger waiting for its prey, and springing upon it with a 
ferocity that brings to mind that animal. Even the small 
ones in Californian w'aters take their prey in what might 
be termed a dignified manner, approaching it very slowly, 
touching it sometimes to back off or retreat, then lung- 
ing at and seizing it between the sharp teeth, gradually 
taking it in. 
The voracity of the shark is an old story. Everything 
is game to it. I have made many attempts to observe 
these creatures turn on their backs to eat, after the pop- 
ular version, and one day towed a dead cow to a famous 
spot for .sharks, presently attracting a swarm of large 
ones. I drifted near the floating animal and watched the 
attack, but not a shark turned upon its back; they all ran 
at the animal and pushed their snouts out of the water, 
seizing it in this way; then by a violent wriggling motion 
of the tail, while holding on with their vise-like teeth, 
tore off great pieces. Sometimes three or four sharks 
had the creature at the same time and appeared to be 
.shaking the carcass,- at' times carrying it out of sight. 
The most remarkable glutton among the fishes is the 
black swallower— a deep-sea form, w'hich captures its 
prey in total darkness or by the aid of the dim phos- 
phorescent light in the abysmal depths of the sea, and 
swallows fishes three times its own size. The gape of 
the fish is enormous, while its pouch-like abdomen ex- 
pands to such dimensions that the swallower appears to 
draw itself over its prey as a glove is drawn on the. hand. 
Charles h. Holder. 
The Leap of the Silver King. 
Tarpon Fishicg in Mexico. 
For many years it has been the annual custom of the 
piscatorial enthusiast, who is averse to the idea of re- 
linquishing the enjoyment of the pastime during the cold 
months of the winter to seek his sport on the west coast 
of Florida in the vicinity of Charlotte Harbor and the 
Calobsahatchie River, or, perchance, he. goes to southern 
California. At the present time, however, another win- 
ter resprt for fishermen is open, and rapidly gaining in 
fame as the true mecca toward which the lover of the 
magnificent sport of fishing for the gamy tarpon finds his 
way. This practically new region is situated in the_ great 
Panuco River, which flows into the Gulf of Mexico at 
the port of Tampico, Mexico, and there is more than 
twenty miles of fishing ground where countless numbers 
of tarpon and other varieties can be found from Decem- 
ber until May. This new fishing ground can be readily 
reached via the Mexican Central Railroad, which makes 
connections at El Paso with all southern and_ western 
railroads, and from either Monterey or San Luis Potosi 
it is but a short day’s run tO' reach Tampico. If one has 
a preference for an ocean trip it is only to step on board 
one of the comfortable steamboats of the Ward Line at 
the pier in New York city and enjoy a most delightful 
journey via Havana over tropic seas, direct to Tampico. 
The Mexican Steamship Line from either New Orelans 
or Galveston will also make a change of travel agreeable 
for the fisherman or tourist from the Middle or North- 
western States. Until last winter but an occasional 
sportsman had come for the game fish in the Panuco or 
fished scientifically with rod and reel. Dr. H. W. Howe, 
of Mexico City, the noted J. A. L. Waddell, Mr. Ross, 
chief engineer of the famous Custom House Dock at 
Tampico; O. L. Smith, of Denver, Colo., _ and E. H. 
Browne, of Chicago, were those who comprised the first, 
and their really phenomenal scores made the Panuco 
River famous. 
At the celebrated summer tarpon fishing ground of 
Corpus Christi Bay and the Aransas Pass, on the Gulf 
coast of Texas, the fishing season closes at about _ the 
time that, the sport of this new fishing resort begins, i. e., 
Dec. I, proving beyond doubt that the tarpon prefers a 
warmer temperature for his winter’s meanderings, and 
as the fish are found to be spawning during the last of 
May, when the Mexico season closes, and are encoun- 
tered many leagues toward the source of the Panuco at 
that time, it would appear almost conclusively that this 
is their natural spawning ground.^ The captains of river 
steamboats plying between Tampico and the great sugar 
plantations of El Higo and the Huasteca,_ frequently re- 
port the tarpon, or, as it is called in Spanish, the savolo, 
as far as a hundred miles or beyond up the Panuco, and 
the numberless .small branching rivers and connecting 
lagoons form an immense feeding area which it would 
hardly strike one could be soon if ever depopulated. 
The attention of sportsmen having been directed to- 
ward this new field for the angler by articles contributed 
to Forest and Stream by Mr. J. A. L. Waddell, it be- 
came a necessity to provide for the needs of those who 
came on a tour of inspection, and who did not bring 
the expensive tackle and outfit required in order to cap- 
ture this gamy fish. This was done_ by the oroprietor 
of the only American hotel in Tampico — the_ Hidalgo — 
and many stirring scenes occurred in the height of the 
season at this hostelry. 
Mr. Waddell caught as many as fourteen tarpon in 
one day, the largest being considerably over six feet in' 
length, and Mr. C. R. Howe captured twelve also in the 
same time. Sir Frederic Johnstone, who fished here for 
nearly three weeks, made some remarkable scores, _ his 
largest tarpon being seven feet in length, with a weight 
of 180 pounds, and having a girth of 44/4 inches. The 
record fish of the season was caught by Mr. H. W. Wil- 
son, acting British Vice-Consul at Tampico. This tar- 
pon measured 7ft. 2j/2in. and turned the scales at 200 
pounds, with a girth of 46in. There is no doubt that 
much larger fish than this are in the river, and this sea- 
son will demonstra'.e the fact, as there promises to be 
considerable rivalry. The tarpon fishing headquarters 
at the Hidalgo .shews on its records that the largest 
number of fish caught the past season was by Dr. Louis 
Hough, a local physician and surgeon. His score was 
147. Mr. O. R. Loomis, of Fort Dodge, la., caught 
thirty-one; Mr.. C. R. Hoag, of Newark, N. J., sixty- 
five; Mr. W. B. Jordan, president of the Miles City 
National Bank of Montana, thirty-five; Mr. O. L. 
Smith, of Denver, Colo., thirty-six ; Messrs. W. PI. Dilg 
and E. H. Browne, of Chicago, twenty-five each; Mr. 
U. P'. Bender, of New York, twenty-three, etc., making 
the season’s catch in all over a thousand fish; but a small 
proportion of those were killed, however, the great ma- 
jority being turned loose to reproduce their species. 
Nor was the scaly tribute derived from the Panuco 
confined to the silver king alone. Mr. Macleod, of New 
York, captured an enormous jewfish; Mr. O. C. Bond, of 
London, England, and a number of others brought in 
jewfish ranging from 150 to 400 pounds, but the climax 
came when Mr. J. E. Johnson excitedly walked into- the 
hotel office one evening in April saying: “They are 
bringing up my fish from the dock, and he is a daisy. I 
want you to weigh him for me, landlord.” And pres- 
ently a large dray was backed up against the sidewalk 
with a full load consisting of one fish. It took eight 
stout Mexican peons with gaff-hooks and ropes to get 
the fish on to the hotel scales, where, in the midst of a 
chorus of wagers and guesses as to its wei.ght, the fish 
showed a total of 473 pounds. But in order to make 
positive assurance doubly sure and settle all wagers satis- 
factorily, the jewfish was taken to the depot scales of 
the Mexican Central and found to touch the notch at 
465 pounds. Besides jew'fish there is the jurel, a fish 
almost similar to the yellow-tail of California, in count- 
less numbers, that have fighting qualities far out of pro- 
portion to their size, averaging three to four feet in 
length. We have also a fine table fish, the rovallo. Dr. 
Howe one day in jMarch, while fishing with heavy hand 
lines, captured three large sawfish, one of 14P2 feet in 
length, and the others re.spectively 13 and 13^/2 feet. 
Sharks are. , as in, other tropical waters. .’ soiiietimes in 
evidence, but on only two occasions last season did they 
interfere with sportsmen in handling their tarpon. One' 
case was that of Mr. W. B. Jordan having two-thirds of 
a six-foot fish cut off and only bringing in the head and 
a small portion of the body. Another fisherman while 
playing a large tarpon that had carried him out into the 
Gulf, beyond the mouth of the river, had his entire fish 
cut into pieces on the surface by two large sharks, and 
beat a hasty retreat back to the shelter of the jetties. 
The record 7-foot 2j/2-inch tarpon captured by_ the 
British Consul passed through the hands of a taxider- 
mist and was shipped to the office of the Leyland Steam- 
ship Company in Liverpool by their agent in Tampico, 
and as many as tw'enty-five or more large tarpon were, 
also sent 'to different points in the United States and 
England by their successful captors. The tackle used 
with the best results in the Panuco is as follows: A 
seven-foot lancewood, niobe, or greenheart rod, with a 
heavy reel carrying 600 feet of No. 21 to No. 30 line. 
Many sportsmen like as small as No-. 21, others No. 24, 
while still some prefer a No. 30. A regular Van Vleck 
hook attached to four feet or more of piano wire andl 
to this added two brass swivels complete an outfit which 
cannot by any possibility be excelled. Outfits such as 
this should be brought by visiting fishermen. The boat- 
men employed are nearly all natiye Mexicans, who are 
excellent oarsmen. The bait used consists of a small 
mullet about four to- six inches in length, and is used 
either fresh or salted, the tarpon, when striking well, 
seeming to make no discrimination, and the color of the 
bait remaining the same. All fishing is done by trolling 
from the stern of a small boat of from fourtera to six- 
teen feet in length. The length of time used in playing 
the fish depends on the strength and skill of the angler 
and the size of his fish, a five-foot tarpon making a 
much harder fight than the extremely large ones, as the 
latter, after three or four leaps out of water, settle down 
to a steady fight, while as many as twelve or fifteen leaps 
will often be made by a lively 5 or 5j4-footer. 
There is over twenty miles of fishing ground which 
has already been proven, and as these giant fish fre- 
quently run in schools, they are found at different points, 
seeming to change their feeding grounds. At one time 
they may be striking well at La Barra, near the mouth of 
the Panuco, or later at a famous location known as the 
Boca de Lagoona Pueblo Viejo, where as many as twenty 
to thirty tarpon have been seen rolling or sporting on the 
surface of the river at once. Very often the passengers 
and crews of the many ocean-going steamers that come 
and go at the immense Custom Blouse dock, will be in 
full view of an exciting combat directly off the dock; 
and a full-sized fish going six or eight feet into the air, 
shaking his head like an angry dog, and throwing hook 
and bait a dozen- feet away, is not a sight to be quickly 
forgotten. One hour and seven minutes was the time 
consumed in landing the six-foot and ten-inch tarpon 
now in the office of the Hidalgo. This fish was caught 
on a No. 21 linen line with a lancewood rod, and Mr. 
Charles P. Shillaber, of South Framingham, Mass., was 
“the man behind the gun.” The weight of this fish was 
158 pounds. 
It is now proposed to build a club house for tarpon 
fishermen at La Barra, by the Tarpon Club already 
formed, and the list is open for subscribing members. 
For a winter resort, with a tropical climate and fishing 
unexcelled combined, it bids fair to prove a success. The 
most important fishing scores of this season, which is 
just beginning, will be forwarded to the Forest and 
Stream. ’ P. 
The T«na Club. 
Mu. L. G. Murphy, of Converse, Ind., has been 
awarded the first prize that is given annually by the 
B’una Club, of Avalon, Santa Catalina Island, Cal., for 
the fisherman who catches the biggest fish during the 
season ending on Nov. i each year. Mr. Murphy’s catch 
was an enormous sea bass weighing 436 pounds. 
As there were no tunas caught that weighed more than 
100 pounds during the season, no prizes in that class 
were awarded. The second prize in the sea bass class 
w-as taken by John J. Perkins, of Los Angeles, Cal., his 
catch rveigliino- 428 pounds. 
The prize for the best yellowtail caught went to J. E. 
Pflueger, of Akron, O., while the prize in the same class 
for catches, made by women was won by Mrs. Harry 
Knowles, of San Francisco, Cal. Special prizes in the 
\ellow-tail class were won as follows: Eddy Cup, J. 
Sullivan Cochrane, Boston, 41 pounds ; Hunt Cup, J. 
Arthur Eddy, of Chicago, weight 55 pounds ; Albacore 
Cup, J. C. Pillster, Denver, Colo. ; Rock Bass Cup, Er- 
nest Fallon, Los Angeles, Cab. weight 10^2 pounds; 
Sheepshead Cup, Dr. D. E. Brown, Larimee, Wyo., 
weight 22 pounds ; Whitefish Cup, Mrs. A. A. Ritter, 
Denver, Colo., weight 10 pounds. 
The prize for the largest tuna ever caught is held by 
Mrs. E. N. Dickerson, of 64 East Thirty-fourth street, 
New York city. The fish weighed 216 pounds. 
A Latvated Fish Story. 
Editor Forest and Stream: 
A very good fish stOry is hidden in “Love of Life,” by' 
Jack London, in McClure’s for December, and I hope 
that it w-ill not be lost to the honest fishermen who read 
B'orest and Stream. The hero of the story, being al- 
most starved, observes a small fish in a pool of water, 
and in his haste to effect its capture, falls into the pool 
and is wet to the waist, but gets out again and bails the 
pool dry with his (dinner) bucket. “Not a cupful -of 
water remained. And there was no fish. He found a 
hidden crevice among the stones through which it had 
escaped to the adjoining and larger pool. * * * Had 
he known of the crevice he could have closed it with a 
reck at the beginning and the fish would have been his.” 
Query. — Which end of the fisherman was immersed? 
How large, was the bucket if it took a half hour to empty 
the pool? Do the laws of gravitation apply above the 
Arctic Circle? Did the fish, after swimming through 
the crevice to the larger pool, make itself secure by pull- 
ing the crevice in after it? Reltsik. 
THE MANY.USE OIL 
preveuU rust. Lubricates perfectly; 6oz. can, iloc. — Adv. 
