t^r, •fA-*£>£5~±.&^ THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES msa w * A mK* IV • S** * fc^^y- ^ 5^^?fi?^.^S 1'RKSKNTKD TO l',Y THE WRITKR OXK HUNDRED COPIES OF THIS PAMPHLET HAVE BEEN PRINTED. THIS COPY IS NUM UMBEK / Tropical Trolling Two Tales of Trouble by Arthur Stjohn Newberry Printed for the Writer bu The J. B. Savage Company Cleveland. Ohio, 191 1 To My Wife A Very Present Help in Trouble -M 3s H+ ON LINES The line required for trolling with the rod, for the gnat game fishes of tlie tropical seas, must be a marvel of strength, lightness and endurance. The strain of taking a tuna or tarpon of a hundred and fifty pounds, even from a small and handv power boat, which can follow the fish and ease the tackle with the engine, is enormous. That put upon the line in taking a fifty-pound kingfish or amber jack, from a large sail boat, which cannot follow the fish and requires the whole work to be done with rod and reel, is probably equally great. In either case two or three hundred yards must be wound on a reel of reason- able size, and salt water soon attacks the fibre and causes it to rot, so that its life cannot be very long. A high class linen line should have a breaking stress of at least two pounds per thread, and maintain this strength for some weeks. The spin of the bait in trolling has a tendencv to untwist all cable laid lines and cause them to kink. One so untwisted and kinked must have weak spots, and be liable to break at much less than the strain that one, properlv twisted and unkinked, will easily endure. l-'or such fishing a line must have the minimum tendencv to unravel and kink to do good service: it should also be dark in color, as a light colored line, in the wonderfully clear waters of the tropics, is too noticeable, and will according to my experience obtain much fewer strike's than one that is green or brown. I am satisfied also that the coloring matter lessens the tendency to untwist and kink and. to a considerable degree, protects from the rotting e fleet of salt water and so prolongs the life of the line. The catalogues recommend that one should "set" his lines before use. This process consists in taking one off the spool, winding it on a stick in kite string fashion, so that it can be readily soaked. thoroughly soaking it. stretching it on a frame, permitting it to dry thoroughly, and then winding it upon the reel. Xow the time an 1 trouble required to so prepare two hundred vanN of line i< very great, i have found that to "set" three Mich lines required a ni^'ht'- soaking, followed by at least a whole morning's troublesome and annoying labor, as the stretching, drying, and reeling up can only be done bv dav and in direct sunlight. A slight -diower. or the dam]) S65010 TROPICAL TROLLING. night air. will undo most of your work, which must then be done over again. Now I. at least, want to fish in my mornings and not to prepare tackle, and it seems to me manifest that all such preparatory work should he done by the maker or dealer, and that the fisherman should be able to buy a line completely ready for use. For such no reasonable sportsman would hesitate to pay an extra price, which would reimburse the maker for the extra labor and pay him a good profit besides. The books also say that all lines used for salt water fishing should be taken from the reel each night, thoroughly washed in fresh water, allowed to dry completely, and then be replaced. Has any one of these writers tried it and found out how much labor this operation requires, how the lines will snarl, and how much time, which should be devoted to fishing, one must expend on this soul-destroying occupa- tion ? Let him attempt what he so cheerfully recommends to others, and he will know more and talk less. ( )f course rich men can hire others to do the setting, washing, drying and replacing, though it will be done- less well than the fisherman would do it himself, but my experience has shown the whole process to be unnecessary, provided honestly made lines are furnished for one's money. Six years ago I spent a month cruising among the Florida Keys, fishing near the reef for the great kingfish. amberjack, barracuda and groupers. Five years ago I spent nearly five months of the winter and early spring in Nassau, fished about eight hours a day, from a thirty-five foot sail boat, and took kingfish up to fifty-five pounds and amberjack up to fifty-two. I then could buy green or brown linen cable laid tarpon lines of two hundred yards each, of twenty-one or twenty-four threads, put them on my reels without any "setting," never wash or dry them, and find them give excellent service for about thirty days, with little tendency to untwist or kink. After that time it proved wise to replace them by new ones and this liecaine my regular practice. In these two winters, at Nassau and in Florida, my line broke only once, and this was when I had neglected to exchange it for a new one after thirty days service, and perhaps was rather careless also. 1 used but a single large swivel, and never found keel sinkers, or any similar device, necessary to prevent untwisting or kinking. I had hoped to return to Nassau the following year and break my own record on kingfish, and for that purpose then bought four of "Hall's Special Tarpon" lines, but illness and the panic of 1!><>T pre- AMBERJACK— 35 Pounds. TWO TALKS Ol< TROUHLK. 7 vented and they lay among my kit until tin- last winter. Then. [ again came back to my old fishing grounds, full of glorious antici- pations, secured my former house, mv old boat and crew, and started to work, lie fore leaving 1 had ordered, from a Xew York dealer, half a doxen "Rex Tarpon" lines, described in their catalogue as the very best, and also a supply of swivels and keel sinkers. Pending their arrival 1 used the "Hall" line-, purchased in IJIOU, without ''set- ting" or washing and with but one swivel, and found them give rather more trouble than I formerlv had. in untwisting and kinking, but nothing very serious; still, when the "Rex" lines arrived, about two weeks after 1 began fishing. I thought the "Hall" lines unfit for longer service and exchanged them for the new ones, putting on also keel sinkers. I was surprised to find the new "Rex" lines white or nearlv so, but concluded that others knew l>etter than mvself and used them with confidence. Then my troubles iK-gan. A new "Rex" line would, in three hours trolling, be untwisted into three parallel strand- for the lower seventy-five yards of its length, would kink in a most extraordinary manner and. in spite of increasing the swivels to three, putting on keel sinkers, and reversing each day. was likely to break, under a very moderate strain, on the second or third day. I rigged up on my rear porch, with great trouble, a place where I could -tretch and dry lines, and went through the laborious and time-devouring process of setting them, of course only possible in the dav time, but obtained little improvement. Thinking that the white color and lack of dve, might account for the difficulty. I wrote at once for more "Hall's" lines but, partly through the ,-lowne-- of the parcels post, which comes to Xas-au but once in two weeks, these did not arrive until over six weeks after they were ordered, and then proved great! v inferior to those bought four year- ago. with which I had begun the season. In desperation I had meanwhile sent over to .Miami tor the best green tarpon line- they could tunu-li. and got some "(lull Tarpon ' line-, bearing the name ot the "Simmon- Hard- ware Companv." of St. Louis. Mi--otiri. These did a very little Ix'tter service than the "Rex." but were greatlv intcric>r to the older "Hall's." unraveling and breaking in a mo-t distressing manner. I first used two "Rex" lines "unset." The fir-t one was so badlv untwisted and kinked, after a half dav'- ti-liing, that I revcr-ed it on my reel, putting the unu-ed portion at the outer end. I then u-ed TROPICAL TROLLING. it for two days more, reversing it each day, when it hroke at the strike of a moderate sized fish. The second "unset" "Rex"' broke about two hours after I put it on the reel. The other four "Rex" I "set" and found these give very varying results. One of them broke the first day I used it, the others lasted several days each, although it was necessary to reverse them every day, and in less than two weeks all of the six "Rex" lines were unfit for service. The first "Gulf Tarpon Line," used "unset," encouraged me very much, giving good service for the first day. The next day I took off a "Rex," from one of my other reels and put a new "Gulf Tarpon" on it. This broke at the first strike I had. I then took off the "unset" lines and substituted "set" "Gulf Tarpon" lines. These gave better service than the "unset," but still untwisted, unraveled, kinked and broke. I reversed them every day and managed to catch some fish with them, but never could trust them. Of the new lot of "Halls," received only a few days before leav- ing Nassau, I went through the process of "setting" one, and found that the soaking removed a very large part of the coloring matter. After careful setting and drying I used this line for two days with great caution, reversed it every night, and on the third day it broke at the strike of a moderate sized fish. I did not dare to use any of the other "Hall" lines, brought them back home with me, and returned them to the seller. The best lines I had during the winter were two green tarpon lines, bearing the name "E. Yom Hofe," costing considerably less than any oMhe others, but even these were very far from good, enormously inferior to those of five years ago. unraveled and kinked badly, and broke frequently. Toward the end of my stay T always cut off the lower ten or twelve feet, after one day's use. always doubled the lower ten feet before using, watched very carefully for weak spots and, when one showed, cut it out and knotted the line, used keel sinkers and three large swivels, and yet continually got wretched service. The big kingfish were very late in arriving this year, perhaps because the season was unusually cold, and all fish seemed very scarce, so up to April thirteenth, when I left Xassau, 1 had only hooked eight large ones. One was lost by the excitement of my skipper, one tore the hook out of its mouth, and six broke my lines short off, in spite of the v?ry greatest care I could use. During the whole winter 1 caught only one kingfish over twelve pounds, and this was three days before leaving. He was forty-eight TWO TALI'S OF TROUBLE. inches long, weighed thirty pounds, and was hooked in the middle of the belly. Of course he made a most furious fight, repeatedly ran out nearly the whole two hundred yards, got under the l>oat, and was only kept from cutting off the line on the keel by plunging my rod straight down into the water. It took at least forty-five minutes to kill him. Fvery moment of this time I felt that the line was liable to fail me, and the fish was only landed by the greatest care. I can only explain this disastrous and infuriating experience by supposing that manufacturers have been led, by competition or greed for greater profit, to use inferior material and lalxir, so that such abuses have arisen as, in another field of trade, the "Pure Food and Drugs Act" has done so much to remedy. The abominable notion, that the markets of the world are for the benefit of the producer and seller only, and that the consumer and buyer have no rights at all, which has done such grave harm in other industries, seems to have extended its baleful influence over the tackle trade also. Of course such an idea leads directly to fraud of all kinds, to the extortions of monopolv. the follies of the tariff, and countless kindred evils. These can be overcome only by informing and directing that Public Opinion, which is the court of last resort in this country, and the onlv method of successfully doing this is by Publicity, by throwing light into the dark places. That thoroughly reliable lines can be made and sold, at a reason- able price, is conclusively shown by my experience of five years ago, and a dealer or maker who will furnish such trustworthy lines can have from me any reasonable price he asks. I want good lines, regard- less of cost, and appeal to all my fellow sportsmen to help me find them, if thev can be now had. and, if not, to join me in a crusade that will produce them. Let us all condemn, in print and giving full names of lines, maker and dealer, such tackle as we have found bad, and, in the same wav praise such as we have found good. I am sure that the columns of all our papers devoted to sport will be o]vn to us for this worth v purpose. ! have not written this article, nor do I propose the above sug- gested course to my brother fishermen, for the purpose of wreaking vengeance' on anv one, but want to use-, and have oilier fishermen u-e. the great weapon ot "publicity" for the protection ot fishermen, honest dealers, and honest manufacturers, against dishonest manufacturers who cheapen their product by using inferior material and labor, and dishonest dealers, who sell something thev know to be inferior. < V 10 TROPICAL TROLLING. course, the dealer may be also deceived, so a time limit might be allowed before dealers are denounced by name. I have dealt with Messrs. Abercrombie & Fitch for many years, and have found them most courteous and accommodating, and never until this winter have I got bad material from them. I wrote them fully, stating my experience. They expressed great regret and volunteered to take back all goods purchased from them, which proved unsatisfactory, and refund the full price, but this does not cover the case. If I buy a line for three dollars, and hook and lose a record fish through its failure, a refund of three dollars or a payment of three hundred dollars, or any money sum whatever, would not satisfy me. What fishermen want, especially those who are exercising their craft in distant regions, where no supplies can be had and communi- cations are slow and uncertain, is tackle that can be depended upon and not a claim for damages. I also wrote to the Simmons Hardware Company, of St. Louis, reporting the unsatisfactory results obtained with the goods bearing their name, but have not yet received even the courtesy of a reply. I had other experience with unsatisfactory tackle and other trials on this trip, which really made it memorable for misfortune, and these I shall describe in a future article, but the present one is devoted to the subject of lines only. The following seem to me established as conclusions : 1. The lines now made and sold for tropical trolling are enorm- ously inferior to those obtained five years ago. 2. All linen lines should be sold "set" and ready to put on the reel, and fishermen should refuse to buy any others. 3. All linen lines, for salt water trolling in the tropics, should be dark colored, never white or natural color. 4. The cable laid linen line is, and must always be, unsuitable for trolling, on account of its tendency to untwist and kink. A braided linen line, if of the best quality and made with the great- est care, might give much better service. Whether a braided line can be made of the same strength as a cable laid line, without much, if any, increase of size. I have no means of knowing and should like to be informed. If so I am ready and anxious to buy a lot of them. Next year I shall again avoid the northern winter by going back to the tropics, and to where good fishing can be found, and do not KINGFISH — 30 Pounds. MY HOUSE AND GARDEN. TWO TALUS Ol; TROl-KLl-.. 11 want to waste the coming winter as the last one was wasted, so I appeal to my fellow sportsmen, and to all dealers in an 1 makers of angling snoods who have learned that a pleased customer i> the l>e>t advertisement, to help me to find trustworthy tackle, and to aid their fishing- friends, known and unknown, to avoid such an infuriating experience as that I have just passed through. Cleveland, Ohio, June '.'Ttli. 1!H1. TROUBLE IN THE TROPICS The winter of l!t()-")-li ] spent in Nassau and found there a most picturesque island, a perfect climate, much natural and artificial beauty, much pleasant company and particularly good fi-hing, and the latter was described in the columns of r<»'cst and Stream shortly after my return. My time was devoted chiefly to trolling for the great tropical game fish, kingfish, amber jack, barracuda, and others, using tarpon tackle and a thirty-five foot, two-masted, pilot boat named the "Kestrel." The winds were regular, so that the boat almost always traveled at sufficient speed, and calms or very high winds were infrequent. The sea was free from gulf weed. which when present in any quantity is a terrible nuisance. I'ait could be readily procured and fish were plentiful. My lines, rods and reels also gave excellent service. I had a spacious and con- venient house on a ridge overlooking the harbor, a garden full of grapefruit, oranges, cocoanut palms and roses, and altogether, both for comfort, convenience and sport, found it the most delightful place imaginable. \Yhen tired of trolling, one could anchor and catch plenty of the beautiful, strange and brilliantly colored fish of the tropics, so that the bottom of the boat after fishing looked like a tlower garden. Xassau seemed to me an ideal place to pass the winter, and I vowed never again to see a llake of snow if it could be helped, but rather serious illness prevented my returning the following year. Then came on the panic of 1!M)T, with the depression succeed- ing, when every business man had to devote all his time and energy to strictly necessary business. l.ut at last such trouble- settled themselves, health was largely restored, and 1 expected that one more winter in the tropics would make me absolutely well. 1 was fortunate enough to be able to again engage the house, boat and crew of my former year, and early in January started off with the happiest of anticipations. \Ye sailed into the harbor on a jx'rfect. brilliant morning, over the turquoise, opal and sapphire water and, among the crowd swarm- ing to meet the steamer, was my old Captain, John Harrow, who welcomed me with a most gratifving heartiness. \\ e lound the 14 TROPICAL TROLLING. house completely ready for us and, through the great«kindness of its owner, equipped \vith servants and supplies, so that we could settle down at once. It had been improved by the addition of mosquito screens, being the only house in Nassau so equipped, and a telephone and electric light, since our former visit. The trees in the garden were laden with grapefruit and oranges, the roses and hibiscus were in full bloom, and we at once felt completely at home again. But this delightful beginning was succeeded by a series of vexa- tions and annoyances so far unmatched in my experience. Nassau has an infertile soil and very little productive industry, so that wages are excessively low and it is often impossible for a laborer to get work at all. In the past five years these conditions have produced their inevitable result. Many of the best and most energetic of the popula- tion, both white and black, had emigrated to the United States, those engaged in any class of business were fewer and the most enterprising of them had already gone. The fishermen supplying the market were fewer than formerly, and perhaps they were less diligent and efficient also, the result being that the "goggle-eye," which small fish is generally used for bait, was scarcely and irregularly supplied, and it was often impossible to get them on days \vhen everything else w-as favorable. After many annoying experi- ences of this kind I met this difficulty by arranging to get a supply of bait, whenever possible, and have it kept on ice, and such cold storage baits, while they were not quite so good as fresh ones, seemed to answer reasonably well. When this difficulty was disposed of and I was able to go out regularly, fish proved to be much less plentiful than they had formerly been. Whether this was due to a rather unusually cold winter or to some other reason I cannot tell. The temperature never fell to much below seventy, even during the night, but tropical fish are extremely sensitive to cold and even a slight drop in temperature will drive them away or prevent their biting. I had been accustomed to find good sport just outside the mouth of the harbor and all along the shore for twenty miles or more, but this year there seemed to be no fish anywhere near the harbor's month and grounds, which had been most prolific in the former season, yielded nothing whatever to the most painstaking effort. The winds, on which we depended entirely for propelling power, and which had been so steady five years ago, were also very variable and uncertain. On manv davs we were unable to fish because the AMBEKJACK — 43 Fount TWO TALES OP TROUBLE. 15 wind was too high and very frequently, after getting outside with a good breeze, it would drop away to little or nothing and our boat would float around in a calm, helpless and useless so far as fi>hing was concerned. When other troubles were not present, when I had bait, when the wind blew and when the fish seemed in biting humor, the yellow gulf weed would come down from the north, cover the >ea with great masses of floating herbage, and one would pass most of his time in reeling up his long line, disentangling weed, and putting out again. Of course, a bait with a weed on it will not be touched bv any self-respecting fish and to haul in and let out again a hundred yards of line takes a considerable amount of time, so that much of my fishing days would be wasted in this way. All these difficulties arose from the caprices of Nature1, and had to be endured, but unfortunately I also .suffered from troubles which were the result of the carelessness, if not the dishonest}', of man. My tackle was selected with the greatest care, guided by the experi- ence of past tropical fishing, and was supposed to be of the verv best, but proved in many respects untrustworthy. The worst offenders in this respect were inv lines, which broke, snarled, tangled, kinked. and committed every other sort of crime in a manner which was entirely beyond my experience. As I have elsewhere described this particular trouble, my grievances in this respect will not be repeated here, but this was far from the only defect in my outfit, landing that mv two large reels were not sufficient 1 ordered a new tarpon reel, fitted with a "rabbeth drag" and costing thirty dollars, from Aber- crombie & Fitch, of Xew \at would not come about, so we had to anchor again iust in front of the Colonial Hotel. The wind continued to increase until the waves in that sheltered harbor were running six feet high and two boats, which had been anchored near by. broke their moorings and went on the rocks a quarter of a mile west of us. Then the "Kestrel" began to drag her anchor, pulling it through the sand for a while, then bringing up when the fluke caught a point of rock. It seemed pretty certain that we would pile up on the rocks, where the other boat< had gone. and, though there was no danger to us except that of a complete wet- 20 TROriCAL TROLLING. ting, the boat would certainly be destroyed. T got down into the fore- hold and pulled tlui hatch shut, where, though very wet. it was quite comfortable out of the sweep of the wind, and there lay for an hour or more. Presently there was a shout and, putting my head out of the hatch 1 found a row boat, half full of water and manned by a couple of darkies. My crew had called to the shore and these men had put off, well up the harbor, come down with the run of the sea and wind and got alongside. \Ye bailed out the boat as well as possible, I climbed into its stern, and we started off before the wind and sea toward the Hat rocks on shore. There a dozen or so of friendly negroes waded into the water up to their waists, grabbed the boat, hauled her up on the Hat rocks and I stepped out. Of course my first thought was for my crew, who were out in the boat, with no food, not much clothing and thoroughly wet. and without waiting to shift my drenched clothes I got word to the white owner of the boat to send them an anchor, with food and drink also at my expense. This imitation of a man came down to the harbor, looked out at his boat, concluded there was no hope of saving her, and did nothing whatever. My crew stayed on that boat without food and thoroughly chilled until three o'clock in the morning, when the gale moderated, they were able to land, and after getting dry clothes and a cup of coffee came over to tell me the story. 1'eing pretty thorough- ly indignant. T started out to find that man and tell him my opinion of him but, perhaps fortunately, could not then find him and my anger had time to coo! down before I saw him again. The bothers during this winter were not by any means confined to fishing. Photography has always been a pet occupation of mine, and during the last year I had taken up photographic portraiture and become greatly interested in it. My trunk contained a large kodak with an especially fine lens, a number of rolls of film, and a new metal tripod bought for use on this particular trip, the wooden ones not being trusted. This tripod broke a leg short off the first day it was used. None can be got in Nassau, nor could it be repaired there, and over a month passed before it could be replaced by a new one from the north. A\ ithin the first ten days the shutter of my camera began to act badly and soon broke down entirely. So shutter and lens had to be taken oft. sent north to be repaired, and were not returned to- me for nearly six weeks. Xo films of the size necessary can be pur- chased in Xassau. and orders sent to the north seemed to meet with THE LITTLE DOLPHIN. Tlt'O TALES (>l: TKOl'HIM. 21 very slow attention, so that much of the time this indispensable requisite was also deficient. My photography was. therefore, almost as bad a failure as my fishing. Having had experience with the ways of black servants, mv wife took a maid down with her, who was to relieve her from the trouble of issuance of supplies, supervision of purchases and manv other house- hold duties. She was particularly faithful and conscientious and we were all very fond of her. After having been in Xassau a few weeks she took to her bed with fever and weakness, which the doctor decided was due to tuberculosis. Instead of being of anv assistance to my wife, the latter was obliged to nurse the girl con- tinuously for over three weeks, until I grew very anxious for the effect on her own health. Fortunately, by the help of a resident physician, we were able to get passage for her on a comfortable steamer going north, under the care of a nurse who was traveling hv the same vessel. All this we felt of course morally bound and even glad to do. but naturally we got no service from her and were put to heavv expense on her account. So hard luck pursued me and mine throughout the whole winter, everything seeming to go wrong when there was the slightest opjx>r- tunity to do so. Such continued worries and annoyances cause a nerve strain that cannot be beneficial to one's health, and the result was that I came home again far kss well than when 1 went. So my winter in Xassau failed to fulfill mv hopes in fishing, photography, or health. This bad fortune continued until the very end. finishing with a railwav wreck as we came west from Xew York. It is very probable that, on going to Xassau another vear. one would find none of the natural annoyances which 1 have described : but 1 intend to devote mvself, and ask fishermen in general to join me in this, to preventing the recurrence of such troubles as come from defective tackle, by using the weapon of publicity. From now on I shall trv to publish the names of everybody who sells me defective material, and also of those who sell me good and satisfactorv stuff. and. if other fishermen will do the same, joining in a crusade for the protection of fishermen, honest dealers and honest manufacturers, against unscrupulous dealers and rascally manufacturers, who make and sell tackle that thev know to be bad. such troubles cannot often recur. I laving given so long an account of my had luck, let me now describe one of the- few bright -pots that lighted up the prevailing gloom. 22 TROPICAL TROLLING. The ('olphin, "coryphena," is a widely roaming1 fish, which may occasionally turn up in any part of the ocean, but is seldom found in any particular place. I had never hooked or caught one, nor seen a living one, although a friend once took at Nassau three small ones which he showed to me. The fish is very strangely shaped, the head being very large and the whole body thinning away toward the tail. The back fin runs nearly the whole length and is very high, and the tail is deeply forked, narrow in the blades and very wide. In color the fish is indescribably beautiful. The great back fin is greenish purple with bright blue spots ; the body varies from brilliant gold to old gold, profusely studded with large spots of the most brilliant blue, and the fins and tail are golden. These colors begin to fade as soon as the fish is dead and, within an hour, all brilliancy has dis- appeared and the fish shows only various shades of whitish, yellow- ish, brown and grey, the blue having practically all vanished. As April came on the wind became especially light and uncertain, so that a sail boat was practically useless for trolling, and I was some- times compelled to engage a motor boat to get any fishing at all. The first day this happened I invited a couple of guests to go with me. It was very rainy, dark and dismal, a most unusual thing, and we ran down nearly to the western point of the island without taking a single fish. On the way home, however, we ran into a school of small dolphin. One struck the hook, made a tremendous leap, at least six feet into the air and twenty feet long, and got away. Then one of my friends hooked another. Being entirely inexperienced in such fishing he was pretty nearly helpless, especially with such a ferociously active quarry on the end of his line. Seeing that he was making heavy work of it I said, "Do you want me to take your rod?" and he answered, "T wish to the Lord you would." So we made the exchange and, after twenty minutes of most active play, rushing, leaping and general cavorting, the fish came to gaff. My camera was not on board and, by the time the fish had reahed the house, the sun was down, but I hurried to get the camera, hung up the fish and took half a dozen pictures, varying the exposure on account of the uncer- tainty of the light. One of these gave a satisfactory negative, which is reproduced in this article. This picture was taken about three hours after the fish left the water and the colors are very dull. This particular dolphin was thirty-seven inches long and weighed fourteen pounds. I did not know its edible qualities, but had this one cooked THE BIG DOLPHIN. 23 TWO TALES OF TROUBLE. and tried him. He proved most excellent, the flesh being finely flav- ored, tender and containing dark layers of high flavor very like those of a shad. The last two days of my fishing I engaged another motor boat, somewhat smaller and a good deal handier than the first one. It had the grave objection that it was covered by a fixed rOof, supported on stanchions, and this made it very difficult for the fisherman to handle his rod. Within half an hour after leaving the harbor something very heavy was hooked, which I hoped and prayed was my desired big kingfish, but which finally turned out to be a forty-three pound amber- jack, whose picture is also reproduced herewith. This fish made a most tremendous fight and, as my line was already badly weakened and I had no confidence in it, it was necessary to use very great care and spend a great deal of time in playing him. Nothing else touched my bait for a considerable time, so we ran down to the westward until opposite North Key, about five miles from the mouth of the harbor. Here there was a lot of floating gulf weed, and. for fear of fouling it, I began to reel in my line. When twenty-five or thirty yards were still out there was a swirl in the water and Captain John called, "There's a dolphin after it !" I ran out a few feet of line, let my bait go back, saw the fish whirl up. snatch it and turn away, and struck him as one would a trout. The instant response was a tremendous leap in the air and I saw that he was a big fellow. Then began a most furious fight. He would run out my line almost to the end, leap six feet from the water ( and he was a magnificent sight with the bright tropical sun on his brilliant color) then turn sideways, opposing his great width so that I could not recover any line at all. Then he swam in circles, our handy boat following him in the opposite way, so that we waltzed together over the bosom of the deep, and every now and then he jumped. I found it almost impossible to handle him, from my seat under the edge of the roof, which constantly interfered with the use of my rod. so kept a pull on him as well as possible, and scrambled out on the little stern deck, I holding hard to the fish and Captain John holding hard to me to prevent my going overboard. There I dropped into a sitting posture and had considerably more freedom, but the rudder chains ran along the top of this little deck and I had to sit on them, giving attention both to handling my fish and to easing up so that the rudder could be worked under me. It took at least three-quarters of an hour to kill that dolphin, but finally he came up closer and closer and, at last. Captain John jerked the big steel Y/v't >/'R'.lI. TROLl.lXd. -J4 gaff into him ami lugged him aboard. ( )n that day T had the camera along', so instantly dropped my rod, got the camera out of its case, adjusted focus and stop, scrambled up on top of the hou>e. and had Captain John stand up at the extreme end of the after-deck and hold the tish in the air. The resultant photograph printed herewith proved most satisfactory, showing the contra>t of color so far as black and white can do it. Such a picture can onlv be obtained bv a remarkable combination of circumstances. The dolphin could not possibly be handled in an ordinary sail boat, so one must be a ^killed fisherman, with proper tackle, in a motor boat, in the tropics, on a sunny day, provided with a camera and knowing how to use it, a big dolphin must come along, take the bait, he fought and landed, and be photographed as soon as he stops kicking. That all these things should happen together is not likely to occur twice, even if a man fishes dili- gently for a considerable number of years. This particular dolphin was fifty-seven inches long, seventeen inches deej) and weighed thirty-five pounds, which my captain says is about as large as they grow, but this may or may not be correct. His widely forked tail was one foot ten inches from tip to tip. I have never met the tarpon or the tuna, but in strength, agility, beauty and all other qualities that make up a game fish, the dolphin exceeds any that I know from experience. Cleveland. ( )hio. lime '^th. 1!»11. 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