The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1894-07-14
TAKING BLACK SEA BASS.
Tho Exciting Experience of CALIFORNIA
Fisherman.

The Exciting Experience OF Csn'ornis
Fisherman.
Eastern anglers would enjoy the
black sea bass fishing of San Diego bay.
The fish resemble the small mouth bass
of the eastern lakes. but range In
weight from one hundred to six hun
dred pounds They are as gamy as the
small bass. A longshoreman lately
caught three sea bass weighing two
hundred and twenty-one, three hum
dred and thirty-seven and three hum
dred and seventy-six pounds, respect
lively. They were sold in the local
market for ten cents q pound. The
landlocked bay of San Diego and the
keep bed at the harbor mouth Is IA
vorite home of the black sea bass, or
Jew fish, as it is commonly called. A
long hand line. the size of window
sash cord, a hook of quarterback iron
baited with a white fish, an ak and
rowboat are all the tackle needed for
this sport. The baited hook is dropped
to the bottom in fifty feet or more OF
water, where the fish cruise about hum
grily. A vigorous bite and the fish
almost hooks itself. Then the fun
begins. The long line pays out with
the rapidity of a whale line when the
harpoon strikes home. 1t fairly smokes.
The Jew fish tires quicker than whale.
Soon the line slackens. The man in
the bow of the rowboat begins taking
in the slack This maddens the tish.
Away he darts again and stops. The
slack is pulled in again. The efforts OF
the fish become less vigorous The line
is made fast in the bow. The helms
man is warned to look out The
fish starts to run again. The line
tightena This time it does not pay
out. The fish feels the weight Of the
boat and strives hard to get away from
it Faster and faster goes the boat as
the captive fish tows it seaward until
the bow is pulled almost beneath the
waves, and it sometimes becomes nee
essary to put out the oars to check the
dangerous speed. The fish becomes
exhausted by degrees The odds
against him are too heavy and he is
gradually overcome, drawn alongside
the frail boat, where an ak blow on
the head ends the fight. Such a cap.
ture affords several hours of exciting
amusement A Jew fish weighing
three hundred and ffty-six pounds
was recently caught in the bay,
which owed its death to lack OF
nerve. The lucky angler was fishing
off Coronado pier with light linen
line. The fish was hooked and il
it had persisted in swimming seaward
it would have broken the line like q
thread. 1t was guided to do other
wise. After playing it for an hour Oh
so the angler, who proved himself te
be skillful, landed the monster. II
was over nine feet long. and truck
was needed to carry 1t. So voraciou!
is the Jew fish that it will run grea
risks seeking food. The writer wa
pulling Goldfish into small row
boat, had just lifted it from the water
and as the cod dangled in the air 9
huge Jew fish leaped from the ocear
in vain effort to seize the small fish
The huge pursuer almost capsized thu
boat and deluged the angler with sal
water as its great body fell back int
the sea. Its jaws snapped viciously a
they closed on the empty air, adding
terror to the fisherman's heart.
seemed to him for a moment as if thu
bottom of the ocean was trying to ge
on top.-San Diego Record.