The evening times., 1898-11-09
A GAME FISH.
Weighed $50 Pounds and Put Up "a
Mighty Fight.
(From the Chicsgo Inter Ocean-

From the Chicago Inter Ocean,
The place most famous in America for
large game fish is the Island of Santa
Catalina, thirty miles off the coast of
Southern California. and about three
hours distant from the city of Los An
geies. Here the little town of Avalon
faces the bay of that name and hotels.
yachts, and mountains rising on each side
make IL a most attractive spot for lovers
OF the sport The waters here are re-
rnarkabie for the number and varic,v OF
game fishes taken with salmon DDS and
reeIs or sixteen-ounce bass rods. and " hat
Is known as the twenty-one-strand line
very light tackle. Among the fishes are
the yellow tail, which runs to ffftv rou16s-
the white sea bass, seventy pounds. the
black sea bass, three hundred pounds. and
several more, all afrording fine sport on
the rod
But the hsh peculiar TO that region
one which was first caught on the rod
by an Englishman. Greer CampbeII-ts
the ieaplng tuna. fish which here at
tains an enormous size, and Mr.. Camp
bell caught several averaging Ii0 pounds
and which is the type of power and ac
uvity, leaping from six to twelve feat
into the air in its efforts to capture fly
ing fish, which constitute its prey
1t was long considered impossible TO
Sd&ibuit liltS iSu- out III 1877 MT. DlIf-
bell caught several. averaging I4l pounds.
and in June of the present year several
were frequently brought in. and the rec
ord catch of the country perhaps the
world, was made by isfof Charles r.
Holder. Prof Holder who is an arde nj
fisherman, hooked his fish one morning
at $780, and succeeded in bringing il 10
Sah about four hours later. after a mCSt
exciting struggle, during which the fish
towed him ten miles, part of the time
against a heavy sea and the oars of lis
boatman, who was backing water to tire
out the fish.
The tuna a first made a rush of l01
feet right away, which could not be stop
Ped: then, when turned, il came for the
boat at the surface like an arrow. uHE-
ing, when within twenty feet Of H. and
darting away al marvellous speed, tearing
off the line in feet and yards ;aking the
400 feet again that the fisherman had Sc
cured and 100 more. then plu7gng down
deep into the blue channel. where for a
few moments it suiked like salmon.
1t was soon reeled from this position
and now circled around the boat faster
than the oarsman could turn it. and then
with fifty feet of line, started directly
| out to sea, and, despite the work OF the
fishermen, took the boat two mites cff
now headed in and carried them al a
| rapid gait toward the island. only beng
turned again at the edge of the kelp-beds
in smooth water not a hundred Yards
from the rocky coast.
The fish now began Il series of magnif-
icent plays for liberty. which Prof. Hold
er afterward said fairly exhausted him.
chief of which was a sudden rush in and
turn. making it a most difficult matter
t" reel in the line. Time and again the
| fish attempted this trick but was always
| met and no slack secured: then it chang
ed it's tactics, plunging down into the sea
and circling. For three hours this was
| kept up. and then. when the game was
reeled in so that il could be Seen il made
a terrific rush which took three or four
hundred feet of line, and with this as :,
trace towed the boat five miles down the
shore of the beautiful island, followed by
several launches, whose owners were
watching the contest with great interest
The fisherman stopped the tuna five or
six times during this run, at which the
great fish would circle widely and grand
ly, as though looking for point of van
tage, and then, like living arrow, plunge
in at the boat, making the man at the
reel turn for his life. then grasp the
brake to stop the whistling line as it
went screaming after the fish.
Nearly tOuT dIteF the strike lEe
fish had towed the boat to Avalon Bay.
where in heavy sea it was brought in
and gaffed by Jim Gardner, the famous
| English boatman and gaffer of Avalon
| The landing was made in spite of a
| heavy sea, which rendered the operation
| a difficult one. The fish made a desper-
| ate struggle to the last and could easily
have pulled the boat five miles further
! 1t was towed into Avalon in triumph and
| found to weigh 1S3 pounds, measuring six
| feet in length and forty-fiye inches in
! girth.
| In the estimate of Prof. Holder and
every marine game fisher on the Atlantic
| Gulf of Mexico. and Pacific. this fish Is
| the most powerful and hardest-fightins
game fish ever taken with rod and rec
/ and with twenty y-one-strand line.
The tuna is caught only In the deer
water off the precipitous shores of Sants
/ Catalina Island, and Is fine game fist
| in every sense, and a table Ash. Prof
! Holders reel held 800 feet of line, bu
only 500 feet were actually used TIL.
bait was a flying fish weighing two anC
1 one-half pounds and measuring twely,
1 inches in iength-the natural food of th.
( leaping tuna. which has been given thi.
name from the extraordinary leans which