St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1899-06-17
Big Stories Of Big Fish
The Tuna Man Put to Flight by the
Black Sea Bass Man
EVERYTHING is upside down on
r. this side" said rotund member

VERIFYING is upside down on
this side" said rotund member
of the Tuna club, Santa Catalina, who
was watching Mexican Joe. his boat
man. rig up a tuna bait. "On the Allan
tic we have the gulf stream flowing
north. Here we're on the Kurosiwo.
the japanese current that flows south
and gives US this fishing; but the tTou-
BILE with the old thing is that it wabbles
Sometimes it's off shore, sometimes
clean in; sometimesit runs up into the
Arctic, some times cutting across be-
low; and that's what affects our fish
ing and climate, according to my mind.
When the Kurosiwo is off shore, as it
was five years ago, the fishing is of.
too. That year the yellow tail We're
as scarce as hens teeth, and the req
son was the warm current was off shore
and just touched the islands of south
ern California. This year we're right
in it. People have been bathing all win
ter at Avalon, which shows that TIE
water is warm; that's the reason the
yellow tail have struck In so soon. Joe
saw a school going north yesterday
that covered 20 acres and was an hour
passing. He reckoned that there were
millions in the school
How can he reckon2s asked
chronic kicker. He can't read or
write"
Well, he can savey, can't hep" re-
torted the Tuna clubman-
This seemed unanswerable, but the
kicker presently came to the front
again. You say Joe saw4a million fish, !,
eh? and they was an hour passing.
Dye know how that was? Why, he
saw school OF 400 or 500 yellow tails,
that's what hegsaw, and. like they al
ways do at the first run, they was swim
ming in circle, and Mexican Joe was
drifting on the circumference of the
circle, and the same fish went under
him about million times He's got
double multiplying sight, anyway, like
reel, like all them Ananias club boat
men; what they don't see when they're
out Of bait is caution Why, look what
they talk up now; trying to make out
that black sea bass is equal to tuna"
"Well, so he is, responded the feshy
man.
''What.' said the other. Compare
that great overgrown hunk of a fish to
a tuna r"
well, ,I hold the record for the big
gest fish on top of the earth with the
smallest line for a game fish, and that
fish was a sa7-pound black sea bass re-
piled the clubman.
Here comes the colonel" said some .
one; she holds the belt for the biggest
fish story #sa8
And claims everything in sight. . re-
torted the black sea bass champion.
What do you consider the gamest
fish in these waters, coloneiar asked the
kicker, as the other man came up
''Why, everyone knows that the leap
ing tuna is in class by itself. Why"
rolling his eyes around, 1--WE would feed
our tuna on full grown tarpon, if we
could get them. 1t can't be, = added the
colonel, turning to the black sea bass
champion, that you are still clinging
to that silly delusion that your fish beat
mine I'll tell you what I'll do" talk
ing so fast that the black sea bass man
could not get IN word. sIsH tell these
gentlemen the story of my catch, then
you tell yours, and let them settleit.
well" continued the colonel, clear
ing away the hooks and wire on the
Mexican's stand and sitting down. Il
hooked my fish one morning aboutdsix
o'clock--two of US were fishing. We
had 12-0unce rods, seven feet long and
21-thread lines. and plenty OF it--s00
feet or more. The first we knew there
was rush and two big fish came boil- |
ing along astern; then you should have
heard those reels! You may talk about
high e; they simply humrned, and the |
line was ierked Off SO quick that before
I could think 500 feet was gone, while |
the fish my friend had hooked had |
taken everything and was off. There
was a sort of a shrek from the steel /
throat of that reel, and 900 feet of good !
line went. kept my fish well in hand, |
confess by species of luck, and |
stopped him in less than 500 feet, and |
when felt that the brake was telling |
and that he was towing the boat and
not taking line l thought had. a
chance but just then began some OF /
the strangest maneuyers ever saw in |
. fish. Suddenly thought he was gone.
You who have caught tunas perhaps
know this peeuliarity of the fish in get
ting OF when there is no strain on the /
line; another tuna sometimes cuts it /
with its back. Well, thought this had
happened, but a second Iater saw al
gleam on she water, and it was mr. fish;