The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-02-19
.LAYED A FISH
TWELVE HOURS.
Then the Fish Tired OF the Sport
and Abandoned the
Angler.

Twelve hours Is pretty ong time
to devote to ono fish said Charles +.
Naething, who fish es for tarpon, and will
shortly attempt at the New York Athletic
Club to demonstrate that he can land a
swimmer in the clubhouse pool just as
easily as he can a fish, Fred j. Wells, one
Of the board of governors taking the part
Of the fish. And yet one day last winter
| put in every minute OF that time trying
10 land a monster fish.
We were camping in houseboat az the
mouth of the Indian River, just of Jupiter
Inlet, Fla. With man to row we started
up stream one morning in "a small boat
Il flung out my line and waited for
q strike. Waiting about five minutes, l
thought perhaps the bait had been taken,
so 1 reeled in to put on another one. But
it seemed As If l had hooked the bottom,
The line came in until it was drawn taut,
directly over the spot where it appeared
to have caught snag.
Il held it at this tension for several min
utes. thinking tho strain might have u
tendency to lift the object off the bottom.
whom suddenly the snag began to move.
Not swiftly, but say at tho rate Of one
mile an hour
Every effort ! made had not the
slightest effect in bringing the fish nearer
10 the surface or in any way causing its
gait to slacken. 1t had apparently made
up its mind TO travel, and travel 1t did,
and might az well have tried TO hold back
Il steam launch
Up stream the fish went for maybe a
couple of miles. Then it turned and made
its way back for the same distance, re-
tracing almost the identical route. The
water averaged about forty feet in depth
al this point.
We'll, up and down we went until lunch
time. ! sent word 10 the houseboat to
send up something TO eat and stood by my
quarry. The afternoon wore around, and
still the same tactics were repeated, the
fish keeping up a steady see-saw between
the up and down stream points, my line all
the time remaining in the same position.
As dusk approached | was 10 all APP
pearances no nearer TO landing my prize
than | had been when ! first hooked him.
| sent for a lantern. My fishing comrade
asked me il intended to stay out all night.
and replied that ] did.
The lantern was brought and once more
my unknown commenced the see-saw
manpuvre. with me holding on TO the pole
like grim death. After n couple of hours,
and when just opposite the point where
our houseboat was anchored, without warn
ing there suddenly came a quick. powerful
Jerk from the other end. and my line snapped
as if it had been n cotton thread. this being
done so easily that it looked as If the fish
had said: I'm tired Of playing now; I'm
going away
L looked at my watch and found that
il was exactly O'Clock. There / had
been since o'clock in the morning. And
! started for the houseboat, a very tired
and disguised man,
-Of course. never knew positively what
kind Of a creature had hooked but am
inclined TO think II was an enormous Jew
fish. However, il may have been. as my
fishing oomrade suggested, a huge sea
turtle, which weighed something like
quarter Of a ton. | imagine that twelve
hours is just about the record tim spent
trying 70 land one fab"