The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1905-03-12

ring in the canvas helmet OF one OF the
! bath attendants, who, when time was
! called made dive on and swan TO the far
4 end of the tank The time limit was set
at twenty minutes but the angler feelcd
\ In the spluttering and struggling man
] fish in minutes and 10 seconds,
/ mo one will sit and wait for bite at bot
! tom fishing who has ever tried the delights
| Of trolling for tarpon,- said Mr.. Naething,
| when started of on his piscatorial hobby.
! My fishing Is from a houseboat In can
vas canoe, with seat for the oarsman and
/ chair on a swivel for myself. which per-
/ mits cast in any direction light boat.
/ 10 my mind, is as important "a the proper
tackle and great improvement over the or
/ ,tinary wooden boats. although II has 10 be
: handled teuderly in a sea.
My largest tarpon was caught in Shark
I River Pass and weighed 1857, pounds but
/ | hooked what believed to have been the
! record tarpon last winter at knights Pass
and had it stolen by Il shark Tho shark.
from whit saw Of II, must have been
twenty feet long and as lie gulped down
the tarpon, which am sure weighed $50
pounds. in three bites. YOU may ma CINE
/ IT. glrth and spread Of teeth. The shark
did not turn over and make fresh darts
each time. but just gllped down that tar
pon like a greedy boy biting banana.
Now, it's a funny thing that while a
shark and tarpon will swim along together
side by side, in seeming friendship and make
war together on the muets. as soon az
tarpon Is hooked the fish of prey at once
turns on It. BY All uncanny instinct. tho
shark seems TO know that the tarpon is
powerless to escape IL, and under these cir
cumstanoes the smallest Of sharks will rush
for bite at the largest tarpon.
The sharks levy an incessant toll on the
anglers in the passes, and their share il
fully every second fish After playing
fish until it Is half spent and one is pretty
sure of it, conyulsive renewal OF vigor
and strategy by the tarpon tells that shark
has appeared
The one thing to do is to give the tarpon
line To run and to follow Il, in the hope
that the shark will be lost This is what
occurred with my big tarpon
After an hour Of fighting, half tho TINA
in the air. was SURE had the tarpon under
control. The desperate renewal If the
struggle and plunge to the bottom told
me a shark was about and. after easing
Of and n row of two miles, ] thought We
had lost the thief. | began reelng in.
but with the approach of the tarpon to ths
surface the shark dashed along and secured
his dinner
There is also sport in the passes catching
kingiish, jack and barracuda running in
weight from ten TO thirty pounds, with sea,
trout or weakfish. sheepshead and channel
bass galore in the bays. On light tackle.
the bone fish is like zigzag lightning in play.
and many anglers deem this sport aou-
good payment for the Florida journey.
The fish range from two to ten pounds
in weight and are caught in water from
one 10 three feet deep, favorite fishing
ground being a few miles below Miami
Inc reefs where they are caught are dry
at low tide, and the fish come in with the
Hood, rnvenou-ly hungry and In search Of
It'd bits in the hoilows of the rocks
The equipment must be strong or the bone
fish will rend the lines and smash the rods
10 flinders Bass Tickle will do nicely,
with fine nine strand line.