Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-31
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

special DlSpabcn 10 Inc star.
MIAMI BEACH, Fla, January 81
Much of the current interest around
President-elect Hoovers temporary home
here centers about the association be-
tween his name and sailflsh. BY COM
mon consent the sailfish is the second
gamest inhabitant of Florida waters.
| The one most desired by most fisher
men Is the tarpon. February Is, how
ever, a little early for tarpon. The
| denizen of warmer waters does not
arrive on the Florida coast in numbers
until after the first week in March, by
which time Mr.. Hoover will have a
more engroSsing occupation in another
part of the United States.
The sailfish are now here In reason
able numbers.
The Miami newspapers which print
daily columns OF fishing news. COM
monty report the doings of from Is to
80 boats. Always large catches are
reported Of mackerel barracuda group
ers, bonita amberjack and other famil-
lar fish OF these waters. OF sailfish
there is usually report of at least
one or two catches day. The game
ness and desirability of the Sailfish
rest on many causes.
He Is large, being as rule from six
to seven feet in length and weighing
from so to 10 pounds or more He is
| strong and active beyond all other
| fish in these waters except the tarpon.
To see sailfish leap from the sea and
angrily shake himself to get rid of the
hook is to get f1sherman's thrill. One
gets anywhere from five to 20 such
thrills in the course Of the hour or so
| that 1t often takes to land sailfish
lie ~ 81 INa im u
and harder to hook.
Local fishing lore says that out of
every five Sailfish hooked by the most
expert fishermen. three to four get away.
Fishing for sailfish is an art by itself.
Other kinds of fish swim up to the
Dalt and swallow 1t, or try to. The sail
| fish operates more intricately. He has
long bill like bird. His bill Is larger
and narrower and more tapered than
| any birds. It is like rapier.
The sailfish swims up to his prey and
| Jabs 1t with his rapier-like bill, then he
sWims of, turns around and comes
back to see if the prey is dead or dis
abled. If the prey is dead, the sailfish
starts to swallow 1t. That process gives
rise to the technique of sailfishing.
To haul in the line at the first bite
Is wrong. On the contrary, the fisher
man must let out his line SO that the
bait seems dead and remains in the
| same spot. When the sailfish returns
and starts to swallow the bait is the
time to hook him If you can. That 'if"
is large one.
Most of the sailfshs bill and mouth
| Is as hard as birds beak. The hook
cannot penetrate it. The fisherman's
| chance lies in getting the hook curved
around the edge of the fish's bill or
| mouth and then holding it absolutely
and continuously taut during the hour
or so OF struggle that may follow,
Occasionally, but only by unusual
luck, the hook will strike soft flesh bach
near the sailfiSh's throat In that case
the hook may penetrate and the ash
ing becomes like catching of any or
! binary fish Of great strength and game
ness. To haul IN sailfish is hard r,hvs-
ical labor. A fairly strong man will be
breathleSs and nearly exhausted at the
end of an hour of 1t. The sailfish in
habit special depth and kind of water.
Wnere they are, few other fish are ant
10 De. one does not find sailfish cas-
uaily IN the course of fishing for or
oihary varieties. One must find out
where the sailfish are on the particular
gay you go f1shing. Then you must 90
alter them. track them down and fol-
low tnem up: Frequently they will
Grange tnelr minds and depart for some
otner part OF the sea. Often it is rea-
sonaple good luck to get one bite from
sallnsn IN half day of patient pur-
sun; Mucn depends on the weather.
II tne Wlno is high and the waves have
cnurneo up sand the sailfish will go