Evening star., 1938-04-09
RUPERT Dudgeon Clears Desk for Mae Duel
Tarpon Fan Trolls 100 Miles
In Vain, Then Lands Whopper
In Front of His Own COttuge

trouble holding the boat against the
mangroves.
When you lay down a set Of hard
and fast rules for the tarpon you
Immediately qualify for the Sucker
Club. There isn't any rule or set of
rules to govern the actions of this
king of game fish. You think you
know what he'll do and he'll cross
you up the next minute. The tarpon
is flshdom's top double-crosser.
But you can catch 'em in your back
yard-sometimes. A few weeks ago
we were at Luther Pindar's new fishing
camp at Boca Chica Key, miles
north Of Key West. It's an attractive
place, hard by a channel which runs
from the Atlantic to Florida Bay, a
couple Of miles away. The tarpon run
up and down this channel seeking
their natural food washed up and
down by the strong tides.
But they told us that over in Jew
fish Creek, IA miles away, you couldnt
miss getting tarpon; that they were
bigger and that that was the head
quarters of the tarpon gang. So we
hlred a cruiser to run around Key
West, and up into Jewish Creek. They
were there alright-Scads of 'em, pok-
ing their bayonet fins all over the
place, rolling right up against the boat
and Tipping their tails at us. But
they wouldn't strike. We pulled the
bait right through 'em, smack under
their undershot jaws. And did we get
strike? Not on your grandmother
tintype.
We must have trolled 100 miles or
more that day, up Jewish Channel,
through Jack Channel and Candla
Channel. and We got one strike. The
nsh. trivial 50-pounder, hit while
we were transferring piece of gummy
cake toward our bridgeWork, and hit
ting on slack line. he jumped and
tossed the hook out toward Cuba.
Now normally we can take a leer
from fish. We have gotten used to
1t. over a good many years OF first
class leering by fshy faces. We've got
ten so, IN fact, we can leer back. And
sometimes. being practiced leerer,
we've been able to make the fish so
mad they struck back, annoyed be-
cause their best leering didn't get us
down.
We got back to Boca Chica around
9 O'Clock, and the tide was running
out fast down the channel, the moon
was up and it looked great for tarpon.
We had paid S25 for the big boat. hired
oolored kitchen boy for a dollar to
row sklff up the river and within 10
minutes we were into an 85-pound
fish, smack in the middle of the back
yard.
Ihats the way tarpon are. You try
and try and fail, and then when YOU
think you haven't got a chance YOU
run into 'em. Twenty-Five bucks for a
boat ride through the keys and no
tarpon. One buck for skif ride up a
tropical river, with colored boy pull
ing the oars. and you get the big boy.
Henry. the Bahama brown boy who
roWed the skiff, was scared. Tarpon
DO that to you if you aren't used to
them. One jump was right over Hen
rvs head, so close that he put I'D an
arm to ward off the fish. And. indeed,
1t looked as if Henry was going to have
% pounds of tarpon in his lap any
time. We told Henry to take it easy,
that We know what to do, and so on.
which was all hokum, because if that
tarpon had jumped into the skiff we
were leaving there in a hurry. A tar
pom is tough hombre. He hasn't anv
teeth. but he has strong and power
ful tail. 1t will bust a mans leg like
a pipestem If he catches it right. and
an active tarpon in a skiff can raise
more hell than a rattlesnake. Boss.
Ise scared" quavered Henry. "WhatIl
I do If he Jumps in the boat?"
You jump overheard and start
swimming" we told Henry. I've got
this fish, and I'm going to land him. ;"
Privately we had decided to jump
over. too. The tarpon could have the
skiff all to himself if he wanted it. But
that was a fish of judgment. Henry
sculled the skiff down with the tide,
and We fought and landed that fish
right in front of the cottage.