to port and saw a
big sailfish break water nine times. He was perhaps five hundred yards
distant. My boatman put on speed, and, as my boat is fast, it did not
take us long to get somewhere near where this big fish broke. We did our
best to get to the exact spot where he came up, then slowed down and
trolled over the place. In this instance I felt a light tap on my bait
and I jumped up quickly, both to look and let him take line. But I did
not see him or feel him any more. We went on. I saw a flash of bright
silver back of my brother's bait. At the instant he hooked a kingfish.
And then I felt one cut my bait off. Kingfish are savage strikers and
they almost invariably hook themselves when the drag is set. But as I
fish for sailfish with a free-running reel, of course I am exasperated
when a kingfish takes hold. My brother pulled in this kingfish, which
was small, and we rebaited our hooks and went on again. I saw more
turtles, and one we almost ran over, he was so lazy in getting down.
These big, cumbersome sea animals, once they get headed down and
started, can disappear with remarkable rapidity. I rather enjoy
watching them, but my boatman, who is a native of these parts and
therefore a turtle-hunter by instinct, always wore a rather disappointed
look when we saw one. This was because I would not allow him to harpoon
it.

[Illustration: TWIN TIGERS OF THE SEA--THE SAVAGE BARRACUDA]

[Illustration: HAPPY PASTIME OF BONEFISHING]

The absence of gulls along this stretch of reef is a feature that struck
me. So that once in a while when I did see a lonely white gull I watched
him with pleasure. And once I saw a cero mackerel jump way in along the
reef, and even at a mile's distance I could see the wonderful curve he
made.

The wind freshened, and all at once it seemed leaping sailfish were all
around us. Then as we turned the boat this way and that we had thrills
of anticipation. Suddenly R. C. had a strike. The fish took the bait
hungrily and sheered off like an arrow and took line rapidly. When R. C.
hooked him he came up with a big splash and shook himself to free the
hook. He jumped here and there and then went down deep. And then he took
a good deal of line off the reel. I was surprised to see a sailfish
stick his bill out of the water very much closer to the boat than where
R. C.'s fish should have been. I had no idea then that this was a fish
other than the one R. C. had hooked. But when he cut the line eithe