American Angler in Australia (1937) by Zane Grey Read Free Book Online

shark.
    On the third clear morning, with a warm sun and a light north-east breeze , I felt sure that we would have luck. Peter said fish ought to be in. W e found bait plentiful and hungry. While fishing around Black Rock I saw a Marlin jump. We got teasers and bait overboard in a hurry, and I trolle d there for an hour, without raising him.
    Meanwhile Bowen and his crew had run outside four or five miles. When I f inally ran up to them they had a swordfish tied up to the boat. It ha d been caught by Mr. Stewart, a guest of Bowen's that day, and was hi s first one after many attempts. He appeared to be mute in his delight, bu t Bowen was gay and volatile enough.
    "Say," he shouted, "you should have seen this Marlin commit suicide. Why , nothing could lose him! The reel overran a dozen times and never tangled.
    Get a load of that, will you? He ran under the boat. The leader caught i n the propeller and the fish came up on the other side. All our backs wer e turned. He tried to get aboard. When we gaffed him the hook fell out. Ca n you beat that for luck?"
    No, I could not, and after congratulating Mr. Stewart I trolled on , marveling at the queer angles of this game. Late in the afternoon w e turned to go in. The golden lights were shining over the ranges, th e purple Toll Gates loomed grandly against the background. The day appeare d to be about over.
    "There's a fin!" yelled Bill, suddenly. He was up on deck. "Far ahead an d going fast."
    "Chase it," I ordered. "Hook her up, Pete."
    We ran down current like the wind, everybody searching the big swells an d white seas. We ran nearly half a mile before Bill sighted the fin again.
    Still ahead! We ran on, lost it again. Then Emil saw it on our left an d we sped in that direction. We ran past the other boat. They yelled to u s and pointed back to the right and we had to turn again. Peter saw hi m again and that encouraged us. He opened up the engine full ahead and w e roared over the swells, leaving a white wake behind us.
    "There he is!" shouted Peter, pointing. "Going like one thing!"
    "Don't run him down, Peter," I said, as I caught my first glimpse of th e big gleaming tail fin. "It's a black Marlin."
    Peter slowed down. But we had to go at least at a ten-knot speed in orde r to come up with the fish. His tail went under, came up again, flashe d opal and gold, vanished, to show once more.
    Suddenly I saw that tail give a peculiar twitch--an action I had see n many times. I flashed my gaze back to my bait.
    "He saw it! Look out!"
    I venture to say that that fish traveled as fast as my sight. Becaus e instantly there he was back of my bait. He snatched it and sheered off t o the races. He ran four hundred yards on that strike, and when I hooke d him he took off at least two hundred more. That was a long way off. Th e line was so tight I had to release the drag. We ran after him and it wa s quite awhile before I recovered a foot of line. He broke water twice, bu t did not leap.
    Eventually we gained on him. In perhaps a quarter of an hour I recovere d most of the line. Then he sounded. From that period I fought him an hou r and ten minutes to fetch him to the surface.
    He proved to be a short, broad, beautifully built black Marlin, dee p purple in color, and remarkable for the shortest spear I ever saw on on e of these fish. It was less than a foot in length and a perfect weapon.
    This black Marlin weighed around four hundred pounds, and was I glad t o take him in to Bateman Bay?

    Chapter VI
    One of my strong reasons for coming to Bateman Bay, if not the strongest , was the fact that this big shallow body of water was infested wit h sharks. Salmon, bonito, yellowtail, taylor, mullet, which are the ver y best bait for any and all salt-water fish, inhabit this bay; and I a m sure have a great deal to do with the presence of sharks.
    After seeing a small specimen of wobbegong, or carpet shark, I was ver y keen to catch one. This fellow is about the most curious sea creature t o be