436 BOOK OF THE BLACK BASS. 



with single hooks for impaling the minnow ; these contriv- 

 ances are intended for Pike-fishing, and should never be 

 used for the Elack Bass. A single hook is suflScient for 

 all purposes. The minnow may be hooked through the 

 lips; or, perhaps, the best way for trolling, is to pass the 

 hook through the mouth and out at the gill-opening, then 

 carry it back and insert it just behind the dorsal fin — a 

 needle, armed with a strong thread, is then passed through 

 the lips of the minnow, and tightly tied to the snell, this 

 obviates the use of the lip-hook ; a minnow will spin as 

 well hooked in this way, as with the most approved spin- 

 ning-tackle. 



The angler, with his boatman, in trolling with the rod, 

 proceeds in ;i boat over the fisliing-grounds, with from 

 thirty to fifty yards of line out. The rod must be held 

 with the tip elevated, so as to keep the rod constantly 

 curved, and the thumb should be applied to the spool of 

 the reel, so as to be ready at any moment for the violent 

 rush of the Bass, for lie bites very wickedly at the moving 

 bait. The fish must be hooked at once, though he often 

 fastens himself. If the angler has a long line out, he 

 must reel in his fish as soon as possible, until he has him 

 Avithin proper bounds, when he can kill him at his leisure. 

 The mani})ulation of the Bass after he is hooked is just 

 the same as described in the chapter on casting the min- 

 now, to which the reader is referred. 



It is useless to troll in deep water, far from shore; it 

 should only be practiced in water from three to ten feet 

 deep, following the trend of the shore, as far as possible, 

 where the proper conditions exist, which are given in a 

 previous chapter. 



